Thursday, July 7, 2016

Finding the Muse #6... inspired by need



I've read that necessity is the mother of invention. 
How often that has been the inspiration for me!! 

For today's post on inspiration, I share my latest invention, a mended sock. 
I learned to knit, however I can't always distinguish a stitch so that when I mess up a pattern I can't tell how to fix it. 

I like the meditative feeling of knitting, but am more comfortable with crochet. I taught myself to crochet as a child from a book, and still am more comfortable with a hook than a needle with yarn. 
 Funny that, since I am quite comfortable sewing with a needle. 

I love the colors and feel of yarn, don't you? I have tried crochet, knitting, weaving, macrame, embroidery. I have a collection of yarns, big surprise. I found that I love knitting socks. I now make them on two circular needles. 

Both my husband and I love wearing the socks I've made as they fit without being tight. We wear them around the house, and to sleep in as they breathe and it's been shown one sleeps better when their feet are covered. They are never hot when made of wool or bamboo. 
I don't care how it looks...I could go find that color yarn but meh...
The problem is they wear out on the bottom. I tried to mend them by darning but it was futile. This week I had a burst of inspiration!!
(don't you love those?) 
Crochet! 
Crochet around the hole, pulling the yarn up through a knit stitch, doing single crochet, going around and around the hole skipping a stitch as needed to close up the hole. It worked like a charm, is flat and comfortable and so very easy compared with darning or trying to insert some kind of knitting. 
who cares how it looks!
So, inspiration can come when you need to solve a problem, be it sewing, repair, organization, song writing, or getting a two year old to obey. It's all creativity in use! 

17 comments:

Julierose said...

Super idea--we love our hand knitted socks, too..
hugs, Julierose

Glen QuiltSwissy said...

Oh wow! Great idea! I made Frank several socks, and he never wears them. I am guessing only once, the first time I handed them to him. I know, he is really weird. I have no idea why they are different to him.....

Tails Around the Ranch said...

Whoa...that's brilliant! Simply brilliant and a cute design to boot. Love those socks, BTW. I'm with you, love padding around in wool socks in the winter. 😎

quiltedfabricart said...

What is it about knitting ? Every fall I feel the need to knit. I have no idea what I'm doing but I do it cause I need to . It's comforting, warming , nurturing . I admire those like you who can actually make something like socks as opposed to me whose finished product is a potholder

Mary Marcotte said...

Isn't it wonderful what our brains can do when we're not even working on the problem. A background system is up and running and just doing its thing, and voila! a big ole problem is solved and we didn't even work to solve it. Apparently your background system even talks to your foreground system. (My systems rarely communicate.) I'll be sending a few (store-bought, sorry) holey socks your way.

Joanne said...

Thanks for the great scissor tip LeeAnna!
Just looked it up on you tube....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5Cyd6_rrxY

easyweimaraner said...

I love this kind of socks... and we have such house socks too... my great aunty knitted them, but sadly her eyes are tired now and the socks have special colors... but we love them anyway :o)

Pam @Threading My Way said...

Very clever way to mend socks LeeAnna. I haven't knitted for years, but I learnt as a child and used to find it very therapeutic. Crochet I learnt as an adult and always had to concentrate, so didn't ever do much of it. I really should get out the knitting needles and knit some socks. My sister bought me a handmade pair and they are divine.

PaintedThread said...

I dislike darning - I like your solution!

I've sewn leather to the bottom of my favorite wear-around-the-house wool socks so I don't have to darn them so much!

Gwyned Trefethen said...

What a hoot! It never would have occurred to me to fill a sock hole with crochet. I love it. Just might give it a go.

AlidaP said...

Brilliant! I am also a practical person and as long as it works, I don't really care if it looks "good" or not :) thanks for sharing!!

Val's Quilting Studio said...

My mom knits me socks and I LOVE them!!

Val's Quilting Studio said...

yes...I find inspiration in necessity too.

Unknown said...

Very clever way to fill those holes. Darning socks (pulled over a light bulb) was one of those things my mother made me learn as a kid.

JOY @ http://joysjotsshots.blogspot.com/ said...

This is a great inspirational idea! Thanks.

Bonnie said...

Good for you on your creative way of saving your socks. I wonder why we don't mend socks anymore?

Vivian said...

What a great repair tip! I too am more comfortable crocheting but so want to try knitting socks. After everything you've noted about their comfort, maybe this is the year to finally try it.