I do sometimes add a bit of ammonia in the rinse of some of my woolens (never with whites for fear of yellowing them) but it's at a very low ppm level. I find it useful to remove the vestiges of the soap/detergent when I use liquid "woolen" detergents like Delicare/Woolite etc. Since I started using powdered Perwool almost exclusively for wool, I haven't used ammonia very often. Powdered product doesn't seem to leave the woolens with any level of residual suds. I have tried the liquid Perwool, but find it has the same characteristics as Delicare/Woolite in terms of lack of truly clear rinsing. I suspect that the agents which keep it in solution in the bottle are the culprits, which is why I prefer powders as a rule. Powdered Perwool is not available in the US, but it can be readily ordered from Canada. I think washing newly-shorn fleeces in ammonia works, because at that point they are usually disgustingly greasy and ammonia would be effective at the gross cleaning necessary at that stage. Between the sheep and the finished goods (whether yarn or cloth) a huge amount of cleaning must go on, or we'd all be gagging on damp days. There area couple of other wool-washing products I have used (all liquids) which do a satisfactory job. They are available from specialty suppliers and I can hunt up the links if anyone is interested. Unlike Delicare, Woolite and even liquid Perwool, these seem to work well with no untoward rinsing problems. I think that's because they are made for the wool-trade (spinners, weaver, fabric artist, etc.) , and not ordinary consumers, so have no extraneous ingredients. One does have to dose them very carefully, though, in quite small amounts. If you think that would be too difficult, I'd stick with powdered Perwool. Occasionally, I have washed sweaters for visiting family members who report missing that just-washed smell and being a bit discomfited with smell of just plain wool that Perwool leaves behind. I think the "fresh sweater smell" that they were expecting isn't the smell of clean wool but the perfumes of the familar wool-washing products. Personally I'm happy with the smell of wool, but since then I have added a bit of Cimberlie's homemade oil of lavendar concoction to the rinse. Now instead of a clean sheep I probably smell like a little old lady; I guess that's OK as long as I don't smell like mothballs! Molly~

As a spinner and knitter, I feel I should point out that we have some apples and oranges being discussed here. The felting tendencies of these fibres depend on their physical structure, especially the scales on the shaft of the hairs themselves. These scales are what hook together with water, heat, soap and agitation to form the fulled or felted fabric of a ruined sweater. Cashmere has very few and very flat scales and thus tends not to felt as much as a coarser wool. Merino tends to be the least 'felty' of the wools for similar reasons. Allendubner, your Goodwill sweaters may be of a more scaley type of wool than merino, and thus may not be good indicators. I'm getting a new LG washer and dryer this week (if LG gets their inventory act together and finally coughs them up!) but I hadn't intended to clean my handknitted stuff in there. But you've given me the incentive to knit up a few test swatches and try!

I could have sworn I replied to pammy's post this AM...hmmm...might have forgotten to submit it...AADD is often bad over coffee in the AM. anyway...Chemo: Do the eBay Merinos' have any cushioning? Yes, they are quite cushioned. They are so thick/cushioned, that they could make some shoes feel tight. Sue_va...I've got an extra 'new' pair of the kind I've bought...is it any wonder? Anyway...if you would like to try them, I figure they would be about $5 and that includes shipping. Just lmk and I'll get them headed your way. (the other) Sue Oh...one other thing...on the ones I buy on Ebay, sometimes they come in gray, brown, or navy blue. There is very little difference in them, and I find I have to put them under a good light to see that I am matching up the colors when folding them before they go in the drawer. Going forward I'll just be buying the gray ones as they are the ones most commonly sold.

So many good suggestions! So many new socks to try! Thanks everyone!! I'm glad I'm not the only one who goes mad over those dumb toe seams. I think I get it from my nana--she was always looking for socks without toe seams. Funny thing is, her feet were double-narrows, and I got duck feet. I have occasionally tried turning socks inside-out, but if that seam gets between my pinkie toe and the shoe, it's murder--inside-out or not! Dances, you're the only knitter I know. Don't worry, I know you're busy. And I think the fluffery, intricate bits on the edge are very, very, very, very pretty, and the color's just perfect. Chemocurl, that seems (seams? HA!) like a really good price on Ebay. I'll have to check those out. Yeah yeah, Liz, rub it in that you don't hafta wear socks! I love socks, but I LOVE going sockless. *sigh* Why do I hear an echo of someone saying "You'll catch your death of cold if you don't put some socks on!" Oh crud, I've got to get back to work! Sorry if I didn't have time to reply to you directly! THANK YOU for the input! One last thing--Moni, I DO have power now! Everything has thawed out now but my feet! I saw your tree damage (poor tree!); want to see mine? The 2nd and 3rd posts down on my blog are about my very very sad sycamore: My blog