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Darning is a
sewing Sewing is the craft of fastening pieces of textiles together using a sewing needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era. Before the invention of spinning yarn or weaving fabric, archaeo ...
technique for repairing holes or worn areas in
fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, and different types of fabric. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is no ...
or
knitting Knitting is a method for production of textile Knitted fabric, fabrics by interlacing yarn loops with loops of the same or other yarns. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done Hand knitting, by hand or Knitting machi ...
using needle and thread alone. It is often done by hand, but using a
sewing machine Diagram of a modern sewing machine Animation of a modern sewing machine as it stitches A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolutio ...
is also possible. Hand darning employs the darning stitch, a simple
running stitch The straight or running stitch is the basic Stitch (textile arts), stitch in hand-sewing and embroidery, on which all other forms of sewing are based. The stitch is worked by passing the Sewing needle, needle in and out of the textile, fabric ...
in which the thread is "woven" in rows along the
grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...
of the fabric, with the stitcher reversing direction at the end of each row, and then filling in the framework thus created, as if weaving. Darning is a traditional method for repairing fabric damage or holes that do not run along a seam, and where patching is impractical or would create discomfort for the wearer, such as on the heel of a sock. Darning also refers to any of several
needlework Needlework refers to decorative sewing and other textile arts, textile handicrafts that involve the use of a Sewing needle, needle. Needlework may also include related textile crafts like crochet (which uses a crochet hook, hook), or tatting, ( ...
techniques that are worked using darning stitches: *Pattern darning is a type of
embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...
that uses
parallel Parallel may refer to: Mathematics * Parallel (geometry), two lines in the Euclidean plane which never intersect * Parallel (operator), mathematical operation named after the composition of electrical resistance in parallel circuits Science a ...
rows of
straight stitch The straight or running stitch is the basic stitch in hand-sewing and embroidery, on which all other forms of sewing are based. The stitch is worked by passing the needle in and out of the fabric at a regular distance. All other stitches are ...
es of different lengths to create a geometric design. *Net darning, also called
filet lace Filet lace is the general word used for all the different techniques of embroidery on knotted net (or in French broderie sur filet noué). It is a hand made needlework created by weaving or embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating ...
, is a 19th-century technique using stitching on a mesh foundation fabric to imitate
lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is split into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...
. *Needle weaving is a
drawn thread work Drawn thread work is one of the earliest forms of open work embroidery, and has been worked throughout Europe. Originally it was often used for ecclesiastical items and to ornament shrouds. It is a form of counted-thread embroidery based on remo ...
embroidery technique that involves darning patterns into bare laid warp or weft thread.


Darning cloth

In its simplest form, darning consists of anchoring the thread in the fabric on the edge of the hole and carrying it across the gap. It is then anchored on the other side, usually with a
running stitch The straight or running stitch is the basic Stitch (textile arts), stitch in hand-sewing and embroidery, on which all other forms of sewing are based. The stitch is worked by passing the Sewing needle, needle in and out of the textile, fabric ...
or two. If enough threads are criss-crossed over the hole, the hole will eventually be covered with a mass of thread. Fine darning, sometimes known as ''Belgian darning'', attempts to make the repair as invisible and neat as possible. Often the hole is cut into a square or darn blends into the fabric. There are many varieties of fine darning. Simple over-and-under weaving of threads can be replaced by various fancy weaves, such as
twill Twill is a type of textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and d ...
s, chevrons, etc., achieved by skipping threads in regular patterns. Invisible darning is the epitome of this attempt at restoring the fabric to its original integrity. Threads from the original weaving are unraveled from a hem or seam and used to effect the repair. Invisible darning is appropriate for extremely expensive fabrics and items of apparel. In machine darning, lines of machine running stitch are run back and forth across the hole, then the fabric is rotated and more lines run at right angles.


Tools

There are special tools for darning socks or stockings: * A darning egg is an egg-shaped tool, made of stone,
porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...
, wood, or similar hard material, which is inserted into the toe or heel of the sock to hold it in the proper shape and provide a foundation for repairs. A shell of the tiger cowry ''
Cypraea tigris ''Cypraea tigris'', commonly known as the tiger cowrie, is a species of cowry, a large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries. Taxonomy The tiger cowry was one of the many species originally described by ...
'', a popular ornament in Europe and elsewhere, was also sometimes used as a ready-made darning egg. * A darning mushroom is a mushroom-shaped tool usually made of wood. The sock is stretched over the curved top of the mushroom, and gathered tightly around the stalk to hold it in place for darning. * A darning gourd is a hollow dried
gourd Gourds include the fruits of some flowering plant species in the family Cucurbitaceae, particularly '' Cucurbita'' and '' Lagenaria''. The term refers to a number of species and subspecies, many with hard shells, and some without. Many gourds ha ...
with a pronounced neck. The sock can be stretched over the full end of the gourd and held in place around the neck for darning. Specialty tools aside, anything that is round that can stretch and secure the fabric is also effective. Other examples include lacrosse balls, light bulbs, and lemons. * A darning needle is typically as blunt-tipped as possible, to avoid splitting the threads as it is passed through the item being repaired. This is especially true of larger needles for darning coarse knitted cloth. * A darning loom is a very small hand-held loom for weaving patches into the original cloth. They have an egg portion which goes inside the cloth and is grooved; the rest of the loom goes on the outside, and the two parts are held together by an elastic band. The loom is warped and woven upon with a needle, which also serves as a beater batten. Darning looms typically have heddles made of flip-flopping rotating hooks, which raise and lower the warp, creating
sheds A shed is typically a simple, single-storey (though some sheds may have two or more stories and or a loft) roofed structure, often used for storage, for hobbies, or as a workshop, and typically serving as outbuilding, such as in a back garde ...
to make weaving the patch easier. The hooks, when vertical, have the weft threads looped around them horizontally. If the hooks are flopped over one side or the other, the loop of weft twists, raising one or the other side of the loop, which creates the
shed A shed is typically a simple, single-storey (though some sheds may have two or more stories and or a loft) roofed structure, often used for storage, for hobby, hobbies, or as a workshop, and typically serving as outbuilding, such as in a bac ...
and countershed. The spacing of the hooks generally doesn't match the
threadcount Textile fibers, threads, yarns and fabrics are measured in a multiplicity of units. * A fiber, a single filament of natural material, such as cotton, linen or wool, or artificial material such as nylon, polyester, metal or mineral fiber, or human ...
of the cloth. Other devices sold as darning looms are just a darning egg and a separate comb-like piece with teeth to hook the warp over; these are used for repairing knitted garments and are like a linear knitting spool. Darning looms were sold during World War Two clothing rationing in the United Kingdom and in Canada, and some are homemade.


Pattern darning

Pattern darning is a simple and ancient
embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...
technique in which contrasting thread is woven in and out of the ground fabric using rows of running stitches which reverse direction at the end of each row. The length of the stitches may be varied to produce geometric designs. Traditional embroidery using pattern darning is found in
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, Northern and
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
, the
Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
,
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
and
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
. Pattern darning is also used as a ''filling stitch'' in
blackwork embroidery Blackwork, sometimes historically termed Spanish blackwork, is a form of embroidery generally worked in black thread, although other colours are also used on occasion, as in scarletwork, where the embroidery is worked in red thread. Most strong ...
.


Around the world


Iran

Rofoogari is an old traditional skill or technique used to fix or repair historic textiles and woven materials and fabrics in Iran. Having an old history in weaving and textile making, the culture of rofoo, or "vasleh- Pineh" arose among the poor and unwealthy communities. They used patches to cover the damaged parts and go over the space by running stitches and sometimes decorative ones. In some communities due to lack of resources, they repeated the process as they needed, which is why we find very colorful, different patterned vasleh- pineh in galleries and museums.


India

Rafoogari is the name for the art of darning in India and neighbouring countries of the subcontinent, where this art of healing the cloth is used for practical and traditional reasons. Though wearing restored clothes is associated with poverty and thus seen as shameful, this technique has been used by highly skilled ''"
rafoogar Rafoogar (Rafu Gar, needle-worker, darner or a cloth mender, رفو گر) is an artisan similar to an Embroidery, embroiderer (who decorates the Textile, cloths), but the Rafoogar has the skill to repair the damaged or torn clothes. Rafoogar makes ...
s"'' to restore some priceless clothes such as
Pashmina Pashmina (, ) refers to, depending on the source, the cashmere wool of the Changthangi cashmere goat,Janet Rizvi: ''Pashmina: The Kashmir Shawl and Beyond''. Marg Foundation, 2009. ISBN 978-8185026909. fine Kashmiri cashmere wool,Robert R. Fran ...
shawl A shawl (from ''shāl'') is a simple item of clothing, loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. It is usually a rectangular piece of Textile, cloth, but can also be Square (geometry), square or tr ...
s, silks, woolen clothes, and even fine cotton.
Kashmiris Kashmiris () also known as Koshurs are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group speaking the Kashmiri language and originating from the Kashmir Valley, which is today located in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union terr ...
are considered the best rafoogars, who have imparted their knowledge to artists all over India. Rafoogars still exist across India.Rafoogari: Art of darning
''
Deccan Herald ''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by businessman K. N. Guruswamy and launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Printers Mysore, a privately hel ...
'', 13 April 2013.
The ''Foundation of Indian Contemporary Art'' has been trying to preserve this art, and some artists in India still practice it as a hereditary art form, passed down for over sixteen generations.New Delhi: Mapping a forgotten tradition
LiveMint ''Mint'' is an Indian business and financial daily newspaper published by HT Media, a Delhi-based media group which is controlled by the K. K. Birla family. The K. K. Birla family also publishes ''Hindustan Times''. Mint has been running sin ...
, 28 April 2017.
Journey of a shawl
The Statesman, 19 April 2018.
The fabric of hope
The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
, 25 Aug 2016.


See also

* Mending *
Conservation and restoration of textiles The conservation and restoration of textiles refers to the processes by which textiles are cared for and maintained to be preserved from future damage. The field falls under the category of art conservation, heritage conservation as well as lib ...
*
Boro BORO (Business Objects Reference Ontology) is an approach to developing ontological or semantic models for large complex operational applications that consists of a top ontology as well as a process for constructing the ontology. It was originally ...
* Invisible mending


References


Further reading

* Reader's Digest Oxford Dictionary p. 1001.CS. * * {{Authority control Sewing stitches Embroidery stitches Maintenance