The Joys of Hand-Knit Socks
Those warm, wooly, wonderful wearables!
In my quest for comfortable feet, I heaved a heavy sigh of regret at the flimsy quality of so many store-bought cotton socks. They don’t conform properly to my feet, leaving me dealing with bunched-up toes, saggy middles, and bare heels, complete with chafing and blisters. And they get soggy from my foot sweat. Yes, I said it. My feet sweat.
I have come to loathe cotton socks.
I tried poly-cotton, but they don’t perform much better. I wondered if my feet were oddly shaped, or was it simply that poly-cotton was not a good sock material for the heat and humidity that is a Texas summer?
Then my sister came to live with us, with her yarns and her knitting needles. And she started to make us socks.
Woolen blend socks. Soft and cushiony, made to fit each of us individually. Warm from more than simply the wool in the yarn, these socks were made with love.
Made by hand, each pair took forever to knit. But socks are a small, portable project, so whenever she left the house, she’d bring her sock knitting
Did you know there’s such a thing as yarn spun specifically for making socks? Modern sock yarns usually have a high percentage of wool in the yarn, plus some nylon for strength, and sometimes some elastic fiber to make the socks more springy, though wool itself is very elastic and springy.
These socks, with mostly natural wool in the yarn, require hand-washing. You can’t put them through the wash, unless you plan to give them to your teddy bear afterwards. Wool shrinks, y’know.
So, besides just knitting them for us, she also washes them for us when she washes her own. It doesn’t add any more time to that task, and she knows the socks she worked so hard on are being properly cared for and not run through the laundry machines.
And talk about comfortable! Wool holds its shape, and keeps you warm and comfortable, even if it’s wet. Also, wool keeps you comfortable in summer as well as in winter! If it’s really hot out or if it’s below freezing, wool keeps you at a very nice temperature.
So, yeah, woolen socks are great, and the soft, colorful, lovely, warm, cushie hand-knit socks my sister makes for us rule!
