Old school hand-knit hose

[Piobair]

I was wondering if anyone had any leads for a hose knitter who makes heavy colored hose without any cabling or cuff patterns. I've seen a lot of older pictures of pipers wearing plain, heavy hose and was looking for a pair in lovat blue. While I like Cheviot and hand-knitters in Galloway and elsewhere, they tend to either have patterns in the knit or only come in white or off white. I was looking for the style sported by these guys:



Not only do I like the look, but I think it's notable that even John Burgess is wearing a pair of plain brogues. Less is more, I guess.

An recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Friday]

Joannie Newsome knits hose and I have no doubt that she can knit the hose you are looking for. Check out

New House Highland

There are others on this site that can also knit hose but Joannie's is the only name that come to mind at this point.

[The Wizard of BC]

Is this sort of what you had in mind?



These are hand knit on a circa 1880's circular sock machine.

[piperdbh]

Any hose knitter can knit solid-colored hose, including yours truly.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I was going to recommend my wife, but Friday beat me to it. Thanks!

Steve, I hate to disagree with you, but I would not describe those as hand knit. They are machine knit -- as you said yourself, on an 1880s sock knitting machine. They are nice hose, and it's uber-cool that they are made on an antique machine. But calling them hand knit is inaccurate.

Cheers!
Matt

[Tobus]

Is this sort of what you had in mind?



These are hand knit on a circa 1880's circular sock machine.

Wow, Steve. Those are nice-looking, simple kilt hose. I must admit, the reason I tend to shy away from plain hose is that most of them on the market are cheap and thin. But the ones in your photo look like they have a nice weight/thickness to them, and would make for an excellent everyday pair of kilt hose. I had never heard of a circular sock machine until today, but thanks to the power of the internet, I'm seeing that this is a very easy and straightforward way to make simple socks like yours. Apparently it can take as little as one hour to make a sock. Two hours for a pair. These machines are pretty pricy, but would actually be a good investment if a person were willing to make good use of one. From what I've read so far, it takes virtually no skill, and only a little experimentation and playing around with it, in order to be able to make a decent pair of socks. Hmm, definitely food for thought!

It seems to me that an enterprising person could invest in a machine (either an antique or one of the newly-produced ones) and make it pay for itself in a matter of a couple of weeks, if he or she were able to sell them at a modest profit. If I didn't have so many dang hobbies and homestead projects on my plate already, I'd be seriously considering it myself!

As for plain old plain or ribbed hose with no fancy cuff designs or cabling, these have a nice long Highland tradition. Several make their appearance in the MacLeay portraits, and I find them quite elegant in an understated way. It would be great to own some in this style, but only if they're nice and thick instead of thin and cheap like most plain hose on the market today.

[Lime]

I bought the hose below from http://www.harristweedandknitwear.co.uk/. They are hand knit and extremely good quality; very thick, warm and well made (for instance each foot is shaped differently). They don't appear to be on the site any more so you may have to email and cajole them.



I love the myriad of colours in the Harris wool





Sorry the pictures aren't that good.

[sydnie7]

[snip] I had never heard of a circular sock machine until today, but thanks to the power of the internet, I'm seeing that this is a very easy and straightforward way to make simple socks like yours. Apparently it can take as little as one hour to make a sock. Two hours for a pair. These machines are pretty pricy, but would actually be a good investment if a person were willing to make good use of one. From what I've read so far, it takes virtually no skill, and only a little experimentation and playing around with it, in order to be able to make a decent pair of socks. Hmm, definitely food for thought! [snip]

For pity's sake, don't let Pleater hear you say this!!! LOL

[Steve Ashton]

I'm sorry Tobus but you must have been reading some website I never found before buying my machine.

Circular Sock machines are fun but they are far from simple to operate.

Please do not purchase an antique one off ebay unless you are very familiar with these machines and are capable of taking them apart and repairing them. Most of these old machines have been sitting in someone's barn or in the back of some closet since WWI. They are often rusty which is death to them. Most are made up of different parts from different machines and the parts do not always fit. It took me a full week of concerted effort to get mine working and I have a machine shop.

You must discard any needles that would come with an antique and purchase new ones. You must also be prepared to search the web to replace any missing or broken parts.
The ads on ebay all say something like "I don't know much about these but this one turns well." Just because the handle turns does not mean you can make a sock.
then there is the idea that these machines are old technology. They run best when soaked in oil. I would keep a plastic boot mat under mine to catch the dripping oil.

Then there is the actual learning curve to produce a sock. Well, that was almost a month. I think I used up about 18-19 balls of yarn just learning how to work the machine and another 10-12 learning how to do things like turn a heel. 20+ balls of yarn at $3.60 a pop is a pretty expensive learning curve.

These machines are notoriously finicky. Even those who work with them often agree on this. They even have support groups like X Marks to deal with the frustration level of working with these machines.

I am just about ready to drop a couple thousand dollars for a new machine just because I totally lost my fight with the one I had.



These machines have a really interesting history.

They were sold door to door in the early years of the 20th century. Housewives would buy the machine and the wool from the company with a contract that the company would buy all the socks they made.
Women had a job, their own money, and produced a product they could be proud of. I have even read that these machines were one of the contributing factors in the changes in the role of women during this period.

In WWI it is estimated that perhaps the majority of the socks, mittens, mufflers and scarves worn by US and Canadian troops were woven on these machines.
For example Camp Funston, which was near the present Ft. Riley KS, was the largest military post in the world at the time. In August of 1917 85,000 pairs of hose, 27,000 mufflers, 14,000 scarves and 10,500 pair of wristlets were delivered by the Red Cross. Most of those were produced by women working in their homes. Many on machines like these.
The Ball Room of the Rockefeller mansion on Long Island was converted to a sock factory. There, 150 women helped keep 100 machines turning day and night.


It is possible that most of the hose in the OP original post may have been made on a machine similar to these instead of being made in a large factory simply because there were very few large hose factories at the time. The technology had not caught up yet. So hose made on these machines are very period correct.



Hose made on a CSM may not be made with knitting needles and yarn held in the hands but they are also not what would be accepted as machine made today. If you wish to do a heel or toe with these machines the settings or needles must be changed with each rotation of the handle. There is little in the way of tension control.

I was just about at the point that I could turn out a pair of hose in 4-5 hours. The main problem was the machine. It was an ebay antique. I hope with a new one that I can get that down to 2 hours per pair.

Like many things these machines are a lot of fun and a good way to while away an evening. But please don't buy one unless you are also the type of person who is making their own stuff all the time anyway. They are not an easy hobby.

[Friday]

An alternative to the Circular Sock machine is a flat bed knitting machine with a ribber.



http://www.allbrands.com/categories/955/576-artisan-jbl245-standard-4-5mm-gauge-30-punchcards

With one of these machines you can knit sweaters, blankets and other items as well as socks. If you want to do argyle socks you can knit flat without the ribber. Yes in is involved it that you have to hand place the yarn on each row, but, will normally take you less time than hand knitting. The machine shown above has a punch feature. The punch card controls the needles and can work a pattern on the hose. These then are seamed to make a round hose.

They are nice but a quality set of knitting needles is cheaper and more portable.