What will I do with this next Pattern of the Week?
Also: yarns, and affiliate links, and patterns, oh my!
The next pattern of the week is The Ribby Stripey! I wrote this one as a shortie sock, but ever since I made it, I’ve been wanting to turn it into a taller sock, which is very easy to do by repeating the leg rounds.
So, I started to do that last year when I started this wonderfully bright version:
But, did you notice what looks odd about it?
There’s an extra round between each set of stripes. I obviously wasn’t paying attention to my pattern.
Now, if you’re wondering if I’m really going to let one silly little extra round bother me? Well, I will notice it. But also, it will affect the amount of repeats I can knit on the foot, and then I would have to make other adjustments to make it work for me.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, I have some perfectionist tendencies. It’s not as bad as when I was younger, but when I make a pattern that has sets of stripes, there is a very particular reason why I choose the number of rounds in between each set (which is different depending on the pattern), and it has to do with ratios and how pleasing it looks to the eye. On this WIP, the ratio is off, and it looks wrong.
But also, I think I want to change the colors a bit. I think I want to switch out the lavender for something brighter. Or I’m also considering using some of my other leftovers and starting a new pair. I haven’t decided. But I get to do that this week.
You can get 20% off The Ribby Stripey with code GETRIBBY through 11:59pm PDT on Sunday, July 20, 2025.
Did you want to see last week’s progress on Text(ure) Me?
Here it is! I wanted to knit on it more, but I had to stop and be responsible. But I’m loving it!
The yarn I use
I’ve had questions before about the yarn I’ve used in designing, and requests to use more affordable yarns. I have been lucky that I’ve had a few indie dyers give me yarn to use for designing, so of course I’m going to use that when it is available to me.
But when I am not using that gifted yarn, I’m often shopping my stash and using what I already have, which is mostly KnitPicks yarn, along with a hefty dose of Wollmeise that I bought years ago when I first started knitting.
But even when I am using more affordable KnitPicks yarn, I know that is not going to be available to everyone around the world either. I’m always a big advocate of shopping your stash (including your leftovers!) and using what is available locally to you.
As far as sock knitting goes, I know most of us end up with a lot of leftovers, and a lot of my patterns can make use of those small amounts as long as you have a main color to pair with them.
When I am using indie dyed yarn, I often offer other yarn recommendations on the pattern page, and many times I have defaulted to Stroll (a sock yarn from KnitPicks) because that’s what I have experience with using. That doesn’t mean you’ll get the exact same colors in that line as the indie dyed ones I’ve used, and it doesn’t even mean that I’ve knit a sample in it. But I’ve seen people ask for more affordable yarn recommendations, and that’s my go-to for solid colors. Again, I feel you should shop your stash first, or find something local that will work, and not worry about the recommended yarn, especially when it comes to sock yarn! (I don’t even like recommending specific yarn; it’s just that Ravelry makes you fill in that field.)
Affiliate links
That being said, I do have two affiliate links for places in the US that sell some more affordable yarns. Remember, clicking an affiliate link doesn’t cost you any extra; I would just get a small percentage of the sale if you place an order. It’s a great way to help support people if you’re already planning to shop anyway.
KnitPicks: I’ve bought so much KnitPicks yarn over the years (usually during sales), and I’ve always been happy with it. If you’re reading this newsletter on the same day I send it out, KnitPicks has free shipping today! It’s great for if you need to place a smaller order!
Finnished Knits: There’s some really affordable sock yarn over at Finnished Knits, as long as you don’t mind non-merino yarn. I’ve used the DK version (Lankava Mainio), and I want to pick up some of the fingering weight version (Lankava Sulo) for a couple of possible designs. As someone who can be a little sensitive to some non-merino yarns, I’m happy to report that I can use this yarn without it hurting my fingers, as it is soft (just not merino soft).
My next designs
I’m still slowly working on the shawl, so I don’t have an update to show right now, but I can show my next sock design! (And I’m using KnitPicks Stroll in Pucker and English Lavender.)
I was originally going to do something different with the cuff, but I didn’t like how it was coming out so there was a lot of frogging, and then it also took me a couple tries to figure out just how much lace and texture I wanted on the main part of the sock, but I’m super happy with how it came out! Oh, and there will also be a non-rolled cuff version as well. My testers will be getting to work on this soon, and the pattern should be out by the end of the month!
The only problem is I don’t have a name for it… help!
I’m also already mentally designing my next sock pattern, as well as a couple of patterns that will be coming out next year… more on that another time!