I want to share my thoughts on Indie dyers and sock yarns. As much as I love making my own yarns some times a beautiful skein jumps up, bites you and says “Take Me Home”. This was such a case with local indie dyer Desert Panda Fiber Arts and her Pocket full of Rainbows skein. All of her skeins are dyed in smaller batches, with vibrant color and reasonable prices. This skein was a Instagram contest win but I was ready to purchase as soon as I saw her first batch for sale. It is 75/25, Merino/Nylon blend of 3 ply sock weight, 415 yards and super soft. As a person who is into texture I call it just Yummy! When in a skein it is silvery grey with a splash of bright rainbow, of course when caked it looked very different, but just as lovely.
Not all sock yarns are dyed to look great in other projects due to the color pools or the self striping. Picking a pattern to let it shine is key and with that in mind I hunted Revelry (with a cowl in mind) finally landing on Like Honey Cowl by Liz Abinante. The pattern originally calls for a DK weight so I needed to make a few adjustments. The cables are simple and smocking is fun. Smocking was a new technique for me and looked difficult until I tried it, it was a piece of cake. The color pooled in wonderful bright mottled against the silvery grey. The fabric is light and soft making this a great spring or fall cowl to wear. So when all is said and done, I highly recommend this dyer and thinking outside the box with a sock yarn. Check her out at desertpandafiberarts.com
Such talented work from beginning to end.