new look

You may have noticed that we’ve been overhauling a few patterns recently. In some cases, this has involved replacing older yarns or colourways with those more readily available, in others it has meant updating outmoded methods of pattern-writing to reflect my more recent in-house style. Having spent the past couple of years knitting with two yarns only (yes really!) it has been quite nice to swatch and work with a few different things, and one of the yarns I’ve really been enjoying is CoopKnits Socks Yeah!

Socks Yeah is a light, soft sock yarn that’s been dyed, spun and twisted in a way that lends each of its 4 plies a slightly marled appearance. This marled effect lends an interesting degree of subtlety to the yarn, whose principle quality when knitted up is an incredible smoothness.

This smoothness, coupled with Rachel’s contemporary, bold palette makes the yarn a fantastic match for high-contrast colourwork patterns, like my Funchal Moebius.

I confess to a former degree of sniffiness about the use of superwash yarns for anything but socks or kids’ garments, but I’m pleased to say my assumptions have been completely confounded by Socks Yeah. Look how well the yarn speaks to this design! . . .

. . . creating a really light, beautiful wrap.

which can be worn in many different ways.

The other pattern we’ve reworked for Socks Yeah bears similarity to the Funchal design only in its basic circular shape.

The Betty Mouat Cowl (BMC) features the Shetland cockleshell – a stitch pattern whose apparent visual complexity belies a surprisingly simple rhythm, making it a popular choice for countless scarves and stoles in the northern isles.

Because this design is a circular cowl, the cockleshell is somewhat unusually worked in the round: this either involves alternate-round purling, or the use of Susan Stevens nifty no-purl garter-stitch technique (described in the pattern).

Here, the Socks Yeah displays its versatility – producing crisp, well defined openwork just as well as super-smooth high contrast Fairisle.

I love the way the 9 different shades work together in this design! There’s contrast, there’s gradation, and there’s an overall harmony.

In short, with yarn, as with most things in life, it is good to have one’s preferences and assumptions challenged from time to time. And it turns out I am a big fan of Socks Yeah: a fantastically versatile yarn, suited to much more than socks!

If you’ve previously bought either of these patterns, you’ll find them automatically updated in your Ravelry libraries. And if you’d like to knit either a Socks Yeah Moebius or BMC, there are kits available in the shop. Kits include yarn, project bag, and pattern, and the BMC kit contains enough yarn for 3 cowls, one in each of the sizes described in the pattern.