Buying ball of boiled wool?

Howdy,
I was wondering if anyone had a link to where one could buy pre-boiled (dachstein-type) wool? And possibly, if anyone had plans to make mitts ala dachstein mountaineering mitts?

My girlfriend's mother and grand-mother are both very capable knitters and told me if I could give them the wool I wanted + plans, they could make me mitts.

Any help is welcomed!

Fish

I have a vague recollection that the object is first knitted and THEN boiled. I think the wool shrinks a bit, so it has to be made oversized. Something tells me that miraculous tool, Google, might be of help here.

Kevin Rooney said:

I have a vague recollection that the object is first knitted and THEN boiled. I think the wool shrinks a bit, so it has to be made oversized. Something tells me that miraculous tool, Google, might be of help here.

Click to expand...

Hmm, I see. That's interesting. I'll be sure to pass that along. Is there a known % of shrinkage that we have to accomodate. Is that dependant on the type of wool used (I would imagine it is).

Do you (or anyone for that matter) recall if one can use any type of wool or there's a specific type of wool one has to use to get the desired effect?

Oddly enough, I couldn't find a whole lot on these types of mitts.

Cheers,

Fish

Kevin Rooney said:

I have a vague recollection that the object is first knitted and THEN boiled. I think the wool shrinks a bit, so it has to be made oversized. Something tells me that miraculous tool, Google, might be of help here.

Click to expand...

Yes--knitted and then boiled. That is how the knit becomes so tight--almost a felt.

hikingfish said:

Hmm, I see. That's interesting. I'll be sure to pass that along. Is there a known % of shrinkage that we have to accomodate. Is that dependant on the type of wool used (I would imagine it is).

Click to expand...

I think the shrinkage varies, but don't quote me...

Do you (or anyone for that matter) recall if one can use any type of wool or there's a specific type of wool one has to use to get the desired effect?

Click to expand...

Dunno.

Oddly enough, I couldn't find a whole lot on these types of mitts.

Click to expand...

Google "Dachstein Mitts" or "Dachstein Mittens"--you will get lots of hits including dealers. (And a lament about disappearing gear... )

They are very warm--I used to use them when ice climbing.

Doug

Who needs Google

THIS is from a previous THREAD

hikingfish said:

Hmm, I see. That's interesting. I'll be sure to pass that along. Is there a known % of shrinkage that we have to accomodate.

Fish

Click to expand...

Depends on how cold the water is.

Another "parallel" thread: http://www.archivalclothing.com/2009/03/archival-mitts-dachsteinortovox.html (Found via the Google search.)

Various factoids from Google search on "Dachstein mittens":
* It seems that Ortovox sells a rebranded version.
* Still made in Germany.
* Can be purchased from the UK

Doug

Ohh, I revisited a couple of those links and it appears that Ortovox has an office in Canada now! I contacted them to see if they can get their hands on those dachstein mitts.

I'll keep you guys posted.

Fish

theres an american Ortovox distributor, but it's a very small operation. no real website, and no online ordering. I bought a pair last year. good stuff.

455 Irish Hill Road
USA - Hopkinton, NH 03229
Tel: +1- (0) 603 - 746 31 76
Fax: +1- (0) 603 - 746 63 60
[email protected]


if you want to knit it yourself, knit a test swatch first and shrink that to figure out the percentage. It's probably different for each type of yarn and needle size and water temp.

fvrwld over on adkforum.com crocheted a bunch of hats as a fundraiser, and I requested a boiled wool hat. it came out very well. its about 1/2 an inch thick of extremely dense wool. completely wind proof and could probably stop an axe blade. So you might want to ask her about it.

Kevin Rooney said:

I have a vague recollection that the object is first knitted and THEN boiled. I think the wool shrinks a bit, so it has to be made oversized. Something tells me that miraculous tool, Google, might be of help here.

Click to expand...

I had a cap made, knitted and then boiled, very hot washed, the weave is very tight and almost water resistant. I think this only works with lambs wool. Some of the other knitting fibers don't shrink.

The Mountaineer in Keene Valley sells the Ortovox version, but they're ridiculously expensive.

mittens

I have mittens that I knitted myself that I wear hiking in the winter. They aren't felted, but double knit. You use 2 different colors of wool and knit them in a pattern and the yarn gets carried over on the inside of the mitten, so it's extra thick. Any wool is going to shrink and get felted over time, so that happens with these mittens too.

These mittens are warm even when they are wet and they are sturdy. I've had them for years. They have held up really well even with all the icy rock scrambles in the Catskills in the winter.

If you have someone who wants to knit you mittens the book I have is called "Flying Geese and Partridge Feet" by Robin Hansen. There are several books by this author and the patterns are all traditional patterns that have been passed down over the years.

Dachstein wool products are also called "Himalayan". Campmor used to carry boiled wool mitts and socks under the "Himalayan" description - haven't checked to see if they still do.

My wife is a knitter and just felted a sweater for our little girl. When she felted it she placed the wet sweater in the drier and nervously checked every 5-10 minutes 'til it was the correct size. Hung dried the rest of the way. The sweater was about 2 sizes larger than the finished product.

She gets a lot of info here https://www.ravelry.com/account/login Sorta like a vftt for knitters.

She has also made some wonderful socks that I wear mt biking. Nice, cozy and warm.

Making felted mittens, hats, booties, etc. used to be a hobby of mine. The process requires using friction, soap and warm water. The friction causes the fibers to knot together tighter and tighter. The soap makes the fibers slippery so they can get all knotted up like a bad rasta hairdo. I worked the mittens by rubbing them on an old fashioned washboard with warm, soapy water. The shrinkage factor is pretty big… I can’t remember exactly but I’d say it was at least 40-50%. Using a washing machine will also work, but you can’t control the shrinkage as well.

I started with raw fleece (from my own sheep) but the same effect could be done from knitted mittens that are pure wool. They don’t have to be lamb’s wool or any particular type of wool. Yarn that contains synthetic fibers, silk or cotton won’t work. The wool needs to be 100%. Boiling the wool only may not necessarily work without the friction. Anyone who has mistakenly thrown a wool sweater in the washer understands this process.

While all you knitters are at it, how about making up a bunch of nose warmers?

We were at the Mt Van Hoevenberg Ski Center one day and a dozen people trooped in all wearing these nifty pointy things on their noses. Versatile too, they could be imaginatively put to a number of uses.

TEO said:

The Mountaineer in Keene Valley sells the Ortovox version, but they're ridiculously expensive.

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Last christmas, I had asked my girlfriend for a pair and I told her the mountaineer carried them. She checked (the dollar wasn't as strong as it is today though) and with currency conversion, shipping and duty, it would of came out to approx. 100$ CDN for a pair. A tad too expensive.

Kevin Rooney said:

Dachstein wool products are also called "Himalayan". Campmor used to carry boiled wool mitts and socks under the "Himalayan" description - haven't checked to see if they still do.

Click to expand...

I saw numerous entries in my google searches about this. Campmor made a lot of people unhappy about dropping those mitts from their stores hehe.

brianW said:

When she felted it she placed the wet sweater in the drier and nervously checked every 5-10 minutes 'til it was the correct size. Hung dried the rest of the way. The sweater was about 2 sizes larger than the finished product.

Click to expand...

This sounds like what I'll probably do...checking every couple of minutes. lol. Does anyone recall how long you have to put it in the washer approximately?

nancy said:

Making felted mittens, hats, booties, etc. used to be a hobby of mine. The process requires using friction, soap and warm water. The friction causes the fibers to knot together tighter and tighter. The soap makes the fibers slippery so they can get all knotted up like a bad rasta hairdo. I worked the mittens by rubbing them on an old fashioned washboard with warm, soapy water. The shrinkage factor is pretty big… I can’t remember exactly but I’d say it was at least 40-50%. Using a washing machine will also work, but you can’t control the shrinkage as well.

I started with raw fleece (from my own sheep) but the same effect could be done from knitted mittens that are pure wool. They don’t have to be lamb’s wool or any particular type of wool. Yarn that contains synthetic fibers, silk or cotton won’t work. The wool needs to be 100%. Boiling the wool only may not necessarily work without the friction. Anyone who has mistakenly thrown a wool sweater in the washer understands this process.

Click to expand...

Nancy! You're my new hero I think I'll ask my mother in law to buy pure wool and knit them 1.5x larger than needed. Then I'll use brianW's trick of checking every couple of minutes while washing them in the washing machine (is a frontal washing machine ok?). I do have a question for you though (maybe this is real simple, I didn't check with my mother in law): Would it be hard to make a shape (half-closed fist shape) to the mitts? Like the ortovox arctic mitts...

Cheers everyone for all the great replies,

Fish

You might be able to buy oversize wool mittens and boil them down.

Just checked, looks like ragg wool mittens are also on the decline, but Google finds a number of dealers. Don't know if they make giant sizes, tho...

Doug

Just to clarify, my wife did not use the washer when she felted the sweater she got it wet than used the drier. She found the pattern and techniqui I belive on the link I posted.

Walmart had some really dense wool finger mittens for under $10. last winter. They were not boiled that as I could tell but they were really thick and warm when wet from climbing in the snow. Keep an eye out, they ran out before I could go back for another pair,.