Ep 141 - Methods for Repairing Hand Knit Socks

The Shinybees Knitting and Yarn Podcast

Today’s episode is all about repairing hand knit socks. I have a pair of socks that I have accidentally worn through the heel of, and I wanted to repair them. I’ve collated some resources and options for repairing knitted items. If you’re struggling with existential crises/dread/ennui as a result of over-thinking everything, Dr Shiny’s recommendation is vigorous consumption of comedy videos and memes. And Tiger King. Link to Bits n Pieces by Artemisia Methods for Fixing Hand Knit Socks The easiest way to repair worn-through hand knits, is to repair the thin patch before it actually wears through completely. You can do this using several different methods. Using reinforcing thread is a popular way, where you follow the pattern of the stitches to make the existing ones more sturdy. You could also use the same yarn you used initially, if you have any available. You could go in-between and use a finer gauge yarn to duplicate stitch and strengthen the yarn. This method is known as Swiss darning or duplicate stitch. It’s helpful to have a darning mushroom or egg to do the repair, to spread the stitches out to make them easier to see. It will also help to avoid sewing the two sides of the sock together! Apparently an incandescent lightbulb will also suffice as a stand in. If you've already worn through the fabric and are the proud owner of a holy sock, you're going to need a different approach. This will take the form of making a patch of some sort. You can either pick up stitches and knit a patch, or knit a patch and sew it on. There are a few options that are a combination of the two as well. There are videos linked in the show notes. Full shownotes and links at www.shinybees.com/141