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I feel like all my socks got holes at the same time, so let’s look at a few easy ways to mend a hole in a sock.
I have this set of fair isle style socks my husband bought me years ago, and it’s like the warranty just expired because it seems like every time I put on a pair one of them has a hole. As you can see from the photo above, one of these I’m fixing in this tutorial, but the other one was already mended once!
They cost at most $14 for five pairs, so I could probably justify buying a new set instead of mending the holes. But at the same time, it’s an easy and quick thing to darn a sock, so why not?
Supplies for Sock Darning
All you really need to fix a hole in a sock is some sewing thread and a needle and a little pair of scissors. I don’t care if my thread matches, and I actually think it’s kind of charming when my fixing is visible.
Somewhere in my house I have a darning egg that I think was my grandmother’s, but I don’t know where it is today so I just poked the hole open with my finger. Again we are not going for perfection here, we just want the socks to be wearable.
The Easiest Way to Darn a Sock
I call them method of sock mending the Frankensock (Frankenstein’s Monster’s Sock?) because the stitches are visible and it looks a bit like someone inexperienced at surgery decided to give someone stitches.
Again, I like the look of a stitched up sock. There’s a bit of pride involved even though the few people who see my socks probably already know I mended them.
If you don’t want your fix to be as visible, read below.
For all fixes I use a doubled up piece of sewing thread and I tie a knot because I know from experience I can’t really feel them. If you’re sensitive to stuff in your socks, you can weave the end into the stitches of the sock a few times to hold it in place before you get started.
Take your needle through the sock from the inside to the outside (so the knot stays on the inside) close to where the hole is. It doesn’t matter which direction you stitch; whatever works for you is fine.
Run the needle through the loops of stitching at the bottom edge, along the side and at the top of the hole. You want to secure the thread as much as you can and hold the original stitches together.
Move over a little and got through what loops you can find from top to bottom. Here you’ll probably just find the stitch at the top and bottom of the hole.
Pull so the hole closes up where you’ve stitched it. Since we’re working from the outside these stitches are pretty visible.
Keep working your way across until you reach the other side of the hole.
Flip the sock inside out and see if you can see any spots where the stitching isn’t covering the hole and stitch back across as needed.
When you’re done, tie another knot in the thread and take the needle through a couple of loops on the inside of the sock to anchor it.
Cut any remaining thread.
A Nicer Way to Mend a Hole in a Sock
That’s the easiest way to mend a hole in a sock, but again it’s pretty visible (though it would be less so if your thread matched).
If you don’t want it to be so obvious that you darned your sock, try stitching from the inside instead of the outside.
The method is pretty much the same. Thread your needle, tie a knot and turn your sock inside out.
Take a stitch so that the knot is anchored on the inside of the sock.
Use your needle to collect as many loops of stitching as you can from the sock along the hole.
Repeat across the hole, pulling the thread so that the hole closes up.
Tie a knot and stitch a couple more times to anchor the thread, then trim with scissors.
I messed up a bit and have one stitch that’s visible on the outside, but that’s actually helpful for you because you can see that otherwise this mend isn’t that visible.
How to Mend Socks Invisibly
Let’s say you really don’t want your darned sock mend to show at all. If you have matching thread, you can use this same method (stitching from the inside) to make a fix that’s basically undetectable when you’re wearing it.
I didn’t even realize this sock had two holes until I sat down to fix it!
These socks are even older than the other ones I’ve shown, but again, to me it’s worth it to take a few minutes to fix them rather than to buy new. Here’s what the stitching looks like from the inside.
And my finger is showing you where the sock was mended on the outside. Pretty hard to tell, right?
There’s something really satisfying about knowing how to mend socks, even if you’re only mending socks you bought at the store. (Though of course you can mend socks you knit, too!)
Do you have any sock mending tips? I’d love to hear them.
