Wool Socks
 

As last year was the year of Wool for me, I picked up several pairs of wool socks. They keep my feet noticeably warmer, but, there's another benefit...

I'm used to putting socks in the laundry at the end of the day. But... these don't smell. I'm wearing them two days each and saving the laundry.:thumb:

Haven't tried three days yet, but I'm getting braver every day. :D

Note that I've got about 5 wool sweaters now (on a rotation, they go under my windbreaker) and have yet to wash them. I feel like I'm living on the edge. :D

Note I'm typically fastidious with regard to these kinds of things, but it's not needed thus far with wool.

Good job!

Fight the Laundry Power!!

You have found one of the added benefits to using natural fabrics over synthetics. Wool most definitely does not retain body odor like synthetics do.

Blends work for me , all cotton sweat pants wear the butt out , bends don't
Fresh 3 pack of blend sox, the synthetic remained when the wool wore away.

I love wool socks. I have a few pairs of Smartwools and they're the best. (Although I bet cashmere would be even better.)

I wear merino sweaters of varying weight all fall and winter.

Merino socks year round.

I got a pair of Icebreaker "The Beast" manties for Christmas that I'm really liking, too.

My kiddo crocheted me a merino beanie for Christmas, too.

Love the stuff.

I have 4 pairs of wool socks and they get me through the week. Three days is pushing it, two is fine. I actually have a wool load that I do each week -- two Ibex dresses, assorted sweaters, skirts, tights and socks. I take it home from the laundromat and hang it all up. The two dresses, socks & sweaters get me through most weeks.

I've got wool socks of various blend/content. None are cycling specific, but I don't think that I'll use anything else again.

You've inspired me. I may never wash my merino stuff again.

Up until now, I've been doing as Eileen and washing a wool load once a week. Lots of wool stuff hanging all over the basement until it's dry.

Seriously though, I've wondered how layering the wool with sweaty salt would affect it over time. Probably best to wash it from time to time.

I gave all my cotton socks to Goodwill, and have nothing but wool ones at this point. That's about 99 % true of tee shirts, too, and wholly true of sweaters.

There's no mid layer that wicks sweat as well as cashmere. And, as warm as it is, it's never too warm. Great stuff.

I've been wearing a moth-holed cashmere sweater over my jersey on really cold (for us) mornings. It's wonderful. I guess I could class it up and cut off the arms and use it as an under-jersey vest.

If you decide to cut off the arms, can I have 'em? And, if that doesn't go well, can I have the vest, too? :D

I've been going to thrift shops buying up cashmere sweaters whenever I can find them. I've managed to acquire two this way ( $5, and $20 ), and almost had a third, but my girlfriend took it. I'm going to turn them into cycling pants, a neck gaiter, and stuff like that.

If you ever have the chance to try camel wool, don't pass it up. The stuff is insanely warm.

I travel to Mongolia every summer and I always raid the markets there for camel wool socks and other clothing. Its cheap there, but probably costs an arm and a leg here.

Changing from cotton to wool socks is the only change I make for footwear until it gets to be too cold to ride.

My record for wearing the same wool socks is 7 days. They didn't smell so much as become uncomfortable from salt and gunk. I normally wear them two to three days, alternating pairs every day.

When it gets sub freezing I wear water proof hiking boots. The synthetic socks I wore to start with made the mother of all funk by the end of the day inside those. Not that the wool socks are odorless, but it's a huge difference.

I have varying weights of merino wool socks and wear the year round. I will wear cotton but even when its really hot.( which it rarely is here) I still wear merino wool. They seem to last longer than cotton too,most likely cause my wife bleaches the white cotton items which speeds up their demise.

After starting in itchy wool 40 years ago and stopping when good synthetics came around, I have transitioned to an all wool outfit this year. Amazing, merino is far more comfortable, I can wear one jersey for 2 weeks without washing it. Absolutely no smell. Great in the cold and wet . Worth the extra money.

Very, very interesting... Is it softer than merino, too? I've heard that because air trapped between the different "hairs" is what makes wool warm, the softer it is ( smaller and more interwoven fibers making it softer ), the more air it'll trap. So, as a general rule, softer wools should also be warmer. I've noticed it's true for cashmere vs merino, but haven't worn camel wool.

+1 Found a 100% cashmere women's sweater in the men's section of a thriftstore. It was a size 16 and fit me perfect as a 2nd layer. 4 bucks! Silk/cashmere/silk balaclava is a great combination w/a wind/water resistant jacket. The combo is warm, wicks great and dries quickly.

wearing a pair of REI merino wool sock. third day running, biked to work in them on Wed, Thursday and today. they were fine this morning.. however, I think now they may are the freshest.....

So when you do wash your wool (alarmingly infrequently for some :) ) -- Woolite?

I've been doing cold water gentle cycle wash for my wool and hi tech bike/athletic gear and an air dry for a good while now. Am amazed at how the stuff is holding up.

I just toss them in with teh other clothes, hell, I do not even pay attention to whether they are with the whites or colored clothes.

I do not have any special detergent, we do not have a dry so they are always line dried... works fine....

I can go a week in a pair of wool socks if I'm not sweating in sneakers all day long. I tend to go shoeless when at home so I don't sweat so much. Otherwise three days is not a problem even if running around outside all day in sneaks.

Now THAT is a good idea. I'm going to hit the thrift shops this weekend!

Okay I must be complete pig. I have merino everything: socks, tights, baselayer, balaclava, glove liners. Wear everything everyday. Since the beginning of Nov when I needed it till today, its been washed once. The stuff just does not smell. Ever!!

End of last year I bought a synthetic bike-specific top from craft. This year I started wearing it under my Smartwool medium weight top for biking. Very smooth.

Went skiing this week, only brought the Smartwool top (well plus a winter jacket and a shirt). Was right next to my skin. It reminded me - yes, Smartwool stuff is still slightly irritating on my upper body. :-( Noticed as smooth as the synthetic. Also noticed, though, that my smartwool long underwear bottoms didn't bother me at all...guess some skin is more sensitive to it than others.

Also, despite all the hype about how it "doesn't smell", what people really seem to mean it "it doesn't smell more after you wear it a while". I know if it gets wet or I sweat much it starts to smell vaguely like a sheep. It's not a terrible smell, or a super strong smell, but it is a smell. (And yes I've washed my stuff several times and still noticed it.)

You might imagine that camel wool is very crude, but its not...its surprisingly fine and soft. It doesn't need to be very thick either...all the camel wool bits of clothing I own are pretty thin and still very warm. My feet roast in camel socks when wearing them indoors. I have a few pairs of Mongolian yak wool socks too, but those are harder to find and pretty expensive, but very warm, durable, and comfy.

Back in the 70's most of my sox were wool. I did bike commute even back then but I also played a ton of basketball (ofter biking to the various courts). I wore the wool sox everywhere all year including with my basketball sneakers when playing. My fellow hoopsters would tell me that it made thier feet hot just looking at my feet. Never could convince them how comfy my feet were even on the hottest days.


Picked up my x-c ski clothes back then at the suplus store, old wool cpo shirts, wool pants, caps

One of life's simple pleasures... Freshly cleaned warm wool socks on cold feet. :D