After months of drought, a flash flood signals change and transformation, as well as new pathways forward. How to capture this onslaught of storms (literal or creative)? Meet Arroyo.

Just like its namesake, the Arroyo Socks are designed to end the drought of summer knitting. Maybe it’s been too hot to hold wool in your hands, too humid to wear wool socks heavier than fingering weight shorties on your feet. This poses no impasse for Arroyo. Knit in DK weight, they are the perfect transitional, quick-knit socks to amp up your Fall wardrobe in a flash. With ribbing that imitates the channels of arroyos that criss-cross the Arizona desert landscape, a cozy garter stitch heel to pad your heel during long Fall hikes, and a narrow stripe of contrasting color at the cuff to represent the flash of lighting before the flood, the Arroyo socks are sure to be an evocative and comforting pair of socks to see you through any inclement weather.

About the Desert Vista Pattern Collection, in collaboration with Traveling Yarn:
In collaboration with Traveling Yarn Co., I have designed a collection of knitwear accessories inspired by Sarah’s custom-milled base, Arcadia DK. A knitter’s dream, this non-superwash base is woolly with a natural loft and softness that feels as if it came directly off the sheep and is just as warm and airy, but with all the brilliance of Sarah’s impeccable dye skills in a broad range of colors.

Honoring Sarah’s home state of Arizona, this collection draws from the transformative power of wind, erosion, water, and wildlife of the desert landscapes of the southwest, and pays homage to this stark, but vital landscape.

The patterns in this collection play with textures and the elegance of a couple of simple elements that mirror the primal elements at work in a desert. Each pattern focuses on the essentials of knitting at its oldest core values: knits and purls, slipped stitches, and twisted ribbing against an open backdrop of stockinette to allow the yarn to “speak for itself”. Opposing forces of serene rest space against striking but simple visual details like finding an arroyo nestled just below a seemingly flat horizon is the balance I have recreated to honor Arcadia DK’s heritage of practical functionality as a garment for the shifting moods and weather of the desert.

Materials

Yarn
75 - 95 grams (approximately 270 – 350 yds) of Arcadia DK 100% Non-superwash Merino by Traveling Yarn Co

Yarn used in photos:
Arcadia DK in the following colorways (Size S):
MC - Gossip Column (55 grams)
CC - Spicy Salmon (20 grams)

About Arcadia DK:
100% non-superwash Merino
180 yds per 50 gram skein
All USA sourced, spun, and dyed

Needles
US 3 (3.25 mm) double-pointed needles or size needed to obtain gauge.

Other options: Longer circulars for Magic Loop or circulars would also work if you’re comfortable translating a pattern written for DPNs to those methods.

Notions
1 tapestry needle
Optional: 1 stitch marker to mark BOR (if using Magic Loop method)

Gauge & Notes
28 stitches & 34 rows = 4” in Stockinette

Socks are worked in the round on DPNs from the top down, with ribbing, knits, purls, and slipped stitches, with a heel flap and garter stitch gusset heel construction. Instructions are written.

Pattern is written for 3 sizes: Small (40 sts), Medium (50 sts), and Large (60 sts).

For easy visual reference sizes are color-coded: small – blue, medium – red, and large – green.*