After Sam dyes and dries the broomcorn, Karen soaks it in hot water again, making the pieces pliable. This is the very best broomcorn you can buy,” Karen, 66, said.Ī lot of work still goes into their brooms. Once it is processed, broomcorn is referred to as “hurl” and ready to be crafted. Broomcorn, a member of the sorghum family, is different from actual corn and has been used to make brooms and brushes for centuries. Now, they buy 100-pound bales of de-seeded broomcorn from a supplier in Texas, the country’s last. Sam Morrison stitches together a broom using a double ended needle, which he pushes through the broom with his leather hand cuffs. When they started making brooms in 1988, they grew broomcorn on a farm in Wheat Ridge, Sam said, remembering the itchy feeling when the coarse seeds from the tall grass fell down his shirt, sticking to his sweaty back during the warm harvest months. The Morrisons always enjoyed working with their hands. Praise for the couple’s craft and excellent customer service flows on Google reviews, one calling their shop a “must-see” when visiting Victor and “one of the best vintage stores in the universe.” “Some people will stand here and watch the entire thing,” Karen said, “and other people are bored after 2½ minutes.”Ĭustomers tell them their handmade brooms last 10 to 15 years, or more, long past the lifespan of a plastic grocery store broom. Sam Morrison stitches together a broom by hand using original artisan techniques with the original manufacturing equipment. Their business, Victor Trading Co., has helped keep the town of 400 on the map, while attracting people from across the world to watch the couple crank antique machinery from the front of the shop while keeping 19th-century techniques alive. “I think there’d be a huge backlash if we just quit,” said Sam, 69. One broom was so treasured it was disputed in a divorce settlement. Their clients range from Hollywood set directors to curators at the Smithsonian. Yet 33 years later, they guess they’ve made 30,000 brooms with no plans on stopping. Meet Colorado’s Congressional delegation.If you purchase an item through the link, we receive a small commission that helps fund our Recycling Directory.A Colorado mining town gets swept up in couple’s historic broom-making business Close And as for Mom’s “rag on a broom,” there are even wooden Cuban-style mops that work much the same way if you don’t have an old broom to use! Also, I often see my neighbors using sturdy outdoor brooms made with coconut palm fibers. While the beautifully handcrafted Shaker braid brooms can be costly, there are plenty of more economical versions that are also strong, durable, and made of natural materials. While it’s discouraging to see all the plastic brooms and mops for sale today, it’s good to know there are more sustainable options. The kids could even use them to build a sheet fort or a tee-pee. If you saw off the worn-out bristles, wooden broom handles make sturdy stakes for garden vegetables like tomatoes and squash. It’s great for cleaning snow off of the car or for sweeping the floor mats. I keep one with a broken handle in the trunk of my car. After use, I’d soak the dirty rag in a mop bucket filled with soapy water and hang it outside to dry. I also used the “rag on a broom” for mopping the floor. The damp cloth picked up dust, cobwebs, hair, and dirt - even crumbs - and it could easily be washed to use again. It seemed like such a great solution for dusting and sweeping. ![]() When I got married, I found myself doing the same thing as Mom. She also used it to clear cobwebs and dust in high areas she couldn’t reach near the ceiling. She would cover the worn-down bristles with a damp rag and use it to dust the floors before mopping. Mom even used her brooms long after the bristles had worn down. Mom used a more traditional broom with corn straw bristles and a durable wooden handle, but hers lasted a long time, too. It had a sturdy metal handle and the bristles were made of strong, stiff wire. Unlike the cheap plastic models widely available today, Grandma used a high-quality broom that she bought from the Fuller Brush Man. I’ve started thinking about spring cleaning, which reminded me of the brooms that Grandma and Mom kept for years.
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