SNOHOMISH — It’s more fun than a barrel of monkeys.
More than 100 sock monkeys gather around this Christmas tree. Monkeys in overalls, sweaters, suits or in the buff. Monkeys drinking tea. Monkeys kicked back in chairs. Monkeys hugging. They all look so cheery, these button-eyed stuffed toys whose red lips were once red heels.
“They are happy to have a home,” said Darlene Huntington.
Some people collect angels, nutcrackers and other holiday icons. Huntington collects sock monkeys.
Actually, she collects Santas, too, but it’s the monkeys that separate this house from others.
You can see the monkey party on the Dec. 14 Snohomish Historical Society Parlour Tour that has seven homes, each decorated in an unique way.
As for Huntington’s monkeys, no two are alike.
“These didn’t come from a factory. They are all Grandma-made,” said Huntington, 80.
But they weren’t made by this grandma.
“I was a nail-pounder and paint-stripper,” she said. “I restored old houses.”
She got into the monkey business by accident.
“Years ago, when we lived in Chicago one of my friends gave my son who is now 56 a little sock monkey,” she said. “He didn’t take an interest in it, but I did.”
There was something about those kitschy, cute toys with dangling arms, hand-stitched eyelashes and whimsical expressions. She started adding members to the tribe by scouring yard sales and thrift shops. The monkeys fit nicely around the tree. The rest of the year, they live in plastic boxes. No, they don’t jump on the bed.
“I am used to them,” said Dan, her husband of 61 years. “It is her gig. It is pretty tasteful. It takes her a long time.”
She admits she’s not one to do anything in moderation, especially around the holidays.
She was instrumental in starting the parlor tour years ago as a way to raise money for the historical society. For years, it was limited to parlors in downtown homes. Her place sits on five acres by the Snohomish River valley, with a massive garden that has been on garden tours.
This is the first time her menagerie of monkeys has been available for public consumption.
Sock monkeys have undergone extensive commercialization, as with all those other retro toys. The cheeky monkeys are mass produced in trendy colors and super-sized as big as apes.
You won’t find those around Huntington’s tree. She’s picky about her primates. She’s also thrifty. Those Grandma-made monkeys can get pricey these days. The most she paid was $18, and that was way more than the others.
The monkeys have come a long way from their poor upbringings.
“During the Depression you saved your husband’s or dad’s socks, the red-heeled socks they wore under their workboots. And when they’d wear out you’d make these. That’s why they have these faded looks.”
Imagine kids these days getting a monkey made out of Dad’s old socks.
It’d never fly.
Andrea Brown: 425- 339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
If you go
Snohomish Historical Society’s Parlour Tour is noon to 4 p.m. Dec. 14. It features the decked-out parlors of seven private homes as well as access to the Blackman Museum and Kikendall Cabin at Pioneer Cemetery. The tour is self-guided for the five homes in town. Because of parking logistics, Huntington’s place and the parlor tour home across the street are only available by shuttle. Park at the Bailey Vegetables farm stand at 12711 Springhetti Road, just east of Highway 9. Cost of the tour is $15; or $10 for those 62 and older and younger than 12. This includes coffee, tea and scones at Blackman Museum. Tickets are available the day of the tour beginning at 11 a.m. at the Waltz Building, 116 Ave. B, Snohomish. Advance tickets are available at McDaniel’s Do-It Center, Joyworks and Annie’s on First.
For more information, call 360-568-5235 or go to www.snohomishhistoricalsociety.org.
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