Simply Socks Yarn Co. Blog

Halloween Treats @ SSYC

Happy Halloween, my yarny friends! I wanted to treat you to a few things today to celebrate, because HEY, this day isn't just for kids! I love it too and I want to pass along the vibes.

For those who can't resist a great deal, we have a fully stocked Sale Yarn section today and if you use coupon code HalloweenTreats at Check Out, you'll get an additional 10% off! The code works through tomorrow only, so don't wait.

We've offered Fleece Artist yarn from the beginning, and they created our first anniversary colorway too. They dye this color for us here and there, and I have a batch that I'm offering you today for $10 off. Just a nice little (ok, pretty big) Halloween treat from me to you. So instead of $23, it's just $13!

We also have some great things in the Kits & Clubs section for you too. Like some Socktober Sock sets that I just released today. These have been popular the past couple years, so I'll try and put more together this winter for you.

50% off Mini Skeins + Super Sock Deals!

It's been a busy time here at the shop the past week! Not only b/c of the 35% off coupon that we're offering on a lot of hand dyed yarn lines (details here) but we got in a lot of new yarn including the new West Yorkshire Spinner's 2022 Holiday Color, Gingerbread. And we're reorganizing - take a look. Wowza, right?

We're still celebrating Socktober here, and this week's Socktober Special is a crazy good deal on a limited edition batch of potluck colors of Hedgehog Fibres mini skeins (20g, approx 80 yards)! None of these colors are from their normal line up of offerings, so each one is a unique little jewel that you can only get from SSYC. Instead of the retail price of $11.50, you're paying just $5.75 for imported Irish sock yarn! These are all potluck colors, meaning we choose the color for you and you get a surprise and a deal. There's a limited amount of these, so get them while you see them here.

We have dozens and dozens of colors to choose from, so you can order as many as you like and each one you order will be different. These photos are just an example of what you could get.

Minis are great for having on hand in your stash when you want to add a contrast color to the toes and heels of your socks, or for adding a fun stripe of color to a shawl. They are also great for Monster Socks like these or these or these. I also like How I Roll. There's no limit on the number of mini skeins you can order here, until they are gone. It's worth noting though, that if you order a dozen or more, you might get some that are similar. We just don't have the time to carefully scrutinize the selection to pick and choose if you're ordering that many.

Then I have a super deal for you on some special Urth Uneek Sock Kits. Each kit includes two matching 50g balls of yarn, so you get two matching striped socks and they are 40% off. Like with any hand dyeing operation, sometimes what they dye up doesn't look as expected, and such is the case with three colors they just sent me. Color 001 is just slightly off from one of their most popular striping colors (color 57, but this has more purple in it than the original), Color 003 is their popular Zebra (but with a bit of pink and/or/ lavender streaks in it), and Color 002 is the brand new Orangge (from GG the Iconic Orange Lady) stripe that already sold out last month but in this batch has some unexpected dots of color here and there. I wouldn't necessarily call these "seconds" b/c they are first quality yarn, but the color is a bit off from what Urth intended. And so you get a super deal. Find all three of them at the end of our Sale Section while I have them. While each kit includes a pattern code, these make really cool mitts too!

Thank you for making our Socktober so fun and busy for us! Our shop open days this month have been quite busy and we've even had several knitting groups drive from hours away to come shop. If you want to come see us some time in 2022, our days/hours are all posted here and that includes the week in December we are open to spread out our normal one day Holiday Open House.

For those of you who missed out on the cute fall stitch markers that we had a few weeks ago (they sold out really fast), I now have two more options for you. A set of 6 above and a set of 7, shown below. These are all made by our artisan out of polymer clay and as you can see are the perfect size (shown with a US 1 needle for scale). Not so big that they get in your way as you knit, but large enough to mark their place. Just perfect.

I'll have one more Socktober Special that I'll share on Monday, Halloween. All treats, no tricks at SSYC!

Easy Holiday Gift Knits

Do you have your holiday gift knits ready? I DO NOT. I haven't even started any of them. Mine are typically hats, though my mom wears everything that I knit for her, so she's definitely worthy of other things as well. If you're in the same boat as me, I thought it might be a good idea for us to share some quick gift ideas with each other.

I recently received this e-mail from Jane, and so I thought I must share The World's Simplest Mittens pattern.

I may make more because they are so awesome - ColorLab DK using Tin Can Knits free pattern “the world’s simplest mittens.” Super easy, these were a gift for someone who had recently had a baby (mitts from stash baby yarn, kind of boring) and has two older children. I used Frosty Blue and Tutti Frutti. 

This is the time of year when people are looking for fast gifts and these would work well for non-sock knits. Now that I have the pattern down, I’ll be making more. Plus this yarn feels amazing!

Photo courtesy of Tin Can Knits

The pattern calls for Madelinetosh Tosh DK, which we have A LOT of for you - over 300 colors. Watch the Insta Reel I posted on today if you want to experience just a bit of it. But Jane used West Yorkshire Spinners DK which is a great choice because it's a bit easier care and also nearly 1/3 the price. And she seems super duper pleased with how hers turned out using it. We just got a full restock from the UK of the West Yorkshire Spinners DK too, so we have all the colors for you. And some of the stripes would make the cutest of mittens, am I right?

Do you have a gift-knit pattern you recommend I share here on the blog? I'll try and share one each week leading up through Christmas. Please e-mail me, Allison, at [email protected] with the pattern and detail of why you like it. And it's fine if it's a pattern of your own, too! We all deserve exposure for our good works.

And on a side note for gift knitting.... I can't stress enough how nice mittens and fingerless mitts are for a gift. My mom had hand surgery last week and has been wearing some mitts I made for her to keep her hands warm and bandages in place and she's still able to use her phone and remote and grab things with her finger tips. It was really heartwarming to know that something I made for her years ago is making her life better today.

New this week and next to come....

We have gotten SO MUCH yarn in the past week or two that I haven't had much time to blog b/c I've been photographing and getting it all on the website. I'm not even half done yet, but here's what you'll find that's new in the shop.

The 2022 Holiday Color from West Yorkshire Spinners! This new hue is named Gingerbread and is super cute, don't ya think? And instead of ONE free pattern with purchase, there are like four or five. Two knit socks, a crocheted one, one that involves a bit of colorwork and baby socks. 

The colorwork sock, shown above, also uses three solid colors, 510-Cayenne Pepper, 1006-Spruce and 101-Milk Bottle or 011-Marshmallow.

We also have a full restock of other holiday colors (seven of them, but they tend to sell fast), Birds & Cocktail colors and new Solids. The prices of West Yorkshire Spinners are going up a couple dollars in 2023, so if you want them at this price, now's the time. And each of the holiday colors comes with a free pattern, so please be sure to respond to the e-mailed receipt you get from us and request that I e-mail you the pattern file.

One of our super popular deal yarns is back! Laneras Yarn Co (formerly named Vrinda) send more of their Barefoot Sock which is made of Polwarth wool instead of Merino, which means it costs $10 less than it's Merino counterpart. For just $20, you're getting a premium hand dyed skein, and if you haven't tried Polwarth wool before, it's soft and holds up great for socks. It's in the Sale Yarn section.

We have a fresh restock of Hedgehog Fibres sock yarn from Ireland and it's super beautiful as usual. Shown above in Beach Bunny and Crystal. And a gorgeous batch of Uschitita from the Netherlands. I can't get enough of Uschitita and I'm so glad we have more for you (and me). 

We have a brand new batch of Secretos Sock and DK from Laneras too, but it's going to take me a few days to get it all on the website for you. My kids are on Fall Break and so a lot less is getting done around here during the day. It's a lot of night (after bedtime) working for me this week, so if you get an email response from me at 11pm, you know why, LOL!

What else is coming? I'm super excited to share the newest yarn from Malabrigo, a 50g mohair! Since we started carrying the Emma's Yarn Mohair, I've realized that I should have carried more mohair a lot sooner. You all like carrying along the lace weight strand with your sock yarn to make fuzzy sweaters and accessories, and holding a strand of mohair along with your toes and heels in socks is a great way to reinforce them. The fuzz from the mohair kind of felts into the sock yarn and into itself with the friction of wear, and it creates a stronger toe and heel fabric over time. Of course, you can knit your whole sock carrying a strand of mohair too. But for me, that's a little much. My feet sweat too much for that.

I look forward to sharing more with you next week too! And if you're coming to the shop this Saturday for our in person shopping, we'd love to show everything to you.

Big Socktober Sale! - 35% off!

What's our Socktober Special this week? It's 35% off over a dozen hand dyed yarn lines!

Stitch Together Studios, Midcoast Targheeling Twist, color is Microbatch No. 13

Earlier this fall I announced that we had to say goodbye to over a dozen hand dyed yarn lines and I offered 25% off. These are premium dyers that aren't producing any more, or people we haven't heard from in a long time, or other lines that we might bring back later. You guys have now cleared us out of over 90% of what we had, and for what's left I'm not offering you 35% off til its gone! Use the coupon code ByeBye35 at Check Out to see 35% come off your order of the yarns linked below. Well, I actually recommend adding it to your cart well before Check Out (like once you put your first item in) so you don't forget. Some of the fast Check Out methods like ApplePay and Paypal can be so quick that you miss the coupon code field. If you miss it, just respond to your e-mailed receipt and ask for it to be applied.

What are the yarn lines that the code works on?

Artfil

Dragonfly Fibers

Hue Loco's Phyllis Sock & Opal Silk

Lang Jawoll

Lichen and Lace

Poste Yarn

sKNITches

Swift Yarn

Spun Right Round

Stitch Together Studios

Turtlepurl

Undercover Otter

Unique Sheep

Vrinda Yarn - Asana Sport

Walk Collection

Yarn Love- Marie Antoinette MCN Sparkle

Zen 

Vrinda Yarn, Asana Sport. Color is Tahiti

Per our posted return policy, items purchased with the clearance coupon code are not eligible for return, so please make sure you want it before you complete your order. This discount is not retroactive on previous purchases.

Please do check your e-mail after your order in case we need to contact you about a sub. These deals do go fast, and in case our inventory is off or something can't be found, we'd e-mail you and ask if you'd like to sub (add [email protected] to your Contacts just in case). The faster you respond to your e-mail, the more likely you are to get your preferred sub before that sells out too. Make sense?
I hope this deal brings you some yarny joy! Letting go of these lines allows us the room to delve into new yarn lines in the new year and expand our offerings to serve you even better. Our shop (see how full it is above and below?) can certainly hold A LOT of yarn, but it's great to make room for more, right? Someone recently asked when we might do another big sale like this again.... since we haven't done one this big in our 17 years, I'd say maybe another 17 years? Really, we try and keep our normal retail prices as low as possible and offer deals in our sale section and keep shipping costs low, so there's really not room for big sales like this in our business model. So it could be a decade or more before we do it again.

More Dream in Color Colossal Sock Yarn

Today's the last day to use the SocktoberLove coupon code to get free US shipping, and I wanted to share some of the amazing yarn we have in stock again from Dream in Color - it's our exclusive yarn, Colossal Sock! Colossal Sock is 50% more yarn (so 150g instead of 100g) for 45% off and it comes in all the gorgeous hues that Dream in Color is known for.

What's new in this batch that you'll find here?

Bitter is above, Rosy is below.

Chili above and Skipping Stone below

Revenue Blue above and Sprout below

Those are just a few of the tonal solids that are new to us on the Colossal Sock. And of course we have dozens of restocks too in great hues like Carousel

And Sonoran Magic

And Mermaid Shoes

There is just so much luscious color right now in our Sale Section. I also realized that I had several colors of Madelinetosh Euro Sock that I didn't put in the Sale Section, so you'll find more of that too. I'm human! I make mistakes, LOL.

Socktober Free Shipping!

Today marks the second week of Socktober, the sock knitter's month long holiday! It's a great time of year for us crafty types, as makers and companies create all sorts of colorful yarns and goodies that inspire us to think outside our normal crayon box of colors and get our knitting mojo going full steam so we can do what we do best - Create!

Last week we celebrated with the release of all our Socktober Fall Finds and our Socktober Sock Yarn Club (The club sold out in like three days. WHOA. You guys rock.) This week we are gifting you free US shipping! Just use coupon code SocktoberLove at Check Out or in your Cart (and if you forget  just respond to your e-mailed receipt and I'll take care of it). You all have supported us so well for the past 17 years, and even if you can't come see all our Halloween goodies in person, we still want to serve you and be your LYS. This is our way of making it easier to treat yourself to something to bring you joy.

What might you like to grab or inspire your fall knits? We have just a small amount left of our Jolly Pumpkin Knit Kit which includes a limited edition skein, handmade bag, pumpkin stitch markers and Soak washes. Check out the rest of our Socktober Fall Finds too.

Want the new Opal Yarn colors? I'm knitting this one from the Holiday collection. And this year's Rainforest collection has arrived as well! We have gorgeous self patterning colors from earlier collections as well.

Love Regia? Me too. And now I have Tweeds in fingering weight and 6ply for thicker socks. If you're gift knitting for someone who might toss their hand knit socks in with their jeans and shirts in the washer and dryer, then Opal and Regia are for you. Also Trekking and Berroco.

Hedgehog Fibres has sent us a whole heck of a lot of yarn in their Sock, Skinny Singles and Merino DK. It's like a bit of Ireland on your needles. Shown above is Comeback, which is like an updated 80's color, right?

What else am I knitting right now? These socks using the new Berroco Vintage sock yarn in colors 12075, 12018, 12072, 12026 and 12076. I'm thinking of doing something next using all our gorgeous colors of Cascade Heritage. When the price point is so reasonable, I don't feel conflicted choosing 5-6 colors for one pair of socks.... PLUS I have lots leftover for toes and heels and other projects! Win win!

Love a good tool? How about Purl Strings Sweater Packs so you can string out your sweater-in-progress and try it on as you knit. The tube just fits over the point of your needle and then you can easily spread your stitches out. It comes with a really long string/tube and two shorters ones.

Need a new bag? They don't get much better than Magner Co's Knitty Gritty (big bag) or Itty Bitty (sock project bag). We just got a batch and they won't last long.

Want a superb deal? Those are always available in our ever-changing Sale Yarn section! Grab some Tosh Sport (marked as Mt Tosh Sport "color") for all the fall sweaters. We have loads of other great finds too like super sized skeins of Dream in Color's Colossal Sock (marked as DIC Colossal) - 50% more yarn for 45% off.

Finally, We have a few more of our 12 Days of Stitch Markers countdown sets made up and back up on our website for you. Some of you purchased three or four sets when we had them available at our online Christmas in July event, and now we have more ready for you on the website. These are little Advent-inspired sets that you can open one day at a time leading up to Christmas. Each garland has 12 different envelopes marked with a number and inside is a hand made stitch marker. If you'd like to see an example of the kind of quality artistry in each marker, take a look at our 2022 Fall Stitch Marker Set. The fall set sold out quickly already, which was surprising b/c we really had A LOT of them, but at least you can see the detail you might expect- only even more and Christmasy.

What's coming to the shop later this month? Check back to find out! 

 

Ask the Knitters

Dear Knitters,

I’m looking for an organization that will accept donations of knit items including adult size socks and various baby items. Wondering if you know of any group that will take hand knits. Thanks for any ideas you might have,

Mary Jane in Ft. Wayne

*                    *                    *

Help a knitter out and leave your advice in the comments section below.  Have a question you'd like to see answered here?  Simply title an e-mail Ask the Knitters and send it on to [email protected] . Your question could be chosen for this series.

Opal Rainforest 18 & Holidays Collections are In!

I have two new Opal Yarn self patterning collections to share with you today! First, it's the 18th Rainforest collection that Opal has released, and it's super cute as usual.

Which is your fave? 11200 and 11204 are my current faves, but the others are close behind. I know that many of you will be drawn to put 11203 and 11206 in your stashes b/c it's more difficult to find white or black/white self patterning color for those who like those colors of socks.

Also now in stock is the Holidays collection. And in this sense, I mean holidays as in vacations, not holidays as in special days of celebration. This collection is really cool. I like the patterns, and especially the multitude of colors in each pattern. I like each one of these and I'm betting a lot of you will too. I can't recall an Opal line that I liked as much as this one.

I'm going to stash each one of these because the whole collection is that great. Really. If you like self patterning yarn as much as I do, I think you're going to be super pleased with whatever colors you order.

I also have restocks of solids, including 6 ply solids for those who want thicker socks. These come in 150g balls, so there's plenty for larger socks. 

I hope you see something here that will fuel your Socktober knitting! If you're on Instagram, tag me with #ssycsocktober and I'll share your socks-in-progress in our Stories feed. Let's inspire others to enjoy knitting socks this month!

Socktober 2022 - Fall Festival Finds!

It's finally here, friends! Our Socktober Fall Festival finds are now LIVE at the Kits & Clubs link! What do we have to share today?

First off, our Jolly Pumpkin Knit Kit which features all the SSYC faves, a skein of Dream in Color Colossal Sock, a beautifully made Bird Leg Bag (yes, Vickie's taking a short respite from her book series and making bags for us here and there), three of our adorable stitch markers and a couple little mini Soaks. As usual, I have a limited amount of our Knit Kits.

Kenyarn continues to have quite the following, and Jake has created a limited edition Halloween colorway just for us! Watch the Reel he created about it here, and then find Cauldron at the Kits & Clubs link. For Christmas in July, he created a holiday hue for us that sold out in two hours, so if you like this one, grab it FAST on Monday.

Candy Corn above, Whisper to a Scream below

Socktober Madness above, Socktober Spooktacular below

Love striping yarn? I have some lovely options from Knitterly Things (above) as usual if you want a striping skein. And if you want a sock set that includes a striping skein and I mini solid for toes and heels, I not only have the autumn/Halloween colors from Freckled Whimsy, but I also have the five colors of the Hocus Pocus collection shown together below.

Want variegated hues? Dream in Color has ya covered with some stunning options for fall. I would happily wear a Pavement sweater in any of these colors. Or a Confetti with a solid/tonal stripe.

Autumn Mesa, above. Looking Up, below.

Sweet Scream above. Killer Fog, below

Leaves & Grass, above. Charlie Bean Halloween, below.

Want accessories? We have those too. In addition to the stunning Magner totes we just got in stock, now in two sizes, we also got in our exclusive shawl cuffs. The Itty Bitty (sock project) size of Magner Co bags, shown below, are going fast.

And we have some adorable stitch markers too. First we'll have these fall themed polymer clay ones from our maker.

Then we will have these options from Rhode Island studio Katrinkles. So many cute things to choose from. Spooky sweaters, leaves and glittery acorns, sparkly skulls and glow-in-the-dark cats. And if you're like me, you know these make cute little charms for earrings, bracelets and necklaces too.

And don't forget about the Madelinetosh Halloween Hues I posted earlier this week so you could get a head start. All shown on Twist Light sock below Seance/Ghost/Ensorcell, Goblin/Slimer/Crack the Glowsticks, Bram Stoker/Crack the Glowsticks/Hang the DJ.

We also have other new things like these cool sweater strings that let you try on your sweater or shawl project at various stages so you can get a good fit. The little tube just slips onto the tip of your needle so you have a long tube/string to extend your project. They are super popular and I'm so glad we have finally found a good price point ($16) and predictable supply. 

I know I must be forgetting some things..... but in my early morning, lack-of-coffee fog I'm unsure what that may be. I think this is enough for today, right? Wowza. 

What else is coming this Socktober? That's not enough for you?!? Well, me either. We'll have new yarn from Opal & Regia later this week or next, a shipment from Netherlands studio Uschitita, coupon codes, a free shipping weekend and more. We are celebrating the love of sock knitting all month long!