CSM Sock Yarn Study PT1

Lately I’ve been finding that sock sizing on the CSM is a little variable. When I knit socks for a friend – who has the same size feet as I do – hers are too big by about 3 rows and mine are too short by about 4 rows. At first, I thought it was because I was throwing mine in the washer and hanging to dry and she was hand washing. She’s blocking her socks. I can’t be bothered.

This could definitely be a factor but then she threw me a curve ball: she tossed the last batch in the washer and hung them to dry. Result? No shrinkage. Well. What the heck?

So then I thought – they’re all fingering weight yarns from the same mill. All superwash*. But one cone is BFL/Nylon, one is Merino/Silk and one is Merino/Nylon. That has to be it, right? But the stitches per inch / row / etc. are the same when I measure the day after they come off the CSM. What the heck?

*I generally prefer not to use superwash wool because I don’t like the processes used to make the wool superwash or the way the yarn handles when knitted up and I really think it “squeaks” when you spin it and it feels a little like finger nails on a chalkboard sounds. Here’s more on how it behaves in a finished item: https://www.moderndailyknitting.com/2019/08/19/its-not-you-its-the-yarn-superwash-edition/ But for socks, it makes a lot of sense. I am unlikely to hand wash a week’s worth of socks.

Now I’m starting to doubt both my memory AND the notes I’ve made up until now.

So. Time for a study.

Here’s the plan:

3 skeins of yarn. (OK, actually 4: I dyed one spare of the Merino Silk but for the life of me I can’t recall why. Maybe I was concerned about how the merino silk would hold up to repeated frogging?) Dyed because that will help keep them separate in case I get them mixed up and at the same time, keep my interest. It will also at the same time help me understand how a dyed skein will knit up – how the colour pools, etc because that’s just not something I can visualize when I see a skein.
Knit a gauge tube on both the 72 cylinders and 54 cylinders. That will let me determine my “base” gauge for each cylinder. (At this point, I’m really hoping my notes check out!)
Then knit 2 socks or gauge tubes – currently undecided – on each cylinder with each yarn at their optimal settings.
Take measurements:

1. 1. Right off the machine. They should be stretched width-wise from being on the machine. Length likely longer because of the weights used in the knitting.
  2. After a 2+ hour rest off the machine. This is usually the recommendation when measuring cranked socks.
  3. After a hand wash and dry. This should be a “final” gauge barring felting but as superwash yarns, this shouldn’t happen easily.
  4. After a machine wash and hang to dry. This should also be a final gauge. Up to now, I’ve not noticed significant shrinkage – as should be the case since these are superwash wools.
  5. What’s the effect of blocking on the wear-ability of the socks?

Then compare the measurements and see if:

1. 1. They changed significantly and if I can predict their size right off the machine or not.
  2. Can I at least get a good row gauge so that I can make consistent sizes with these 3 yarns?
  3. Is one or more of these yarns “growing” instead of shrinking with washing? It’s possible with superwash and part of why I wanted to do this in the first place. Typically, I think of wool garments growing as a part of the wet felting process but in this case, it’s potentially the superwash process causing this.
    
    “Drawbacks of treated wool: You need to knit a swatch and wash it before you make a superwash garment. It can grow as much as 30% when blocked, which might be disastrous for a fitted sweater, or my friend’s shorts that went from snug to the size of a small tent with the addition of blocking pins and water.”
    
    From here: https://www.knomadyarn.com/blog/superwash-versus-non-superwash-dye-technique-test-part-2/
  4. Is the sheep breed affecting the gauge? (I think yes based on the fact that my southdown/jacob socks look barbie sized when they’re washed, go on tight but fit great after about an hour – other than the 4 rows too short thing.

What else should I be looking for?

Should I get the ribber involved here or should stockinette be fine? The friend’s socks are mostly stockinette with hung hems. Mine are sometimes stockinette and sometimes ribbed socks.

Here are the yarns. I dyed mostly warm colours this time around which is super uncomfortable for me to begin with and I’m just not sure what I saw in my head ended up on the yarns. Three of the skeins are also dip dyes which I don’t usually do.

From left to right: This was the “leftovers” dye. It incorporated all of the dyes I had mixed up for this project and the leftovers from the last dye session. It’s on Merino/Silk. The skein is about 100g (3.5oz)

The red, pink (was supposed to be white but the water wasn’t hot enough for the red to strike and not bleed into the whites) and dark grey. This is on Merino/Silk as well. This was dip dye #1. This skein is about 160g because my scale started telling stories around half way through. Why is it so hard to find an reliable digital scale?

Red and charcoal grey. This is on Merino/Nylon. Dip Dye #2. That overage is on me. I think I was day dreaming about socks. 102g skein.

Blue/Purple/Black and grey. BFL/Nylon Dip Dye #3. Skein is about 120g because the scale was fibbing up a storm and I hadn’t caught on yet.