1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?As the blog title says, I’ve never met a yarn I didn’t like. I love unique hand-dyed yarns. When I travel, I like to find yarn from the region or country I am visiting. I don’t particularly like acrylic yarn, but with 13 nieces and nephews, I do use acrylics, for knits for kids when it needs to be nearly indestructible. I realized that cotton tends to make my hands sore, so I tend to stay away from 100% cotton for larger projects.
2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?I forget who of my knitting buddies inspired this purchase (see pictures below). I love this case. The case is divided into 2 identical sections. On the inside of the front and back covers there are 4 small zippered pockets that I keep scissors, stitch markers, coil-less safety pins, etc. In the main sections I have plastic bags for my needles, one side holds my circular and the other holds my DPNs. It's very portable.
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 since 2003 and learned in a class offered at a local university. I’d say intermediate. I’ve knitted lace projects, sweaters, scarves, hats, etc. I have yet to make a “life-size” pair of mittens or socks. I’ve knit miniature mittens in a Latvian mitten class and have knit 1/2 a sock numerous times now.
4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?No, I don’t – sorry.
5. What's your favorite scent?I like cinnamon, vanilla, citrus scents, cedarwood, frankincense, pine (woodsy scents).
6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?Yes, yes, yes! Love any milk chocolate. Don’t care for dark or white chocolate as much. Cinnamon Altoids are a staple I carry in my purse. I like citrus flavored hard candy or gummy candy.
7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?I used to do counted cross stitch. That hobby had been on the back burner since I learned to knit, but I’ve been doing some lately for special projects and for Christmas gifts. As for do-it-yourself, our entire house is just one do-it-yourself project after another.
8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)I can play music on my computer. I like many kinds – since the exceptions are less numerous, I’ll list the exceptions – country western, electronic (club/rave), heavy metal. If you listen to Brenda Dayne’s Cast On podcast – I love the music she selects for her episodes.
I actually listen to more podcasts than music MP3s. The exception is around Christmas, when I love having Christmas music playing. I love the “classics” Christmas songs recorded in the 1940’s – 1960’s - like Bing Crosby’s version of White Christmas, or the Nat King Cole Christmas Album.
9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?I don’t care for neon bright colors or pastels for myself, but use them for kids’ items. I love fall colors and jewel tones – brilliant, deep blues, reds, greens, golds, rich tans and browns.
10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?I’m married, no kids, just 2 cats who think they’re our babies. (Gee, wonder where they could have gotten that idea?)
11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?Haven’t owned a poncho since 1973 - somewhere in the family slides there is photographic proof I wore one at age 7 or 8. I wear scarves (but am pretty tall, so my scarves are 5-6 feet long) and I never can wear the one size fits all mittens or gloves - the fingers are never long enough, they are usually not wide enough across the hand, and the wristbands are usually too tight. I have large hands and wrists.
12. What is/are your favorite items to knit?Scarves are an old standby for traveling/visiting knitting as it’s easily portable and the patterns usually don’t need much concentration so I can knit while talking – amazing how difficult it can be to do those two thing at the same time. I love lace knitting. I have many projects in my queues (the one in my head and the one on Ravelry). . Sweaters are great fun – especially for kids as I can finish them quickly. Sweaters for myself take forever.
13. What are you knitting right now?Wow – what am I NOT knitting. Check out my projects on Ravelry. I’ve a number of sweaters on the needle, a shawl, a number of scarves, a hat, baby sweater.
14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?Definitely.
15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?I learned to knit using circular needles. I’ve never used straight needles yet. I would like to try them. I don’t care for Susan Bates needles. My favorites are Addi Turbo and Addi Turbo Lace. I’ve purchased some metal short DPNs for socks as I’m a really tight knitter and found I bent the wood DPNs. I also like Inox needles. I use all 3 types, depending on the “stickiness” of the yarn that is being knitted up.
16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?Yes, I do.
17. How old is your oldest UFO?6 years – since I first started knitting. I never finished the sweater I was making for myself. It’s all stockinette – a raglan. Gads, that was boring – and A LOT of stockinette as I’m not a small woman. And the yarn wasn’t a pleasure to work with, either. I was too new a knitter to know better.
18. What is your favorite holiday? What winter holiday do you observe?We observe Christmas and I love decorating for Christmas, especially the tree. I think we’ll easily be able to get a 10 foot tree in our house this year.
19. Is there anything that you collect?Yarn, yarn, and yarn. I especially like to find “local” yarn when I travel – something unique that I could not find in my local shops.
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 have subscriptions to Vogue and Interweave Knits. I pick up the occasional Piecework when there are any articles about knitting. The most intriguing magazine is Wild Fibers.
Books I’d like to get are: Cornish Guernseys & Knit Frocks by Mary Wright; Poems of Color by Wendy Keele; The Lerwick Lace Shawl by Sharon Miller; any patterns by Sharon Miller (I have none).
21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?Intarsia. Also, I’ve done 2 color knitting before but would like to try a fair isle item.
22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?I’ve taken a class – ended up frogging the sock. I would like to learn both toe up and cuff down to decide which I like better. Socks for me take forever to knit. My shoe size is US women’s 12 or US men’s size 10 in width D. I'd have to measure for more specific measurements.
23. When is your birthday?July 18th. I hope you do not need the year.
24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?Yes. I’m stashhaus on Ravelry.
