Simply Socks Yarn Co. Blog

Ask the Knitters

Dear Knitters,

After reading Allison's last blog post, I'm learning that I'm missing out on lots of places I could be knitting. Right now, I knit a half hour a day, with many hours on weekends. So, knitters, how much time do you knit each day and how are ways that you have found more time to knit throughout the week?

Thanks!

Angie in Indy

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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.

My Sock Tours Woodford (and Bulleit)

A friend of ours turned 50 this weekend and wanted to spend it touring bourbon distilleries in Kentucky, so of course I packed up my knitting and we spent this weekend on a fabulous mini break! 

First off, the yarn. Pictured with the man who indulges me and pauses to let me take a picture of my yarn before I progress toward Bulleit. And drives us everywhere while I knit (I consider myself quite fortunate). I am currently knitting up Opal Schafpate 11194 with cuff, toes and heels in Berroco Vintage Sock 12018. I usually knit my self patterning yarn into a plain stockinette sock, but I decided that because I would be a passenger in the car for the 3.5 hour drive there and back, and while touring and hanging out in general, that I wanted a slightly tangy pattern. Just a little bit of interest to keep me interested. Usually I'm knitting while being distracted by children, but this weekend was just me and Terry and friends. So I decided on what I'd call a broken rib pattern and someone on Insta said it looks like the popular Blueberry Waffle Sock pattern. And it does look like that to me too, if you'd like to join.

The first distillery we toured was Bulleit. Very cool, wonderful tasting, great merch. A high tech facility. Then we did Woodford Reserve, and it was very different beautiful old limestone buildings built 100 years ago, still being used, and surrounded by gorgeous green hills and horse farms. Both are great to visit and knit while doing so. I'm tasting some Woodford Reserve above.

Above is a rack house at Woodford Reserve. The two red barrels are special edition bourbons that have something to do with the 150 anniversary of a horse event that I didn't listen to well? But I found it interesting that just like we do special edition yarns that have a limited amount (like 150 bottles that will be like $5k apiece!) we do limited edition yarns for various events. That we all collect special things that we enjoy, whether it's whiskey or yarn. Below is my tasting. It included a piece of bourbon candy so we could taste the chocolate candy with the shot to see how the flavor changes. It was really cool.

And I am loving this knit. I'm loving it so much that I didn't stop. I didn't stop during the tours, I did stop during the tastings, I didn't stop unless I was eating or sleeping. And it's been a bit since I've picked up a project that made me feel that way.

I think the reason I'm so into this sock is partly because of the texture with the color pattern and seeing it develop. But also because I didn't have the distractions of kids or work pulling on me. Those are the things that get all my time, and knitting has been on the backburner in a big way for a year or more, and I rarely get a moment to knit. This project is pure joy. And the whiskey wasn't bad either LOL!

New Poms in the Shop!

I'm excited to share that we have A LOT of new poms in the shop!

Fireworks and Black Cat

Our maker has been hard at work creating these lovely faux fur pom poms for us, and they are divine. 

Coffee Creamer and Coral

Costs for fabrics and work have gone up quite a bit, but we're keeping the price as is for a bit longer. Our prices are quite reasonable for these hand made goodies, so do grab some to top your hats. Or, if you're like Henry, to hang from your ceiling fan pull. He has a few that he changes out as the mood strikes him. 10 year olds.

If you're coming to the shop this weekend to visit, you can see them all in person! But I know a lot of you are going on Spring Break and will be going somewhere fun or tropical with your families. Whatever your late March plans are, I hope it involves good knitting.

Hello, Monday!

First off, I want to thank you all for a wonderfully busy week last week! We gave away free totes last week and it was of great interest to many! February and March are typically slower months for us, so it's really nice to have that busy week here and there to move things along.

In addition to last weeks busy pace, we also got in a lot of great yarn and I can't wait to share it all with you. I just added some stunning skeins of Smooshy Cashmere from Dream in Color. I know spring is here, but there's something about this autumnal combo of Amber Glass, Antique Gold and Stained Glass that I can't stop looking at.

I'm adding a few new dyers and yarn companies this summer, so if there's someone that you'd love to see in the shop, please email me, Allison, at [email protected] with names/links/why/etc. I have room for a couple more yarn companies than I originally thought because it seems so many of the dyers we offered over the past few years have either slowed production or are completely bowing out. The pace of running a small business isn't for everyone, and I think after a few years of trying to keep up with the artistry side and also the business side, it can be too much for some. There's a lot of burn out, that's for sure. In the past few weeks both Olann Mills and Kenyarn announced their closures. Last year we saw about a dozen lines dry up. But this means that we get to continually keep our offerings fresh and lively and I can't wait to share even more new hand dyers and companies from all over the world!

The yarn lines don't need to be hand dyers, so if you'd like us to bring on a larger collection, for instance you'd like to see us bring Noro back to the shop, let me know. Or if there are more yarns you want from lines we carry, let me know that too. Over the past few years, we have delved more into other weights like Super Bulky and lace weight mohair at your urging, and I'm happy to continue to diversify and add non-sock yarns to the shop. Yes, 17 years ago SSYC sold just sock yarn, but we offer so much more now and I'm happy to continue to do so!

Free Tote w/ Purchase This Week!

Is yarn your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? Ours too! We all love the feeling of treating ourselves to a new beautiful skein (or several) and the possibilities that yarn represents. When you treat yourself this week at Simply Socks Yarn Co, let us gift you a knitting project bag. Just order online as usual, and we'll tuck one in your parcel before we seal it up. You don't have to add it to your cart or request it in any way. If you place an order online, we'll automatically include one. I expect to have enough totes to make it through the week til Friday, but if we still have some left we'll continue to give them with orders on the weekend too (through Sunday). Edited to add on Friday - we will NOT have extra bags to extend the offer an extra two days through the weekend. So the offer does end on Friday as anticipated. Thank you SO much for keeping us so busy this week! You all ROCK!

And it gets better! We have five different options to choose from! You can see them all here. If you do have a preference, you can include a note on the Check Out page (there's a field for notes/comments at Check Out), saying something like "I'd like the zippered pink one" or "please give me the Yarn Stash bag" and we'll do our best. If you don't add a note, we'll surprise you with one (and if we're out of the one you list, you'll get a surprise one too). Yes, if you come in person on Tuesday when we are open, you can get one. And yes, if you choose Contactless Pickup you'll get one. Please note that if you order more than twice, we are just giving out two per person this week, even if there are more than two orders. We just want to make sure there are enough to last the week.

What might you want to purchase this week to get your tote? We have all the new Regia sock yarn collections for spring like Day Dreaming, Electric Neon and 6ply Cool Style!
Want to knit the warmest mittens ever? We have Thrum Mitten Kits from Fleece Artist that include the yarn, fleece and pattern to knit these mittens. If you can increase and decrease, you've got these down already.

Want to try something new? How about the gorgeous hues from Kenyarn? His new 2023 hues make the coolest rainbow. And we have his newest sock yarn Aurora Sock as well as his Stratus DK.

Want to know what's been the most popular at SSYC in the past year? That would be the Opal Van Gogh collection (which is back in full force in all 8 colors)....

... and the Malabrigo Metamorphosis gradient yarn. I knit this Herald Shawl with one ball in the Starry Night color.

This project of the moment 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.

Want a great deal? Check our Sale Yarn section where we have a huge restock of Dream in Color's Colossal Sock, our exclusive yarn that is 50% more for 45% off!

And if you want to knit with the holiday, check out these sock, with full details last week on the blog!

Knit the Rainbow

In addition to the amazing striping sock yarns from Freckled Whimsy I posted about this week, I wanted to share with you some other St Patrick's Day inspired colors, should you be inspired to knit with the season as I am.

First, I want to knit all the stripes. They don't even have to be rainbows. I just love the striping effect. Think Knitterly Things, for sure. Roadmap, Live in Technicolor and Unicorn Rainbow are super good choices.

More stripes? Heck, yes! West Yorkshire Spinners is a super choice. Perhaps the Winwick Mum colors like these?

Kenyarn could be for you, too. His new solids and multis make a stunner of a rainbow when put together. And if you really want to go all rainbow, just put rainbow in our search feature on the website and get many ideas.

And, yes, Twist and Zebra sock yarns aren't rainbow, there's something about that strand of black yarn that's plied into yarn that accentuates rainbows and multicolors so well that I just want to highlight them. 

I mean, look at these greens from Irish dyer Life in the Long Grass. Aquarium is above and Mint Grove is below.

Then finally, these socks. Er. Mah. Gerd. They are amazing, aren't they?? These Shamrockin Socks were designed by Jennifer Beaulieu, and she's even offering SSYC customers a special coupon code of GREEN17 to get 17% off the pattern on Ravelry through March 17th. Just put it in your Ravelry cart and use coupon code GREEN17 to get a deal. 

What yarn should you consider? Well, I love the idea of the main color being a tweed.  And if you do choose the Regia, you can go with  Trekking XXL Solids or Opal solids. All those are basically the same base, so you could put together any combo of those (in your Cart to see them together). But if you want the widest array of color options plus black and white and dark grey for the base, go with Cascade Heritage. There are several greens to choose from.

Photos used with permission of Jennifer Beaulieu

If you want to use hand dyed yarn, I have a lot of options right now in Smooshy and Smooshy Cashmere. Emma's Yarn has full sized skeins and minis. Whisper, Natural, Gatsby, After Dark, Barking Up the Wrong Tree, Jackie O and Silver Lining would all be great main colors for the pattern. It's also a good pattern to just use up bits of things. But if you really want a wide range of colors and greens, Heritage might be the way to go. Of course, you can combine bases, a little bit of Emmas, a little Heritage.... sky's the limit!

Oh, and if you want a hearty version, try this one!

St Paddy's Day Knits

Want to knit a rainbow this St Paddy's Day? Why not do it in stripes from Freckled Whimsy?

We have a stunning new batch of yarn from Karrie's studio, and now we even have an array of DK weight sock sets too. DK weight superwash merino + stripes + a mini? Yes, please!

These really are spectacular. DK weight hand dyed sock yarn isn't widely available (in 100% merino it is, but not superwash merino/nylon), and it really is rare to get it with stripes AND a coordinating mini.

If you're coming to the shop on Saturday and are hoping to see all these in person, please know that they are already selling out fast so if you wanted a particular color, I recommend ordering online and choosing Contactless Pickup so you can pick it up in the shop on Saturday and then look at the others too.

New Regia Sock Yarn Collections- Spring 2023

Guys, I am SO happy about these new Regia sock yarn collections! They are so springy and fun and I cannot wait for you (and, admittedly, me) to get these on the needles!

First, the Day Dreaming collection. It's six different jaquard patterns that are oddly pale and bright at the same time. I love them. It's a much needed spring palette for this gray and cold day in early March.

Then I have the Electric Neon collection, one that I've received A LOT of questions about since it was hinted on the Regia Yarn insta feed months ago. It finally made its way "across the pond" and is now here in the US and ready to ship to you.

Finally, we have a new 6 Ply collection in the Cool Style colors. A 6 Ply collection is 50% thicker than it's fingering weight cousin, so it would qualify as a sport-to-DK weight. It knits up faster and makes cushier and warmer socks. It comes in 150g balls, so you still have plenty of yardage for larger socks. It's great stuff. Here are those 6 new colors

I know what I'm starting on this weekend. Some Day Dreaming socks, for sure. My weekend plans include knitting and baking and NO ELECTRONICS. Yep, my kids don't know it yet, but Saturday is going to be an "e free day", meaning no electronics. No TV, no phones, no computers. Which means that James will likely biking around the neighborhood or asking for us to take him driving (and complaining about not having his phone), Henry will be shooting hoops and running around the houses with the girls next door (while complaining about not having his iPad), and Terry will be trimming bushes (and complaining that the kids aren't picking up the branches). And maybe late in the day we will go out for dinner. And in between all that, I'll be listening to all the complaints, knitting and baking some pumpkin muffins. So a day of complaining all because Mama is mean and said no electronics for a whole day LOL!