Dear Pearl,

I have not seen or read anywhere on how to darn socks or sweaters that worked for me.

I've read every book I could find on mending clothes, and I just could not get the hole to look like it was not there anymore. Like many new ideas, desperation was the mother of this one.

I had to mend my husband's favorite and only clean sweater!

* I cut some yarn of a matching color into pieces 3" - 4" long, and curled them like a hairpin across the hole.

* On my sewing machine I set the stitch to a wide 3 step zig- zag (my regular zig-zag did not catch all the yarn).

* I used coordinating thread and after cutting a few yarn ends, the sweater looked like it never had a hole.

After that success, I started on my giant shopping bag of socks with holes in them! It's a quick, very effective and cheap way to get a few more seasons from knits. You do need scraps of yarn, so if you're not a knitter or crocheter this is another good reason to start (or you could pick up some at your local thrift shop for pennies)!

Now I even buy sweaters at yard sales and fix them up to look perfect!

I hope some of your readers try it.
Paulette - Bedford, MA

* Paulette - what a great idea! A new way for us to make our clothes last longer, something we all need!