Wait! Don't throw out your favourite pair of socks just because they have a hole in them. With a needle, thread and you can fix them in about 3 minutes. How to darn a sock ...
Darning socks is something I started doing when I was a kid. It was one weird thing in a long list of weird things that interested me. My mother, who had fun making her own hats, bras, porcelain dolls, clothing, stained glass, folk art, and wool washing soap - thought my sock darning habit was ridiculous.
Which makes no logical sense yet here we are.
Even if you don't have any socks to mend this same method will work on anything. It's basically how to sew a hole on any piece of fabric or clothing.
I understand there aren't many of you that want to know how to darn a sock, (a term I'm using loosely) but if you have a favourite pair and particularly long toenails, it's something that might interest you.
Most of the sock darning in this household is done on my pajama socks. The big, ugly, cushy socks I like to wear instead of slippers. I have an unexplainable attachment to these socks. They're like blankies for my feet.
So in an effort to get even closer to my childhood dream of becoming a scullery maid, I darn my own socks.
Again, I'm using the term darn loosely. Darning involves weaving thread so it mimics fabric. What I'm doing here is sewing up a sock the same way you'd sew together a sweater. It's a technique that is close to invisible and doesn't leave a big lump in the sock which would be annoying on the bottom of your foot.
How to Darn a Sock.
You'll need:
Thread in a colour similar to the sock
A tennis ball, light bulb or any other round object
A needle
A Sock with a hole in it
Step 1 - Place your sock over a tennis ball or lightbulb
(you can also just stick your hand inside the sock if you prefer).
Step 2 - Thread your needle
(I am using white thread just to make it easier for you to see what I'm doing in the pictures)
Step 3 - Tie a knot in the end of your thread then insert needle on the inside of sock.
(this way your knot will be on the inside of the sock. There are other more complicated ways to start your line where you have no knot at all, but I'm keeping it simple here)
Step 4 - Pull your thread through, leaving the knot on the inside of the sock.
Step 5 - With your needle, pick up one single stitch at the edge of the right side of your hole.
Step 6 - Pull your thread all the way through, without pulling it tight.
Step 7 - Insert your needle under a single thread to the left of the hole.
Step 8 - Pull your thread through without pulling it tight. You're creating a criss cross pattern on TOP of the sock.
Continue this pattern moving from left to right.
Step 9 - Once you get to the top of the hole, gradually move your stitches closer together.
Step 10 - Gently start to pull the thread. This will close up the hole.
Step 11 - Insert needle back into the spot it last came out, picking up a thread or two.
Step 12 - Pull the thread almost all the way through, leaving a small loop at the end.
Step 13 - Bring your needle back around and stick it into the loop.
Step 14 - Pull the thread tight to create a knot.
Step 15 - Insert your needle at the top of the repair and let it come out about halfway down.
Step 16 - Pull the thread all the way through.
Step 17 - Snip the tail end of the thread off close to the sock with scissors.
Done!
(remember you can see the seam on this sock because I used white thread to make it easier for you to see ... use the appropriate coloured thread and it'll be invisible)
Now here's the funny part. These socks are so worn out ... I've decided to finally chuck 'em. By the time you read this post, they'll be gone.
Speaking of which, I just remembered it's garbage night. A scullery maid's work is never done. Darn it.
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Thanks for the darning article. Very clear and helpful, and I particularly loved your humorous ending couple of sentences! Good on you.
Thanks Dave! Good luck with your socks. ~ karen!
Thank you so much for posting this! Such clear and easy directions to follow! My kids always have holes in their pants knees and I’ve already sewed up several pants. Thank you again!
Good job! It's such an easy technique for sewing something up. ~ karen!
Glad your blog popped up on my screen. Pls include me in future posts.
Thanks so much for this tutorial. I'm very new to sewing but this was easy to follow and I've officially darned my first sock!
WOW thank you so much! i have been trying to figure out how to sew the holes in my socks for years and i always suck at it. I love socks i would go as far as to say i am a sock connoisseur. But for some reason every pair of socks i buy always develop a hole on the left side where my pinky toe is and its so annoying i hate it. This technique may have saved me alot of heartache lol. Thank you!
-Brad W
You're welcome. Sock it to ya! ~ karen
That looks so much easier than how I have been doing it. I one time read that you basically have to go back and forth in the same pattern as wwhat is already there. Very hard to go in and out in same pattern.
Hi Katherine! That's "official" darning, but most people today aren't going to reknit their socks. So this is the cheater way that works really well. :) ~ karen!
Thank you so much for this tutorial! I just darned my first pair and am now collecting all the other holey socks in the house to fix them. Instructions are very easy to follow and demystifies the process.
Thank you SO much for this!!!! I have SO many socks that need this.....they're all my favorites and I can't bear to chuck them out!!!!! Thank you again.....although it makes me sound like some sort of sock gollum 🤣😂 xxx
Thank you VERY much! Your clear photos and simple step-by-step instructions have just saved two pairs of new-ish socks. Plus, the sewing part was really satisfying too. I'm so glad I landed on your page.
I’m obsessed! So much fun! And so sad for all the perfectly good pairs of socks I’ve thrown out for an annoying hole….
You clearly say this is sewing more than darning, so calm down people! Thanks for this post!
Thanks LLCookie! And yes. People can calm down. You'd think I was giving the wrong instructions on how to conduct laser heart surgery. ~k aren!
Why turn the sock inside-out? The added thread now rubs against your toe and is uncomfortable. I sew up the hole on outside so the inside is smooth against my toe and besides, no one sees the patch because it is inside my shoe.
I had this site bookmarked for years. Today I finally decided to fix socks that have been piling up. Thank you for the tutorial, this worked great!
Perfect! Good job. I'm happy your toes and heels are ready to take on the world again. ~ karen!
hi! great tutorial, just one problem. this is sewing a hole closed, not darning, which is a more complex technique that weaves thread together over or through the hole.
This was an excellent video. My socks are back to new again. Many thanks for your help.
You're very welcome Shirley! Glad you're well heeled again. ~ karen
No
Liked the article till the ads covered fully 3/4 of the screen. For a long time. So sad.
Well, not really sad when you consider the only way I can publish articles is if I get paid by someone to do it. So it's either ads (all of which have an "x" that you can click to close) or have a paywall where you have to pay to read the content. I've decided to go with ads. ~ karen!
How come you have to wait to pull it tight? What happens if you pull it closed with each stitch?
My favorite day of the week is Trash Eve, yet just can't bear to throw out my ridiculously priced slouch socks.TY for a faster way of repairing the stack of six or so pairs! Sew kind of you to think of your Scullery Sisters.
I see what you did there. ;) ~ karen!
No
now I'm wanting to take up darning socks as a hobby too... guess we'll be scullery maids together:) thanks for the great tutorial - never knew darning socks could be so fun
This isn't darning, but sewing. The knot and the pulled-together sides of the hole are likely to be uncomfortable. :(
I agree, this isn't darning!
Wonderful solution to my dilemma about throwing out perfectly good socks - except they had a hole in the toe. Now saved 3 pairs!
Thanks so much from a grey Melbourne (Australia).
Deirdre
You're welcome Deidre in Melbourne! Good thing you're getting your socks ready to hunker down for winter. :) ~ karen!
Hi Karen - Thanks for this!
It was truly awesome to find your "receipt" to darn socks (and other stuff I presume?). Easy and smart. It's has become awful to me that I must throw out good socks just because of a hole somewhere in it while the rest of the sock is okay.
Greetings From Denmark.
This is awesome! I had seen a video once with techniques like this but it was lost to the internet. Glad to be able to seamlessly repair my socks now — it worked like a charm. Thanks!