First, let’s get this out of the way. Yes, this is our Steven on the Yarn Harlot’s blog and yes, it is about the rules of our Summer of Socks and Lace contest. We’re touched and gratified by all the support of our rules, and it’s been awesome to see various customers (and Franklin!) give us a shout-out in the comments. It just goes to show that the adage of asking six knitters and getting seven answers (or in this case, the comments were up to 900 when I last checked) is definitely true.

But what I really wanted to write about today is two strategies for the sock division of the Summer of Socks and Lace.  The contest is based on total yardage, so it would make sense to maximize your entries by knitting socks that use a lot of yarn. One way to do this is cables.  Knitty is chock-full of free sock patterns with cables, but two that stand out for me are Absinthe and My Vampire Boyfriend.  I’m drawn to these patterns because they offer challenges to the intermediate sock knitter and the titles lend themselves to choosing particular colors of yarn. Absinthe, a toe-up pattern, calls out for a green like those found in the Malabrigo Sock or the Dream in Color Smooshy. My Vampire Boyfriend seems like the perfect thing to knit while watching Twilight and waiting for Eclipse to come out in June. Wouldn’t these be great in the new Lorna’s Laces Color Commentary in Ysolda Red, or Cascade Heritage sock yarn? (By the way, contrary to what Kelli says, Angel is the ultimate vampire boyfriend, not this Edward!)

The second strategy is purely psychological: instead of focusing on yardage, choose a pattern that goes quickly, get up on the leaderboard, and intimidate your competition. We have several sport and DK weight yarns that are appropriate for socks, including Louet Gems Sportweight, Trekking 6 Ply, Opal Rainforest 6 Ply, and Cascade Fixation. Broadripple, for example,  is written specifically for Fixation. Ampersand, a free Ravelry download, jazzes up a yarn with a tendency to stripe. And Duckies is a quick and easy lace pattern.

Whichever strategy you choose, I hope you are having a fun and challenging Summer of Socks and Lace!

We’re not going to lie. Casting on 449 stitches was not the most fun we’ve ever had in our knitting careers.  We used the crochet cast on, the two-at-a-time long tail cast on, the cable cast on — and we all survived.  Someone [although we won't mention names (*coughYvonnecough*)] wasn’t paying attention and cast on 499 stitches and had to rip 50 of them out.

It’s exciting to see the progress on the shawls, and to see the way the different yarns are working up.  Carla is using a variegated sock yarn, and decided she couldn’t stand all the garter stitch and has been using stockinette for the center portion of her shawl.  Kelli chose Blue Sky Alpaca Silk, and isn’t even knitting on her shawl – Steven is knitting it for her!   There’s O-Wool DK (currently 20% off!), Nature Spun Sport, even Pagewood being used.

With this shawl, it’s hard to say “let me get to the end of my row” — it’s more like please, how much longer until the end of my row? It’s also good to know that your rows are getting shorter!

As far as we know, none of the friends in our knit along have finished the “449″ yet, but we’re looking forward to seeing how you’re doing.  Also, keep your eyes open for Stora Show & Tell!

It’s cold, dark, and rainy. Let’s lift our spirits by looking at May’s Color Choice basket, inspired by fuchsias blooming in the yard. Enjoy!

In March, I decided that I was going to take the month of April to finish as many WIPs (works in progress) as I could. This meant NO CASTING ON for an entire month. None! I challenged the staff to “Spring Clean” with me. Here’s how we did.

Anna: I finished four pairs of socks, including two pairs that had been languishing for well over a year. I also finished a vest for my son and made significant progress on the baby blanket…for the baby who is over a year old now.

Annette: I did Spring cleaning in April! Unfortunately, I didn’t finish any UFOs but also didn’t cast-on anything either
(with the exception of a few small class samples and a mom’s day shawl that was a time-sensitive gift).  I did get to work on and sort out the few UFOs that I have and I plan to keep going with the spring cleaning until they’re all done.  Only then can I start new projects (like the crochet Alot that I so desperately want to make!).  My goal is to have all UFOs either finished or ripped and the stash properly sorted and extras all gifted by Memorial Day.

Steven: didn’t do so well. I only finished my Girasole and Hotpants (though I cast the Gams on during spring cleaning, it doesn’t really count). However, I have been working steadily on my Shetland tea shawl. Say a prayer that I’ll get it done before it turns 1!

Yvonne: I completed the monkey socks and gifted them to customer Laurie M. since they didn’t fit me.  I also finished my upstream socks from Cat Bordhi’s New Pathways, which I love wearing (although one of the workers from Game Stop tried to snatch them from me when I was photographing them).

This is going out in the newsletter this afternoon, but we thought we’d let the early bird catch the worm.

IT IS ON!

Once again, start winding your laceweight, polishing your Addi Turbos, and making an inventory of your sock yarn. We’re kicking off our Third Annual Summer of Socks and Lace contest, beginning NOW until Labor Day (September 6, 2010). Who can use the most sock yarn? Who can knit or crochet the most yardage of lace? Who wants to win a $50 gift card from Natural Stitches?

How does this work?

Starting NOW, stop by the shop to fill out your entry form. We’ll ask you to sign A Solemn Vow that all of the projects you enter will be completed between now and September 6.

When you complete a lace or sock project, bring it in to the shop and we will use our Very Accurate System (designed by a PhD and Professor of Mathematics, so we figure he knows what he’s doing) to determine the total yardage of your project. We will need your ball band to determine the yardage, so please bring that with you.

We will record your yardage in our book. The person with the greatest total yardage at the end of the summer in each of the categories will win a $50 gift card from Natural Stitches and the praise and adulation of all his or her peers.

And now, the rules, answers to commonly asked questions, and other fine-print kinds of things:

• You may enter any or all of the categories, but each project can only count once.
• You may use ANY yarn from your stash (because goodness knows we all have lots of stash), no matter where you got it, but yarn from Natural Stitches (and again, your ball band is critical) will earn double yardage. That means that your shawl that originally took up 300 yards of Malabrigo Sock, for example, will be recorded as 600 yards! Woo hoo!
• Yes, of course, crocheted lace and socks are eligible.
• What is lace? We’re using the Elizabeth Zimmermann definition: lace is a series of yarn-overs with accompanying decreases used to make holes.
• Our apologies to handspinners (yet again), but we still can’t figure out a way to accurately calculate yardage without making our heads explode. However, we have some surprises in store for you this summer that we hope will make up for it.
• For the sake of fairness, we cannot calculate mixed-ply projects accurately. Please stick to one kind of yarn per project.
• Past winners are eligible to enter.
• Can’t decide which category to enter? Torn between wanting to knit a whack of socks and longing to work on your Ten Shawls in 2010? We have a new category: Double Threat! This separate category is for those of you who want to knit both kinds of projects this summer.

We are so excited! For those of you who would like to learn how to make socks and lace, we have a variety of classes this summer to meet your needs. We’re looking forward to seeing what unfolds.

Questions? Leave a message here on our blog or email us at shop@naturalstitches.com.

By Carla

Okay. It’s not really so incredible or even really a machine. But that’s what this little gadget has come to be called around the shop. It is not new as it has been around for years but we have just discovered it. I saw a customer (waving at you, Z) using it one evening and had to see what it was. I convinced Martha to try to get a few and she did. The 3 we got were gone before you could blink so she ordered 24 more. What is this thing you ask? It’s a dumb little piece of plastic that makes it stupidly simple to measure your gauge.

Called the Count 10 Plus all you have to do is count 10 stitches in the little window (see arrow in pic) and move the slider so it shows only those 10 stitches, then look at the numbers that run across and you have your stitches per inch!! It is easy to use and will leave you wondering why you haven’t been using it all along.

When I showed this baby to Yvonne and Anna they loved it. Until they measured the gauge on their current projects and found out they were a little “off”. Lol [Ed Note: We never get off gauge. We were just testing the machine.] But they didn’t let that stop them. They agree this is a great addition to your accessory bag.

It also includes a needle size gauge. Do you want to know the best part? It sells for a whopping $2.10!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can’t afford not to have 1…or 2…or however many projects bags you have going. (Nope. Not going there! Lol) Stop in to get yours soon.

It’s Monday, May 3, which means it is finally time to cast on for the Stora Dimun Shawl from Folk Shawls! (Don’t know what we’re talking about? Read here for more information.)

We suggested some methods for casting on in our last newsletter, which you can read here.  Some other tips for casting on:

• If you tend to cast on tightly, use a larger needle to cast on (remember to switch to the needle appropriate for your yarn choice to start the first row).
• If your cast on is still too tight, cast on over two needles instead of one.
• Use stitch markers after every multiple of  25 (or 20, or any number that’s easy for you to remember) so you don’t have to keep counting and recounting the 449 stitches we need to cast on today.

Remember, you can join in at any time, and feel free to join us in the shop for Stora Saturdays!