It is so nice to hear such an enthusiastic response to the announcement about SM3. I hope that means that all those people who had ideas floating around for SM3 socks are gonna put them in writing. The date and time of round 6 isn’t all that I left out of the post yesterday. We have a new team member for SM3 - Carrie (Pacalaga) will be helping with the test-knitting. We know that, as a former player, she has the perspective and she’ll know what we’re looking for in a SM3 pattern.
Our hope is to eliminate the last minute panic and get the patterns well in advance this year. That way we can focus on test knitting and making sure that the patterns are all perfect. We can also take the devilish teaser shots and make sure that the line up for next year is awesome. Most importantly, we’ll know well in advance that we have enough patterns. We’ll post more about what we’re looking for in potential patterns soon.
As many of you have speculated, the next round, being the semi final, will have just one advancing player in each division. I’m setting the release window between 7 and 10AM. I will try to get it to you as early as possible.
May 6, 2008
I just love the way that sounds - Slippin’ Stripin’ Fantastic. It fits too because many of the socks from this round were just wonderful. I found myself waiting excitedly for the next pair of these sock to pop up on flickr. It was such fun to see how the colors combined.
Here is the link to the voting which will close at 6pm on Monday (my time). One vote per customer please! Which of these Slippin’ Stripin’ socks do you feel are fantastic?
( surveys)
| 1. Slip of the Cat |
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2. Sox in the City
I may never win prizes for speed,
though I knit as fast as I can…
…I’ll never be seen on a thrill ride,
or get snapped with a famous man…
…I just need to use what I have
to create my official entry…
…So please look kindly and vote
For my “sox and the city!”
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| 3.Slip into a Beer |
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| 4. Banana Who? |
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| 5. Slippin’ Stripin’ Socks in mountains of Crete |
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| 6. Knit Until Done |
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| 7. Slippin’ Right Off the Cone! |
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| 8. Slippery Stripe-y Sock Slide |
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| 9. Socks and Gloves |
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| 10. WANTED: The Slippin’ Stripin’ Gang |
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April 25, 2008
Like all the patterns so far, this one has been discussed a great deal. You all have speculated about the afterthought heel and the dyeing technique and which teaser shot it’s going to be and so on and so on. All will be answered in this post and you should have the pattern in your email inbox by now, too.
How about some photos?
This is the photo from our designer, Corey LaFlamme and it shows both the undyed and dyed sock.
And these two photos are from the test knit. The yarn for this is Claudia’s Handpaint and it was not dyed.
Corey is a graphic artist, quilter and knitter living in Lewiston, Maine, with her novelist/reporter husband, two cats, one mouse and several dust bunnies. When she finally finds the time, there will be something to see on her website at coreydina.com
Corey says:
I wanted to create socks that would reflect autumn in Maine, so I chose two Barbara Walker patterns: “Mini Lattice,” a tiny, swirling cable that reminded me of dropping leaves; and “Twin Leaf.” Written directions and charts are included. (This would be a great time to research how to cable without a cable needle, speeding up the Mini Lattice pattern.) An afterthought heel allows for a simple dip-dye method that mimics the transitional colors of fall. The afterthought heel also makes for great travel knitting, as the sock can be knit nearly in its entirety without having to stop for a heel turn.
Now get out and there get knitting!
April 21, 2008
Better late than never. The voting for Round 2 is open now and will remain open until Monday night at 6pm. Vote for your favorite but please, just once.
Thanx!
| 1. Splash Mountain Knitting |
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| 2. Reversai on The Road |
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| 3. There and Back Again |
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| 4. Reversai Through the Looking Glass |
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| 5. I’m Reversaid |
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| 6. Simply Reversai |
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| 7. Cutie With a Sock |
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| 8. Green*bert Reversai |
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| 9. Reversai Perseverence |
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10. I’ve Been Reversai’d
Night after night, huddled under the light,
I knit and I purled and I sighed.
I did what I could, with the time that I had.
Oh, I tried and I tried and I tried.
Am I coming or going? What row am I on?
Gartered soles, they can’t be denied.
A creative shot, then, though I’m not quite done.
(Thanks to “Zombies” my brain is quite fried!)
I tried right over left, then left over right,
Until I’d gone quite utterly cross-eyed.
Is it right side up, or inside out?
I can’t tell, for I’ve been “Reversai’d”!!
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| 11. Spin It Forward – Reversai Back |
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ETA - New poll as of 3:47pm on Saturday. I screwed up the first version so I redid it and it’s a clean slate.
Which Reversai picture from Round 2 is your favorite?
( surveys)
April 12, 2008
There are only 9 spots left in this round but none of them are in the Tennessee group - they’re done! I know that being “out” is a bummer but it’s not the end. The conversation is a huge part of this and we want to see you all continue that. We also want to see your socks!
It is a huge kick for Carole & I, the designers, and the other players to see the incredible variety among the socks. We’d hate to lose that. Those of you who are no longer trying to be the fastest can look at this as an opportunity. You are no longer bound by the strict confines of the pattern and can let your creative side take over. I would hope that, as the numbers shift, we’ll see creativity abound.
Remember - we still want to see your socks! (but you don’t need to email them to us once you’re no longer in the hunt)
April 5, 2008
Even though we told you we would be releasing the round two pattern tomorrow, well, we just couldn’t resist a good April Fool’s Day joke. And so, without further ado or panic from those of you who have been panicking and you know who you are, here is the pattern for round two.
It’s called Reversai and it’s completely reversible. Cool, eh?
Carole’s Reversai
The designer’s Reversai.
Speaking of the designer, she is Janine Le Cras. Her bio states that she lives, works, knits and windsurfs on the tiny island of Guernsey situated between England and France in the middle of the English Channel. If she is not knitting she is dreaming about knitting, spinning, or flying across the waves at her favourite beach. She has been designing for several years and has designed for Magknits, Hipknits, Yarn Forward Magazine as well as Wooly Wonkas Fibres and The Unique Sheep. She has also designed socks for the Six Sock Kal Group on Yahoo. Pop in and see her on Ravlery : Guernseygal or at her blog http://guernseygal.typepad.com/knitting_on_an_island/
And here’s what she has to say about the Reversai design:
After reading the brief for the sock design competition I started to think about socks with a twist, something a bit different. Flicking through stitch pattern books for inspiration I spotted one that claimed to be reversible - perfect for scarves and other items that needed to be seen from both sides. This got me thinking - was it possible to knit a sock that was totally reversible…. The rest is history.
And now it’s your turn to make history. Knitting history, that is. Remember, only the first 20 finishers in each division will advance to the next round.
Good luck and have fun!
March 31, 2008
Another teaser shot?
I finished up this gem of a pattern last night. It won’t be long before you all have it in your hot little hands, too!
March 5, 2008
There is just so much going on that it’s hard to know where to start. Deep breaths, deep breaths…
First, Jane figured out the theme behind the division names for this year. They are the colleges whose women’s basketball teams have been the NCAA Division One champs for the past 4 years. Carole is a huge fan of the Tennessee Lady Vols. As a former student at the University of Maryland, I support the Lady Terps - Fear the Turtle!
One of the fun byproducts of naming the divisions after the college teams is that they each have their own colors. Can you see where this is going? A while ago we asked if any of you would beinto special Sock Madness colorways and you were up for it. Two etsy sellers volunteered to dye special colorway and the first 2 are up for sale right now.
YarnLust is currently offering these 2:
| Leprechaun (Baylor) |
Huskies (UConn) |
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You are such a spirited group. We thought that some of you might want to show your division pride by using the colorway of your division. Of course, you can also get the colorway of another division if it appeals to you more. There will be colorways for the Tennessee and Maryland groups too but they’re not ready yet. You can be sure that we’ll let you know when they are.
It’s worth noting that Rosalynn of Yarn Lust has generously donated 5 skeins of sock yarn as prizes so that’s another reason to go check out her yarn. You can get an idea of what you’re playing for.
On a related note, the list of prize s has grown again. Can you believe it? I went to add the newst offering and I was shocked at how long the list is. The new addition is a handmade sock bag with a matching notions bag. The winner will get to pick the color and our own Carrie (aka Pacalaga) will create a unique set. There is a picture posted on the Loot page.
March 4, 2008
For another teaser shot?
The excitement is building!
February 27, 2008
