WoolWeenies Club

[SadieKate]

Patagonia Merino 1 crew - like silk, the softest, thinnest, yummiest wool base layer I've ever had (and that's over Smartwool, Ibex, Io/Bio, Icebreaker, REI, Helly Hansen, and probably others I have forgotten). Has a nice scoop neck which lends a more feminine touch.

Patagonia Merino 4 bottoms - Wow. Layered under a pair of medium weight fleece pants, I was toasty warm through 4 cold days of steelhead fishing in 46 degree water over my hips. Sized and fitted more like loose tights, so if you want to layer under tight clothing buy a size smaller. Washed up like a dream. Wish I had these for my Alaska fishing trips.

Patagonia Ultra Heavyweight mountaineering socks under neoprene wader feet and a lt pair of neoprene wader socks and who knew my weakest point was standing in 46 degree water for 8 hours a day for 4 days! Cold? What cold! So far only Patagonia and Cabelas make mountaineering weight socks sized for small feet. I like the denser weave of the Patagucci's but you pay for it.

And the piece de resistance when the winds came up.

[GLC1968]

SK - I LOVE that hat! Can you tell me...is it stretchy at all? I have a huge head and would need a larger size unless it's stretchy and that's hard to tell from the picture.

(please, please, please let it not be stretchy so that I'm not compelled to buy it.....)

[SadieKate]

(please, please, please let it not be stretchy so that I'm not compelled to buy it.....)

Um, you may be in luck.

I'm a pinhead. Happened to have a tape measure handy and my noggin is 21.5". The hat would accomodate a 22" head at most.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I'm a pinhead. Happened to have a tape measure handy and my noggin is 21.5". The hat would accomodate a 22" head at most.

Mine is 21". Most hats are gigantic on me.

[SadieKate]

I know the feeling . . .

[Crankin]

Another 21" head...

[MommyBird]

This thread is soooo long and technology has probably changed a bit since it started so I am going to ask a question that has probably been asked before...

Does anyone avoid wool because they break out in a rash of welts?
This has been a life-long, head-to-toe problem for me.
I have avoided wool for much of my 49 years because of this.

I purchased two pair of Smart Wool socks for hiking last summer because I was tired of getting blisters. They did not cause welting on my feet or ankles. I just purchased two more pair and plan to cycle out my non-wool fashion socks as well. (Slowly because SW is $$$$$)

Are these technical wool items different than the fashion items I have never had the pleasure to enjoy? Will my legs, torso, arms, neck and head be able to tolerate this new generation wool?

I am tempted to try a base-layer-T. Has anyone who welts tried the newer sports-tech stuff and survived?

[Biciclista]

This thread is soooo long and technology has probably changed a bit since it started so I am going to ask a question that has probably been asked before...

Does anyone avoid wool because they break out in a rash of welts?
This has been a life-long, head-to-toe problem for me.
I have avoided wool for much of my 49 years because of this.


I am tempted to try a base-layer-T. Has anyone who welts tried the newer sports-tech stuff and survived?

yeah, my itchy twitchy husband. He LOVES his merino underlayer teeshirt.

it IS different but i don't know how or why.

[Eden]

yeah, my itchy twitchy husband. He LOVES his merino underlayer teeshirt.

it IS different but i don't know how or why.

This totally depends on whether or not you experience irritation from wool or have a true wool allergy - the allergy is a reaction to lanolin and causes contact dermatitis. A person with an allergy will react to lanolin in any product - so a hand cream could cause an outbreak without ever being near a sweater.. Irritation from wool is not uncommon and can be pretty severe, but isn't a true allergy. Finer, softer wools will be less irritating so indeed someone who finds wool sweaters to be generally itchy can be just fine with a soft merino.

[Biciclista]

This totally depends on whether or not you experience irritation from wool or have a true wool allergy - the allergy is a reaction to lanolin and causes contact dermatitis. A person with an allergy will react to lanolin in any product - so a hand cream could cause an outbreak without ever being near a sweater.. Irritation from wool is not uncommon and can be pretty severe, but isn't a true allergy. Finer, softer wools will be less irritating so indeed someone who finds wool sweaters to be generally itchy can be just fine with a soft merino.

no one said they had a true allergy, they were asking for anecdotal information.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Are these technical wool items different than the fashion items I have never had the pleasure to enjoy?.....Has anyone who welts tried the newer sports-tech stuff and survived?

Just to clarify, the new softer merino wool items we tend to rave about are not 'sports-tech' or 'technical wool'. They are just WOOL. But they are 100% merino breed sheep wool- which is much finer and softer to begin with and tends to not make people break out and itch like the wool sweaters we were used to when growing up.
There's nothing 'technical' or 'sports' about it aside from the fact that the merino breed of sheep produce the finest softest fiber sheep wool there is.

Maybe buy a sleeveless Smartwool base layer vest and give it a try? Smartwool, Ibex, and I believe Icebreaker use only fine merino wool in their 100% wool items. Others offer it too, like Patagonia.
You can also look for labels saying "100% merino wool" in thrift store sweaters.
Always read the labels....and beware of things labeled like "wool blend" or "wool tech", "wool fleece", etc....usually indicating only part wool content.

[GLC1968]

There's nothing 'technical' or 'sports' about it aside from the fact that the merino breed of sheep produce the finest softest fiber sheep wool there is.

I would have to slightly disagree. I've been wearing Merino wool for more than 30 years. When my friends were wearing sweatshirts at camp, I had big cable knit wool sweaters! Over time, there have been major advancements our ability to knit/spin the wool into these thin, soft, delicate fibers that make these garments suitable for athletic/sports base layers. The merino wool sweaters of my HS days were wonderfully soft, but they were entirely too thick and too 'fuzzy' (for lack of a more technical term) to be worn for potentially sweaty athletic pursuits. We would wear the fine silk under garments and then put the wool on top. Even 100% merino can be too 'itchy' when it's not woven into these wonderful fabrics. I'd say that qualifies them as 'technical'.

Mommybird -

I would guess that since you can wear smartwool socks with no welts forming on your ankles, then you are probably just sensitive to the texture more than to the lanolin and you'd probably be fine with a soft base layer. Give it a shot...come to the wooly side!

[Eden]

Very true - technical companies (like smartwool) tend to use merino, but that doesn't mean all merino is technical wool and may require more gentle care than say, Smartwool socks and base layers, which can even be thrown in the dryer. Do that with a merino sweater and you'll probably find it a suitable size for a 6 yo... not that you cannot wash wool. I have a nice cashmere-silk blend turtleneck that I wash often. I just make sure to air dry it. Unlike the wool of old times, it is thin, soft and dries quickly.

[SadieKate]

Are these technical wool items different than the fashion items I have never had the pleasure to enjoy? . . . I am tempted to try a base-layer-T. Has anyone who welts tried the newer sports-tech stuff and survived?

Sort of.

Washable wool is created by using acid to remove the scales so the fiber doesn't felt when washed. Additionally, the fiber may be coated with polymers or teflon. Perhaps, the lack of scales, the coating, and a potential loss of lanolin from the acid bath may mean people may be less likely to react to the wool.

Anyone who knits and/or felts with wool can tell you that superwash yarns behave very differently than wool that still has its natural scales and lanolin (and even "normal" yarn has varying degrees of lanolin depending on how much the wool has been processed prior to spinning). It not only doesn't felt, it can remain stretchier. Fair Isle knitting can be tricky with washable wool because the yarn scales aren't there to grab onto the neighboring strand, so the garment stretches more and doesn't have the same memory (i.e., shrink back to original size).

Editing to add that all wool is technically "washable" but what the industry calls washable wool or superwash can be much more roughly handled (a washing machine) and maybe even thrown in the dryer. When washing non-superwash, don't use agitation, warm water or heat to dry. Otherwise, you'll get shrinkage and felting.

Here's some more info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wool
Superwash wool (or washable wool) technology first appeared in the early 1970s to produce wool that has been specially treated so that it is machine washable and may be tumble-dried. This wool is produced using an acid bath that removes the "scales" from the fiber, or by coating the fiber with a polymer that prevents the scales from attaching to each other and causing shrinkage.
http://knitting.about.com/od/knittin...rwash_wool.htm

http://www.thevillaandshoestoo.com/P...le%20wool.html

[SadieKate]

Depending on the garment part wool can be fine. Socks for instance. You need some nylon for durability (knitters have added a nylon running thread to the heels of socks for years) and elastic or Lycra can help them hold their shape (not sag, the bane of my hiking/skiing life).

Nylon and polyester used appropriately can make a far more durable garment and help the garment hold its shape, especially in a woven fabric. You just need to learn how to gauge when it's used appropriately and when it's just a way to cut cost and, therefore, quality.