handmade by stefanie

Last weekend, I finished the self-striping OMG Heel socks which I started near the end of March. They would have been done much quicker if I hadn't gotten distracted by gnomes and lots of other projects, of course, but that's just how things go around here! I love how they turned out, and as luck would have it, the self-striping pattern even matches up pretty well. The yarn is hand-dyed by me on the Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock base, which is a superwash merino/nylon sock yarn. I made it many years ago when I still worked there, as evinced by the 225-yard skeins (they've since changed the put-up to be around 440 yards per skein, I believe). I made the smallest size of the OMG heel socks, which means that some lucky kiddo in my life will be getting a new pair of socks at some point! I had plenty of yarn left over, too - I didn't even touch the second skein! If you follow me on Instagram, you might want to check your feed, because I plan on giving the left...

Today I have a special treat to share: an exciting new yarn from Spud & Chloë called Stripey Fine ! It's a fingering weight blend of 80% superwash wool and 20% silk, which is a blend I don't think I've ever come across in a sock yarn (with the exception being Fine, the solid-colored predecessor to Stripey Fine). This gives it a bit of a sheen to the yarn itself, and I'm willing to be that the addition of silk gives it added strength while reducing the likelihood of pills. The yarn feels very similar to a sweater I made several years ago which was also a similar blend of wool and silk (which is now discontinued); that sweater has yet to pill or show signs of wear. Stripey Fine comes in seven variegated colorways, shown above clockwise, beginning at the top: Blueberry Cheesecake #7863, Tootie Fruitie #7860, Grape Freeze #7864, Cherry Sundae #7866, Neopolitan #7862, Orange Cream #7865, and Mint Chip #7861 in the center. Each colorway knits up in what I would des...