A few weeks back the folks at Knitcrate asked me if I would like to review their knitting and crochet subscription service. Of course I jumped at the chance. I love getting yarn surprises in the mail. This package was the August subscription of the sock related Knitcrate. I told them that I’m more into sock yarns than any other kinds of yarn and would love to review the sock specific package. They have four different subscription types: Knitcrate, Knitcrate Sock, Knitcrate Minis 5-pack, and Knitcrate Minis 10-pack.
What’s in the package:
- Delightfully soft Ply Twist Sock yarn by Pancake and Lulu in Urban Jungle
- A code to download the pattern Jelly Rolls by Mara Catherine Bryner
- A Honey Stick from Echoview
- Discount codes for dryer balls by Echoview and patterns by Mara Catherine Bryner
- Discount code for speckled colorways from Knitologie.com
- 100% wool rope twine by Echoview for gift wrapping
I ate the honey stick very soon after opening the package, and it was delicious. Echoview looks like a nice little eco-friendly fiber mill that has yarn, food, and gorgeous machine-knit items for those that might not be inclined to knitting themselves blankets, cowls, and socks.
I love that the pattern is something to go download because I often lose copies of patterns and need to download them more than once. The pattern, Jelly Rolls is a cute ankle sock pattern. I’m not prone to making ankle socks because if I want to wear wool socks it’s likely because it’s cold out and I want my ankles covered as well. The pattern calls for two different sock yarns to provide contrast. Of course I have gobs of small leftover sock yarn in my stash, but it would have been fun if this package had included the 20-30g of contrast sock yarn as well. 
The Ply Twist Sock by Pancake and Lulu is not a yarn I’ve seen before and that’s exciting to me. I like to learn about new sock yarns. It’s a mostly merino and slight nylon blend that’s squishy and soft. The colors make me think of my favorite upcoming holiday, Halloween, so they might just have to be a Socktober project for me. I like that the package comes with a discount code for speckled yarns from Knitologie, but they only have 5 speckled options to choose from. The discount code for designs by Mara Catherine Bryner likewise only leads to five very similar patterns.
What I loved: I loved being introduced to new yarn companies and a new mill that I didn’t know about previously. Pancake and Lulu have some lovely yarns. I liked the Knitologie yarns as well. I like that discount codes let the user go and choose their favorite colors. I liked being given a sweet treat in the package as well. I think if I had a subscription this is a package I would look forward to every month.
What I would change: While I do love the discount codes, I’d like more choice in what that leads to, rather than an option of only 5 colorways when Knitologie has many, many more. I’d also like discount codes for sock patterns to lead to a designer with a bit more variety in the repertoire, even though the patterns are cute and I recognize some of them as being popular ones.
Want to find out more for yourself? Check out Knitcrate and use the code KTH20 to get 20% off your first subscription box. You can choose any subscription type for the discount.
