Ok its that time of year… when one registers for speed sock knitting and attempts to finish up projects in time for Sock Madness! This year I added finishing one of my double knit mittens project that has been on the needles to the “must free the needles” list.  BUT I can safely say that the past month or so has been dedicated to two pair of knock out drop down nearly too pretty to put on your feet socks.

First up the gorgeously beaded Bling! pair designed by Adrienne Fong who sadly passed away this past September and chose to gift all her patterns free.  She was a wonderfully fun person met through Sock Madness and you could count on her to support your wildest beaded sock dreams.

I am happy to report the materials list is out for Sock Madness and one designer does have a sock with beads so that will be fun to look forward to. (There are also quite a few multi-color socks so… hmmm.

Next up are a pair of Artic Blizzard snowflake socks.    These were originally available for the 2018 season of Tour de Sock which was my first year participating and I have adored the pattern because of my love of snowflakes in general. (Seriously snowflakes are amazingly beautiful arts of nature and I could go on a whole rant about how it peeves me that people use it as a term to belittle people, but I won’t… yet.)  It took me a bit to find an appropriately stellina sparkled pale grey/white yarn to pair with my tonal blue so I didn’t finish during the competition but they were so worth the wait!

Both of those sock knitting competitions are great fun and if you think you might like spending your spring knitting all the socks I totally suggest giving one or both a try.  Sock Madness is free to join and so long as you put in a reasonable effort then you will get all the patterns (this year there are 15 patterns!), even if you aren’t the speediest.  It is a good way to learn techniques that may be new to you as well and there are prizes awarded throughout the competition that are not just speed or skill based.  The Tour does have an entry fee, but the majority of this fee is going to the charity Doctors Without Borders.  You compete both as an individual or on a team if you want to bring along some sock knitting friends, get sock patterns, and give to charity all in one.  As a general rule, the Tour tends to start just as Sock Madness is winding down.

Whew!  now… as to my Mystery Stash project, in January I completed a Petra Lace Scarf.  This yarn was a special gift from my husband in a matching set of two skeins each for both my mother-in-law and myself back in 2015 when we visited the local(ish) Abundant Earth Fiber mill.  My mother-in-law chose the pattern and the plan was to KAL the scarf together, but over time she’s had difficulties both for her husband and herself and she’s just not knitting anymore.  So when it came time to pick projects, I looked at some of my “elder stash” and decided I’d finish one scarf, and then perhaps swap her a completed scarf for her yarn.  The deep plum doesn’t photograph too well, but strangely enough I think it matches coats we now both own.  This scarf is knit in two pieces and joined with kitchener stitch so that the lace flows the same way down from the center back.

And so now we are on to February and the first sweater of the year.  I cast on my Spring in Her Path sweater with some yarn from my last sweater club yesterday.  Its a fingering weight sweater but if I’ve estimated my yardage right I should have some yarn left for a nice pair of socks too!