girlfriends

Slightly belated, I'm here to rave about my Secret Pal from SP round 10... It's Shannon, from Berrytini!

I received a final package from her the other day. Let's take a peek inside:


ooh, pretty box



Holy cow! Look at all this loot! A new teacup, darning needles with a little case, a great felted Booga Bag pattern with beautiful birch needles and all the yarn to make it... oh, the yarn?


please, no staring

Yes, it's Noro Kureyon. Three scrumptious balls of Noro Kureyon, in an amazing colorway. Oh, that other yarn?



Just a little Nashua Vignette in a colorway that I can only guess is meant to match my blog - perfectly! This may call for a bit of scarf design this fall.

Thank you so much Shannon for being such a wonderful Secret Pal! In case you didn't know, besides being a great knitter and maker of adorable stitch-markers, Shannon is a Rollergirl and a kickass mommy. She and her family just moved all the way across the country - I know you Californians will welcome her with open arms!

I also wanted to introduce you to the prolific Seattle knitter I've been spoiling during this round of Secret Pal 10: It's Emily! There is a lot I could tell you about her (and a lot I already have told about her), but I'd like to let this photo shoot of Emily modeling her recently-completed Jewel Cardigan speak for itself. Can you tell why I love her??

And finally, a big smooch and bon voyage to Saun, who is chasing her life-long dream of fashion design and moving to New York City! I am so excited for her, and so inspired by her determination -- and gutsiness. It's not often someone gives up their comfortable, well-paying job and affordable apartment to chase their life's dreams -- I can't wait to read the chronicles of her adventures at FIT. Go Saun!


nik and saun at the going-away bash - that is the smile of a woman whose dreams are coming true

my pal

It's not quite time yet, but soon all will be revealed. June is the final month in the tenth round of Secret Pal.

I can't tell you who my pal is just yet, but I am enjoying finding things here and there to include in her final package. Today I picked up a wonderful-smelling eucalyptus candle for her while I was doing some grocery shopping at the Whole Paycheck Foods.

I like to put a package together slowly, usually starting with the yarn, and then building some kind of theme around it. It's very important that the colors coordinate, and that there be a little something for as many of the five senses as possible. But not too much of any particular thing - too much smell, for instance, would be very bad.

So what can I tell you about this Pal without giving it away?

She is funny. She is a stylish geek, which warms my heart to no end. I love a scientist with style. She's kind of sporty, in a way that at first I found a little intimidating, but she spends plenty of time on the couch with her cat, too, so I can relate to her pretty well. Her cat is great - he is big and happy and spoiled like my cat, and he's so cute that I think I will include something for him in this last package. She has a significant other who seems to be highly supportive of the yarn fetish (always a good sign). I'm not going to say where she lives, but it's a place I'd love to visit. I have been there once - much too briefly.

One of the challenges of making packages for her is that she's not a beginner, and she's a yarnaholic, so there's not much out there in the knitting world that she doesn't already have (her various yarn diets go right down the drain as soon as she gets near a yarn store, though she always finds a good get-out-of-jail-free card). So I have tried to find fun, out-of-the-way knitting pleasures to share with her, and to focus on color and texture rather than introducing her to "new" yarns - since I don't think there's a yarn that gets past her untrammelled. She is the kind of person that I'd love to have in my local Stitch & Bitch - she'd be a terribly good influence on my knitting, if you know what I mean.

To my Secret Pal - soon we can be real pals, or at least virtual real pals, or whatever we call each other out here in the internets. I love surprises.

thanks, pal!

When we got home from work last night a special package was waiting for me...

It was full of little prizes, each one carefully wrapped in pretty tissue papper. Everything was color-coordinated (green!), even the card. A package from my Secret Pal! Yipeee!

She (she?) is very thoughtful. Look what she sent me:


beautiful stitch markers (did you make them, thoughtful pal?)


fancy note-cards (for sending notes to my grandmas)


a book to hold CD's when i go off traveling


and some very very yummy yarn. i love this color! it's one i've never seen before, harrisville "orchid yarn." it's a blend of virgin wool, mohair and cashmere... purrrr....

I am feeling quite spoiled. I am looking forward to using my pretty shiny new stitch-markers. I think they will be much more elegant than the Scünci "munchkin minis" rubber bands I use as stitch markers right now. They will be so elegant that I'll need to dress up a little, and order a glass of champagne. That wouldn't be bad at all.

I am also feeling quite inspired. Bugheart's post yesterday on Sew Green gave me a great idea for my forthcoming Top Secret Project. I'm going to unravel a fabulous plum-colored sweater I got at the clothes swap tonight. I haven't knitted from a recycled sweater before; only felted recycled sweaters and sewn them into something else. Look what Stacie did with recycled knitting this week! Recycling is the new rock & roll.

secret pal 10 questionnaire

After a long hiatus, I've decided to become a Secret Pal again. I have a childish fascination with the US Postal Service and its delightful habit of leaving unexpected packages on my doorstep that will not allow me to stay away from Secret Pal any longer. Also I just want to make new friends.

Now for the exciting part: My answers to the Secret Pal 10 questionnaire. To all those of you who are not my future Secret Pal, I'd suggest navigating to another, more interesting site now, like maybe the growth rates of naked mole rats, or a dictionary of Quenya. Scintillating reading ahoy!

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

Does anyone like acrylic? Me neither. Though a nice acrylic/wooly blend is often just what the doctor ordered for easy-care garments (like kids' sweaters). My favorite fiber by far is alpaca, but I enjoy all kinds of natural fibers like merino wool, linen blends, silk blends, cotton blends and I just tried a soysilk/wool blend that I loved. I think I may be allergic to bamboo, and I just can't handle mohair, the exquisite itch from hell, beautiful as it is.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

Let's see... theoretically the straight needles are in a vase, and the DPN's and circulars are in a train case, but in reality they are spread across every bag and corner of my house.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I am a medium in everything - height, weight, clothes and knitting skill level. Intermediate for sure. I've been knitting for about 5 years and was cajoled into it by my dear friend bugheart who wanted to start a Stitch & Bitch group but didn't know any other knitters. My, how times have changed!

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

Yes, I have one at Alibris.

5. What's your favorite scent?

Smelly things are problematic for me. I like how many lovely things smell, but fakey perfume smells give me terrible headaches. A Yankee Candle sends me straight into conniptions. But a bunch of dried lavender? Heavenly.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Is there anything other than chocolate?

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I don't spin. I want to spin! Do you spin? How do I get started with this spinning? etc. I do a lot of other crafts. I sew occasionally, especially when making sock monsters or curtains for my house. I make a little jewelry now and then out of recycled costume jewelry. I like to make stuff rather than buy it - cookies, get-well cards, rain barrels, t-shirts, handbags, you get the idea. I like to make stuff.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

Bring it all on! MP3s! Whatever! I like it. I like rock n'roll, vintage country, vintage blues, vintage anything, world music, worldbeat remixes, the songs they play on the 80's alternative retro station, jazz, funk, old R & B, anything but that teeny-bopper pop stuff the kids today are listening to. Ick! Kids today.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

Favorites: warm earth tones. Hate: pastels. Love: black, red. Hate: cotton-candy pink. If you're into this sort of lingo, I'm a summer-fall kind of gal. Death to spring colors! (Except on flowers, they look pretty good in a spring palette).

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

Happily living in sin with one man and two cats.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

Yes. Unless they are in the aforementioned deathly spring colors, in which case no. But generally speaking, yes.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

Socks, baby sweaters, socks, beer cozies, socks and crazy bright kids' stuff.

13. What are you knitting right now?

A sweater for ME! This is very rare. I'm knitting Pullover Flair from IK Spring 2006.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Absolutely!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Circular, for sure. Generally I knit with bamboo, but for socks I'm a big fan of the Addi Turbo.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

Yes and/or yes.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

I don't think I have anything that goes back before Christmas. I'm generally pretty good about finishing projects.

18. What is your favorite holiday?

Thanksgiving is a good one.

19. Is there anything that you collect?

No, but I love throwing out other people's collections.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I've been hearing big things about the patterns of Phildar, and if you run across any women's sweater/accessory patterns from the 1910's - 40's, let me know! I would really like to get a copy of "Designing Knitwear" by Deborah Newton one day. I subscribe to Interweave Knits, and often pick up copies of Vogue Knitting and its various little-sister publications like Knit.1.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

Yes! I want to learn to make short-rows without the bumps showing. I want to learn to spin and dye yarn. I want to learn about Alpaca husbandry so that I can move to the Andes and live out my days surrounded by fuzzy friends who give me yarn to play with.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Heck yes I am! Also, I wear a size 8 shoe.

23. When is your birthday?

July 25th, but I won't be upset if you don't send me an alpaca. I think it's too hot here for them, anyway.

you need a pal

Don't you?

The sign-ups are on for Secret Pal 8, so maybe you should head over there. I had a great experience during Secret Pal 7, as evidenced by the amazing prizes (prize 1, prize 2, and prize 3), letters and emails from my wonderful Secret Pal, Becky, and the super-cute package-opening posts of my spoilee, Paloma.

So don't mess around! Get yourself a Secret Pal and discover why they keep the US Postal Service around, despite the reign of the internets.

mysteries revealed

Here she is folks... my Secret Pal! Becky (we're on a first-name basis now) just sent me this fabulous package of chocolate, marzipan, and self-fair-isling sock yarn from Deutschland, where she was visiting family. Somehow she found out that I like chocolate and sock yarn - she must be part secret detective.

Check out the cute marzipan bunny! Too bad I will have to eat him.

Becky is a Design & Technology student, who understands the mysteries of the digital universe. She does amazing things like make video games you can play on your cell phone... whoa... (Meanwhile I'm still trying to figure out how to put things on the sidebar of this blog template). Visit her high-tech and DIY blog! No templates for Becky - she knows how to make those 0's and 1's behave.

And for those of you who are playing along with the Use What You Have thing this April, I leave you with some inspiration: The Compact. These amazing people are buying nothing new, all year long. I kneel at the altar of Buy Nothingness (and yes, they are blogging about it).

the brightest week

It may be cold and gray outside, but in my mailbox it is bright and sunny! Look what arrived Saturday from my stupendous Secret Pal:


orange you glad I didn't say apollo?

She is so awesome! Here we have ten - count 'em, TEN! - balls of Filatura di Crossa Ad Hoc, a lovely pair of size 9 needles and a cool card with a block of gold on it, all wrapped in bright orange tissue paper! I am in heaven! Some lucky girl is going to get a soft, lofty, bright gold sweater out of this deal (and it might be me...). What a great prize! Thank you Secret Pal, whoever you may be!

Double bonus: the yarn coordinates perfectly with my new bright Bugheart orange frog book cover. Maybe the frog book will become the journal of my knitting adventures with funky bright colors...

And finally, the update from Day Ten at Team My House. I spent Saturday evening with my folks & Sis eating sushi, playing board games and working on my Olympic project while watching ski jumping. Damn, those Austrians are amazing skiers! Hoch lebe Morgenstern! Hoch lebe Kofler! Hoch! Hoch! Hoch! On Sunday night I got some more work done on the sleeves and collar while watching some freaky psychedelic underpants swirl around the screen during the ice dancing competition. I was sorry that Kerr & Kerr didn't advance further - they seemed to be the only skaters who had any sense of what a Latin rhythm meant. The rest of them looked like cheerleaders on skates (not that there's anything wrong with cheerleaders) - but no rhythm at all.

So, ahem, here's a shot of the sweater from Sunday AM:



I finished that sleeve but still have a long way to go - a big collar, another sleeve, some edgings and a couple of I-cord flowers, plus a button & button loop. Can I do it by Sunday? I'll be wearing my neon orange underpants for good luck!

afterburn

Have I mentioned lately that I love my Secret Pal? This here picture is me kicking back and chilling to some Amadou et Mariam while wearing a new pair of fancy-ribbed red slipper-socks, courtesy of my wonderful thoughtful Secret Pal.

She has great timing. After a depressing evening of watching pResident Bush doing his State of the Union on the teevee over at Chez Seamless, a lovely package from my Secret Pal was more than welcome! Thank you, SP, for making what could have been an unbearable evening, well, kind of nice, actually. In her package she included a CD full of world music MP3's, including the amazing Amadou et Mariam, which is soothing my frazzled nerves as we speak. Thank you, Secret Pal! (PS - I can call her "she" now 'cause she told me she's one of us wimmins. We have this communication thing going. It's cool).

I can't say I have much of an informed reaction to the State of the Union address, except what in the heck was with all the anti-isolationism rhetoric? Who's actually proposing isolationism as foreign policy? It's amazing to me that he sets up this straw man to tear down, and it sure does look like the actual foreign policy of this very administration - a straw man, indeed. Same deal with the gobbledy-gook about closing our markets to the world - come on man, talk about what's actually happening in our universe!

The quote of the evening (we were watching with friends) came from Robyn, who captioned the Barak Obama close-ups with "Now there's a black man I could get with!" True dat, girlfriend. I love me some Obama. If the next president is going to look (and talk) half that good, I might just withdraw my Australian work-visa application.

One last thing - why was Cindy Sheehan arrested, exactly? What was the disturbance that she caused? Her very existence? Man, this guy is so afraid of critics, he can't even stand to have them looking at him from the balcony.

All right, back to knitting - a much less frustrating topic. Here's the problem: I can't decide what to knit next. I am eagerly sitting on my plans for the Knitting Olympics, but I can't cast on til February 10th! I'm all done with my cute green stripey socks, and I have this big huge design/knit project waiting for me... but I really am one of those loyal one-project-at-a-time knitters (except for the little sock or scarf project that I keep going on the side for meetings and conference calls).

I can't imagine starting a big design/knit project and then interrupting it to start my olympic sweater a week later. It seems so... so disloyal. I'm already burning with guilt over leaving my bamboo knitting needles sitting alone at home while I'm out painting the town red with my Addi Turbos. Help me, Carolyn Hax! I'm a cheater! Is admitting it the first step to recovery? Do I even want to recover?

The last thing I want is to wind up like Simon, the nap slut. Look at him, napping casually in any old chair or cardboard box that will have him. Tramp.

hellooooo, nurse!

Greetings from happy pal central! Yesterday I got a wonderful package in the mail from my Secret Pal, who is awesome! S/he sent me some wonderful heather gray sock yarn (Swiss sock yarn that is so legit it comes with extra reinforcement thread in the package) and TWO bars of organic dark chocolate! Bliss!

Thank you Secret Pal!

I am looking forward to making some stylish fancy socks with the yarn. It will be a new challenge for me to do some interesting stitch pattern with the socks, since I usually knit pretty basic desgins with self-striping yarn - now I get to work with fancy textures, too. I was thinking of something fancy from the Vintage Socks book.

It will be a good diversion, because I'm mired in a design project right now that's got me a bit stymied. I bought this beautiful Kathmandu aran yarn back in October when we were visiting Maine, and had a very specific, neck-down raglan sweater with deep ribbing at the waise & 3/4 sleeves in mind for it. But when I started knitting up a swatch, the yarn started screaming, cardigan! I want to be a cardigan!

So I'm starting from scratch on this one. The handle is nice, but a little bit tweedier than what I had imagined, so I'm looking to do something more tailored and jacket-like, but with some pretty detailing. Not too fussy, just some nice shaping and maybe ONE decorative detail. But this is not my forte. I'm much better with wild bright funky kids' sweaters. Making this one for myself - something that I will actually want to wear - is going to be a challenge.

On the lighter side of distracting projects, Saun is the greatest and has posted step-by-step instructions on how to make a needle case. HOORAY! My DPN's are out of control - I think I may be spending this weekend in front of the sewing machine.

sp7 questionnaire

I am very very excited about having and being a Secret Pal, and I know you're all dying to read my questionnaire responses. Uh... right. Please just come back tomorrow when I write something potentially interesting. Apologies to all of you, and to my new Secret Pal: Hi! I love you! Yay!

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand?

Yarn snob, beer snob, snobby-snob, you name it.

2. Do you spin? Crochet?

I'd love to learn to spin! No, I don't crochet, except to sometimes make an edge or a seam, or an unidentified fiber blob.

3. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

A train case, a vase, my knitting bag, purse, grocery bag, laptop case...

4. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

Hm... about 5 years, and approximately intermediate.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

I have one at Alibris, but I don't update it too often.

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

Please, for the love of God, no smells. Bath and Body Works = smelly headache hell on earth. Perfume is air pollution, people. Take pity.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Deep, dark chocolate. Mmmmmmmmm.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

I like to make trash into "art," and I like to make jewelry, especially using old broken costume jewelry pieces.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

Yes, my computer will play MP3's. I love creakety-scratchety world music from anyplace, anytime. The harder to understand, the better! Other loves: Bollywood, Bhangra, early jazz (1920's-30's), gypsy jazz, early rock/R&B (1950's), Billie Holiday, Bela Bartok, most anything recorded by Yo Yo Ma, Howlin Wolf or Ella Fitzgerald, queer punk, girl punk, or any other non-whiteboy punk, old school hip-hop, Appalachian folk, Texas swing... should I keep going?

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

I tend to gravitate towards a summer palette, and yet... all my clothes are black. I like red the best of all colors.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

Living in sin with one man and two cats. Yow!

12. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

Yes, yes, yes and um, I haven't tried it, but I'm scared.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

Lately I am really into merino wool, alone or blended with friends, and also alpaca. I love to felt with Cascade 220, and to make socks with insanely bright self-striping yarns. I also like to make sweaters and hats for babies and little kids, especially from organic cotton.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

Mohair. Oh, the beautiful itch of death!

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

I don't feel terribly obsessed right now. I am on the hunt for the perfect sweater design/pattern for a sweater I want to make for myself from some yummy silk road aran tweed.

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

Toddler-sized sweaters in super-bright colors, funky socks, and earthy-colored vests for my man HWWLLB.

17. What are you knitting right now?

Well, I'm trying to finish up HWWLLB's Xmas present, which was a sweater vest, and I'm fiddling around with an amber-colored fashion scarf for me, maybe with a pom-pom fringe.

18. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Absolutely!

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

Circular!

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Bamboo, or Addi Turbo...

21. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

Yes

22. How did you learn to knit?

My friend Miss Bugheart forced me to learn because she wanted a knitting buddy. She'd make me cast on until I cried, make me knit endless rows of garter, then stockinette, then seed stitch, barking orders to go twenty more rows... at the time I wanted to strangulate her, but now I want to squeeze and kiss her. Either way, she really should watch out.

23. How old is your oldest UFO?

I don't want to talk about it, it will make me cry.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

I don't have any characters that I like, though Miss Bugheart keeps trying to turn me on to Sanrio/San-X/Miffy type creatures, and because of that people think I like Hello Kitty & friends and are always giving me little erasers and coin purses and other such items. I actually like the tiny coin purses better than the Japanse characters. As animals go, I like them all, but I'm really partial to my two cats, and wild things like woodpeckers, leopard frogs, brook trout and any kind of bug.

25. What is your favorite holiday?

Thanksgiving.

26. Is there anything that you collect?

No! I only throw away other people's collections.

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

Interweave Knits.

28. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on?

Uh... you'll have to download the 500-page PDF file from the server...

29. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I'd love to learn dyeing next. And then spinning. And then alpaca husbandry.

30. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Yes, I love knitting socks! I wear size 8 shoes.

31. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

July 25. I'm a Leo - mrrow!

Well, it's been a lot of fun to have a reason to go on and on and on all about myself and my various picky tastes. If you're actually still reading this, leave a comment and answer any/all of the above questions about yourself, then I won't feel so greedy.