Knitting Socks for Mother's Day
Hello friends,
I've recently finished knitting another pair of socks, this time not for me, but for my mum's Mother's Day present. She, like myself, is blessed with having Raynaud's Syndrome, which means that our hands and feet easily go cold and numb in winter, and our skin turns a pale white colour as blood drains away from those areas of the body.
One of the best ways to help combat this is to keep our hands and feet as warm as possible by wearing cosy merino socks and gloves. As of yet I hadn't knitted my mother any socks, so I thought it would be a nice present to give to her for Mother's Day.
The yarn I chose was Country Wide 4 ply merino sock yarn in the shade 452, which is in bright pink, orange, blue and green colours. The pattern I used was the fingering weight Rye pattern by Tin Can Knits. Luckily my mum and I share the same sock size, so I didn't need to measure her feet to get the sizing right.
It only took a couple of weeks to knit up the socks. It was a bit tricky to try and get the colour repeats lined up, but I did the best I could given the time crunch.
The knitting was quite straight forward, even though the yarn was shedding fluffy bits as I knit the socks. Because of this fibre shedding I won't be buying this sock yarn again, as it means the socks will probably fall apart faster as they are worn.
All in all it was a very quick knitting project, and I'm quite pleased with the results. My mum has already enjoyed their toasty warmth, after she received them on Mother's Day, and she's very grateful to have them now over the coming winter months.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Unwind Fibrecraft Retreat 2026 Haul
Hello friends,
On the weekend of Friday the 6th of March I excitedly went along to the 2026 Unwind Fibrecraft Retreat, a three day biennial fibre festival held in my hometown of Dunedin, New Zealand.
It's a chance to catch up with fibre friends from all around New Zealand, and to also attend talks and workshops, along with some shopping from local New Zealand indie dyers and yarn sellers. And after saving up my crafting pocket money for 6 months, it was time for me to buy a bunch of fibre and yarn to keep me all stocked up for a year at least.
First up, was doing a quick reconnoiter of all the traders to see what was for sale, and to start planning what I wanted to purchase...
Then it was shopping time, and luckily as part of the Unwind Retreat you're given a bag for carrying all your pretty new yarn, fibre, and accessories.
First up I bought two autumnal shades of 100 gram skeins of fingering weight merino dyed yarn by Dark Harbour Yarns. I have no idea what I'll do with them, but for now I'm happy to pat them periodically.
Next we have three 100 gram fingering weight skeins of merino/nylon sock yarns from Purple Sprouting, with the one on the left even containing sparkles. I plan to make two pairs of socks with the left and middle yarns for myself, and the skein on the right is to make a pair of socks for my sister for her birthday.
I also bought 400 grams of fingering weight merino/silk singles for a light weight jersey project for myself for this winter.
Next up is 20 grams of Corriedale fiber in the shade Tequila Sunrise from a new NZ fiber seller, Deep Creek Woolworks.
I also bought two fiber batts from Dark Harbor Yarns, in green and blue shades made from corriedale/merino/silk. My plan is to spin them separately and then ply them together.
I bought the book "Maths for Knitters" by Kate Atherley from Holland Road Yarn Company, and I can't wait to dive in and see all the knitting information inside.
From The Yarn Queen I bought a pair of cat knitting needle protectors along with a new KnitPro needle measurer.
And finally, it's not a yarn festival without the traders giving away small goodies. Extra knitting stitch markers, tape measures, buttons, and even small skeins of yarn are always welcome.
Overall it was a great weekend with fiber friends, and doing some shopping, but as always as an introvert, I was pleased to be back home in the peace and quiet with my husband and kitties. And now I'm looking forward to a serene autumn quietly knitting and spinning in my craft room.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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A Pair of Socks Finally Finished
Hello friends,
Back in May of 2024, my friend Karyn and I traveled down to Gore for the 45˚Fibre Festival. And while we were there, she bought me a 100 gram skein of 4 ply
Bluefaced Leicester sock yarn in the colourway Meadow Mornings (Almost) from the company Purple Sprouting, as a gift for hosting her for a week.
I really loved the shades of pink, teal, and lime green, so of course I turned the skein into a ball of wool straight away, with the intention to knit them into a pair of socks using my plain sock pattern I've developed over the years.
But when I started knitting the socks up, I wasn't happy with the progress I'd made. I really didn't like how they looked knitted up in this pattern...so I frogged the sock I was working on, and put it away for many months. In the meantime I knitted and finished my On the Porch blanket by Fifty Four Ten Studios, and also my Gro Hat by Fiber Tales.
After I finished those projects I pulled out my sock knitting bag and looked at the Purple Sprouting sock yarn once again. Over the coming weeks I did a whole lot of searching on the internet looking at various sock patterns to see what would fit the yarn. I eventually settled on Tin Can Knit's Rye Light sock knitting pattern, which I had already bought previously. It's a simple sock pattern that I've always wanted to try.
Once I got started the socks knitted up very quickly, and within 3 weeks I had a new pair of socks. The socks ended up being a little big for me, but they're perfect as slouchy socks for around the house. I think next time I use this knitting pattern, I'll go down a smaller size.
The socks are super warm, and very soft, and I really liked knitting up the Blue Faced Leicester yarn.
I haven't had a chance to wear these socks yet, but I'm sure they'll keep my feet toasty while wearing them in gumboots while gardening.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Yeah Yeah Yeah Yarn's The Dark Woods Solstice Yarn Advent
Hello friends,
Back in May while on Instagram, I noticed that Yeah Yeah Yeah Yarn in Dunedin had up for pre-order a winter solstice yarn advent called 'The Dark Woods'. The advent theme up on Instagram was totally in the vibe that I love, with forests, woodland creatures like foxes and owls, and deep dark night colours. Twelve days of the advent had 20 gram mini skeins of 4 ply sock yarn, and the thirteenth day was one 100 gram skein of 4 ply sock yarn.
So I excitedly handed over my money, and patiently waited until the yarn advent arrived at the end of June. With the yarn advent all packaged up in a box, I then waited impatiently for the 1st of July start date, and opened one advent yarn package each day for the next 13 days.
And I was so pleased with the yarn advent colourways as I opened them day by day. The first day started with a beautiful orange and brown fox colourway, and as the days went on, the colours got moodier and darker. By the time the advent got to the last couple of days daylight began to appear in The Dark Woods mini skeins, and the final 100 gram skein was a beautiful soft dawn.
I thought I'd share with you all the colours in 'The Dark Woods' day by day, with the top left being day 1, and the bottom right being day 13.
The first 6 days mini skeins included a really lovely gradient of brown toned colours.
And the next 6 day skeins really worked lovely together as well with deep greens merging into dark blue nights, and then the approaching dawn.
And finally, the day 13 100 gram skein of Day Break sock weight yarn was just stunning in soft shades of blues, apricots, and pinks.
I'm really pleased with the yarn advent, and thought it was well worth the money I spent. I've always wanted to do a yarn advent, but the price of the 25 day advents were too expensive for me to justify. But this 13 day yarn advent was enough to be pleased to do it just once. The colourways were just what I hoped for, and I'm especially happy with the day 13 100 gram skein of yarn.
I now need to knit up the yarn advent into a wonderful project. I would like to use all the colours in one project, but it's taking me a while to find a project that is truly worth all the beautiful yarn. I have many project tabs open on Ravelry, but for now I'm undecided...
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
Want to discuss my post? Feel free to chat with me on Instagram or Mastodon or Bluesky.
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