waffle creams

here is another pattern that was first offered in our bare naked knitspot 2012 club—a snuggly sock to warm our toes during the spring thaw. i so wanted to offer a sock in our club, but could not find an undyed yarn that would fill the requirements.

the challenge of coming up with the right yarn became an important  jumping off point for us; when it seemed we had exhausted all our possibilities, we decided to have our own yarn made to the specifications we wanted for this sock.

my friend cookie had been urging me for some time to start making yarns; whenever she brought up the subject i would say, “yeah, maybe next year, cookie”. the prospect just seemed overwhelming, like something someone might do—someone more worldly who has a much bigger company (i.e., is more grown up than me, haha).

but of course, when necessity presented the perfect opportunity, i took the plunge with nary a look over my shoulder; the idea was suddenly not so scary or overwhelming, now that it had a specific purpose.

i called a mill in our region and had a talk with the owner; once i saw how it could be done, i was sold and it wasn’t too hard at all to convince david (socks are a gateway drug for him, haha; he can see the merits of just about any idea if it has to do with making socks).

i was looking for a fawn-to-tan colored alpaca blend, something slightly fuzzy and warm, with enough merino to give the yarn lots of body and bounce. and maybe a small measure of nylon to give it added durability—most of my socks are knit for the guys in my life and they do not tread softly on them.

our yarn ended up being produced in two batches from different lots of alpaca, so the color was not the same form one to the other. the lighter one we named oatmeal and the darker was dubbed flapjack. it’s harder, if not impossible, to control the outcome of the natural color blends; this is one of the features about making undyed yarn that i love; every batch is truly unique and the color range is nearly infinite.

that sock yarn turned out to be the prototype and test batch for our breakfast blend yarn line, which we now produce in both fingering and DK weight. one year after its debut, the sock yarn is turning out to be a real workhorse—it wears well and retains its shape nicely, while still looking great; we are getting terrific feedback from club members who have been wearing it. yay.

i named the design waffle creams because the texture of the fabric reminds me so much of this childhood favorite. the yarn and pattern together made a wonderful club package—scheduled so that the project could conceivably be knit by father’s day, if one was so inclined.

the design details make them a great candidate for a guy sock—subtle texture, accented with a nice crisp cable at the sides to make the knitting interesting. but they are also just the kind of sock i like to wear myself—practical and unfussy, but sharp and classy. a well-fitting flap heel that carries the texture along in a cushiony slip-stitch pattern. just the sort of grandpa sock i had imagined, cozy and cushy and not to fancy. plus, lots of sizes for all the family to enjoy.

shown here in adult size large, knit in our bare naked wools breakfast blend fingering yarn, a deliciously soft and bouncy 2-ply merino in color natural cream.

to purchase pattern or view complete pattern information, please click here to visit the knitspot pattern shop. or purchase the pattern in our ravelry pattern shop.

the pattern for waffle creams is also included in the BNK 2012 eBook, collection—12 terrific accessory patterns, each one multi-sized and suitable for gifting or keeping; many will have universal appeal for women, men, and children alike. purchase the eBook collection from the knitspot club website or in our ravelry pattern shop (it takes a few seconds to view).

another fun thing to do—click here to view the waffle creams project pages to see more examples of these socks knit by club members and photographed on a variety of people and in alternate yarns.

i finished one pair of these socks in the flapjack color for david last year and have another pair on the needles (far too long!) in the lighter oatmeal color. must get cracking on those!

i’m teaching this weekend at kathy’s kreations in historic ligonier, PA; when i get home on monday, i’ll be back with spring yard update—spring has finally sprung at home.