Secret to longlasting socks?

pictish · Secret to longlasting socks?

Have just had another pair of Posh socks wear out after not a lot of wear - maybe worn 20 times mostly in the house with slippers only Confused

Bit more understandable perhaps as these were pure cashmere and maybe I shouldn't have worn them so much because of that but what's the point of making them if you don't ever wear them?? But it's a lot of effort isn't it for not a lot of use Confused

So what is in your experience the best way of making socks last (apart from not wearing them that is Laughing

)? Is it to knit at a tighter guage maybe? These were knitted on 2.75mm. The Posh Lucia that wore out were knitted on 2.5mm. Both only hand washed.

Or is the answer just to knit with standard sock yarn with nylon in it?? My first pair of Opals are just coming to the end of their 3 year life. That's not bad!!

Sprite64

Mmmm - I think there are quite a few different opinions on this one! Opal yarn does seem to wear brilliantly well. Cashmere is gorgeous - but not a strong fibre - but lovely for bedsocks! (I made some bedsocks in some Alpaca - we have a cold house and I hate having cold feet). I usually knit my socks on 2.5mm - but I'm getting some 2.25mm needles at the weekend (off to Socktopus for a workshop). When I popped into Socktopus a few weeks ago I asked Alice about it - gave her a quick flash of my socks and she reckoned I should definately go down a needle size. I don't know how true it is that a firmer fabric lasts longer - I have another friend who reckons it's rubbish. I'm going to try it and see what happens.

All the socks I've made from Opal and Regia yarns have done well. I've got a couple of pairs which were merion sock yarn and they do felt quite quickly on the heels/sole but I haven't worn any through yet.

franney

I have one pair of pure merino socks, the rest are wool/nylon mix i think and they are all still going strong. I wash them in the machine and dry them on the radiator and wear them with crocs. My oldest pair were knitted in June 2006 and they aren't showing any signs of wearing out yet Confused

I knit loose so i tend to knit my socks on 2mm or 2.25mm needles but other than that i don't reinforce the heels with anything.

Hope this helps Ali, i think i will cry when my socks start wearing out Sad

terri

I haven't had any of my handmade socks wear out yet, even the posh Lucia pair of river rapids are still going strong Confused

I mainly only wear socks made with a nylon mix inside shoes though....., and my softer ones, just around the house, often with no slippers on. I handwash the more delicate pairs, but all standard sock type yarns go straight in the machine and the tumbler Confused

I nearly always use 2.5mm needles................

pictish

I do knit quite tight - in fact I thought the Lucia were too tightly knit on 2.5mm Confused

The Posh Sophia (cashmere ones) were definitely a looser fabric but still quite dense. These now have a big hole in the heel - I hadn't noticed they had worn thin tho Sad

My LL and Opal are doing best of all and just get thrown in the machine tho not tumble dried. I haven't finished any in pure merino yet.

I suppose they are all getting a lot of wear as I only have 8 pairs Shocked

melody yarns

Well my first pair of Regia socks have almost got to the end of their life and they are wearing thin at the toe. But I did knit them in 2005 and have worn them continually for the last three winters! My pink Kim socks knitted in Online sock yarn only lasted a year though and they were a wool nylon mix Sad

They faded in the washing machine as well Sad

Annerosemary

I'm like you and go through socks quickly, we were discussing this at our knitting group and it was suggested that if you wear loose fitting shoes or wellies it might increase the amount of friction. A possibility, but I think it's more likely to be because I always wear them.
I've gone through the first pair I ever knitted and they were Opal, so my recommendation is Regia as another friend's husband who is in the army and only ever wears handknitted socks (and sometimes they have more wear and less wash than most !) has never worn a pair out.
Oh yes and I have at least 30 pairs so they only get worn once a month now which should keep them going a lot longer.
I'm sticking to sock yarn with 25% nylon with no exception from now on as it's really annoying to have to have holes in your socks

melody yarns

By the way I only have four pairs of socks... well three now the Kim ones have been sent to that great recycling bin in the sky... Sad

Time to knit some more methinks, ready for next winter Wink

pictish

Thanks everybody!!! I found a thread on Ravelry and Regia do get a high recommendation for lastabilty - also Trekking and Opal and LL. But some people have some very old CTH and Koigu too!!! And knitting everything on 2.25mm Shocked

not sure I want to do that tho. I suppose the Posh Yarns are definitely luxury socks as nearly all contain cashmere or silk or something quite delicate and not very hardwearing. I shouldn't maybe have used them as everyday socks Rolling Eyes

Actually I have 9 pairs so they are all definitely getting a lot of wear - 52 times a year on average I suppose. I think I definitely need to knit more!!! Laughing

melody yarns

Hmmmm could be something in that - all my remainnig socks are Regia Very Happy

and I've got an Opal pair otn at the moment to replace the pink Kims!

I like knitting with Regia though, it's luvly Cool

pictish

I think it's softer to knit with than Opal definitely!! The Trekking is soft too.

loobyj

Does anyone darn when their socks go thin? I know how to in theory, but I've never had to put it into practice yet.

lj

pictish

I haven't yet but plan to with these two pairs. Do you need a darning mushroom maybe??

loobyj

Probably be easier Confused

And more pleasant than the old stuffed stocking my Gran taught me with Laughing

Think FC might've got one, by Clover or someone like that. P'raps she'll be along in a bit.

lj

pictish

A stuffed stocking sounds a good idea Razz

Actually I vaguely remember my mum having a little contraption for darning that I used to play with when I was tiny Confused

Wonder how that worked??

blueadt

I tend to use 2mm or 2.25mm for 4ply & 2.75mm for DK sock yarn DK. I have gone up to 3.5mm for James Brett Pure Merino but they were bed socks.

I've got some pure cashmere yarns in my stash but haven't used them yet.

pictish

That's a lot finer than I've been using then Blue!!

blueadt

Blossom

I've got about four pairs to darn...they're in CTH, Posh Lucia, Jitterbug and Skein Queen! My Opal Flamong Jaywalkers have holes but that is more because I have caught them on the metal strip on the carpet in the doors between the rooms Sad

Most of the above socks got holesas I wore them with Birkenstock clogs and they rubbed as I walked Sad

SO I gave them up. I have taken to reinforcing the heels on all my non-nylon content socks with sock reinforcing thread now as that is where they tend to go for me.

pictish

FatCat

Bit late to the party here but .... I've only had two pairs of socks wear out on me Confused

however this could perhaps be because I have an awful lot of socks now and so they don't get the wear they would if I had only a few Embarassed

In fact hardly any of them are showing any signs of wear, and they do all routinely get worn with slippers or shoes or boots Razz

Most of them were knitted on 2.5mm needles.

The first that did wear out was a pair of Slouch Socks in Arteseno Alpaca, they didn't last long at all and I binned them. The other pair is in Hipknits Cashmere, and I have darned them over and over again, in fact each time I wear them now I have to darn them because new holes appear. the heels are more darning than original yarn now But I can't bear to throw them away just yet Rolling Eyes

Which leads me onto the next point which is yes, I darn. I learnt from the darning video which I think we have as a sticky here Confused

and I have a darning mushroom, which is painted to look like a toadstool. I think it's a Inox one, it was only a couple of pounds in John Lewis. Very Happy

Blossom

That's the one that's more like weaving isn't it FC? I tried one method that used duplicate stitch and made a pig's ear of it! Rolling Eyes

FatCat

It is indeed the weaving one Very Happy

Seems to work a treat for me, but then I have only tried it on the one pair of cashmere socks so far. Perhaps it wouldn't be as good on other yarns Confused

pictish

Thanks FC!!! I'll look for that when I get round to darning these 2 pairs!! Wink

I think the secret is to have lots of pairs so they don't get as heavy wear as mine do Wink

CJ

Mine have all lasted, unless DH has got his mitts on them and felted them. Twisted Evil

Apart from the wollmeise 100% superwash merino - two pairs of which have holes in the toes, which has never happened to me with any other yarn. No more wollmeise socks for me. Razz

pictish

@ the Wollmeise!!!

Aknita

Wollmeise is the only sock yarn in which I have ever had a knot. I forgave it though because it was lovely Very Happy

I learnt how to darn in the brownies, and used to be surprisingly good at it.

My socks are doing well because I tend to wear them in bed Wink

the only pair that have run to a hole was a pair I poked my toe through! I think it was a bfl but can't remember now.

KnittingLadybird

I'm a toe poker too....I have never worn a hole in the sole or heels of my socks. I think I knit my first in pair in 2006 and have 'several' pairs now to rotate.

My hardest wearing have been YY Bonny, Opal, Regia and sirdar T&C...everything else has had a toe poke through, including wollemeise Twisted Evil

Jobo

After a couple of bad experiences with the luxury sock yarns wearing out too quickly, I only knit socks with the Regia/Trekking type yarns now.

I do still love using the more designer type ones though, but I tend to knit scarves and baby clothes with them - just so I can experience the luxury Laughing

I knitted one pair in Tofutsies which are still going strong, but have really faded in the wash Very Happy

And how anyone ever gets their hands on a skein of Wollmeise - I don't know Laughing

I saw a skein on Ebay the other day which was going for £136 or something silly Shocked

Fi

I use 2.25mm for 4ply and 2.75mm for Dk on bamboo needles.

I knitted my first pair opal flamingoes in about 2006 and they are going strong I wear them with shoes, boots wellies and in/out of slippers around the house.

They are also surviving being pinched by Molly the kittern, she doesn't chew them just takes them into her bed to snuggle, only hand knit ones though.

I also use a lot of opal and regia yarns.

pictish

I am certainly going to be very wary about buying more designer type sock yarn I think - I will just probably knit up what I have already and see how they wear if I don't wear as much - but I need to knit a few more pairs quickly so I get a better rotation Laughing

And I think knitting them on smaller needles might be an idea too esp for the softer wool.

The other thing that's great about Opal/Regia/Trekking is being able to just stick them in the wash Razz

But I do love knitting with the good stuff Laughing

I would still buy LL tho cos they are lovely to knit with yet hardwearing and machine washable!!!

Blossom

Even though LL is my fave sock yarn...I have only ever knit one pair, my Broadripples, in them! I can't find them...and have a horrid feeling I binned them as I ripped one open on the carpet strip thing, along with foot...either that or they have fallen down the back of the drawers! Sad

pictish

Oh no!!!!

pjmck

Regia definitely seems to wear better than Opal yarn. The Shelridge farm sock yarn that Socktopus sells seems to be wearing really well. I knit a pair of Monkey socks this time last year in that yarn and I've worn them about once a fortnight at least since. They still look pretty good, just the odd bobbly bit at the heel and they come off easily.

Paula

pictish

That's good to know Paula as I have some of that!!