A few weeks ago, I wrote about Maria’s quite frugal and old-fashioned habit of darning her socks when they had holes in them, I had never seen this done, in my family we just bought new ones.
When she sits in the living room darning, I think of the many women in this old farmhouse who did the same thing over the years. She is so different from them, but sometimes, so much like them. I always think of Maria as a character out of a Willa Cather novel.
It reminded me of old farmhouses and the frugality of farm people, so I went online and browsed and I found Benedicte on Etsy, she lived in a small village outside of Paris and she sold antique artifacts, including darning eggs.
This egg was not easy to find,but I thought it would make a lovely Christmas gift for Maria. Benedicte wrote me to say it wouldn’t arrive until this week, and it arrived today, a beautiful, worn darning egg. I couldn’t wait to give it to Maria.
Inside was the carefully wrapped egg, and a nice note from Benedicte, who said she hoped it would delight me, and it did and does.
Maria, who is rarely surprised by anything i do, was amazed, she wanted to put it on the mantle or a shelf in her studio. I protested, and said she needed to use it, it was a century old and had helped to save many socks.
Benedicte and I have become friends, we chat all of the time online now. She loves the photos of Gus, she has a terrier too. She hopes to see a photo of Maria darning her socks.
I think she thinks it is too precious to use, and it is up to her of course. I love this egg, I think it is one of the best presents I’ve ever gotten for Maria, and nobody we know is likely to have one either. I have one more Christmas present coming for her, and this one is also original and took some searching.
The Internet has its headaches and problems, but sometimes it is just a miracle. I think the darning egg is already on the mantel above the fireplace. We’ll see. Thanks, Benedicte.
Jon, I think your search for a darning egg for Maria is so warm and thoughtful….. what a beautiful (and useful) gift. I loved just seeing this photo of it! I know Maria will enjoy it and I hope she will USE it when she needs to…… darning itself is almost a lost art, and to have such a beautiful and useful *tool* to darn with…..well, I am envious! My Mom had a darning ball similar to this but the shape and size of a tennis ball and I have fond memories of her darning wool socks when I was young. When I went through her things after she passed away, I was so looking forward to finding it in her sewing box, but sadly it was not among her sewing things. I am certain Maria will treasure this! It is a beautiful gift indeed
Warm regards
Susan M
I love that simple tools like this egg, and handmade quilts last through the years. In this throw away world, there’s something comforting in that.
A friend and I were just talking about these darning eggs the other day after I told her about your blog and Maria darning socks. We both remembered our mothers teaching us how to use one. Sadly, unlike Maria, we have not kept up with the practice of darning socks.
When growing up, we had a darning egg but it was on a 4″ handle to make it easy to slip into a sock or sweater sleeve. I love to darn as a favorite pastime but you just can’t find darning eggs (I didn’t know they were called “eggs”) anywhere anymore. I don’t think it is frugal or old-fashioned to darn. When you have favorite clothes, why get rid of them when they get a little worn? But I no longer have a darning egg so I throw out those “holy” clothes now.