Simply Socks Yarn Co. Blog

SSYC's 18th Birthday Party

I cannot believe it's been nearly 18 years. I had a business plan that wasn't even five years. And here we are 18 years later with over a million dollars in yarn to browse in a gorgeously restored 1940s post office, doing what we love and still serving you. I can't adequately express to you you how happy I am to still be serving you through a big recession (gosh, 15 years ago?), a pandemic, and the ups and downs of life and running a business. I'm fortunate to do what I do, do it with an unbeatable team, and do it for you. 

This photo is from last year's party, and I can't wait to see what balloon art Pop Pop Balloon has in mind this year!

If you're in Fort Wayne, Indiana, or anywhere close enough to get here, please do come party with us next week! We'd love to see you and show off the shop and treat you to some gifts and deals and contests.... and, of course, Cookie Cottage cookies. We are open this Saturday for our normal Saturday from 10am-4pm, but that's not technically a party day.... though our huge balloson installments will be up for you to see already! The goodies and deals start on Monday and go through Friday, when we will be open each day from 10am - 2pm. We will celebrate online soon too, and with a club, knit kits, sales, contests and more.

Here's what we have going on each day:

Monday through Friday, June 5-9 10am-2pm - Free hand made stitch markers with each purchase. We'll have our "fishbowl contest" that you can enter to win each day, meaning if you put your name in the fishbowl all five days, you have five chances to win the prizes. In addition, each day we'll be offering the following (in person only, as online offers come later):

Monday, 6/5 10am-2pm- Cookie Cottage cookies for all and 18% off one in-stock item of your choice (up to $20 off)

Tuesday, 6/6 10am-2pm- 18% off Dream in Color and Kenyarn

Wednesday, 6/7 10am-2pm - Cookie Cottage cookies for all and 18% off knitting needles (up to three)

Thursday, 6/8 10am-2pm - 18% off Hedgehog Fibres

Friday 6/9 10am-2pm - Cookie Cottage cookies for all and 18% off the "Three F's", Flock Fibre, Fiberstory and Fleece Artist

Do grab your fiber friends and come see us at 1315 E State Blvd, Fort Wayne, IN during this week. If you aren't local, and want to make a day of it, we have a list of great places to eat and knit, and nearby parks for a beautiful walk and outdoor knitting. And if you can't make it for the celebration, check out our hours that we have posted through the end of the year.  We are open our normal Saturday, June 3 from 10-4, if you'd prefer to visit on a weekend day.

The Sheepy Shire is Here!

Guys, I'm so pleased to have these summer vibes in the shop! I mean, that vivid rainbow of color is just fab isn't it? Let's welcome The Sheepy Shire to the SSYC Fam!!!

Shown above in Smutty Romance Novel, Booyah!, Ta-Da!, Eureka!, Huzzah!, Voila, Ewe La La, and Electric Sheep on Meadow Sport

Tara and Mike are a wife and husband duo who dye their yarn in eastern PA. They started out dyeing over 10 years ago in Mike's dad's kitchen sink and have progressed since then into a family business/studio that allows the couple to work together. They hope to one day even open a store front so they can better get to know their supporters and create a community.

These colors are all so fun, and not only would make wonderful accents to a project, but whole projects too. How do I know that? because Tara and Mike give us pictures of entire knit up samples, which is quite rare for a hand dyer to do! Now, we don't have knit up pictures for all of the colors, just some. So for those that we do, you'll see more than one picture on our website. Ours, that we take here of the dyelot we have, and then a knit up picture after that.

Voila, Ta-Da! and Ewe La La on Staple Sock

Why do dyers not usually share knit up photos of all their yarns? Well, one knit up picture might represent that particular dye lot of a color, but the next dyelot might look a bit different. And if you don't know that's how hand dyed yarn works, then you might see a knit up sample and be a bit angry when you receive your yarn and your Eureka skein (the yellow, at top and below) has more pink and less orange than expected. So my showing you knit up pictures on our website, I hope you realize that it's just an idea of what your skein might look like knit up. I also make it obvious b/c I say on the picture that the first picture we show you is of our actual skeins/lot. So I hope you use the knit up pictures as a great tool, but know that it's just one picture that was one skein. Make sense?

Making knit up samples also is a lot of work and money. You either have to hand knit the samples yourself, or invest in a knitting machine. And then you're losing the profit from the skein that you knit up b/c you can't sell that. So it's just not something that smaller dyers can usually fit into their cost structure. And some dyers start out knitting up samples, then realize how costly and what a time suck it is and then don't do it anymore. It's just a lot. And when you're just one or two people, you have to decide how best to spend your time and money if you want to really do this long term.

It's something I totally get. For example, our shop is open to shoppers just one day a week, and even though I get requests all the time that we are open more days, we just have to focus on what has really kept us open for nearly two decades (through a huge recession in 2009 and a pandemic), and that's shipping 6 days a week. We want to continue to do that really, really well because that's what really keeps the lights on, shipping all over the world. If we were to just focus on Fort Wayne, Indiana, we would either be much smaller, or would have closed a decade ago.

I have three bases for you, and am likely to add a super bulky in the fall (and maybe even another base yarn) because these colors are so fun and I love the idea of quick knit hats and mittens in this yarn. Right now I have Staple Sock, Meadow Sport and Dandelion Mohair. Staple Sock is the classic superwash merino/nylon blend for socks, the mohair is likely the same base yarn as the super popular Emma's mohair we offer (a laceweight that can be used on its own for a gauzy piece, but most people hold it with another yarn for a fuzzy effect) and Meadow Sport which I'm really excited about. It's a squishy sport weight superwash merino/nylon blend and most dyers don't offer that. It's just a smidge thicker than the fingering weight, so perfect for the person who likes slightly thicker boot socks. I really only go up a half needle size when knitting a sport weight. We did offer the same blend from Less Traveled Yarn, and I enjoyed knitting it, but they shuttered their studio and so I can't get more than I have right now. So I'm super glad that I have this for you (and me).

I have another new dyer arriving here in a few days, and then one from the UK in July. I can't wait to share all the new color we have coming!

The Sheepy Shire & A Long Weekend

Hi all! I just wanted to hop on here quickly between end of school events and share that our newest dyer's goods have just arrive here and after we come back from the long holiday weekend, you'll see The Sheepy Shire live at SSYC! I'm enjoying a quiet moment at one of my fave local coffee shops before I go to another meeting. Wow, the end of the school year just has SO MANY things going on that it's hard to keep up.

Team SSYC is taking a bit of time off this holiday weekend, so if you e-mail and don't hear back from me until Tuesday, that's why. James gets to go on a school trip over Memorial Day weekend, and so I get some alone time with Henry. And if you have more than one school aged kid, you know that never happens, days with just one kid. So we are going to have a super fun weekend together!

I can't wait to share the three bases we have from The Sheepy Shire next week! The colors are fresh and vivid and just what I need for summer. I think you'll agree as soon as you see them all. I'm hoping to have them live on the website on Wednesday, but there's a lot of it, so it could be as late as Friday. We also got the largest shipment we've ever gotten from Emma's Yarn, and we are adding dozens of colors to our mini and mohair offerings. I can't wait to share it all with you!

10% off Tosh Merino Light!

SSYC's MAD May Party is tomorrow, Saturday May 20 from 10am-4pm! If you're local, come in and browse nearly 4 tons of Madelinetosh, enter to win some goodies, and leave with a pattern. As an added treat, we are giving you 10% off Tosh Merino Light (their most popular yarn, by far) AND we're extending that deal online this weekend too! Now through Sunday, if you use coupon code MADMay at Check Out, you'll see 10% come off your Tosh Merino Light.

Madelinetosh does not typically allow discounts on their normal stock of yarn, but they agreed with us that not only is it a great way to celebrate MAD May (the month where local yarn shops celebrate Madelinetosh) but also because we are about to start our 18th birthday celebration! All summer long we'll be celebrating with sales, gifts, contest, a club, Knit Kits and more. And Madelinetosh is the first to help us celebrate!

Choose 7 colors of TML for a Fragmentation Shawl by Stephen West (knit by our awesome friend, Brenda)

So go here to get your TML. Stock up on the 300+ colors we have in stock for your shawls, sweaters and lightweight accessories. It's not great for socks, because it's a single, which means one ply. But it's perfect for items that don't get such hard wear, and it's BY FAR the most popular yarn Madelinetosh makes. The yardage is great and the color just glows on the skien. Want pattern ideas? What about Elfmail, Barley Light, Featherweight Cardigan, an adorable Clara.... oh a Henslowe!

SSYC Shop Manager Heather knit this Minerals shawl, holding two strands of fingering weight instead of the worsted weight it calls for. She dropped and picked up strands from the colors to make a fadey-look shawl. Get 3 or 4 skeins to make yours.

Thanks to Team Tosh for being so wonderful to work with and bending the rules this once so we can celebrate!

If you're local and don't want the TML you're looking at to sell out before you shop in person, you can order it online and choose Contactless Pickup at Check Out and get it on Saturday during the party. Otherwise, the color/quantity you want could be gone by Saturday afternoon. Hope this helps!

MAD May Party, a Toshy Contest & Dyer Deals

We're half way through MAD May, the celebration of all things Madelinetosh! This Saturday, May 20 from 10am-4pm the shop is open and we'd love to see you to share Madelinetosh contests, pattern giveaways, and other goodies. We have three to four TONS of Madelinetosh in stock, depending on the week, so it's definitely road-trip-worthy if you are within a few hours us this Saturday. 1315 E State Blvd, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Grab some knitting friends, shop and have lunch at one of our nearby faves (we have a list in the shop). And if you are local, just stop in to take a look and grab a pattern. We have more Madelinetosh than ever before!

A photo Tosh sent of how they organize before packing up our big orders.

Last fall for the first time we offered a big discount on yarn lines that we were letting go of or that were closing up/scaling back. We usually don't offer discounts on those because usually we just keep them as priced. But we wanted to make room for new lines/dyers and so created the coupon code ByeBye35 and you can get 35% off of the following dyers. Just enter ByeBye35 in the coupon code field at Check Out. Or even add it to your Cart as you shop b/c some of the quick check out options like Paypal and ApplePay can speed you past the coupon code option. And if you forget, you can always respond to your emailed receipt and ask me, Allison, to help after the fact.

Dragonfly Fibers

Lang Yarns

Poste Yarns

sKNITches Striping Yarn

Swift Yarns

Spun Right Round

Stitch Together Studios

TurtlePurl Striping Yarn

Undercover Otter

Unique Sheep

Vrinda Yarn, Asana Sport

Walk Collection

Bird Leg Bags

There are some beautiful options and I wanted to share that the ByeBye35 code is active again if you'd like to get premium yarn at a super discount. I do hope that several of these dyers or lines start up again or reach back out to us. We will continue to carry Vrinda (rebranded as Laneras Yarn Co last year) but not the Asana Sport weight that's on sale. And if I can get many of these again, I'm totally into welcoming them back - I do love working with these studios. Walk Collection (an amazing German studio) IS coming back to us late this summer/early fall, thank goodness! I'm super duper excited about that. I'm still offering a discount on what we have right now though because we may be offering different bases/put ups. I'll keep ya posted.

Since we are on the topic of dyers-that-are-no-more, Kenyarns, Olann Mills and Less Traveled Yarns have all announced recently that they are closing up too, so while we aren't offering a discount on these lines, it is your last chance to get them. They were all quite popular and we are sad to see them go but dyeing yarn is very grueling work and we get it, it's not a long term thing for some studios. Plus we are looking on the bright side that it gives us room to devote to up-and-coming dye studios!

A couple shots from last year's party and decor. Expect lots of colorful balloon arrangements again this year!
What else is coming soon? Several new dyers this summer! I can't want to share them with you. And SSYC will be celebrating our 18th BIRTHDAY this summer! As we do, we'll be sharing sales, Knit Kits, contests, gifts, an 18th Birthday SSYC Splash Sock Yarn Club and more. If you want to come see us in person, we are having a week long birthday party Monday, June 5 through Friday, June 9. We are open on June 3 as well, so if you want to come on the Saturday before the week long party starts, we welcome that. We just won't have the contests and treats out yet on that day because our open Saturdays are usually pretty darn busy for us already. And the point of having a week long part is so that we don't have 250 people in the shop on one day. The shop is big but our crew is small and while we appreciated the pre pandemic party days when we had 30 people lined up for Check Out, that's a lot at once. So spreading it out over a week is great for everyone. Plus that gives us a chance to do different gifts or specials every day, thus more overall.

Now it's time for that contest! Want a chance to win four skeins of your choice of Madelinetosh yarn? Tell me in the comments what you favorite project is that you've knit with Tosh yarn. Leave one comment before noon EST on Saturday, May 20. And if you haven't knit with Madelinetosh yet, tell me what your fave color is - we have nearly 400 here to look at! Be as detailed as you like in your comment - many of us spend our lunch time reading the blog comments from contests and some of your ideas provide project inspiration!

Above is a hat I made out of Tosh DK in Trip Wire. I make A LOT of hats out of Tosh DK and Tosh Vintage, so it's safe to say those are my favorite things to make out of Madelinetosh. I usually use this pattern. Below is the same pattern but in Danger Will Robinson. 

Manos del Uruguay - Alegria Sock

Want a super soft superwash merino/nylon blend sock yarn that's also Certified Free Trade? Give a try to Alegria Sock!

9776 - Bloom

Alegria sock yarn is available in some really great hand dyed solids and variegated hues, and now's the time to stock up because I hear the price is going up soon. It's not inexpensive to produce fair trade yarn, and just like everything else has in the past year, the price is slated to go up this summer to over $30 a skein.

2342 - Eucalyptus

I'm considering also adding other Manos del Uruguay yarns to the shop. Is that something you might like to see? Feel free to email me at [email protected] with your thoughts on that if you want. There are other dyers I want to add this summer (just secured another dye studio to our summer line up this morning!), so feel free to reach out and share your thoughts on Manos. Your input is always appreciated!

2349 - Oxygen

Trucks Full of Yarn

We have gotten in a lot of yarn this week, with more to come! We have restocks of so much Cascade, Manos, Madelinetosh, Malabrigo... and then today we received so much yarn that it was loaded onto pallets to be delivered.

What is this? Well you'll have to wait and see. But we have some big things coming to celebrate our 18th Yarniversary this summer, and this was just some of it. If you want to see the new goodies that I post throughout the day, the New link on our website is a good place to look. If you go now, you'd see the three new Tosh colors (two of them are assigned pooling colors).

What's coming soon? Well, if you're a local shopper, you'll want to stop in to enter contests, get stickers and free patterns from 10am-4pm on Saturday, May 20 when we have a little MAD May party to celebrate Madelinetosh. And if you're hoping for new goodies shop, I'll soon have restocks of Malabrigo Rios (gosh, this is hard to get right now), Dream in Color, Urth Yarn and more. Plus I'm adding two new dyers to the shop in June - one from here in the US and one from the UK. Can't wait to share more!

MAD May - A Month of Madelinetosh

Gosh, we love some Tosh here. We literally have tons of this yarn right as you walk in the front door. It's a dizzying display, and I'm not ashamed at all of my stash, that's for sure.

MAD May is a month when Madelinetosh goes out of their way to show their mad love for yarn. It comes right on the heels of LYS Day (they released this pattern for LYS Day, if you bought any of their yarn from us last week just email me for the code to make it free), and this year we are hosting a MAD May Party on May 20th in the shop, in person. Tosh is sending some goodies to help us celebrate- stickers and patterns to give away, a few OOAK (one of a kind) skeins for contests and a doorprize of Antonia Shankland's Bubble Cowl with three skeins of Tosh Merino Light to make the lightweight version.

If you want to make one of these for yourself, you can do a DK or a fingering weight version and if you're unsure if your chosen combo is awesome together, you're always welcome to e-mail me and ask. We like living vicariously through you and help you shop! And with nearly 400 colors to choose from, the options can be inspiring. The limited edition Bonaire colorway would be a great start.  Perhaps with Onyx or Natural in copper glitter.

We just got a HUGE Tosh shipment in and added to the website yesterday, so if you were waiting on a color, it might be there now. And because we get yarn from them nearly every month, we can always special order things for you.

I look forward to sharing with you the goodies they are sending for May 20 in the shop. And if you want to participate online, perhaps start on Insta or FB where I just posted a contest.

New from Cascade Yarns

I'm so happy to share the new goodies we have from Cascade Yarn, new Prints sock yarn colors and 220 Superwash (worsted weight) Handpaints!

I really like these new 20 self patterning sock yarn colors (129-151) and we have restocks too of other available colors from last season. Not only are they fun knits, but they are also quite soft and are ideal for gift socks because they are easy care. And at just $13 a ball, the price is super nice too, right?

It's been years since Cascade has released Handpaint versions of their Cascade 220 Superwash and I'm so glad they are back. The odd thing about them? When we offered them before, they were $5 more expensive than the $14 they are now. So I'm quite pleased with that. Right now, there are 12 colors and I'm hoping they add more. At this price, they are certain to be quite popular for all sorts of thicker hats, socks, mitts, sweaters, etc.

I also have a full restock of Cascade Heritage Wave colors and 220 Superwash Wave colors. These are made to look like hand spun yarn, and each skein is a bit different, as you can see from these pics. Again, the price on these is pretty darn great at just $14 and $13, respectively.

If you like an affordable and durable silk blend option, I have all the colors of Cascade Heritage Silk right now too. These are always popular for in person shoppers here because it really does look and feel nice in person. That bit of silk really does make a nice difference and would be really nice in striped version of the Vanilla Sweater. Now that I'm thinking of it, pairing a solid color of Heritage with a Heritage Wave color to make a striping Vanilla Sweater would be really cool too. Ah, the idea mill is turning! If you want to do something like this and want assurance that your color ideas are on point, just email me Allison at [email protected] You know my crew and I are always on board for going down the project-planning-rabbit-hole with ya!

Casapinka LYS Day 2023 Shawl

Details about how to get this year's pattern for free are at the bottom of this post, but I wanted to share some color ideas for this year's Casapinka LYS Day shawl, Kitation. No, she hasn't told us what the exact yarns are that she's using, but I hope that these suggestions inspire you to give it a go.

The shawl uses two contrasting colors of fingering weight yarn, one skein each. And if you want one of those to be variegated or speckled, you can do that for one skein. Here are ones I like for this shawl. 

Hedgehog Fibres Sock or Singles in Gossip and Egg Yolk, then Coral and Crybaby, Ink and Juniper, Method and Plump, Potion and Pollen

Love Emma's Yarn? How about their Sock in Cosmos and Shut the Front Door, Barbie Girl and Sugarcoated, On the Rocks and Zuni, Yarn Husband and Wish You Were Beer.

Dream in Color's Smooshy Sock (merino nylon) or Smooshy Cashmere (same but with 10% cashmere!) in Amethyst Ink and Angelica, Antique Gold and Anthing Goes, Enchanted with Pinkitude (or Do Re Me), Raspberry Blaze and Spoil the Littles

Fiberstory's colors all seem to go so well toether. I like Fave Sock in Hush and Cake for a subtle option,

Flock Fibre in Coy Koi and Larkspur, Rubellite and Happy Camper

Now, it's worth noting that all of these are hand made yarns. And while we would love to think they are perfect...nothing is. Since these include some bold hues, it's worth untwisting the skeins and soaking them in a sink full of cool water (one at a time) to make sure the dye doesn't bleed BEFORE you knit two opposing colors together in a project. Don't cut the ties that at all the hold the skein together. Just take off the label, untwist the yarn and put it in the sink to soak. Let it dry and then wind it. That way, you'll get any excess dye out of the skeins before you wash your finished project. Just take this extra step before you put all the work into your project, please. You'll thank yourself later.

I'm happy to help you come up with other color ideas. Just email me what you're thinking to [email protected] and I'll get back with you. Now here are the details on how to get the pattern:

Casapinka designs one LYS Day (Local Yarn Store) pattern a year to help shops celebrate. This year that day falls on April 29, and from now until April 29 at 4pm you qualify to get her upcoming LYS Day 2023 Kitation Shawl pattern for free by purchasing two skeins of yarn for the pattern from us at SSYC and letting us know you'd like the Ravelry coupon code e-mailed to you around April 28/29. You do have to let us know you want the free pattern after your purchase by either 1) putting that note on your order on our Check Out page or 2) e-mailing after your order (just responding to your e-mailed receipt is the easy way) asking. Then when she gives us the codes a day or two before the 30th, we will e-mail you yours. Then you go to the Ravelry pattern page (I'll include the link in your e-mail) add it to your cart on Ravelry and use the coupon code to make it free. The pattern won't be live until April 28 (usually morning), and you shouldn't expect your code until around then either. Then please do use it right away, because in previous years the code only lasts until around midnight EST on the Sunday of LYS weekend, which this year would be April 30th at midnight. So, basically she gives you a very short window to download the pattern for free. After that, you can just purchase it from her. Please do not email me about getting your code asap or before April 29 b/c this typically is a BIG event and if 300 people email me, then I spend too much time responding to emails and don't have time to get the codes out. I won't even get the codes til the 28th or 29th. It's a tight timeline to get these to you and for you to redeem them, typically. I don't have control over the quick timing of this, sorry.

SO! 1) Order 2 skeins from us. 2) Let me know you want your pattern code at Check Out or via e-mail 3) Add [email protected] to your Contacts so your e-mail doesn't bounce. 4) Wait until April 28/29 to get your code. E-mail me on April 29 if you haven't gotten your code yet. 5) Use code on Ravelry to make your pattern free! Don't wait -use the code asap b/c it expires at the end of the weekend. 6) On April 28th-ish, cast on with the big group of people on Casapinka's Ravelry who KAL together and share their progress. 7) Feel good about supporting a small business and some awesome dyers and creating something unique and awesome for yourself or someone you love!

It's worth noting that I don't work on Sunday, so if you want the codes, please make sure you order and ask by 4pm EST on Saturday April 29. I will not be emailing codes after that time. 

It's LYS Week! Free patterns with purchase!

Hey all, if you're still waiting on your Casapinka code and it's past 4pm on Saturday, just know I'm doing my best to email them asap. I have to send individual emails with the individual codes she just sent, and the pattern just went live today. So I'll be sending codes throughout Saturday late night. Please don't email and call over and over to ask b/c that just takes time away from me getting these codes emailed out. Thank you for your patience! The response is huge as usual and we love it! (If you don't know what I'm talking about, read this).

LYS(local yarn store) Day is this coming Saturday, but we're celebrating all week long online at SSYC! How are we celebrating? We're featuring artisans in the industry that we want to highlight and giving you free patterns and deals!

With any purchase this week, I'll e-mail you two patterns from a designer that I learned about recently, Designs by Ellyndria. If you order now thought Sunday, I'll email you the The Text(ure) Me Socks & the Text(ure) Me Cowl patterns (give me end of week to do so please). Her sock patterns have caught my eye because of her great use of scraps and mini skein sets in creating something that's just yours. As my own knitting evolves, I've found that I still love knitting small projects like socks most of all, but I strive for ways to make my knitting even more unique. Yes, much of time I'm knitting simple socks using Opal Yarn while watching kids or a movie, but when I want something tangy, I like patterns like the ones I'm gifting you this week. 

If you want to choose yarn for your patterns today, it looks like the sock pattern calls for 100g of fingering weight yarn for the main and 5 coordinating colors, 42 yards each. So you could use scraps for your coordinating colors, or you could use mini skein sets like we have from Fiberstory and choose one full sized skein, Dream in Color's Smooshy for the main and a mini skein set, Emma's sock yarn and minis, Sweet Georgia and their Party of 5 Sets. And if you want a greater range of solids for your main color, look at Cascade Heritage or Berroco Vintage Sock. These two are the same weight as the minis I linked above so can be combined with any of these mini skein sets for the look you want.

If you want to knit the cowl, you'll need 100g of main color and appox 10g each of 6 different coordinating colors of minis. You can make the cowl longer or smaller if you want too. As shown, there are 24 stripes. Each stripe uses approx 2g of the coordinating color.

If you need help choosing your colors, please feel free to email me, Allison, at [email protected] and I'm happy to help as usual. We're great at being your "virtual" personal shoppers!

Bonaire on Tosh Merino Light

Madelinetosh is offering two things to celebrate LYS Week - a free pattern with purchase AND a special colorway! Bonaire is available on several bases yarns (find them all this week in the Kits & Clubs link) and it's just a beauty, isn't it? I love it on all the bases. It would make a stunner of a Vanilla Sweater in Tosh Merino Light, wouldn't it? Or I think the simple Hermione's Everyday Socks would make it look perfect in the Tosh Sock (100% superwash merino) or Twist Light Sock (sw merino + nylon). And if you like just a tad bit of glitter, I have the Tosh Merino Light + Copper version, and there's just a smidge of glint in it. Less than usual, so just a touch, and looks great in the light.

You get this Vinea Scarf pattern with any Madelinetosh purchase. It's a Ravelry coupon code that you'll use at this link to make it free after you add it to your Ravelry cart. I'll email the codes to everyone at the end of the week, or you can respond to your emailed receipt if you want the code sooner than that. The pattern uses one skein of Tosh Merino Light and we have more than 300 colors in stock, but you could use Tosh Merino Light + Copper, Twist Light or Tosh Sock b/c they are all the same weight. Again, you get the code with any Madelinetosh purchase from us of any base/color you might like.

Dream in Color's mini skein sets

Want a deal on some fab yarn? This week only I'm offering you 10% off your online order of Dream in Color, Life in the Long Grass and Trekking XXL sock yarn. Just enter coupon code LYS2023 in the coupon code section at Check Out. Sometimes the quick pay options like ApplePay and Paypal breeze you through too quickly to notice, so if you forget, just respond to your receipt and ask me to apply it for you.

Purple text is ALL about the Casapinka LYS Day pattern, which is typically a huge event and knitalong hosted here. This year's shawl uses two full sized (400 yard-ish) skeins of fingering weight yarn in contrasting hues, one solid and variegated as shown here. You can use two solids if you want, but only use one variegated/speckle so the pattern shows up. Want color ideas? Casapinka doesn't usually say what exact yarn she uses, but Dream in Color and Emma's seem to be used a lot and Cascade Heritage or Heritage Silk are also popular for solids. Also look at LITLG, Fiberstory and Hedgehog Fibres. I'll post color ideas in the next post, so scroll down to see.

Casapinka designs one LYS Day (Local Yarn Store) pattern a year to help shops celebrate. This year that day falls on April 29, and from now until April 29 at 4pm you qualify to get her upcoming LYS Day 2023 shawl pattern for free by purchasing two skeins of yarn for the pattern from us at SSYC and letting us know you'd like the Ravelry coupon code e-mailed to you around April 28/29. You do have to let us know you want the free pattern after your purchase by either 1) putting that note on your order on our Check Out page or 2) e-mailing after your order (just responding to your e-mailed receipt is the easy way) asking. Then when she gives us the codes a day or two before the 30th, we will e-mail you yours. Then you go to the Ravelry pattern page (I'll include the link in your e-mail) add it to your cart on Ravelry and use the coupon code to make it free. The pattern won't be live until April 28 (usually morning), and you shouldn't expect your code until around then either. Then please do use it right away, because in previous years the code only lasts until around midnight EST on the Sunday of LYS weekend, which this year would be April 30th at midnight. So, basically she gives you a very short window to download the pattern for free. After that, you can just purchase it from her. Please do not email me about getting your code asap or before April 29 b/c this typically is a BIG event and if 300 people email me, then I spend too much time responding to emails and don't have time to get the codes out. I won't even get the codes til the 28th or 29th. It's a tight timeline to get these to you and for you to redeem them, typically.

SO! 1) Order 2 skeins from us. 2) Let me know you want your pattern code at Check Out or via e-mail 3) Add [email protected] to your Contacts so your e-mail doesn't bounce. 4) Wait until April 28/29 to get your code. E-mail me on April 29 if you haven't gotten your code yet. 5) Use code on Ravelry to make your pattern free! Don't wait -use the code asap b/c it expires at the end of the weekend. 6) On April 28th-ish, cast on with the big group of people on Casapinka's Ravelry who KAL together and share their progress. 7) Feel good about supporting a small business and some awesome dyers and creating something unique and awesome for yourself or someone you love!

It's worth noting that I don't work on Sunday, so if you want the codes, please make sure you order and ask by 4pm EST on Saturday April 29. I will not be emailing codes after that time. 

Berroco Sox 14232 (new color!)

What might you want to purchase this week to get your free patterns? Well, I already shared ideas for the patterns we're giving you. So I think now's the time to share the new things and restocks we have in the shop! I'm totally into the new Opal Yarn collections we've gotten. We have new hues of Berroco Sox, and restocks of Comfort Sock (no wool).

Hue Loco has released the 2023 Backyard Chicken Collection, and the colors are gorgeous! These are great for socks when you want the toe to be one coordinating color and the heel to be another. Also great for a Spring Thing using one of the mini skeins for the edging and one for the tassles. Want to peruse more Hue Loco? The Merino Sock and Tweed Sock are faves here.

I'll add a few more new things here when they arrive this week- like the new colors of Cascade Heritage Prints. I saw these for the first time months ago and I'm so glad they will be here in a day or two!

Want a deal? We have some great ones in the Sale Yarn section! Like the Violet Fields skein shown above that is perfect for the Field of Violets scarf.

Thank you for your support of us over the past 17 LYS Days! You all have helped SSYC grow from a one-bedroom shop in my home in 2005 to a gorgeous restored 1940's post office that now houses nearly 20 tons of yarn and allows people from all over the world to come shop in person. And not just sock yarn anymore! Your guidance has opened us up to all sorts of easy care weights from lace to super bulky. We love what we do and I hope it shows!

 

New Collections from Opal Yarn

I'm so, so excited about the new Opal Yarn collections we have in the shop! These took their sweet time trickling through Customs, but all are here now. Five new collections and restocks of Black Dragon, Uni Solids, 6 Ply Rainforest, Schafpate, Cats & Dogs and Water World. These are not full restocks of the whole collections, but I got what I could. As you may know, Opal typically makes collections once and then moves onto something else. So I get what I can while I can and then its no more. They did bring the Van Gogh collection back last year (after a decade) and then again early this year. It's their most popular collection so I do hope it's around for another year or so.

First, Country. It's less of a stripey, jacquard look, and more dappled in color. It's a departure from what you typically see from the German company, and I really like it. The colors are bold and saturated, and the colors are fun and wearable. I think it's perfect for people in your life who love your hand knit socks but might like want the in-your-face crazy colors.

Sweet Kiss is a bold self patterning collection that I've already chosen two colors in. To me, it's the type of collection where I just want to knit to the next color repeat - like 11262 which is mostly green, but then I imagine myself wanting to knit til I get to the purple part. 

Then there's the rare sparkle collection! I haven't seen one of these come out for a few years, so it's nice to see one again. Opal picks a series of their more popular colors from the past few years and ads a bit of glitter to it. You don't feel the glitter and it's just as easy wash as normal Opal. It just ads a bit of flair.

Want a thicker yarn? I have two options for you. The sport-to-DK weight 6ply Fantastic Sky collection and the light worsted weight 8 Ply Wilder Winter. Both give you quick gratification in your knits and super cushy, warm socks.

I hope you see something here that makes you want to knit all weekend. I certainly see many that will keep me up later at night than they should, and I can't wait to get started on them! If you're coming to shop in person this Saturday and want to see them, make sure to ask b/c I want to make sure you see them all!

Shop Show and Tell

Our yarny friends have brought in some super lovely projects recently, and I just wanted to show them off! First, Pressed Flowers by Amy Christoffers. this lovely shawl used two contrasting colors of Laneras DK, and it's super stunning in person.

Then we have a Missoni Accomplished sweater in Asana Sport. Cascade Heritage 6 and Tweedy DK would also be great options.

And the sweater that made us all *swoon*, the Ilya sweater  that uses several colors of Tweedy DK. OMG, right? We were all surprised at how soft the finished fabric is too. Just so sumptuous. It was hard to stop squishing it!

Then there's the shawl that ends all shawls, this stunner of a Fragmentation that uses seven different Tosh Merino Light and Tosh Merino Light + Copper colors. I see Life on Mars, Leaf Fall, Dahlia, Birch Grey, and Pardon My French to name a few. What a gorgeous way to keep warm this spring or fall, right? I love the little bit of sparkle that TML+Copper adds to this. If you want some help putting together seven colors for yours, just e-mail me, Allison, at [email protected] with a few colors that you like, and we can help you put something special together. With 300+ colors of TML and nearly 100 of TML+Copper, we can put together a perfect combo for you, for sure.

And how about I share one of my projects? I had some leftover yarn from the socks I just made myself using this and this, and so I just finished one for Henry using Hermione's Everyday Socks. I knew I'd likely run out of the main color, so I weighed it before, then knit down to where I had half left and then switched to the yellow. Yes, it means that switched to the coordinating color well earlier than the toe (about three inches from the foot) but Henry doesn't care and that means that we have "matching" socks. Now that our latest Opal shipment has gotten through Customs, and won't be knitting my leftovers much longer.... I'll share those new hues later this week once we get them all unpacked. Can't wait!

Then I just have to share the socks that James' friend wore over this past weekend. The boys were all sitting on the living room floor, playing video games (Ultimate Chicken Horse, to be exact - it's fun, and not overly complicated so we play it as a fam too) and I noticed that James' friend was wearing hand knit socks! They look like fish! Cool, right? Someone loves him very much.

Free Shipping This Week!

I think it's time for a yarny spring treat, don't you?! Place your order online as usual, April 10-16 and use coupon code ShipFree and you'll see you'll receive free US shipping! 

The code works twice per person this week, so if you forget something on your original order, you can ship again on us. If you forget to use it (or use one of the fast Check Out methods like ApplePay that sometimes breeze you though too fast to notice), just respond to your e-mailed receipt after and I'll take care of it. International shipping rates continue to climb, so we aren't able to offer free shipping to shoppers outside of the US, but at least we've kept our flat rate shipping for you down to the same rate for the past several years, even with the increase in cost for us! We're trying, but dang, shipping costs just keep increasing.

What might you like to treat yourself to this week? I've been loving my current Opal Yarn knit, and the new collections have just started to trickle through Customs. We hope to have more by the end of the week, but right now we have all of the 8ply (light worsted weight) Wilder Winter series, and most of the Sweet Kiss series. We also have more of popular of collections like Black Dragon & Van Gogh. See everything we have here. Want to try something you might not have seen elsewhere? We have a great selection of Canadian dyer Fleece Artist right now. Jana and her team have been dyeing yarn for over 40 years now, so this one is the staple in hand dyed yarn. We have a cashmere blend, an organic wool and nylon blend (the only one I know of), and also thrummed mitten kits so you can make the warmest mittens you've ever worn. Shown above are the thrummed mitten kits and if you like the color that's pictured knit up, it's this one.

Fancy Like Applebees

Love a great hand dyed stripe? Knitterly Things and Freckled Whimsy are dyers that I'm super proud to have in the shop. Hand dyed stripes are labor intensive to make, and their color selections are fab. I even have DK weight striping sock sets from Freckled Whimsy. And when's the last time you saw that way of a superwash merino/nylon stripe WITH a mini skein for toes and heels??

Want the look of hand spun at a much lower cost than some of the boutique brands? Cascade Heritage Wave (fingering weight for socks) and 220 Superwash Wave (worsted weight) are super options for less than $15. The color ranges are beautiful too. Cascade offers a lot of beautiful free patterns too. For the worsted weight 220 Wave, consider this kid's sweater, this shawl, or this infinity scarf. Want fingering weight pattern options for the Heritage Wave? These socks are super cute, as is this shawl.

Love a great pom pom? We do too! Our artisan recently made us dozens of new faux fur options (like the lovely Lynx Cat shown above), and you can see them all here. Pair them with a skein of Tosh DK (yes, our selection of 300+ colors is quite dizzying), this pattern, and you've got the coolest hat ever. And if you aren't sure which pom goes perfectly with your chosen color of Tosh DK, just e-mail me, Allison, at [email protected] and ask. I'm always happy to help!

This project of the year for us so far seems to be the Field of Violets shawl. It looks amazing with Dream in Color's new Assigned Pooling Color Collection (which we have all back in stock now, and you can see the list of them here). We also have the Violet Fields color shown in the pattern on Smooshy with Cashmere, Smooshy Sock Yarn and our exclusive Colossal Sock base yarns for ya. Colossal Sock is in the Sale Yarn section, where you can find all sorts of great deals right now.

Want to make some Herding Cats socks or any of Stone Knits awesome colorwork patterns? We have Cascade Heritage in every solid color for your main colors, and it's so low cost it's great for the colorwork too. Or get Emma's minis. Both can be used in the same project together to great effect.

Photo courtesy of StoneKnits

Finally, we have the gradient colors of Malabrigo Sock, and I don't know of any other shop that has these right now. I made a stunning Herald Shawl out of one ball of Starry Night last year, and it's my favorite knit of 2022.

I hope you find something that energizes you and your knitting! Local Yarn Shop Day is coming up soon, and you know we'll be doing something awesome for that too. Often we do something like free pattern with purchases, or little gifts. I'll keep ya posted!

Spring Break Knitting

My kiddos are on spring break, so there's been quite a bit of movie watching, snuggling and knitting going on here. A bit of card house building too. Low key good times.

I finished my most recent project, and I have a feeling that Henry would snag them if they weren't too big for him. So I'll likely let James have them, since they were made to fit me but definitely fit his 15 year old feet too. So now I'm knitting another similar pair for Henry's 10 year old feet.

The big pair is a broken rib pattern, similar to the Blueberry Waffle socks, and I used Opal Schafpate color 11194 for the main and Berroco Vintage sock yarn in 12018-Yellow as the cuff/heel/toe. I had approx 1.5 ounces of the main left after I finished, so I do think I'll have plenty to make Henry a pair too. But I've decided to use Hermione's Everyday socks as the pattern to see which pattern I like better with this self patterning yarn. I usually do plain stockinette for my self patterning socks, but I like this bit of change.

Have you been to see us in person lately? We have our open hours posted for the entire year here, including the week long 18th birthday party hours. Come see us! I know many of you are on break too, and Fort Wayne is a nice day trip, for sure. We have all sorts of great restaurants, beautiful parks to walk in, a downtown that is walkable with beautiful street art, and yarn galore.

12 Days of Sock Yarn Winners

Hello! Is it April already? Really? Well, then I think it's about time for me to announce the 12 Days of Sock Yarn contest winners..... two months later than intended LOL! Time got away from me this year, that's for sure. And if you are reading this and have oh so patiently waited for me to announce these, make sure you read to the bottom b/c there's a chance to win a treat!

1st Day winner of five skeins of LITLG - Jennifer Mc. - Congrats!

2nd Day winner of $50 to spend at SSYC - Julie who says "Such a fun question! I've loved reading about all the different foods that people enjoy this time of year! In our family, the favorite was always a cookie we simply call Tarts. They are similar to a Kolachy. My father loved them and my mother used to make batches and batches at Christmas time. We did give some away, but ate more then our share as well!"

3rd Day winner of 3 balls of Opal sock yarn (perhaps the Van Gogh collection that's all back and shown below?) is Karen.

4th Day winner of 3 skeins of Dream in Color yarn (perhaps the assigned pooling colors?) - Kim, who says "My grandkids can’t believe we actually used typewriters and carbon paper! It seems so time-consuming to them."

5th Day winner of 3 skeins of Emma's Yarn - Martha O who shared, "My first decision every morning is whether to drink coffee or tea that day. I like both but sometimes think I drink coffee (any coffee) because I really like the cream. PG Tips is my tea of choice (though I will drink any Stash tea occasionally). I buy the really big boxes on Amazon. I was always buying it at the grocery in those tiny boxes then a friend was going to England and asked what I wanted him to bring me. I said PG Tips, and he brought me a huge box. It was a joy to have so much so I decided to look on line for it and found it."

6th Day winner of 5 skeins of Berroco Vintage sock yarn - Jessica who said "My favorite project this year was a shrug a made to go over my daughter’s Spring dance dress. It matched her outfit beautifully and was perfect for a Spring evening. She loved it and it made me happy to be able to give her something so unique."

7th Day winners, three winners, each getting a Cascade Yarns surprise project pack (yarn+pattern) are Ruth, Kara and Jan who finished a whopping 64 projects in 2022!

8th Day winner of $75 to spend at SSYC - Sarah, who said that her pre-Christmas weather was "Cloudy and grey. Just waiting for the snow to come later this week in time for Christmas!"

9th Day winner of $50 to spend at SSYC and a $100 donation to the non-profit of her choice is Jeanette who says "I knit and collect scarves to donate to former foster youth who are attending our local community college."

10th Day winner of a Madelinetosh 12 Days of Tosh set is Jane J.

11th Day winner of $100 to spend at SSYC is Brittany who says "Christmas is my fav. It’s not just a day, it’s a month of celebrating with all the yummy treats and family time and hopefully snow!"

12 Day, three winners, of $100 to spend at SSYC are Elizabeth S, Paula M and Penny K.

I've emailed each winner, so if you think one of these is you, you have an email in your Inbox. If you did not get an email, well, you know the answer. Please do respond to it so I can set you up with your prize.

If you read to the end, you deserve the chance for a treat! Help me feel like I'm not the only one who procrastinates in life! Tell me in the comments what is something you hold off doing. For me, obviously it's announcing contest winners.... and kitchnering toes of socks. I often wait until I have 10 socks to kitchener and do it all at once. Leave me a comment by noon EST on April 7 and I'll randomly choose one winner to get two balls of the new Regia Day Dreaming collection. Color shown is 3063-Rosebud.