I wanted to make some socks for my sweetheart - but it turns out he cannot wear wool on his feet. Cotton seems so…unforgiving for something like a sock pattern. Looking for suggestions (for a new sock knitter and her anti-wool sweetheart!)
Thanks!
my mom is unable to wear wool at all. I have found that acrylics yarn holds up well and will hold a stitch pattern well. There is also bamboo yarns, corn silk and may other natural fibers you can use.
Go to www.yarnmarket.com and go to yarn BY TYPE and then go to Rockin socks and also their eco yarns and also exotics. There are a few which are bamboo and corn and acrylic and even cotton, but with some other stuff blended in so that it does have some stretch and give.
By the way, if the sock patterns call for true sock yarn, meaning a very small stitch, so anywhere from 7 - 9 sts per inch (and therefore 28 - 36 per 4"), the yarns that will suit you best are Comfort Sock (nylon), Maizy (corn based) and Creamy (milk based).
I am kinda miffed that Bernat stopped making Bernat Sox, that was non-wool…!
They’re bringing it back. :woot: The balls are slightly smaller (only 3.5oz instead of the 5.25oz) but they should still be big enough to do a pair of adult size socks. The information is here.
I haven’t seen them in stores yet but I think it’s just a matter of time.
Hurray…then I recomment that! Bernat Sox
Crystal palace yarn that I found at littleknits.com has bamboo and maizy. The bamboo, I’m knitting at this moment for me. It’s soo soft.cloud9 I don’t do wool either. I wish I could, there are some beautiful yarns out there.
Creamy? Interesting. Where can I find it?
At www.yarnmarket.com. There’s also a milky one called Craft, but it’s not a fingering weight and not nearly as much milk in it. On their site, go to YARN and then EXOTICS/UNUSUAL.
Cascade’s Fixation is a cotton elastic blend. I’m taking a two-socks-at-once class, and that’s what we’re using.
It’s not as soft, obviously, as a wool or something, but I think the socks will still be comfortable (I’m not finished yet, or I could comment better!) It seems like they’ll be nice and stretchy.
Hi, all! For those of you, like the OP, who have family members or friends who can’t wear wool but would love handknitted socks…I am allergic to wool, so I not only can’t wear it, I can’t even knit with it. As a new sock knitter, I have so far tried:
CP Panda Cotton - very nice, possibly a bit bumpy on the sole of the foot, might try smaller needle (I used a US 2.5) or princess-style foot (reverse stockinette). Has only a few man-friendly colors and more coming out for Fall, I think. Bamboo, cotton & elastic. Washable, but color seems to be fading after just two washings.
CP Maizy - Corn fiber & elastic. This feels a little crunchy to the touch but makes a nice smoosy sock, according to the friend for whom I made my first pair. A bit splitty, but not unmanageable. I do recommend pointy-pointy sticks here (like KP’s or maybe the Susan Bates/Boye metal dpns). Isn’t fading after a couple of washings. Man-friendly colors available.
Kertzer On Your Toes Bamboo - soft and silky, really nice. Again, a bit splitty, but I guess that goes with the territory, bamboo has that reputation. It makes a super-smooshy sock, has good stitch definition, but does not come in any really man-friendly colors, IMO - a pale gray, but that’s all.
Kollage Luscious - I started a sock with this…about 4-5 times…last week, and wound up taking it off the needles. I don’t seem to have the right size needles for this, although I’m within the recommended size and tend to be an on-gauge knitter. It’s very-very splitty, too, almost to the point of “unmanageable”, IMO. But very soft and smooshy, pretty colors, but again, I can’t recall any man-friendly variegateds, only a few solids that could possibly be man-friendly. The other non-wool Kollage yarns, Creamy and Corntastic, are sport, not sock weight and contain no elastic at all, so I suspect that socks would not stay up well.
Berroco Comfort Sock - I just got this, haven’t knitted it up, but I’ve used Comfort worsted. Tends to be splitty, so again, pointy-pointy sticks recommended. It’s really soft feeling, and the colorways are almost all man-friendly. Plus it’s a dead-on bargain at under $8 for 447 yards, and, since it’s acrylic/nylon, it ought to be very washable and resist fading.
Touched but not yet knitted - Schoeller & Stahl Sockina Cotton - not the softest cotton I’ve ever held in my hand, but still, wool free, with elastic, and sock weight. Not many colorways (about 1/2 dozen), but several are man-friendly. Cascade Fixation - seems a bit chunky for a sock, and rather expensive for what you are getting. I’ve read that elann’s Esprit is essentially the same yarn, and a whole lot cheaper.
I’m sure there’s more, but those are the only one’s I’ve used or petted. 
If you’re on ravelry, feel free to pop by my projects page to view a couple of pics of these yarns in action, bearing in mind the new knitter thing. If the socks aren’t perfectly wonderful, don’t blame the yarn! LOL!
I have made half a dozen pair of socks this year using Elann Esprit, 98.3% cotton and 1.7% elastic. They are a little bulkier than wool sock yarn, but they stay up very well and are quite comfortable. I can also throw them in the wash, though I generally air dry them instead of the dryer.
I made a pair of socks for my mom this year using Yarn Bee Sweet Delight baby yarn. It’s acrylic, and she LOVES the socks. The good thing about Sweet Delight is that it comes in all sorts of colors, not just baby-ish pastels, but bright colors and even black and grey. The last time I saw the socks, they were holding up pretty well, and she says that she wears them all the time.