BARRIERE, B.C. — Anne Carmichael takes 20 minutes to make a sock on her 104-year-old knitting machine.
Carmichael, who raises Corriedale and Dorset sheep on her farm near Tappen, B.C., is part of a knitters’ guild and makes socks of every shape and size on a cast iron unit that she found in Ontario.
The federal government gave these units to people during the two world wars to make socks for soldiers. A lot of men ran the machines and were paid a small amount for every pair they produced.
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“It was their version of egg money,” Carmichael said.
The machine can turn out a sock almost as fast as Carmichael can turn the hand operated crank and control the yarn, which is much faster than the lengthier task of hand knitting socks with four double pointed needles. One revolution makes one round.
The heel is expertly turned and there are no seams at the toes.
“I couldn’t hand knit socks. It wouldn’t work for me,” she said.
Her machine has 32 needles, and she threads through fingering yarn or sock weight yarn similar to what she would do with a sewing machine.
She typically uses yarn that is 75 percent wool and 25 percent nylon for long wearing durability. A 100 gram ball of yarn makes one pair of socks.
The socks can be made with ribbing or designs by adjusting or removing the needles.
Machines with 54 or 72 needles are also available. They were used to make finer stockings for women.
Many of the socks are sold to cancer or diabetic patients because they are non binding and made from natural fibres such as soy and bamboo. Others are sold to people who wear heavy duty boots because the socks are durable and breathe.
These wool socks are finely textured and a far cry from old fashioned, itchy work stocks, said Carmichael.
“A lot of people don’t understand what wool is anymore.”
