It's finally time to announce the winners of our Sock Design Contest. We got close to 20 really fantastic, beautiful entries, from so many talented designers -- it was so hard to pick a winner or even a favorite! Luckily, first, second, and third prize winners all get something really fantastic for their efforts!
First Prize Winner -- Sea Wreaths by Sarah Griffiths
Sarah Griffith's
Sea Wreaths includes not only one, but two patterns -- inspired by a poem about mermaids by T.S. Eliot, in combination with one of our favorite colorways, Indiecita. The hat and fingerless mittens set are both adorned with a mix of interesting basketweave and cable patterns, broken up with stockinette.
We chose Sarah's pattern not only because it was beautiful and well-written, but also because of how easily it highlights and works with one of our complicated, multi-color colorways. Since colorways like Indiecita, Archangel, Primavera and Candombe are some of our most popular, we felt that Sarah's pattern was a wonderful addition to any knitter's pattern library. It provides enough complexity for an advanced knitter to find it enjoyable, but is not outside the reaches of an ambitious beginner.
Congratulations, Sarah -- thank you for submitting such a lovely pattern to our contest!
Sarah wins a full bag of any available Malabrigo Yarn, as well as a bag of Malabrigo Dos (an unreleased test yarn) in a colorway of the factory's choosing. A few paper copies of her pattern will also be given away at a future Stitches Event with test skeins of Malabrigo Yarn, and be linked on the Patterns section of our website.
Second Prize Winner -- Heart of the Mesa by Grace Schnebly
Grace's Hear of the Mesa was an easy choice for a finalist pattern. The mittens themselves are stunning -- the incredible contrast of an excellent color choice, the clear photographs and interesting geometric pattern -- all these contribute to a real 'wow' factor for a simple colorwork mitten. Grace's inspiration comes from the woven designs of the Navajo, and pteroglyphs of the Anasazi Native American tribes.
In addition to being pretty on the outside, the pattern is clear, beautifully laid out, and well-written. It would be an excellent choice for someone starting to feel confident in colorwork, and in our buttery-soft Sock, as pleasurable to wear as they are to look at and knit. Grace's conversational tone creates a pattern that is easy to follow and understand.
Grace wins a full bag of any available Malabrigo Yarn of her choosing, in any colorway. Her pattern will be featured here on the blog and also linked on the Patterns section of our website.
Third Prize Winner -- Damask by Kitman Figueroa
Kitman's pattern Damask might look complicated, but the designer assures us that this lovely, lacy shawl is not as difficult as we might think. After looking over the pattern, which comes complete with written instructions, charts, and step-by-step instruction, even the most timid lace knitter (namely, me) would be willing to attempt this.
Of course, the beading and structure of the actual shawl would be enough to tempt anyone into knitting it -- in Malabrigo Sock, you would be creating something really wonderful to wrap around your neck! We especially loved the beautiful edging, and it's obvious that Kitman really cares about the quality of her patterns, making her an easy choice for a finalist designer in our contest!
Kitman wins a mixed bag of skeins direct from the factory, hand-picked by Antonio. They could be test yarns, test colors, or single skeins of well-known favorites. Her pattern will also be linked in the Patterns section of our website.
We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who entered our contest -- there were so many quality submissions, and you can see many of them on our Facebook page!
[/caption]
[/caption]
We had a visit from Canada, and she took a test of Comfy Junkie color. The winner color from Colorway 
[/caption]