It’s mid-June and that means it’s time for the release of two more patterns from last year’s sock club. Get ready for a celebration of all things orange!
When I started putting together my (very long) list of dyers I wanted to work with for the club, Wendee of Hazel Knits was a must. I first encountered Wendee’s yarn at Bobbin’s Nest Studio, my (sadly now closed!) local yarn shop, where she came in for a trunk show. I took home a skein of Artisan Sock in the Olympic Rainforest colorway. Later, I found that three other knitters in my knitting group had bought the exact same yarn and color! It was an instant hit. We loved the tight twist, the colors, the durability, the colorfastness, pretty much everything about the yarn.
When Wendee and I first talked about color, I matched her up with “orange†and told her to run with it. Her High OcTANG colorway is one of my favorite oranges, so I felt like she “understood†orange. Boy, was I right. Orange is Wendee’s favorite color and she did an entire series of oranges in search of the perfect one. I think we found it.
For the sock patterns, I wanted one to be simple, textured, and just plain fun. That’s where Jubilee came in. The pattern pairs a variation on garter stitch with mirrored lace panels. Sounds complicated, but it’s such a simple knit that I can imagine making it over and over again. It’s a true celebration of orange-y goodness.
The other pattern, Orange Pekoe, showcases bold leaves that mirror each other in the right and left socks. A bit more “high brow,†the name is a reference to a system of grading tea leaves. The full leaves in the Orange Pekoe sock pattern are fitting because the highest grades of tea have full unbroken leaves. Orange pekoe tea actually isn’t orange at all, and it’s suspected that orange actually refers to the house of Orange. In any case, the Orange Pekoe socks are an orange-ification of a non-orange thing.
I love that orange!!!!