Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Secret Pal 10 Questionnaire:

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I love natural fibers - wool, i LOVE alpaca, llama, silk....not a big fan of cotton. I don't like eyelash yarns or most acrylics.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I have an awesome case for my straight needles, but definitely need something better for my circular needles.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I've been knitting for a few years - 2 or 3? I had someone show me how to cast on, and do the knit stitch. after that, I learned by looking online and by trial and error! I'm, I dunno, and advanced beginner? lol!

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yep! I have an amazon.com wishlist. You can search for Maggie Howe in Adel Iowa and that will work! I also have one at soul-flower.com. I love their stuff. :)


5. What's your favorite scent? I'm a scent snob. I run a herbal bodycare business, so, I really only like natural (essential oil) scents. Sandalwood, amber, lavender - anything woodsy/earthy/fresh and NOT synthetic.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? Mmmm....not too much anymore. I'm trying to eat really healthy, so...not much with the candy. I do like a nice bit of dark chocolate now and then though. :)

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I do spin! I love to dye fiber, using both natural and synthetic dyes.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I like...hmmm. Classical, celtic, rock...i guess my amazon.com wishlist would give you a decent idea of the type of music i like? and yep, I can play MP3's.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? I love purple, blue, greens...rich jewel tones. Also earthy colors (greys, rich browns). I don't really like pastels.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? Married, no children, 8 cats (yes 8!) and 2 giant dogs that sleep in bed with us. :)

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? YEP to all!! :)

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Socks. I am kind of obsessed. but I like to knit hats, mittens, scarves, shawls...more or less anything! I haven't ventured to sweaters yet but I will soon!

13. What are you knitting right now? socks :)

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? absolutely!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? straights, mostly...and bamboo or wood.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? I have a ball winder but I don't have a swift..I really should get one. *sigh*

17. How old is your oldest UFO? I'm kind of a knitting anomaly. i knit one thing at a time, start to finish. And that's it. Veeery rarely I may have 2 projects on the needles, but mostly, I just pick one project, knit it, and start the next. Weird, huh?

18. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas, probably...

19. Is there anything that you collect? cats. lol. But other than that, no. (wait...do fiber and knitting books count? )

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? Actually, I could really use a subscription to a knitting magazine. I have none! and I'd really like that. My amazon wishlist has a good idea of what books I could use... there are several knitting books on there. :) Yarns...well, I haven't really bought all that much, so any of the more popular ones would be great. Koigu and Noro would be up there on my list of "stuff I'd love to try"! Some of the new funky bamboo based sock yarns? luscious silk or silk blends??

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? learning to knit sweaters is something I need to do....

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? yep! i LOVE handknit socks, especially tall ones (i'm gonna make myself some knee socks pretty soon...). foot size 8 1/2, kinda wide fat feet. :)

23. When is your birthday? May 18th

I could really use some circulars....I like to do 2 socks at once on circs, so any size 1's or 2's for doing that would be great!
cy
I LOVE these socks. Love love love them. And I am giving them away! They are a gift for a friend who helped my doggie Duncan when he was very sick. So, she deserves them. But they are beautiful, and I will miss them. It's GORGEOUS alpaca/merino wool from Natural Dye Studio, it is so luscious that I now want to buy lots and lots more. I highly recommend it, BUT, just know that there are only 170 yards in each skein. Which was enough to make these socks, but just barely! I just didn't notice, before I started knitting, that there wasn't much yardage. Now I know. Knit with size 2 dpns, pattern: Conwy from Nancy Bush's knitting on the road. I love that pattern. :)