"Do you know how to darn?" asked my husband.

"I am from America – we don't even know the meaning of the word!" I replied indignantly (I thought he wanted me to mend a pair of socks for him; hrmph!). The post-war experience was different in the US, so the 'Mend and Make Do' culture never really caught on. Everyone was encouraged to forget about SIY (sew it yourself) and mending had a faintly embarrassing whiff about it.

 

I did feel a bit guilty (EcoManiac, what EcoManiac?) so did endeavor to mend holes in the toes of two pairs of children's tights. Grandma (who's much more practical than I) gave my daughter a knitting doll and a big box of yarn for Christmas, so maybe she and I can learn the basics together. Yet another resolution for 2010 – though I'm sticking with iron-on tape instead of 'proper' hemming (don't forget the 'Accidental'...)