"Official" January Sox

OK, here are my "official" January socks. The Christmas-stripey ones? I'm going to reserve them as December's socks. You know, just in case. Just in case I wait 'til the last minute for my Christmas gift knitting and run out of time again for my own Christmas knitting.

Yeah. Like that's not gonna happen, right? :)

Anyway, these socks are Wendy's generic toe-up with Fan & Feather tops. I love this pattern. I have discovered that I am not really into different sock patterns, but really like working with different yarns. I enjoy the textures and colors much more than patterns. This may change someday, but right now, it's where I'm at, as we used to say in the 70's. :)

The yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the Tahoe colorway. I got it at Jimmy Bean's yarn shop in Truckee last summer, as a souvenir of a wonderful weekend trip with some knitting friends. It was such a perfect day in the mountains that day: If I had held this yarn up to the view of Lake Tahoe and the Sierras, it would have matched just perfectly. So I guess these socks are kind of like a postcard for my feet, and it doesn't get any better than that.

Here's the knit-in marker on the second sock: it's a lampwork glass bead with a frog on a lily pad charm. There is also a purple Swarovski crystal that doesn't show in this view.

Tuesday night about 20 knitters from our guild who participated in Lorna's January Challenge showed up with their hats. What a variety! Everyone used different yarns, different methods, different color combinations -- but every single item was a work of art. My friend Cindi even made hers as a sock! It was really amazing -- and lots of fun to see the results! Our February Challenge is the Brea Bag. You could just hear all the wheels turning as everyone started planning the next creative challenge.