Simply Socks Yarn Co. Blog

We're turning 16! Celebrate with us!

Next week marks SSYC's Sweet Sixteen Birthday! I'm so proud that we've made it well into our teens, especially being online only this past year (but we reopen to in person shopping very soon) and we have you to thank. So all summer long I'll be gifting you with a variety of free shipping deals, gifts with purchase, and various sales..... sixteen surprises or gifts in all from now through August. What are we starting with? Free shipping to US addresses through the holiday weekend/Monday! I thought, why not start the celebration a few days early this year since we all have so much to celebrate this Memorial Day weekend anyway?

All you have to do is shop as usual online and enter coupon code SSYCbirthday at Check Out in the Coupon Code field to get free shipping on your US order - it's best just to copy/paste it (there are no spaces in the code). It's just our way of starting our summer of gratitude. Sorry, international shipping is just way to expensive right now to offer anything on that- we already lose $ on that deal.

What might you like to purchase this weekend? Well, many of you saw the preorders for this super cool striping sock kit that will start shipping out after this hoiday weekend. You get two matching rainbow colored socks because the kit comes with 2 matching 50g balls of sock yarn.Plus there's a slew of other cool colors too like Tiger and Zebra and more. And there's a free pattern too.

We also got in a stunning array of Less Traveled Yarn that I blogged about yesterday if you'd like to see the cool color combos I suggested. Above is just one in tweed that I adore in Tweed Me DK. Gorgeous, right?

Photo courtesy of Sweet Georgia

Then we have a gorgeous selection of Tough Love sock yarn and mini sets from Sweet Georgia. For those of you who want to knit the Sail Shawl shown above, we have dozen of hues so you can make your own three color combo. Or take a cue from one of the options we shared here.

Have you checked out our Sale Section lately? We keep adding goodies in various fibers and weights. Have you tried Polwarth wool for socks yet? You should! Not only is it less expensive than merino (it's $18 in the sale section right now) it holds up well, is soft to the skin and takes the dye beautifully. Do give it a try. We have some from Laneras Yarn Co right now -marked as at LYC in the sale section. Shown above is the Forbidden Forest colorway below is Bambolina.

Want more ideas? Well, we just got in a huge restock of Hedgehog Fibres which I know many have been waiting for. This includes Tweedy DK too. Plus we have Emma's Yarn and Fiberstory in a lovely spectrum of colors. Those are going so fast that both dyers are dyeing us up more already!

Thank you for your loyalty, guidance and inspiration over the past 16 years. Please bookmark the blog to visit all summer long if you'd like to know what gifts we're giving, and what dyers like Madelinetosh, Dream in Color, Yarn Love and more are dyeing up to celebrate our Sweet Sixteen. You all really are made of awesome and I look forward to serving you for another 16 years. 

This photo is not from pandemic-time - you'll see me fully masked if you visit in person- no worries!

If you're spending your summer knitting up holiday gift socks for your loved ones like many of us who don't want a big, heavy project making our laps sweat, I have several suggestions for sock yarns that are addictive to knit while also holding up to wash and wear. If you don't want your gift to be ruined the first time the recipient throws it in the washer, consider using Opal Yarn (shown above in 9546, a great dress sock color), Trekking XXL, Berroco Sox, Regia and Cascade Heritage Prints. There are so many different colors and self patterning styles to choose from. Shown below is Cascade Heritage Prints in 77-Unicorn.

As always, if you have any questions about your selections or if colors look as great in person as you think they do online, please feel free to e-mail me, Allison, at [email protected] I do plan on spending a hefty amount of time this holiday weekend with my family but I know that many of you do want to take advantage of a free shipping offer like this, so I'll check e-mail a couple times too. Happy knitting, all!

More from Less Traveled Yarn

We have some lovely new summer skeins and restocks from Less Traveled Yarn! Sarah and Matt typically sell a lot at fairs and festivals and so I selfishly love that they have moved more online and to their retailers over the past year b/c that means we've gotten so much lovely yarn from them. I adore the colors she dyes on the Tweed Me DK and Tweed Me Sock shown above and below.

LTY offers one of the rare superwash merino/nylon sport weight combos. Usually we see sport and DK with no nylon, so it's really nice that you can get hand dyed colors in this slightly thicker, cushier yarn.

I hope you find something you really like in this batch. We were able to feature the Tweed Me DK in one of the clubs last year and since then many of you have become addicts of that yarn. I, too, have several skeins just waiting to be knit. There's just something about the mod tones on traditional tweed that makes me so happy.

I'm betting that when the world opens back up again, you'll see Sarah and Matt and their booth at all the events again. This photo I took in January in NYC when I last saw them before the pandemic hit the US. I can't wait to see them, and everyone else, again. 

SSYC Resumes In-Person Shopping!

We are so pleased to announce that Simply Socks Yarn Company will start our normal every-other-Tuesday-Saturday rotation of in person shopping starting on Saturday, June 5 from 10-4! Dates are here. We miss serving you in person and can't wait to see your faces in the shop - at least the top half, that is. We will all remove our masks when we are all a little more comfortable with the ever-changing-pandemic-rule climate. It's been a long year for all, and we ask for grace in our requests for masks. Even if you are vaccinated like us, you'll be wearing a mask in the shop for now, and if you forget yours we have one for you. And if that's something you can't do for whatever reason, hey, that's okay. I'm more than willing to watch for your online order and walk your bag out to your car on open days - just tell the person manning the shop door (it's likely this fella) your name and we'll bring your package out to you. Or read at bottom for info on new Contactless Pickup options on our non-open days.

We will be limiting the number of people in the shop to around a dozen at a time, so if you want to definitely secure a place with no wait, please do e-mail me, Allison, at [email protected] to secure a 45 minute spot. We will take walk-ins too, but if there are too many people in the shop (we are a small staff, after all) there may be a slight wait at the door. Signing up is a great idea if you want to come in with friends (Anita? Linsey? Kim? Deborah?). We know there are many people who want to come shop in person after a year! I doubt there will be too much of a wait, if any, so if you don't wait to e-mail me to sign up, that's fine too.

 

We will continue with our pre-pandemic 10-4pm every-other-Saturday-and-Tuesday open days as listed here. Please don't trust Google. Just our page. Please do not bring "extra" people for now, as we want to be able to serve as many people as possible in the shop, and those people may cause a wait outside for someone else. We love seeing your spouses, kids, etc, but right now we know that people do want to come in and we want to be able to serve as many of you as possible. Especially after waiting a year to come in! Maybe wait a month before bringing in your hubs to say Hi. Again, I don't think there will be much of a wait, if any, but we just don't know what to really expect once we reopen. It's been awhile!

I know some of us aren't a fan of groups, or perhaps the pandemic has made you wary of being around people. We can relate. If this sounds like you, please do e-mail me because I'm willing to come in a bit earlier in the day or at another time if I can to make sure you get served in a way that you're comfortable with. I know we are all a bit frazzled after this year of fear and change (which is one of the reasons that we ask that you keep your mask on for now, even if you are vaccinated), and I don't want you feeling like you're missing out on something. If I can make it work for both of us, I will.

Are you local and like shopping online and picking up at the shop on our not-open days? We have a new Contactless Pickup option/procedure! Find full info in the middle of the page here. Have questions after reading that? Please do e-mail.

Have any questions about anything? Please do pose them in the comments and wait a day to see my response. If you're wondering something, someone else likely is too. And just in case you forget where we are (ha!) we are still at 1315 E State Blvd, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Plenty of parking in our side lot and on the street. Or e-mail if you don't want to ask in front of everyone.

So come see me and all this awesome Less Traveled Yarn Tweed Me DK we just got back in stock before I try and stash it all! Our first day back at is is Saturday, June 5 from 10-4!

Why we take our own photos.... part 2 or 20?

When I blog about how and why we take our own photos at SSYC, it seems to be of great interest. Things have changed during the pandemic a bit and especially now that I'm booted because I do most all of my job/s at home now for social distancing purposes. I rely more on help from my kids, especially James. My team pulls skeins from orders and packs them up for me, I load them into my car and bring them home to my kitchen photography setup, and 13 year old James helps organizing all the colors so I can quickly photo them.

Colossal Sock in Dune from previous dyelot above and new dyelot below. Same color, but as you can see one has more white and less color.

I enjoy photographing everything myself. But more than the enjoyment of it, I take pride in it. I think it makes for a kind of quality control that can easily be overlooked otherwise. Hand dyed yarn often looks different each time it comes in, so if you aren't actually putting eyes on the new batch and comparing it with the previous batch photos, you might really be not representing the skeins well to people who can't see them in person.

I think it's worth mentioning that the same reason we photograph so much is also the same reason that dyer's don't provide knit up pictures of their yarn. Each batch is different enough that they just can't knit up a sample. Sometimes lots are dyed in twos, sometimes sixes, etc. So they simply can't waste 20% of what they dye to show a picture that only represents such a small batch. So if you want to see knit up pictures, I recommend going to Ravlery, searching for that yarn and then seeing the projects knit up in it and searching for the color you like. And even if you can't find the color you like, you might at least get a better idea of how that dyer's artistry looks overall in a finished piece. Here's that page for Colossal Sock if you want to see what I'm referring to.

Colossal Sock in Flower Drum Song in the new lot above, and previous lot below.

Yes, it's a lot of work to photograph new lots. Yes, we could totally use the stock photos provided by the dyers like other online yarn shops do. Yes, we could take one photo and use it for years across six different batches of yarn. But I don't think that using a dyer's stock photos from three years ago fairly represents what they are dyeing now. And I don't want someone to open their package and be let down. Of course we make mistakes sometimes and an older pic pops up once in awhile. And screens do show things differently (especially teals/aquas) and people having their screen brightness way up can make colors look SO much brighter than they actually are. But we do our best and I hope it shows.

I'm showing off Colossal Sock as an example because we just got a big, beautiful batch of it in the sale section from Dream in Color. It's probably the most we've ever had in stock at once, so if you've been waiting for a color, please do look! We even have some new pastel hues that just came out like Sonoran Magic, Mint Drop, Peachy Keen, Lime on Ice, Sundance and more.

Such lovely inspiration

If you were a part of our 25th yarn club that just ended (26th to come in a couple months), you have already read the story I'm featuring today. But I just had to share it with everyone because I was so touched by the inspiration for the May club skein that I knew others would be too.

We've carried Wonderland Yarn now for four years now, and Stephanie's skeins and minis are always a joy to see. But learning the inspiration for her recent contribution to our National Parks club made me appreciate her work even more.

I think it's safe to say that most fiber artists are similarly inspired in the colors they create- either by experiences or feelings or relationships. That the skein you are knitting now has so much meaning to it before it gets to your needles. But I have yet to see such a clearly expressed inspiration and intention. We are all so used to seeing feelings and statements reduced to short sentences and soundbites that reading the full artist statement about this colorway is remarkable and worth savoring.

Much of my love for travel can be attributed to my grandfather, Pop. Pop drove the school bus at 12 and a few years later jumped trains all the way from the east Coast to the west. In him, a hunger to go--to see and to do, to admire and appreciate. So, when he retired, incidentally from a knitting mill, he bought a van and converted it into a camper. He painted it emerald green, encircled with a white band. He built in the fixtures and furniture; my grandmother sewed the curtains and the upholstery. Pop fitted it out with everything one would need to travel near or far. By the time I came along the van had made many trips from the East Coast to the West Coast, from the south to the north, and to many state and national parks in between.

The magical thing about the van was you didn’t have to go very far to have an adventure. Sometimes we would take it to get ice cream and sit by the river. Sometimes we would take it on a picnic. There was something about the van made any regular trip into a magical adventure.

My fondest adventure is when we drove all the way out to the Grand Canyon. It was a family reunion of sorts. I was 11. I learned a lot on that trip. My father said that as soon we drove to a point where we able to see the depth of the canyon, I leaned over and quickly locked my door so as not to fall out. That was lesson one--the Grand Canyon is very deep. Other important life lessons were: You should wear flip-flops in the campground shower and wash your hair quickly, so you don’t run out of quarters. A BLT can be made with Baco’s Bacon bits in a pinch. The summer sun was hot enough to fry an egg during the day, but at night you’ll need to crawl, shivering, into bed with your grandmother. Some bugs are very big and very ugly. Important life lessons that have stuck with me these 30 years after.

We went to the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. We had lunch in a greasy dive in Santa Fe, bought trinkets and blankets from the locals, rode inner tubes down a river. And thankfully, did not ride donkeys down into the Grand Canyon, which to me was a terrifying idea. I was amazed at the flatness, the difference of the plants and colors, even the different light— that trip was truly a magical experience.

So, when Allison asked if I was inspired to dye a colorway for the National Parks club, I knew immediately what my inspiration was. And it was a green and white van. And it was my grandfather who said, whether we were going across town or across the country: “Let’s mosey on down the road!"

*                    *                    *

Thank you, Stephanie, for expressing your appreciation of your loved ones in a way that we can all relate to. In a time where we can finally hug and see our loved ones safely and have great hope of the months to come, your words hit close to home.

Monday is for Mineville!

Did you see the stunner of a batch from Mineville Wool Project we got late last week in the Sale Section? This is our last-for-now batch of the rare superwash merino/nylon blend that is Bridgetown DK. Not only is it harder to find a hand dyed DK blend like this, it's put up in a 140g skein, which is great for socks and accessories.

Andros

MWP is an off shoot of Fleece Artist and they use the relationships they have cultivated over their nearly 50 years dyeing yarn to get great deals from the mills. These base yarns could be test runs for another company, or a short run or a mill end.... but basically they get a great price on a premium yarn because it might be in short supply and then I'm able to pass that deal onto you. I believe this is the last of the Brigdetown DK for the Sale Section, unless more is stuck somewhere that they couldn't get (shipping containers seem to be getting waylaid all over) or if they mill finds more.

Gumdrop

This is great stuff and you're getting 40% more for 45% off. I'm knitting a Wurm hat (medium size)using the Spooked color right now and it's such a satisfying knit. The colors are interesting but wearable (I do like gray), and the hand is fab.

I'm considering grabbing a baby blanket worth in the Vintage Denim or Andros too. I think I may be in a blanket mood this summer. 

Vintage Denim

If you're hoping for more spring deals, I have some more Colossal Sock on its way from Dream in Color too. I've had many special requests for colors of this yarn lately. Colossal Sock is our exclusive yarn for our 15th anniversary and now that we are nearly at our 16th anniversary I'm not sure if I'll keeping having the mill make this for DIC and us, or if we should try something new. Thoughts on this? It's such a fab deal, durable and the colors look fab so I hate to see it go but wonder if it's time for something new? There's only so much time/space I can take up in Dream in Color's queue/studio so if we continue full force with this like we have for the past year, there may not be room/time to dye another base. But darn it, I love it so much that I just don't know that I want to see it go.

Sweet Georgia is back!

Gosh, it's nice to see all this color from some of my favorite Canadians. Felicia and the SG crew have dyed us up a gorgeous batch of Tough Love sock yarn and their Party of Five mini skein sets and WOWZA, the colors are just fab.

Much like last week with Emma's Yarn, it took me longer to photograph not only b/c of my booted foot but also because I just couldn't stop combining colors into project ideas. Want a three color project like the this cowl or this shawl? One of these may be perfect for you.

Or just choose two of these if you want something like the Phi Shawl (which I can never get enough of) or Pure Joy.

All these are Tough Love sock yarn, which is the classic superwash merino/nylon combo that Sweet Georgia has been using since we first starting carrying it over a decade ago. It's super stuff. And the price has only gone up $4 in 12 years. Now that's something, when Hedgehog Fibres sock yarn is going up almost twice that in an 18 month period.

Felicia has such a way with color that it's like her skeins are just begging you to combine into a larger project. Perhaps you have an idea for one of these full-sized skeins with a mini set?

Bloom & Blossom mini set with full sized skeins of either Rainbow Sprinkles or Alpenglow

Celestial mini skein set with a full sized skein of either Torrent or Drift. What do you prefer?

And if you want to knit Casapinka's Perfect Blend shawl, I have two color options in stock for you and just a couple sets of each left. At this link you'll see the first things to show up as kit 1 and kit 3 (they won't show if they sell out though). So if you want to knit this pattern and want the ease of someone else choosing colors sets for you, go for it! Or, purchase three of these Party of Five sets to make your own and then you'll even have a couple mini skeins left to keep on hand for toes and heels!

Get your Hedgehog Fibres now.... plus a contest!

Well, I knew it was coming, but it's sad to see it here. We are going to see another price increase on Hedgehog Fibres. Last year we saw a small increase due to pandemic related import fees, increase in international shipping rates and the fall of the US dollar compared to the Euro. Now we are seeing even more of those things plus Hedgehog Fibres has increased the price of their yarn. We could see skeins go as high as $36 USD soon as a result. I'll do my best, as always, to keep the price down however I can, but importing yarn has already become more costly and more difficult than ever over the past year. And now that they have raised their prices too.... well, I can't eat that price increase. It's just too much.

Other lines have raised their prices too, but just by a dollar or two overall, not several dollars and fees and increases in all sorts of rates. So you will see some other small dyers I carry have slight increases too. But not $5 a skein after a $2 increase last year too.

I think every one is just trying to do their best and keep their lights on in an ever changing world. And most of us can understand that prices do go up and things do change. If you're using/stashing most of the yarn we offer it's likely you appreciate that it's your time that's the commodity in knitting, and that a few dollars more is likely worth it compared to how much time you invest in your craft. But this second raise on Hedgehog Fibres in just a year's time is something I wanted to point out because you could have a project queued up and you may need a skein or more to fill out a fade or a sweater project and now's a good time to grab that before the price goes up with our next shipment later this month. If you wait a few weeks, I don't want you to be surprised at the increase.

There are a lot of great lines that aren't $36 a skein too, and if you need help finding a yarn that's more in your price range, just e-mail me. But so many people enjoy the colors of Hedgehog Fibres and it's used by so many designers that we will continue to offer a wide array (pretty much all) of the colors for as long as we can. But I understand that $36 is limiting for some people, which is why I felt compelled to point it out now while you can still get it for 15% less.

I did just get a small shipment of the popular Tweed Noir if you've been waiting on some to make a sweater. The price did not go up on this yet. I had a sample sweater made by my friend Chevas in the Gloam pattern that I can't wait to show off to you all in person once the shop is reopened. I'll try and remember to post some photos of it on Insta. It's one of those sweaters that you can just toss over whatever you're wearing and you instantly look put together. I wore it last week over a turquoise shirt and jeans and I felt like I looked fab.

And if you made it this far on a Monday, how about a chance to win some yarn? Simply tell me in the comments below what your favorite color of Hedgehog Fibres is and I'll randomly choose one person to win this skein of Skinny Singles in Macaroon! Leave your comment by noon EST on Thursday, May 13 please.

Emma’s Yarn is here!

We have our first new dyer of 2021 and it's Emma's Yarn! Emma's Yarn is a sister-run dye studio in Florida started by Emma and Aspen who grew up in their mom's thriving yarn shop. They create some really fun colors with even more fun names. I have Practically Perfect Sock and Hella Hanks for you. The sock is the classic superwash merino and nylon blend that we all like for socks. Hella Hanks are 150g merino/cashmere/nylon skeins that are luxurious and perfect for those of us who like extra yarn for our socks, or never quite have enough yardage for our shawls. 

These are a few color combos that I really like. We are still waiting for a box of the Practically Perfect sock, so if you don't see a color you were hoping for, please wait a few more days or feel free to e-mail me to ask.

Wedding Dress, Ice Ice Baby, Barbie Girl (all photos shown on Hella Hanks)

Yarn Husband, Wish You Were Beer, Denim

Everglades, Denim, Just Add Salt

Happily Ever After, Ice Ice Baby, Barbie Girl

Bohemian Market, Sweet Magnolia, Barbie Girl

And it's a new month, so we have new SSYC Sock Sets for you! Check out our Kits & Clubs section to see what we have, like this May Day Delights set.

Fiberstory is here!

I can tell that many of you noticed that Fiberstory is back now! Several of you went for the fade that I posted on Insta, at least in part, and I don't blame you. It's super pretty. Baltic, Dappled Sea, Flurry, Mist, Frost, Fresh and Prairie. All on Fave Sock.

But I also have more ideas for you (and Rachael had a few that I'll soon post here or on Insta). It took me much longer that usual to photograph all this yarn, not only b/c of the boot I'm wearing, but also because I get so enthralled with putting together color combos. I can't help myself!

Flutter, Swelling, Daybreak. Flurry, Mist on Fave Sock.

Above is what I'm calling my Weathered Beach Fade. Five skeins that make me want to the east coast and stay in a wood sided beach cottage. I can imagine that the painted siding is faded and peeling, and I take walks along a cloudy beach in the early evening and listen to the sounds of people chatting on their back porch and can smell them grilling their dinners. Then I go home and magically there is tasty food and drink just waiting for me and the kids are already asleep. Such a nice fantasy!

Frost & Fresh on Fave Sock.

Sarah dyes her yarn in Detroit, and we haven't gotten a restock this big ever (or any new stuff this whole pandemic). I couldn't resist asking her to put together what she calls Curated Collections of her 7 mini skeins based on some of my fave skeins of hers. You'll see six of these Curated Collections as well as all her Gradient Mini Sets. And I think you'll agree that the price point for these is quite fair.

Emma Gradient & Hazy above. Blackberry & Hazy below.

Want a few pattern ideas? What about On the Spice Market, The Joker and the Thief, Kalari Shawl, or Woolsia Shawl. 

Coastal Gradient & Fresh above, Coastal and Breezy below.

Of course, these skeins of Fave Sock stand alone well without combining with a gradient. But Sarah's whole color palette goes so well together that it just seems made for a multi-skein project. If there are a few colors that you think look great together on your screen then it's likely that in person they are super amazing.

What else is coming this week? I'm half done photographing our first big batch from Emma's Yarn! We also will have a restock of Sweet Georgia in Tough Love and Party of 5 mini skein sets. I also have more Tosh Vintage and even new colors on other bases just waiting to be photographed. I find out later today what's going on with my foot, so I'm hoping there is soon a solution that doesn't involve wearing this big ol' boot much longer. Fingers crossed that it's good news so I can get back to work at my normal speed.