What Types of Yarn Can Be Used for Socks?

Whilst many yarns are already woollen yarn labelled up specifically as ‘sock yarn’ to make it easy for beginners to select the right, you don’t have to limit yourself only to these yarns if you’re knitting up a batch of snuggly footwear. Rather, as long as you know what to look for in a yarn, you can select any yarn that fits the criteria.Generally speaking, look for yarn classified as superfine, or described as lace, sock, fingering, or 4-ply. If you like thin socks, stick with a lightweight yarn (400m/100g), but remember that bulkier socks can be a fantastic choice for winter weekends at home.



To knit up a cosier pair of woolly foot warmers, you could opt for a DK weight - just don’t expect to be able to squeeze them into a tight pair of shoes!You’ll often find that when it comes to yarns created for socks in particular, they’ll feature wool, blended with other fibres designed to add durability. Knitting with a good wool sock yarn will ensure your socks feature that all-important elasticity. As a fibre, wool has a fantastic shape memory due to its natural crimp, meaning that even after plenty of wearing and washing, your socks will retain their structure and fit just as well as the very first wear.

Its antibacterial and antimicrobial properties are perfect for footwear, and its structure will work just as hard on your foot as it did on the sheep, to help keep you warm in the winter, and cool in the summer. - is a great choice for creating characterful socks that will not only fit with luxurious comfort and softness but will also stand the test of time. Each skein is lovingly hand-dyed right here in the UK, so if you’re looking for a collection of hand-dyed sock yarns to add a little colour to your step, these make the perfect choice.

Ideally, socks need to be stretchy enough to slip on easily whilst also hugging the calf firmly enough to stay up all day, which is an easier structure to achieve with the infinitely looped and interlocked structure achieved with knitting, in comparison to the series of slipped knots that forms a crochet piece. Knitting tends to lie flat, making it easier to slip inside shoes or boots, whilst crochet generally creates a denser, rougher fabric. If of course, your goal is to create a thick and chunky pair of bed socks, slipper socks, or Nordic-style foot warmers, crochet can still be a fantastic choice. But for everyday socks, most tend to favour knitting as the best approach.