Sock Monkeys!

Sock Monkeys are everywhere! Not really, but I sort of wish they were! To look at the origin of the sock monkey, it would be necessary to look back at the humble sock from which it is made. Back around 1869, a Swedish immigrant named John Nelson invented a knitting machine and in 1890 he began knitting work socks in Rockford, Illinois. These socks were worn mainly by farmers and factory workers. Being so comfortable, the market was soon flooded with imitation socks. To combat this, Nelson started creating socks with the iconic red heel in 1932. It was not long before the first Sock Monkey was born with the red heel forming the distinctive mouth. Folks were making these monkeys out of worn out socks during the Great Depression but they became so popular that everyone wanted as Sock Monkey and not just any Sock Monkey..one with the red mouth! The Nelson Knitting company fought to get the patent for the Sock Monkey pattern. When they did, they included the pattern in each pair of socks sold! This made the socks even that much more in demand! Smart thinking on the company's part! Those red-heeled socks soon became their best seller! Nelson Knitting Mills was sold to Fox River Mills in 1992 but, keeping with tradition, a monkey pattern is still included with the purchase of a pair of socks!

A simple photograph started all of this rant about socks and Sock Monkeys. I was looking through a few of my pictures when I came across one that Darling Daughter sent to me. It is a picture of a pair of sock monkeys that she had made using red-heeled work socks. These monkeys are adorable! She did an amazing job recreating something from the past! Elizabeth has always had so much talent with her sewing (among the other many talents!) that it was only natural that she tried to create the Sock Monkey. I can remember growing up just how much I always wanted a Sock Monkey. I never mentioned it to anyone so therefore I never had one. I thought these toys were the funnest things around..I mean..just imagine how much fun it would be to have a monkey! My sock monkey lived on only in my dreams! Some day when she is not busy with Grad School, I will have to persuade Darling Daughter Elizabeth to sew a Sock Monkey for me! (And we won't even mention the phrase "second childhood" now will we???)