Secret Pal 14 Questions

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely not like? I like soft yarns. I love wools and alpaca, the softer the better. Some yarns I love include: Dream in Color, Malabrigo, Blue Sky Alpacas. I like to try different yarns and dyers. I am not anti acrylic: I'll use it for baby items. But it doesn't get me very excited! I don't like scratchy wools for garments, but think they are great for felting.
   

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I have a couple of fabric needle holders. And the binder that came with my knitpicks options.
   

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 about 6 years, I think. My mom taught me to knit in my 20s. I can't remember what year exactly. I'm an intermediate knitter, I'd say.
   

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? no
   

5. What’s your favorite scent? I love grapefruit and bergamot.
   

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? Yes! I don't think there is a candy I don't like. I love chocolate. I love fruity candy. I love licorice-y candy. Yum, candy.
   

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I sew. For mother's day and my birthday, my husband created a craft corner for me in the basement. Now I have a spot to sew again and I've been making small project bags. I don't spin. But ... there is this braid of roving at my LYS that I loving. So I am wondering how long I will resist. I don't really have time for spinning right now b/c I have a one-year-old. Some day I want to spin, but when he's older. At least that's what I tell myself. :)
   

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 folk, some rock and pop, oldies, opera, salsa, and some hip hop. Some of my favorite groups right now: HEM, Josh Ritter, Damien Rice, Kathleen Edwards, U2, Shakira. I can play MP3s.
   

9. What’s your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can’t stand? I love blue, green, pink, red, brown ... I don't love (or even like) fushia.
   

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? It's me, my husband and our baby boy (he's actually turning 1 this week! How did that happen so fast?) right now. No pets.
    

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

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? I always a sock or two going. With the kid, I need an easy to pick up and put down project. A plain sock is perfect. But I also love to knit lace so I usually will have something more complicated to work on when I am alone, which doesn't happen a lot lately.
    

13. What are you knitting right now? I have two socks in progress. A plain stockinette one and Outside In from the latest Knitty. I am also working on the Morning Glory Wrap by Anne Hanson. I've been working on that for exactly a year. I started in last year on the Sunday of 4th of July weekend while I waited to go into labor. I hoped that if I started a complicated shawl a few days before my due date, I would go into labor a few days early and I did! I have just a few rows left!
    

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

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? I prefer circulars. I love my Knitpicks Options. Haven't tried the Harmonys yet. Bamboo makes my hands hurt. But wood doesn't for some reason. I have a few pairs of Lantern Moon wood circulars and one set of DPNs that I love.
    

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

17. How old is your oldest UFO? Hmmm, not too old really. But I am probably forgetting something. I do have a baby blanket from a few years that I never finished. But if I don't intend to finish it does it count? Probably, yes. OK, so about 3 years old. The next oldest is just a few months old. It's a vest I am knitting for baby H. It's almost done but he won't need it until Fall, so I stopped, just temporarily of course!
    

18. What is your favorite holiday? What winter holiday do you observe? I love Thanksgiving because my whole family gets together then. We celebrate Christmas in the winter.
    

19. Is there anything that you collect? Just yarn and fabric. Well, I guess I also collect funky (ie big, bold or unusual) necklaces.
    

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 a lot of knitting books. Many that I have never even used. Three that I don't have but need for my queu are: More Big Girl Knits, Knit 2 Together and Simple Style. I'd also like to own the Harmony Guide:Knit and Purl. And I'd like to try the Knit Picks Harmony wood needles, especially the DPNs. I subscribe to Interweave Knits.
    

21. Are there any new techniques you’d like to learn? I'd like to learn to knit socks toe up. But I love my DPNs.
    

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Yes, I love to knit socks. My feet are 10.5 inches long. 8.5 inches around at the foot. And 10.5 inches around at the ankle.
    

23. When is your birthday? May 28.
    

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what’s your ID? I am knitsinpublic.