OOPS! It seems the discount in our system didn’t want to work! So be it, let’s try this again, shall we? The digital bug has been rectified and the sale is actually saleing now! if you purchased something yesterday or this morning at full price that was supposed to be on sale we will fix that and refund the difference. Thanks for your patience! Haley
I’ve noticed people have kind of become accustomed to suffering and aren’t being kind to themselves …. don’t suffer, no matter what your grandmother said, it is NOT good for you! You aren’t going to grow any faster or learn more from suffering, it will never magically evolve into joy – it’s just blocked energy. When you lean into flourishing you connect with flow. Be kind to yourself, love yourself unconditionally, TREAT YOURSELF TO SOMETHING NICE! And if you’re afraid of ducking up your project because your confidence is in the off-position, then just choose something simple … that’s the nice thing about sexy yarns, they always look great, no matter what! Keep It Simple Sister.
I thought you might enjoy this … my friend sent me this snapshot because her husband just doesn’t appreciate the magnitude of her triumph …. it’s the yarn she had left at the end of her project. She fought the yarn-shortage Dragon and won!
One of her kids wanted some camo socks and she wanted to take advantage of the Urth Uneek Worsted (ON SALE!) before it disappeared (sorry, that particular colour disappeared onto her needles – I also tarted up the colour a bit, it was VERY camo-drab, colour 4006 Cocoa Nibs).
The other kids got a pair of Langfield hats, also made with Urth Uneek Worsted (1 skein each). Again, don’t hold me accountable for other people’s photography – the photo above (4004 Bird of Paradise)is very close to the actual yarn colour, but the one below (4005 Sunset) looks a bit duller than the yarn in the store …. could be a dye-lot thing. She used 1 skein per hat.
Langfield is a great hat project for any yarn that knits in a long colourway. It’s modular, so you can use any thickness of yarn – a great stashbuster and one-skein project!
Please note, when I post other people’s projects I always confirm what level of privacy they are comfortable with. In this case, my friend is cool sharing her pictures and experience, but she’s a private person and would otherwise prefer to stay anonymous, so I have linked the pictures to the general patterns on Ravelry.
We just received a big restock or Malabrigo Rios (and are expecting more to come in in a couple of weeks). There have been so many constraints over the last year, finally being able to get a decent re-stock feels so good!
Should not already be familiar with this wonderful yarn, Malabrigo Rios is a super-duper soft, machine washable yarn made from 100% merino wool. It’s hand dyed for subtle variations, and is great for anyone and any project except felting (it will not felt). Rios is specially suitable for babies, kids (it makes great hats, sweaters, blankets, etc). The dyeing tends to have a watercolour effect and it always seems to knit up even more beautiful than in the skein. The base yarn is silky soft and springy with lots of body. Whenever I can I like to use it for projects I make for my niece and nephew (sometimes the colours don’t fit their very specific requests).
A Note on Working with Hand-Dyes
Because this yarn is hand-dyed no two skeins are alike (for the multi-colours different skeins within the same bag can look different). We always try to match the skeins as closely as possible when we send them out. To get the most consistent colour distribution possible, it is always suggested with hand-dyed yarns that you work with two balls and alternate them every couple of rows. Here’s a Video to help you with this.
Make. All. The Sweaters. Malabrigo Rios has been used 889 times on Ravelry to make Tin Can Knit’s FREE pattern, Flax. Flax is an all-size design (but it’s limited exclusively to humans; canine, feline, avian, and reptilian sizes are note included) and will fit babies to the largest primate (you may need to make modifications if you’re knitting for one of our cousins on the evolutionary tree … and good luck getting a sweater on a gorilla outside of Photoshop).
Your needle sizes and yardage amount will vary based on the size you’re making, so I won’t list them here, but they’re basically:
Malabrigo Rios has been use 539 times to make this particular pair of socks, Rye. Rye is a great pattern for new sock knitters, it includes how-to instructions, and a full size range from baby to Adult L. Whether you’ve retreats the the cottage, your back-yard or the public park, socks are a great small project that travels extremely well and makes for a very impressive holiday gift.
BTW – getting your winter gifts done over the summer is the absolutely most satisfying feeling you’ll ever experience. It involves a little delayed satisfaction, but come October you’ll be extremely pleased with yourself, especially when you get the itch to make something nice for yourself and you find that you can!
Moss on the Old Oak is the kind of warp I yearn for on cool says and nights from the spring to fall. It’ll knit up beautifully in either the multicoloured or semi-solid colourways of Malabrigo Rios, and the pattern is offered in three sizes. It’s an advanced-beginner skill level, which is a nice niche for the spring.
Urth Uneek Sock is a GORGEOUS self-striping, machine washable merino yarn. It’s soft, beautiful, and stunning. Each kit contains 2 pre-wound skeins for matching socks and three patterns, all neatly tucked away in a pretty box. Pick one up for yourself and another as a gift for a friend who knits!
Urth Yarns is a family owned brand specializing in hand dyed natural yarns. Utilizing innovative dying techniques, in combination with the skilled hands of women, Urth Yarns stands for sustainability, “girl power”, and is dedicated to providing a “uneek” knitting experience.
Urth has designed THREE Free patterns for their socks, all downloadable from their website. They have a basic sock, one with a small cable detail, and a chevron design.
Last night was our first week of SOCK LAB and it was super fun! Sandra brought a half-finished sock, Liane brought something in progress (she’s prodigious and always has a pair of socks on the go), Jonathan started something new with a very sheepy yarn, and Judy and her friend were trying their hands at their first sock EVER. Shelna is a total sock knitter, but she forgot to bring hers because she’s pretty focused on chemo hats right now. Remy from Les Sheependales was working on a gorgeous mystery knit-a-long shawl, and I think Nicole is deep into a blanket. And as for me, I hauled out a long-neglected, half-finished sock project and inadvertently ‘cheated’ (it’s not a contest) and finished the FIRST sock of Sock Lab!
Now, to start, you should know that I am not a sock knitter. Some people love knitting socks, others can take it or leave it – I fall into the latter group. Don’t get me wrong, I love love love wearing my handknit socks, they’re the best thing EVER, but making them isn’t really my groove.
Flash back to a couple of years ago, I started a pair of knee socks, completed one sock, and promptly lost interest. I do this, I suffer from Second Sock Syndrome, I totally own it. I also have no issue with letting projects lay fallow; I’m very human and feel shame about lots of things, but this is not one of them. So, for Sock Lab, I pulled out my estranged sock project. Sock Lab is about collective support, which I clearly needed to finish this shock. I unsealed the ziplock, stuck my nose in, and pulled out all the component parts (many mislaid accessories and needles were recovered), and evaluated the situation.
I tried on my sock, remembered how much I love the feel of hand-knit wool socks, and then also recalled that I no longer enjoy wearing hand knit knee socks. This must be why I dropped the project. The prospect of making a second knee sock definitely did NOT fill me with joy, but the prospect of wearing a pair of regular socks was motivating. So I changed the project! I decided to make these socks something that I *would* wear, and performed a little surgery.
Surgery isn’t necessarily hard, it just requires good light and a bit of uninterrupted free time:
Having finished the first sock of Sock Lab, I gloated a little and moved on to the second sock … which I had conveniently already started!
So, not bad for the first week, no? So much drama: trying to remember things from a few years ago, feeling feelings, making decisions, cutting, picking up stitches, re-knitting, feeling different feelings …. it feels a little like the Nickelodeon tween sitcoms my niece watches. Drink it in, because I don’t think my socksperience will get interesting again until I have to remember how I did the heel.
See ya next week!
Urth Uneek Sock is a GORGEOUS self-striping, machine washable merino yarn. It’s soft, beautiful, and stunning. Each kit contains 2 pre-wound skeins for matching socks and three patterns, all neatly tucked away in a pretty box. Pick one up for yourself and another as a gift for a friend who knits!
Urth Yarns is a family owned brand specializing in hand dyed natural yarns. Utilizing innovative dying techniques, in combination with the skilled hands of women, Urth Yarns stands for sustainability, “girl power”, and is dedicated to providing a “uneek” knitting experience.
Urth has designed THREE Free patterns for their socks, all downloadable from their website. They have a basic sock, one with a small cable detail, and a chevron design.
They sold out fast, so we have restocked your favourite colours of the Regia Design Line by Wool and the Gang “Kinda Magic Sock”. You REALLY loved the grey & curry and the light blue & pink colour combinations, so we got more for you!
People who wear snazzy socks have more fun. Regia Design Line by Wool and the Gang (also known as Regia Kinda Magic Sock) yarn comes in a kit and knits up in a pattern all by itself; as you whiz through your knit the leopard print pattern will start to show its spots, and then before you know it, TA-DAH – one pair of leopard print socks, as if by magic! The kit comes with full instructions and you can follow an instructional video too (see below). Note: it’s important to get the correct tension in this yarn to make the patterning work, so swatch before you start.
Regia LOVE a good sock. Based in Germany, they have over 65 years’ experience in the bag of making the best-of-the-best sock yarn. They come with a 10-year quality assurance too – that’s how bloomin’ good they are.
Worked from the toe up, these pretty socks would make an excellent spring project for the intermediate knitter. They’d look great with the subtle variations of the semi-solid, hand-dyed colour of Malabrigo Alegria. If you aren’t feeling that fancy, go for Cascade Heritage. You won’t go wrong with either, both yarns are made with super-soft merino wool that is blended with nylon to help them wear well.
Malabrigo Alegria: 1 skein in each of 2 colours
Cascade Heritage: 1 skein in each of 2 colours
Manos Alegria colour A9239 Periquito
Manos del Uruguay Alegria is the same soft base as Alegria Watercolours, but dyed in variegated colours. It’s an amazing sock yarn made from an easy-care blend of ultra-soft superwash merino with durable polyamide. Its “hand” is remarkably soft and resilient, and the bright, playful colorways would make exciting baby projects as well as socks.
Manos del Uruguay Alegria is an amazing sock yarn made from an easy-care blend of ultra-soft superwash merino with durable polyamide. Its “hand” is remarkably soft and resilient, and the bright, playful colorways would make exciting baby projects as well as socks.
Knit-o-Matic Yarns 