Under the Tree

I know it's the end of January and a Christmas reference is a bit "late"...or very early depending on how you look at it.  But, I've started a new pair of socks that I HAVE to share with you.

Yarn:  Sparkle Gnome by Gnome Acres, colorway Under the Tree
Pattern:  Firefly by Jennifer Hagan in Knitter's Book of Socks

This is the yarn that has 5% sparkle in the "ingredients" list.  I love that sparkle.  It's a thin thread of gold and is actually very soft.  Sometimes metallic can be scratchy but not this.  I can't wait until I finish this pair of socks...it'll be like having Christmas all year.

My thoughts on cables and variegated yarn?  Well...they're hard to see in this picture, but will be much more noticeable when I put them on my feet and everything gets all stretched out.  I was tempted to do a plain pattern, but decided that the cables would be "just enough" to add a little bit of interest, and I liked how they kind of looked like little bows--perfect for the name of the color of the yarn.  So, there you go.  Plus, it adds something interesting to do for 4 rows of 24...which is always a good thing.

Another interesting design feature:  The heel flap has a "garter stitch" edge...two stitches of garter stitch.  I think I really like this actually.  It's super-easy to pick up, isn't "loosey goosey"  and makes the joining to the gussets very nice and smooth.  I may actually switch...we shall see.

(Oh...and next week will be yarn club week...3 are shipped and will be here sometime soon! yea!)