Wooo Hooo Secret Pal 5 Has Started

I am so psyched that this has started...so here are the answers for my profile.

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you? When I started to knit again I have to confess I started with Lion Brand but quickly graduated to the higher quality fibers so I definitely have morphed into a yarn snob.

2. Do you spin? Crochet? Don’t spin but do crochet.


3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.) Cigarettes and strong perfume (that heavy old lady perfume…you know the kind I’m talking about) are triggers for migraines for me. So essence they are allergies of a sort.

4. How long have you been knitting? Started in elementary school and took a break from post-college till about 6 months ago. So if you don’t count the hiatus…big gulp about 34 years.


5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Definitely have an Amazon wish list…although I seem to be the only one who looks at it. And just started a Froogle wish list.

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) I love Yankee Candles especially Home Sweet Home and anything that is apple or melon scented. I have all of the Burt’s Bees lotions and also really like anything from Lush or Bliss.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Don’t you mean a chocolate addiction! Love liquorice altoids!

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Counted cross stitch, needlepoint, paint…I have many pictures that were done with cross stitch, lots of silk, variegated thread and patterns. But stopped because it was hard to easily transport my projects.


9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I listen to all kinds of music…like Damien Rice (have “O” which I listen to constantly), anything acoustic…definitely listen to music on the computer and also on my iPod.


10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand? Love purple and red…I also gravitate to blue and pink colourways that remind of the sea and desert. Can’t stand orange.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? Married with one son who is 9 ½ and also have two older step-kids who live out of state (25, daughter and 21, son)

12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know) OK after writing a best-selling novel, seeing it made into a movie, I would love to become the director of public relations for either the Komen Foundation or a major university that does a lot of research (like Duke) in the health sciences.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? I love Noro brand. I am looking forward to trying Lorna’s Laces and Koigu now that I finished one sock and really enjoyed doing it.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Fibers that are easily shredded and can be poked. I have made a couple of ribbon scarves (Berrocco Zen and Knit One, Knit Two Tartilette) and the jury is still out on it. Love the way they knit up but it is the getting there that is the problem.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s? I was bound and determined to learn how to knit socks. I put off working on gift items that needed to be completed to finish the sock. I absolutely loved the whole process.

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Scarves because they are quick, easy and transport well in a small bag., but may be supplanted by socks in the near future!

17. What are you knitting right now? Let’s see…Misty Garden from Scarf Style, Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts, and Sock from Socks Socks Socks. Planning to eventually knit the Flower Basket Shawl and Not Just a T-Shirt in the near future, along with more socks!

18. What do you think about ponchos? I like ponchos…actually after starting to knit again, finishing 2 scarves, I did knit a poncho (don’t shoot me it was with LB Fun fur and boucle but I didn’t know any better at the time).

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? I now reach for circulars ever since I received the Denise Interchangeables.

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Bamboo


21. Are you a sock knitter? Now I am


22. How did you learn to knit? Grandmother taught me in elementary school

23. How old is your oldest UFO? 5 months


24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird? Mickey Mouse and Stitch; loves dogs (especially Siberian Huskies…ours is 6 ½)

25. What is your favorite holiday? I really love springtime and fall and do wish the seasons changing in Florida.

26. Is there anything that you collect? Longaberger baskets, lipstick/lipgloss, and shoes

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? Interweave


28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on…Mary Doria Russell’s new book “A Thread of Grace”

Eurecka, we have progress bars

Well thanks to the great tutorial by Lesley I have progress bars for two of my many projects (Shout out to Jess for pointing me in her direction). Although I have been trying for the past 30 minutes to add a 3rd etc. but anytime I do the bars bump to being formatted in line with my links. Once I have that figured out...move on to something a little bit more me for the top of the blog.

Well off to see if Ken Jennings wins tonight on Jeopardy!, followed by "Lost" and flipping to check on the status of Idol. Although if I somehow get narcoleptic and nod off the DVR will get it. What did this family do before we discovered DVR?

More buttons added

Just joined the Scarf Style KAL and the nothing but a T-shirt so hence the new buttons decorating my humble abode. Now going to get some more rounds done on my hourglass...up to row 6 after the first decrease row so puttering slowly up to my second decrease round. Last-minute gift? Right

Cash Hourglass

Hourglass in progress 

So this is about as far as I have made it in the round with my hourglass. Lot more work ahead of me!

Knitting recap

No Bucs at the party at Whisky Park on Friday afternoon but did leave with a white golf shirt that Dan proudly owns now. But the highlight of course was the stop at my LYS where I scored some Debble Blissful Cashmerino in a dusky blue for the Simply Marilyn from Interweave Spring 2004, two complimentary shades of Noro Kureyon for the child's rainbow scarf that will be gifted to my niece and two skeins of a blue sock yarn.

Obsessing over color choice
I don't think the blue is right for me so I will be trucking on down to Knit N Knibble on Friday when I am off to exchange for the baby pink.

Couple more rows
and I am just about done with my niece's scarf. I think that it will be a big hit and now I would love to make matching mittens and a hat to go along. I was brave last nite and did cast on for my first sock of my pair with the double pointed. We will see how it goes.

Here is the Spring Scarf collection:

The Scarf Brigade 

From left to right:
First scarf knitted after a 15 year hiatus in knitting with LB fun fur and then second scarf in LB Fancy Fur(since then I have become a yarn snob); Yo, Drop It with Berroco Zen from Stitch N Bitch Nation; multidirectional scarf in Noro Silk Garden and finally the Misty Garden in Jo Sharp Rare Mohair.


Close-up of Yo, Drop It 


"Albert Einsein" modeling the multi-di 


Child's Rainbow Scarf 

Time is on my side...

My co-workers and I were finding it extremely hard to work and concentrate yesterday afternoon being that we were mere hours away from seeing (thankfully no one in our group dressed up) the new Star Wars. Hubby, Dan, decided he wasn’t a true fan and so only the little man, Elijah, and I went. Late nite but at least school today for him is a field trip to the Lowry Park Zoo. It was great and I will not recap anything here but I will say that all of your questions will be answered. At least, earlier yesterday morning I was able to get 2 more rounds of my hourglass done sitting in the waiting room as Elijah had sealants put on his teeth. I am heading for #3 of the first 10 rounds in the lower body. Again…I just love the feel of the Noro Cash in my hands. It wasn’t a non-knitting day after all! I reminded him that the last time we were there I was still knitting the multidirectional scarf that he has now claimed as his own. I know for a fact that my hourglass is off limits unless of course it becomes someone’s gift.

Today we are also preoccupied with thoughts of hobnobbing with the Bucs at the annual Pewter Party partner…and my mind will be hovering around the fact that I can visit my LYS (on the south side of town near the party). Need to pick up another ball of Jo Sharp Kid Mohair to finish the Misty Garden scarf from Pam Allen's Scarf Style, looking for #95 and #130 Noro Kureyon for the child’s scarf in Last-Minute Knitted Gifts to knit for my niece’s birthday (end of June so I thought I needed to start immediately), and some sock yarn to try my hand at my first-ever pair of socks.

Scoring Buttons!

Have to thanks Rox for helping me figure out how to get the Secret Pal button on my blog. I actually then figured out how to get the hourglass kal button as well. Yippee! However in the midst of all this I was trying to win an ebay auction for a lovely colourway of Colinette Giotto in flame for the shrug designed by Susan Sternlieb in Interweave Summer 2005. Grrr!

Obviously...well maybe not obviously but I did start my hourglass using Noro Cash Iroha in #61 that I got on ebay and so it isn't a current choice. It is a beautiful deep purple and I absolutely LOVE working with this yarn! It feels great in my hands especially with my RA. Got my gauge done over the weekend with an Addi Turbo #7 and that went fantastic...however when I started the hourglass with the very first round in twisted despite my diligence not to have it happen. Frog City! So I switched over to my Denise and also using a slightly shorter length and so far so good. Plan to get a little bit further while watching Idol tonight. Girl has to feed her addiction for reality TV and I won't get any done on Thursday nite as we have tickets (have for the past 2 weeks) to see Star Wars. The geek patrol is going and some have even threatened to dress up!

Need to get some more pics up here when I get the chance...actually I just really need to get in the habit of writing every day!

Misty Garden in progress

I am on my second ball of Jo Sharp Kid Mohair as pattern suggested...I loved the color and feel of the yarn. So making progress! I wanted to finish this first before I get back to continuing my FBS with KnitPicks Shimmer in Happy Dance...my third choice of yarn. For sure unless we miracously get 28 hours to a day, I won't finish by the deadline of 5/7 for the FBS Redux. I still need to take a picture of the multi-di finished with my son as the model. It is his scarf now and so mine will be knitted as some undetermined time in the future. So many projects and so little time.

As Jess (Fig and Plum) discovered today with getting back to yoga, I rediscovered spinning. We just rejoined our local YMCA and took the afternoon Cardio Spin class. Intense and well worth the sweat!


Misty Garden- 1st attempt at lacework