The shop was almost warm enough to be bearable today, and it needed a good sweeping.
Decades ago, we lived in the middle of Indianapolis, Indiana. A blind man would show up at our house occasionally carrying a dozen or so brooms over his shoulder. He sold brooms made by “Industries for the Blind.” We enthusiastically bought from him because his were really well made brooms of sturdy, thickly padded, broomcorn. They lasted almost forever, more years than I remember. They were the best brooms ever. We left Indianapolis over 30 years ago and there are no blind men walking around selling good brooms where we live now. In that time, the last of the blind-made brooms have worn out.
The last of the real broomcorn brooms I bought at a big-box store was so flimsy, it wouldn’t support its own weight. I’ve witnessed a steady decline in the quality of store bought brooms, seeing broomcorn get thinner and thinner and finally being replaced by plastic bristles, set in plastic heads, attached to plastic handles. They don’t behave like brooms and break too often. Pure junk!
So, I went on a hunt. The answer to my search was not “handmade,” “blind-made,” “sturdy” or any of the other “durable” words, but “broomcorn!” Two new brooms from Broomcorn Johnny’s now hold my praise for the best brooms ever. Brian Newton is the artisan who operates the broom shop named Broomcorn Johnny’s in Brown County, Indiana. We’ve had two of his brooms long enough to know they’re the new “best.” The flat one is what he calls a “cabin broom.” The round one has about the same amount of broomcorn but is tighter wound and great for heavier work. The flat one stays in the house / cabin. The round one just cleaned up the shop better than any broom I’ve had in the past 15 years and hangs there now. (Cabin brooms are available in plain or in a range of color schemes.)
These brooms seem expensive at $60 – $70 each. Yet, I know they’ll easily outlast the $12 box-store brooms by a factor of 8 -10. That makes them a real bargain, and very attractive too. Highly recommended, and I have no financial gain from this recommendation.
