How to care for hand-knitted woollen hose...

[MacSimoin]

Through trial and error I've found a fairly good cleaning method for my woolen hand-knitted hose (HKH herein) and so far, so good (feel free to print the instructions).

Pre-wash and washing:

1. I strongly urge you to purchase a fabric-specific (i.e. woolen) detergent. In this case, I recommend using Woolite Original (see pic below) or use another brand is this is unavailable in your area.



2. If you have a porcelain sink in your home (likely in your bathroom), this is where you want to wash your hose. Please, do not use a stainless steel sink (as in your kitchen sink) to wash your HKH whereas organic and/or mineral deposits lurking therein may turn your hose a lighter shade of gray.

3. Open the Woolite bottle and pour in just enough detergent to fill the measuring cap approximately half-way to the very first line at the bottom of the cap (see pic below). This is plenty of detergent (no matter what some clever ad might show)...no more and no less for each pair of hose.



4. Turn on the cold tap (do not use hot or warm water) and fill the sink about ¾ full. As the sink fills, gently pour in the detergent until the cap is empty. Rinse and return the cap to the bottle.

NOTE: Using Woolite, you can usually soak most small garments for 3 minutes before hand washing them, but remember that you’re dealing with 100% hand-knitted wool, a hearty fabric worthy your love and attention.

5. Place one hose (toe first) into the cold sudsy water. No need to rush things by dunking the hose; remember that this is expensive hosiery you’ve got here and treating them with care is the right thing to do.

6. Once in the water, firmly squeeze (do not wring) the hose by hand; this permits the detergent to penetrate space between the woolen fibers of the hose. Do this for a minimum of 2 minutes.

7. Leaving the first hose in the water (or set it aside if you don't have enough room), repeat Step #6 for the second hose. When you're finished, walk away for a minimum of 10 minutes. Yes, 10 minutes.

8. Time’s up, so now it’s time to actually wash the hose. Put down your single malt and head back to the sink.

9. Turn your HKH inside-out and repeat Steps #6 and #7, minus the walking away bit.

NOTE: Now that you’ve thoroughly washed these gorgeous beauties, it’s time for the "rinse cycle". I suggest you do your rinsing in a bathtub. If you don’t have a tub in your home, thoroughly clean and rinse the sink you used to wash your HKH.

Rinsing:

10. Remove the hose one at a time from the sink and fold each one in half and then in half again (you're doing this to help build pressure for the next step).

11. Do this over the bathtub: Placing them flat in (between) your hands, squeeze each hose firmly (press your hands together) to remove as much water and detergent as possible. Set the hose on the edge of the bathtub as you finish each one.

12. Turn on the cold tap in your bathtub all the way (to gain maximum water pressure). Kneel down next to the bathtub and get ready to do things the "old fashioned way".

13. Place the hose ("toe first") one at a time under the running cold water and firmly squeeze out any remaining detergent. Turn the hose inside-side out and repeat the process. Do the same for the next hose. Take your time and work out any visible detergent, spending at least 2 minutes rinsing time on each hose.

14. After you’ve finished rinsing, remember to turn your hose "right-side-out" and then place each one along the edge of your bathtub. Fold them in half so the top of the hose meets the the bottom.

15. Begin to roll the hose (tightly); as you go along you’ll see more water pushing its way out of the fabric. Once you see this happen (usually around the half-way point), STOP and hang the remaining length of hose into the bathtub; continue rolling (against the inside wall of the bathtub) until the hose are completely rolled-up. Repeat this process on the second hose.

16. Turn your hose inside-out and repeat the rolling process (for each hose) as described in Step #16. Remember to turn your hose "right-side-out" when you're finished.

Drying:

17. Once you’ve finished your "rinse cycle", obtain a white cotton towel and fold it in half from top to bottom. I strongly urge you to use a white towel and not a colored towel, ever (better safe than sorry).

18. Lay the towel on a flat surface (any table or flat surface that's at least 3 feet in length will do) and then lay your HKH side-by-side on top of the towel (see pic below).



19. Allow your HKH to air dry for a minimum of 4 hours (for each side). Drying time will vary depending on room temperature and humidity. Repeat the drying process for the opposite side of each hose but be sure to flip the towel over as well.

20. Once you’ve dried the outside of the hose, it’s time to repeat the process by turning the hose inside-out and drying them even further (see pic below).



NOTE: Depending on your climate, the whole drying process can take anywhere from 8-14 hours (or more). If that's too long to wait and you have an oscillating pedestal fan in your home, place the fan next to your drying surface and lock the fan down (to prevent the fan from oscillating). There's usually a small pull-pin at the top-rear of the fan motor; pull the pin up and point the fan towards the bottom (toe) of the hose. Set the fan speed on low and then turn on the fan. Do not set the speed any higher than its lowest setting and do not point the fan at the top (or opening) of your hose...you won't want to walk away from all your hard work only to return and find your HKH on the other side of the room.

Well, that should do it. I realize this sounds like a lot of work just to wash a pair of socks but this method has worked very well for me and my HKH are still as beautiful as the day I first put them on.

Good luck!

P.S. Don't want to do things the old fashioned way? Buy some Woolite and follow the instructions on the back of the bottle. However, never, ever put your HKH in a dryer...you will regret it.

[Robin]

Thanks!

[djweso]

Wow! That's great! Very detailed, I love it.

Now I just have to afford a nice pair of hose like those.

[Big Paul]

Out standing detail!! Well done!!

[Southern Breeze]

Outstanding article! We need to save this one from getting lost in the pile.

[angerli]

Hey, macsimoin!

Thanks ever so much for the great treatise. I just got mine in the mail today from Rocky, so this is very timely. A lotta work, but good highland hose are worth it, fer sure!

Sandy