Wool socks make the shoulder seasons more comfortable.

NorthCascades
NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Truth is they're comfortable any time of year, even in summer. But especially now.

Wool is an amazing fabric that feels dry even when it's damp with rain or sweat. It's antimicrobial so it doesn't take on the BO smell after you workout in it. (I'll wear the same merino base layer for half a week when I backpack in the summer.) It doesn't pull heat away from you when it gets wet like cotton does.

I've found that all the brands tend to be about the same, what's important is that it's made by sheep.

Replies

  • Movemoreguy22
    Movemoreguy22 Posts: 386 Member
    I work outside for a living. Winter months I used to buy crap clothing and would double up on layers of socks and tops etc etc.
    Used to stuff with chill blains on my toes really bad and one year some fella came into my yard and was speaking to me (was a ex soldier) said how much do you spend on normal clothing and I said £80 on tops, jeans £80 maybe bla bla bla and he asked how often do I wear this type of clothing and i said maybe 3 hours a week.
    He then asked how many hours do i work in the cold and how much is the clothing im wearing now at work. Think the whole kit came to £40 thats everything. He moaned at me saying you would rather spend 80 on clothes that your hardly in and spend low as possible on clothes (work) that you pretty much live in.
    Massive wake up call
    Since that day I buy wooly socks expensive outdoor clothes never felt better
  • Movemoreguy22
    Movemoreguy22 Posts: 386 Member
    Suffer from chill blains***
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
    I'm allergic...to just about every type of wool/animal hair I've tried...
  • kenyonhaff
    kenyonhaff Posts: 1,377 Member
    It's the original miracle fiber! Seriously, with all the performance fibers we have nothing has ever really come close to wool in breathability, insulation, durability and even fire retardant properties.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Some of the wool blends with polypro and spandex are great too. The only issue I've had is they are sloooow to dry. This is not a problem at home, but when we were in Switzerland last summer and washing socks in the sink every night, it took 2-3 days for them to dry!
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    edited November 2017
    I started wearing wool socks for hiking b4 anything else was available. We're talking the early 60's.

    Haven't bought or worn wool socks for many years. Still have a wool cap and some wool dress sweaters, suits, jackets and pants but I hardly ever wear them. Otherwise, my wardrobe is almost entirely made up of synthetics.

    My recollection was that the socks were warm and comfy, especially if worn w/a silk liner (again the only thing available at the time) but the socks would always stretch and lose their shape at the top causing them to fall down (we used rubber bands, which wasn't really a good choice, to keep them up) and if they got wet, they ended up a soggy mess. Also had some wool mitts once upon the time and were also prety useless if they got wet.

    Wool combined w/synthetics is probably better. Smartwool comes to mind as a brand but those socks are so expensive at $20-30/pair, I've never considered buying them. I'm more a 3 for $10 kind of guy when it comes to socks but I will pay a lot for Gortex outer wear.

    However, now that I've actively started hiking again going on 4-9 mile mid-day hikes, I may try a pair to see if they make a difference. If do, I'll buy more. If not I'll stick w/ the chesper synthetics and save the money for better fitting boots.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Scarves work better in shoulder weather but in colder weather I wear my hand knitted Alpaca wool socks. The fibers of Alpaca are hollow making them lighter and warmer than wool.

    http://prairiespiritalpacas.ca/product/alpaca-sock/
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    My merino wool base layer has kept me toasty warm running in winter and is also great as a base undergarment diving in my drysuit (it's almost inevitable that you'll get a tiny bit of water infiltrate one seal or another.....still toasty warm when wet)
  • CarlydogsMom
    CarlydogsMom Posts: 645 Member
    canadianlbs wrote: »

    this is for real. i got a serious 'sock yarn' habit the i started to ride, because i had read the same things about wool being absolutely the best thing for cold, wet conditions. and i know how to knit, so i just wasn't going to pay fifteen dollars a pair for something that i could make my own self.

    i've never worn anything else, ever since then. no matter what the conditions are they never give me that horrible pruney-feet sensation that cotton gives me. the superwash sock yarn they sell which is 25% nylon also wears better than you would believe. i've still got a few pairs of those first ones i made in 2005.

    High five to another sock knitter. Love my superwash merino/nylon blends, in fabulous colorways to boot. Let's see some pics because socks rock:

    lencank3bn15.jpg

    Socks to match my lifting shoes:
    yc9cjmsb0t6v.jpg
    ttvs024gbvqb.jpg
    abkp7h0wtigh.jpg


  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    jgnatca wrote: »
    Scarves work better in shoulder weather but in colder weather I wear my hand knitted Alpaca wool socks. The fibers of Alpaca are hollow making them lighter and warmer than wool.

    http://prairiespiritalpacas.ca/product/alpaca-sock/

    Scarves on your feet?
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    jgnatca wrote: »
    Scarves work better in shoulder weather but in colder weather I wear my hand knitted Alpaca wool socks. The fibers of Alpaca are hollow making them lighter and warmer than wool.

    http://prairiespiritalpacas.ca/product/alpaca-sock/

    I love my alpaca socks. They're too warm in the summer but it's about time for them to come out. And so incredibly soft.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    CarlydogsMom wrote: »
    Let's see some pics because socks rock:


    awwwww . . . . i can't reciprocate because #nocamera, but yours are gorgeous. i've quit doing gussets or turning the heels though. couple of years ago i made some pairs for my son and i realised that a fixed heel is a bad idea for him becuaes he GRINDS t hrough socks like you wouldn't believe. and then after i'd made him a whole bunch of tubes it dawned on me that really, i like being able to distribute the wear for my own too.

    you're making me feel vaguely dissatisfied, because i realise how drab all my current colourways are. i need me some watermelon and candy socks too!
  • CarlydogsMom
    CarlydogsMom Posts: 645 Member
    canadianlbs wrote: »

    you're making me feel vaguely dissatisfied, because i realise how drab all my current colourways are. i need me some watermelon and candy socks too!

    Sock pairs 1, 2, and 4 are hand-dyed yarn from Kool-Aid and Wilton's cake dyes (colorfast process) except the solid red in #4. Fun times. I've also overdyed some fugly sock yarn that I pick up cheap, that works really well (blue kool-aid especially does wonders).

    Me, I gotta do heels; tried many a variety, but yeah, they do wear. I hate the crumpled material at the top of my ankle with tube socks. Good point about tubes distributing wear tho....
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    Just got me some Fox River merino wool blend socks on sale at REI.

    Still expensive to me at $10/pr but at that price decided to give them a try. But still couldn't pull the string on Smartwool at $20/pr.

    I've got the $ but there are some things that I' m just uneilling to pay for regardless of how good people say they are.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    CarlydogsMom wrote: »
    Sock pairs 1, 2, and 4 are hand-dyed yarn from Kool-Aid and Wilton's cake dyes

    holy wow . . . HOW did you get the stripes happening? i've done the kool-aid and laid a firm hand on myself to not turn into the kind of person who does that kind of thing all the time. but i've never done stripes. at most, maybe a bit of a fade effect from dunking entire balls at a time, straight from the store.

    i'm not sure i want to know, actually. i got enough weird-*kitten* mcgyver stuff going on in my life as it is. but, yes. yes, i do want to know.

  • kcjchang
    kcjchang Posts: 709 Member
    Only experience was with Army issued and they were scratch as hell. I alway had nylon underneath to prevent blistering. Summer was the worst and got a few demerits for using substitutes. Warm though but wouldn't want to revisit that ever.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    Just got me some Fox River merino wool blend socks on sale at REI.

    Still expensive to me at $10/pr but at that price decided to give them a try. But still couldn't pull the string on Smartwool at $20/pr.

    I've got the $ but there are some things that I' m just uneilling to pay for regardless of how good people say they are.

    My smart wool socks are as good as any other wool socks I own, but they come apart quickly for the price. Now I mostly get whatever's on clearance as long as it's mostly merino. Or alpaca.
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    edited November 2017
    NorthCascades wrote: »
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    Just got me some Fox River merino wool blend socks on sale at REI.

    Still expensive to me at $10/pr but at that price decided to give them a try. But still couldn't pull the string on Smartwool at $20/pr.

    I've got the $ but there are some things that I'm just unwilling to pay for regardless of how good people say they are.

    My smart wool socks are as good as any other wool socks I own, but they come apart quickly for the price. Now I mostly get whatever's on clearance as long as it's mostly merino. Or alpaca.

    That's good to hear. Just amazes me how much they want for those Smartwool socks.

    The Fox River only have about 36% merino wool but that's better than nothing I guess.

    I'm always looking for a bargain and bought 2 half-zip base layer pullover shirts for $24@ at 40% off and 2 pairs of the Fox Riversocks for $20 at the same time. So, even at $10@, on a comparative basis the Fox River socks still seem expensive to me.

    I don't think I've ever seen any alpaca socks - - sweaters, but not socks - but I'd hate to see what they cost but I'm pretty sure they'll cost more than I'd want to pay too.

    LOL!

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