# Sock Yarn: Spinning your own



## akhomesteader (Jan 5, 2006)

What kind of yarn do you use for socks? When I look around for sock yarn, most of what I've seen is wool with a little nylon, and sometimes other things. When you spin your own from wool, do you add anything, such as nylon for durability or stretch, or any other purpose? If so, do you use it as an extra strand of yarn with your wool yarn while you're knitting, or do you twist it into the yarn after spinning? I'm sorry if this is seems like a ridiculous question. I made some warm wool socks for my little boys from worsted wt. 100% wool yarn that I bought. They'll outgrow them before the socks wear out, so I'm not too worried about it. But for my husband and me, I'd like them to last. Since I'm going to start spinning, I'm just curious about what to use.

Thank you,

Jenny


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## IowaLez (Mar 6, 2006)

I have spun quite a bit of sock yarn. The best kind of wool is a longer staple one, I like Romney, but have used 4" long Corriedale, too. I think you could use Lincoln, BFL, Wensleydale, or Border Leicester, too. Some people also spin up the commercially available superwash merino fiber, it won't shrink or felt like normal wool because the scales have been chemically removed from the fiber shafts. 

I like to blend in some nylon fiber, and some silk for color and texture. The nylon fiber is really cheap and it helps the heel and sole wear better. If you use nylon you want it about 10% content in your yarn. I weigh my fibers before blending and spinning them to get the proportions. You want to spin the singles quite fine with lots of twist so that when you ply the singles the resulting yarn is tight and has plenty of twist to it about a 45% twist angle, and when plied it should be about 700-1000 yards per pound. That will suit a size 2 needle, at least for me it does, but I'm a loose knitter. You can also incorporate mohair into the yarn and it will help with durablilty like the nylon, plus add some shine. I added a bit of angora to one yarn I designed and it made the socks softer and they have a little "halo" of fibers, but they pill a bit when I wear them.

Hope this helps!


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

I'm not nearly as scientific or technical as Lezlie is  I'm spinning sock wool now. I have some Cheviot wool, it doesn't felt and can be machine washed and dried, and I blended it with a bit of angora. I have some I spun up fairly fine and made into t two ply. Now I have some that I'm spinning heavier, maybe a sport or worsted weight yarn for boot socks.


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## Ozarkquilter46 (Jun 5, 2002)

My girlfriend had Jacob sheep. I got a couple of fleeces from her. spun it up and made a sweater and 5 pairs of socks. It dosn't felt easy and made great socks. I have also made them out of corriedale and cheviot. You can add angora, llama or alpaca to it for warmth. Those three are 7 times warmer than wool. If you want to go with store bought. Wool-ease by lion brand is a good one. It is 20 percent wool and makes warm socks and it machine washable.


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## akhomesteader (Jan 5, 2006)

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I'm terribly sorry for not responding sooner. About the time I posted my question I came down with the most awful sinus infection. I couldn't believe how much pain a sinus infection can cause. Once I broke my wrist and it didn't hurt near that bad. I thought it was just a sinus headache at first. But then it hit. Wow! Grapefruit seed extract, oil of oregano and charcoal to the rescue!

Anyway, thank you for those replies. I can see I really need to start learning about different fibers. As cold as it gets here, I think it'll be worth it to get some alpaca or other super warm fiber to spin. So, when you add nylon, does it come all wound up like string, and then you ply it with other yarn you've spun? Since you only use about 10% nylon, I guess it's very thin. Sounds like most of you don't worry about adding nylon, though? But, if I spend the money on alpaca or something like that, I'll want the socks to last, so I think I'd try adding some nylon. 

Some friends flew out here last year to spend the weekend at their vacation cabin. It snowed unexpectedly while they were here. She didn't bring anything for her feet except a pair of tennis shoes, but also packed her alpaca socks. Said her toes were toasty all weekend, even when they were out in the snow. 

Thanks again,

Jenny


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Jenny keep in mind that the fibers like Alpaca, Llama, Mohair, Cashmere, Dog, and Angora do not have much if any give. They tend to drape rather than to spring back like wool does. Also add Silk to that list.

As for nylon it can come in a thin yarn, string type thing or you can buy it as a fiber. What I have is called Fire Star, it has many different names and usually adds some glitz to the end product. But it isn't necessary to add it for sock wool.


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## Annie in MN (Oct 15, 2002)

I have several pounds of what I call my alpaca sock blend roving. It is 50% alpaca, 30 % wool, 10% silk, and 10% nylon. (Percentages are approximate.) The alpaca used isn't the softest, (to me, anyway) which is why I had it blended for socks. I have it in white, but I like to dye too, and have several 4 oz batches already dyed. PM me if interested.

Sorry for the advertising, everybody, but thought if people were interested...


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Annie don't apologize, it's fine. Some people have no other sources or may wish to only buy from our people to help support their efforts.


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