Not an answer, but take a look at the glove darner ..... scroll down
http://www.homethingspast.com/darning-eggs-mushrooms/
There is a mention about bodhran drumsticks ... being alternative glove darners
... scroll down a piece again
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhr%C3%A1n
Definitely some similarities!
Though there are also similarities to garden dibbers or dibblers .... though I think these are too short, too fine and too clean to have been used in that way.