Yes, I’m talking about socks. I mean, what did you think I was talking about, huh?
A couple of days ago, one of the blogs I follow posted a de-clutter assignment for clearing out your sock drawer. I thought it was a great way to start small–literally and figuratively. Truth be told, though, it would present more of a challenge for my eight-year-old fashionista’s sock menagerie than it would for my own meager collection.
No, my task today was of a different order: I needed to get over my denial and face reality…..
I’m never going to find the mates for all of those stray socks.
We have a wicker basket that is literally full to the brim with socks that are, well, going through a trial separation. Yes, it is one of the mysteries of the universe where all the missing socks go. But facts are facts: those missing socks are gone, and they’re not coming back. I mean some of those solo socks have been hanging around in this basket for years….
Now I couldn’t just get rid of the whole lot, since I knew that there was a pretty good chance that over time, two strays had both found their way into the Basket of the Lost, and were only separated from each other by sedimentary layers of mismatched cotton and wool. With a little digging and a little patience, I would probably find some mates. And in fact I did. The vast majority, though: lost solos.
It was quick work, really–let’s face it: they’re just socks. I ended up with fifty singletons. One confession: I held onto two strays that had only recently been separated from their mates–sadly, one of them is a favorite pair (or half of a favorite pair, I guess) of wool socks. If these strays aren’t reunited by the end of the month, they’re goners too.
The only question I have now is–what does one do with a bag full of stray socks? It’s not exactly a donation-worthy collection, but it’s not like I can drop them off at my local rag-and-bone shop either, to have them turned into fine paper….
For now, though, they go down into the basement with the other donation goods. Maybe I can think of a better way of passing them along to a better life (and outside of a landfill) before the next charity pick-up swings by our home.
365 Simplify 
I know! I know! (jumping up and down, waving hand in air) Dryers are clever disguises for the mouths of small wormholes, which suck in socks. But because the multiverses practice double-entry bookkeeping, they come back as toothpaste in almost-but-not-quite used up toothpaste tubes. Ever notice you can always squeeze out one more brush charge?
Also, my Mom made a rug of sock strays when I was a kid. How’s that line go about dancing dogs?
Love your post today, thanks! Needed some laughs out loud.
Yes, exactly! Not sure I have the craft skills to make a sock rug. I do have an old climbing rope, though, that has no purpose anymore…I’ve had friends turn them into throw rugs pretty easily.
Rags! Use them for polishing furniture, butterfly cut them for kitchen or shop rags, they’re great for polishing shoes. Cut the feet off and use the tops for boot socks if you can find two that are similar, or not. Make a really unusual quilt with socks as the centerpiece of each block. Use them for puppets for the kids. Make change purses for gifts. Some suggestions off the top of my head, I’m sure there are dozens more lurking around the internet. I hope your lost favorite turns up!
Me too! Thanks for the suggestions. My big problem, though, is hanging on to stuff on the off chance that “someday” I’ll find a use for [fill in the blank]. My sister is the crafty one in the family–maybe I could pack them up in a box and mail them to her as a surprise birthday gift. Won’t she be thrilled 😉
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