With one week left in our Summer of Socks and Lace contest (remember, all entries are due by Sunday, September 6), some of you may be wondering how to pull out ahead and win. It’s not too late to go for a big finish. I, personally, can knit a pair of socks in a week unless I get distra…SHINY! Um, what was I saying? Anyway, I can usually knit a pair of socks in about a week, so there is time to start one more project. Here are some ideas to go for the win:

• Choose a pattern with a knitted or picot hem, like Nutkin.   or the Leaf Lace Socks from Vogue Knitting’s The Ultimate Sock Book. For a time-saving trick, follow Melissa’s instructions for a knitted sweater hem.
• Make a sock with a long cuff, like the foldover Puss-in-Boots cuff in Bartholomew’s Tantalizing Socks from Cat Bordhi’s New Pathways for Sock Knitters. As an added bonus, the stitch pattern based on the linen stitch breaks up pooling on handpainted yarns and uses up slightly more yarn than a basic stockinette stitch.
• Use a pattern with super yarn-eating properties like cables. We have the latest Cookie A individual patterns with all kinds of interesting cables, plus her book Sock Innovation. Or, add bobbles as frequent customer Tiffany did here in her socks from Socks Ala Carte.

We hope this gives you some ideas!

Here’s a peek at some of the things we’ve been up to this summer at the store.

Spinners gather for July’s Tour de Fleece event:

Lisa, Michael, and Zelda work on their entries for the Summer of Socks and Lace contest on a rainy Saturday:

Customer Annette brings cupcakes. Look at the marzipan yarn!

Monica makes a yarn fort with a huge incoming order of Cascade 220:

As summer winds down and we prepare to go back to work and school, here are some reminders about what’s going on at the shop.

• We will be CLOSED on Labor Day, Monday, September 7.
• This means that all Summer of Socks and Lace Entries must be submitted by Sunday, September 6.
• To soften the blow of the end of summer and the end of Summer of Socks and Lace, until August 31, almost ALL sock and laceweight yarn is on sale for 20%! Please see our current newsletter for details.

We hope to see you soon!