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Press Contact:

Tami Kelly
SWTC, Inc. PR
(925) 417-0343
tamismail@sbcglobal.net

January 11, 2008

SWTC TO SPONSOR SOCK WARS III
--International knitting game rewards speed, killer instinct

TEMPE, Ariz. – South West Trading Company—producers of all-natural, “unexpected” yarns, including TOFUtsies sock yarn—has kicked up the competition in this year’s International SOCK WARS III by signing on as lead prize and yarn sponsor. The cutthroat competition pits knitters from around the globe against each other in a sudden death-style sock-knitting contest, and only the fastest and most cunning “survive.”

The brainchild of free-lance television and film production manager Julie Gardner of Belfast, Northern Ireland, Sock Wars is an exciting game that draws bloodthirsty knitters eager for competition. More than 800 sock-knitting “assassins” from the United States, Australia, Ireland, The Netherlands, The United Kingdom, Belgium, Finland and Canada entered the 2007 challenge, which was won by Leann Nassar of Half Moon Bay, Calif. The 2008 competition is expected to enroll many more hard-knitting participants in what the Wall Street Journal recently called “the bloodiest extreme knitting tournament ever.” To enter, competitors will be asked to register on the website created specifically for Sock Wars III. In order to keep things lively, this website will appear only when registration begins. Future competitors can join the Sock Wars Yahoo Group to ensure they are among the first to know when the registration website goes live.

Each Sock Wars competitor must use the same original sock pattern designed specifically as a “weapon” for the battle. The war starts when each competitor is assigned an “assassination dossier” containing the pattern and details of their first “target.” A “kill” is made when a target receives the socks their assigned assassin has knit for them and placed in the mail. The original assassin then takes over knitting to kill their victim’s target. The aim of the game is to kill one’s own target before one’s own assassin strikes.

“Contestants need to knit like billy-o and get those socks delivered,” says Gardner, so they can move on to their next “target” assassination. “It’s kill or be killed. The last knitter standing wins!”
Prizes in previous years have been modest: finished socks. But, SWTC is adding a generous supply of TOFUtsies yarn to the pot. And, if the winning socks are crafted from SWTC’s TOFUtsies sock yarn, SWTC also will award a grand prize—one ball of each of the 60 TOFUtsies colors.
TOFUtsies is a blend of washable wool, SWTC’s trademarked SOYSILK brand tofu-based fiber, cotton and chitin, which is fiber derived from recycled shrimp and crab shells. The yarn can be machine washed and dried and comes in creative color combinations in balls exactly the right size for knitting a pair of socks.
“Socks continue to be very hot, and we want to make them even hotter,” says SWTC co-founder Jonelle Raffino who created the company’s own hugely popular Sock Club and related traveling Boot Camps for Socks events. “Sock Wars is a natural fit for us,” she concluded.

About Julie Gardner
Julie is a 31-year-old mother of two who, after traveling Europe, has returned to settle in her native Northern Ireland. By day, she manages production of film and television dramas. By night, she is the Supreme Commander of Sock Wars. Julie has been knitting since the age of seven and when her time is not fully occupied she gets into all kinds of fiber-related mischief. For her, knitting is definitely NOT the much vaunted “new yoga!” Julie blogs at www.yarnivation.blogspot.com.

About South West Trading Company

Founded by a mother/daughter knitting team in 2001, South West Trading Company is a family-run company dedicated to offering innovative, luxurious and environmentally friendly textile products. To date, the company is best known for its uniquely “green,” high-end products for knitting enthusiasts, including yarns made from soy, bamboo, corn, milk and chitin (recycled shrimp and crab shells). For more information, please visit www.soysilk.com.

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