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Sock knitting makes comeback for members of local craft group
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Friday, May 4, 2007 10:39 PM EDT
Joann Krzywosiuski raises sheep because she enjoys them. She also loves knitting with wool from her sheep - leading her to an unusual hobby.
Krzywosiuski, of Chesaning, is a sock knitter.
“I have a spinning flock which produce different kinds of wool,” she said.
Her flock includes an Icelandic sheep, several Cottswold and two Corridale sheep.
“I have a lot of wool, but not all of it is good for knitting,” she said.
At one time she said she was not certain what to do with the wool she could not use for her knitting projects.
Two years ago, she found an answer. She bought a sock knitting machine.
“When I got my first sheep, my husband, Steve, asked me, ‘What are you going to do? Knit a pair of socks?'
“Now, 12 years later, Steve has lots of socks,” she said. “I had to do something with the wool. I like the sheep.”
Krzywosiuski spent a recent weekend at Creative Passions, a crop and quilt retreat in Chesaning, with a group of other sock knitters - some traveling great distances to come for the weekend.
Each knitter brought her own machine to the retreat and everyone set up the machines around the work room.
“This is our third sock knitting retreat in Chesaning,” said Betty Boch, who lives north of Midland and coordinates the group of sock knitters.
“We started out with six and grew to nine. Now we have 16 in our group, with an instructor,” she said.
“A lot of these are antique sock knitting machines,” said Boch. “Most people here bought theirs refurbished. The machines are getting harder and harder to find. In fact, in the last three years, the price for a machine has almost tripled.
“It costs $1,200 to $2,000 for a refurbished one now, although there is a gal in New Zealand who is making replicas,” she said. Boch added the cost of a replica, with shipping, is on the high end of the amount one would pay for a refurbished machine.
“At one time, the machines sold at auctions for almost nothing,” said Krzywosiuski. “Nobody knew what they were.””
“We date them by the model,” said Judy Scheuneman, a sock knitter from Clio, who serves as instructor to the group.
Many of the machines date back to the late 1800s, and were at one time purchased by women who wanted to work at home and earn money from selling their products.
Today, sock knitters who use the machines make more than socks, and knit with many colors and different kinds of yarns, including blends of silk and wool or cotton and wool, as well as pure wool.
Mittens, scarves and baby bonnets are other items which can be knitted on the machines.
“We come here for the weekend,” said Krzywosiuski. “Some are beginners. Some are learning new techniques.
“I come here to be with other women. It's sort of like a party.”
Krzywosiuski emphasized that sock knitting is not only of interest to women.
“There are men who do sock knitting, too,” Krzywosiuski. “They do a wonderful job.”
“Even hand knitting is coming back. Teenaged kids are interested in learning how to knit.
The sock knitting group already has a fall retreat date confirmed to return to Chesaning's Creative Passions Retreat.
Although Boch and other sock knitters sell many of their products, others, like Krzywosiuski, are interested for other reasons.
“I do this for a hobby,” said Krzywosiuski. “You meet so many great people.”