Hush-Hush Handspun Hootenanny Questionnaire

1. How long have you been spinning? What skill level do you consider yourself? I have been spining for about 7 years. I would say I am intermediate with leanings to advanced
2. What kinds of yarn do you create (singles/2-ply/3-ply/art yarn)? Well I would have to say all of the above. I usually do 2 plys but I also do 3plys and art yarn often.
3. What do you spin with (spindle/wheel/both)? both
4. What are your favorite fibers to spin with? Anything you don't like? wool is my favorite but I also like exotics. I really hate cotton even though I can spin it.
5. Who are your favorite fiber sources (etsy or otherwise)? Spunky Fibers
6. What kind of fiber do you want to try? boy I don't know I have tried quite a few. I always love to try new rare breeds of wool.
7. Is there any techniques you would like to learn? not that I can think of at the moment
8. Do you dye fiber? If not, would you like to learn? yes
9. Do you have fiber prep tools (and like to use them) or would you prefer ready to spin fiber?I do have the tools but I would much rather have ready to go fibers, so that I can get to spinning as fast as possible.
10. What do you do with your handspun? What projects have you completed? Knitting and crochet. I don't know how to weave yet. I have finished quite a few as you can see on my blog
11. Are you in need of any spinning gadgets (WPI Gauge, threading hook, etc)?I love a good new gadget
12. What colors "fall into your shopping basket"? Greens and purples or jeweltones and naturals are neat too. Any colors you just can't stand? pastels
13. What is on your wheel/spindle right now? Last month's Spunky fiber club.
14. What other crafts/hobbies do you have?Knitting, crochet, tatting, needlepoint
15. Other than crafts, what are you passionate about? My day job is a Needlearts teacher so I will say I am passionate about all the needlearts
16. Do you have an online wishlist? no
17. Is there anything that you collect?Sheep
18. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What magazine subscriptions do you have? I can't think of any books that I don't already have. I subscribe to Spin Off
19. When is your birthday? April 26
20. What book or movie character do you most resemble in personality? I would have to say Abbott and Costello
21. What is the climate like where you live around this time (need to know for careful shipments of anything meltable)? Right now its realllllllly hot. Boise is actually in a high desert so we will have hotter temps through Sept and maybe Oct.
22. Tell us one weird fact about yourself! I am a huge Seattle Mariners fan. Yea I know but to be a Mariners fan you have be dedicated
Favorites
favorite painting/picture(link): can't think of one
Candy: Sugar free Dark Chocolate
Food: this time of year Fruit
Drink: Decaf sugar free moca
Movie(s): I love a good old musical comedy from the 30's and 40's
TV Show(s): Chuck, Heros
Book(s): mysteries
Guilty Pleasure(s): Dark Chocolate

I'm DEAD!

I'm dead! Yes I died today. What the heck am I talking about? Sock wars 3. I received a really nice pair of sock today that signed my death warrant. I must confess that I am not sad at all. I have been so busy with school getting out, dyeing days, knitting for the fair that I just have not been able to really sit and knit as much as I would like on the socks for the war. So I will be heading to the post office tomorrow and send my started socks to the knitter who killed me so she can set her sights on her next victim. Thanks Taija for the a wonderful pair of socks. By the way the yarn is Tofutsies and the colors are pinks and purples.

From this to this

I was able to sit down and finish up some spinning today. So I went from this to this. I really love how the colors blended. I don't as a rule try to keep the colors together. I like the barber pole effect. Because some of the dye areas are quite large so there is some areas that the colors blend with the same which is OK. I ended up with about 490 yards from the 8 ounces of roving and its about a DK to sport weight yarn. I wish you could feel how soft this yarn is. Over the past few months my spinning has really gotten soft and much better plied. I have no idea what I am going to knit with this but it sure is pretty.

Every now and again a deal comes your way

So I had a few minutes this morning, so I stopped at a local antique mall. I have been looking for a couple of things. 1. a really cool jar to hold my spindles. I was able to find an old mason jar with no lid for a 3 dollars. I am also looking for wine bottle holders. You know the ones that look like a tall skinny hat box. I plan to use them for when I give spindles as gifts. No such luck on that front so far. I have looked everywhere. But while I was looking around at all the neat stuff I found these two knitting books. I have been wanting a WWII knitting book for a long time but am to cheap to pay ebay prices. I was in luck I found this one for again 3 bucks. I also picked up a sock book too again for 3 bucks. So its true every now and again a deal dones come your way.

Whatcha working on now

Lately I have been working on samples for either a yarn company that I do some things for or for the shop I work at. I can't show you the things for the yarn company because they want them for a coming show and I don't want to spoil the surprise. I will show you some roving that I am spinning for the shop I work at. This is called Neapolitan as if you couldn't tell. The fiber is Blue face and yes its spinning up like a dream. I hope to have it all spun and in the shop by Thursday.

The next thing I am working on is an afghan. The pattern is such a simple one and its from am old Red Heart booklet. The pattern calls for a size 13 needle and two strands of worsted weight yarn held together. I chose Cascade Ecco wool in a deep purple and am using a size 10 1/2. I love how this is turning out , I can't wait to use it this fall on my couch as I read a good book.

I know its just spring and summer is just around the corner, but it gets really hot here in Idaho and I really hate the heat so I am already looking forward to cooler temps.

The other knitting project that I am working on is a pair of Monkey socks from the famous Cookie A. pattern. I am using some 50/50 merino angora sock yarn that I was given on my birthday. I was given the yarn in a kit and I really like the pattern in the kit but I started the sock on my trip to Idaho falls and I wanted an easy pattern to work up. One that I didn't need to refer to my pattern all the time. I have the monkey memorized so its has become my travel project.

Spindling for socks -class?

OK so you all know I love spinning on my Matchless wheel. So why in the world would I want to take a class on spindle spinning? Well I'm not totally sure but I really did enjoy it. For a while now I have been thinking that I really need to improve my spindling skills. So I signed up for the class. Now I know from experience that if you want to buy a spindle you have to get there early for best selection. That is exactly what I did. So before classes even started I was at the Greensleeves booth. As I was looking all the spindles over I did see one that I thought was really cool but I wasn't quick enough and another collector grabbed it first. As a matter of fact she got about 5 or 6 before I even had a chance to look at them all. Now that she had her selections made she helped me pick one for myself. I ended up with an Ethan Jacob. I am in no way disappointed I really love the look of this spindle. I love the cup shape and the dark woods. I forgot to ask what they were so next time I see her I will ask. The spindling for sock class was not until the next morning so I had to wait until I had more time to test my new spindle. Yes that was the first thing I did in my motel room that night. I am in love.

So the next morning in the class we were given a kit, of roving ( color of our choice) three spindles ( her bare bones) and a pattern. We were given the option to buy the spindles at a discount after class. Like one of the other students I had to buy them because I became attached. I chose a dark grey for my roving. During the class time ( about four hours) I was able to spin and then ply a 3 ply sport. I think I ended up spinning about 20 yards in class.

When I got home from my trip I divided up the remaining roving into three equal balls and then got to the fun part. I spun it all up. I did cheat a bit. After all three spindles where full I then used my ball winder and took the single off the spindles and then using my wheel plied them together. I ended up with about 230 yards. I am real hopeful that I will have enough yarn to complete the socks. Elizabeth said her socks weighted only 3 ounces and her foot looked a bit larger then mine so I am hopeful. I have to finish up a couple of other knitting projects before I can get started on the socks. I plan to have them done by the end of July. I will be attending a retreat that Elizabeth with be at and I want to have the socks with me.

Back from Snake River Fiber Festival

May 16-18 what the date for this years Snake River Fiber Festival. I was again able to go with a girl friend and her brother. As you may have read in previous posts we have been having a bit of a rough time of it lately. The Monday before I was scheduled to leave my father in law passed away. So my husband was with his family during this time. He was able to get there before he passed and he stayed about a week after helping his mother make plans. So by the time it was time to leave for Idaho falls I was a bit shell shocked with all that had been going on. I just about didn't go but my three daughters talked me into going. I have to say I am really glad I did. One of my daughters said it was good because I left looking worn out and came home with a smile.

I took three classes while I was there. The first was on spinning for self striping yarns. I really enjoyed this class as I learn a lot about using a color wheel, which is an area that I am a bit weak in. My second class was on spindling for socks, this class was taught by Elizabeth Daily the maker of Greensleeves spindles. All I can say is I am totally hooked. I will talk a bit more about that class in a later post. My last class was a bit of a disappointment. It was on spinning bamboo and other plant fibers. Well I was disappointed because we weren't really taught anything. the teacher talked about what the fibers where made from and then told us to spin them. no helpful hints or anything were given. It was a fun afternoon just spinning and chatting but I didn't think I really learned anything.

Between classes I was able to pick up a few things to add to my stash. When I go to a fair I usually have a list of things that I want to pick up for future projects. I usually do that on the first day and then on the second I go back and pick up whatever stuck in my mind that evening. Well when I was showing my husband what all I picked up the first thing he said was "Wow we have been on a downer". Just about everything I bought in the way of roving was glittery.

I also picked up some wonderful fiber from Wooly Wonka. This is merino,silk and angora, its not my usually colors but I just fell in love with them.

Lastly I picked up some Ashland Bay roving in a colorway called Northern lights. I plan to crochet a shawl from this. I may even add some glittery threads as I spin we will see.

I did pick up a few spindles too but I will talk about them in a later post. All in all it was a very fun weekend and it was really nice to get out of town and not have to think about all the stuff that has been going on with our family.

sock a manic swap

Thank you Jean. I lovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvve the sock yarn. I have been hearing about how wonderful Dream in color smooshy is, but I have never toughed it.So this was a real treat. I can't wait to knit with it. I love the colorway too. I would have been thrilled if in the box was just the yarn but no there was so much more. The chocolate was a great hit with my girls and I. Hubby is out of town with a family matter,so he didn't get any. I love the teas and the knitting goodies rubber stamps and note pad and pencil. I have had a pretty crummy month or so and I have say this was such a nice pick me up. Again thanks so much.

I'm not lost - just been a lot going on

I'm not lost, we have had a lot going on around here. We have had several deaths in the family and a couple of our friends. So I have been tied up with all of that. I have been knitting and spinning so. As a matter of fact I have just about all of all of my UFOs finished up. The must have cardigan fits just perfectly. I have also been working on some little things. First was a pair of wool socks for my hubby. They are thick ones that he will use for hunting. The pattern is a Civil war pattern that you can google to get the pattern. I used some wool that I had in my stash and I think it was size 5 needles which means they knit up really fast.

Our family are Civil war volunteers. We had a big event on May 1-3. We have an encampment and on Thursday and Friday we have about 2700 5th graders come through and there are 18 stations that they can learn something about the Civil War. My hubby is a blacksmith and I talk about spinning and knitting during the war. This year on Saturday the ladies of the group were able to fire the Napoleon cannon. I have to say its was a total blast. Yes pun intended. I was able to ram rod it twice, which means to push the charge down the barrel. I was able to set the charge, which means to put the charge in the barrel. I was also able to pull the pin which means I got to fire it. It was a tiring time but it was also so much fun. I can't wait for next year to add more information to my display,and maybe fire the cannon again.

On the spinning front I am getting ready to attend the Snake River Fiver Festival again. Its this weekend and I am planning on taking three classes. The first is called Spin your own stripes. I will be making self striping yarn with colored rovings not dyes. I can't wait to see how this it done. The second class in spindling for socks. This class it taught by the maker of Greensleeves spindles and I'm looking forward to improving my skills on the spindle. The last class I am taking is from the author of Spin to Knit. I will be learning to spin cellulose fibers. Which are bamboo, nettle, soy silk, etc. I am also looking forward to adding to the stash a bit. It seems like I have not added to it for a while. I will let you know how it goes.

The last thing I wan to talk about it a chemo hat that I just finished. My husband has a co-worker that is beginning to under go some cancer treatments. So I was asked to knit a hat. Well after some thought I came up with some Lion Brand organic cotton that was in my stash and knit a simple hat. I really like the feel of this cotton,which I have to say I don't usually like to work with, but I think it turned out nicely.

March socks

I have been sick for the last week or so with what was just a little cold. But I just couldn't seem to get out of bed all last week. I have never had a cold that made me so tired. Needless to say I really didn't get a whole lot of knitting done. I have been working on a pair of sock all month, which for me is really rare that it takes that long to get a pair done. I wanted to make a pair of green socks for spring. I spun this merino a few months back. I got the roving from Spunky fibers. It was one of the roving of the month ones. I'm not sure when I got it but I really loved the way it spun up. I found the perfect spring pattern. Its comes from the current issue of Piecework (March/April 2008). This Nancy Bush pattern was inspired by Leili Reimann's Pitsilised Koekirjad ( knitted Lace) book. The pattern is called Wishbone and it was so much fun to knit up and I think it works just great with my handspun

Must have cardigan

I have also been knitting as I have been working through the spinning for the gansey. I have been working on the Must have cardigan that the Yarn Harlot talked about a couple of weeks ago. I have the fronts and the back done. I did change the pattern a bit by three needles binding off instead of just binding them off and then sewing them together. So now I on to the sleeves. I always knit them at that same time that way if there is a mistake on the increasing it will be at the same place on each of the sleeves. I am hoping to have it all done by the end of this week, but we will see. I am also working on the sock pattern by Nancy Bush that is in the current issue of Pieceworks. If you have not seen these socks then its worth checking out. I am using some of my hand spun from Spunky fibers. Speaking of Spunky fibers I also spun up 2 ounces of a merino tencil roving that she calls Aspen. I ended up with 128 yards of a fingering 2ply. I have no idea what I am going to knit with it but if has such a wonderful feel to it. I'm thinking a narrow scarf with a lace leaf pattern would work up just wonderfully.

My big spinning project for 2008

My husband and I were talking earlier today about my spinning and knitting. I think I am becoming a spinner who knits instead of a knitter who spins. In other words I am now more likely to buy roving instead of yarn. I still like knitting and am always working on something. But I do think about spinning projects more. For the past few years I pick a big project to work on. It has been something that I would spin for then knit. Last year I dyed some roving and made a top down sweater. A couple of years ago I washed, carded then spun for a sweater. Well this year I wanted to kick it up a bit. This year I am working on spinning for a gansey. I bought 3 pounds of roving from a friend of mine. Its from Kramer yarns and the colorway is spice. I plan to knit the White gansey from Beth Brown-Reinsel's book Knitting Ganseys. Well for my size I need 2100 yards of a sport weight yarn. Which seems like a huge amount, but I was confident that I could spin that much with the three pounds. So I looked up what I needed for WPI. I found a web site online that said I needed 14 wpi. So I started out on my first three balls of roving. Well once I got all of it spun and then plied I ended up with only 388 yards. Oh boy was I way off. It was 14 wpi but there was no way I would have enought roving to spin the sweater. So after lots and lots of thought. I decided to do some more research and found that I really needed to get 18 wpi for a sport. I really wanted to spin a 3 ply as I really like the look of the yarn better. So I went and got a 4 ounce ball of the same type of roving. I really need to at some point buy a spinners control card. So I looked around the web and found one for 15 with shipping. Well I am a bit of a cheap skate so I decided to find a 3 ply sport yarn and use that as a guide. I found a ball of Bernat sport at the local Micheals. while I was there I was caught buying crappy yarn by a student of mine so I had to explain why I was buying the yarn.
Oh well. When I got home I got to work. I divided my roving into thirds and got to spinning. When I got the spinning and plying all done I ended up with a 18 wpi sport weight with the feel that I like but it only came out with 197 yards. So I am still about 40 yards short of what I should have for 4 ounces. So with what I have left of the spice roving (9 4 oz. balls) I will be about 327 yards short. So what I think I will do now is get started again on the spice roving and try to make the singles a bit thinner and see what I end up with. If I have to add in some of the stuff I first spun I will. Think I will add the thicker stuff at the cuffs and the bottom ribbing and the neck edge. So my question for you all is, have you knit the white gansey? Did it take as much yarn as the pattern calls for and how did it turn out for you? Have you spun a 3 ply sport and what was the yardage that you came up with?

I must be totally crazy!

OK so mark it down. I have totally gone crazy! Last week while I was reading the Yarn Harlots blog, I saw the Must have Cardigan. Well I just fell in love with the pattern. So I thought I really need to make it . Now here is where the crazy part comes in. I decided to knit this cardigan in black. I have ten balls of Galway in black that I had planned another sweater that I am using. I have so far completed one and half repeats on the back. The pattern comes from the Plymouth book called Street Smart and it really is called the Must Have Cardigan. The pattern is only sized to a 41 on a size 7 needle so what I did was go up a needle size to an 8 and now its going to be a 44 chest, which is what I will need. I also plan to make it a bit longer too. Even though I'm working with black so far I'm not having to much trouble seeing the stitches. I have to say it is so much fun to knit.

Big Bag Swap info

Below are my answers to the Big Bag Swap. If you are looking for a neat little swap then check out http://bigbagkalswap.blogspot.com I know that they are still taking sign ups. The idea of this swap is to knit the big bag ( a free pattern that knits up really fast) then fill it with goodies for your partner.


Do you knit, crochet, or do both? For how long? I have been crocheting for 20 years, Knitting for 10
What other crafts do you do, if any? Hand spinning is my favorite "other craft" but I also tat and do some needlepoint
What are your favorite colors? greens and purples Colors you loathe? Pastels and orange, yellow
Favorite yarn brands? for felting Lopi and Lopi light Fiber types? wool Yarn you can't stand? acrylics
What is your favorite type of item to knit/crochet? socks, sweaters really all kinds of stuff
What kind of needles do you like? (i.e. circular, straight, metal, bamboo, etc.) I only use Dps for socks and circular for everything else. I have an allergy to metal so my favorites are the old Susan bates nylon but they aren't made anymore. I really like the feel of Knit Picks harmony needles but so far I only have size 1 dps
Any knitting tools you lack but crave? Knit Picks harmony needles
Patterns you've been dying to get but haven't yet? not really
Do you drink coffee, tea, cocoa? Flavors you love/hate? I love sugar free decaf coffee
Favorite sweets & snacks? Dark Chocolate
Any pets, kids, spouses? Spouses that act like pets or kids? (j/k) One spouse, three daughters ages 17,13 and 9
Favorite things to knit/crochet for the above, if applicable?
What kinds of books do you like to read? Favorite authors or genres? mysteries
Do you collect anything? (besides yarn! LOL!) sheep stuff
What, if any, are your non-craft related hobbies? I love to watch an old cheezy western, Roy Rogers, etc.
Scents you adore?Lavender Scents that make you gag? vanilla or fruity
What is your idea of a relaxing time? quiet afternoon either knitting or spinning
Oh yeah, are you on Ravelry and if so, care to share your Ravelry ID? yarnsnthreads

Can you spin a bulky yarn?

When you first become a spinner its really easy to spin a think and thin yarn. Once you get more practice in then you can spin a bulky. Well once you have spun for awhile it become easy to spin a sock yarn or as some would call it frog hair. The real hard part is to spin a bulky yarn once you get to the frog hair stage. So this past weekend I attended a Spin In. My goal for the day, besides adding to the stash, I wanted to spin a bulky. Now that may sound like it would be easy. Well it was and it wasn't. I really had to think about what I was doing. But I am happy with the result. This is a hand painted roving that I got from Spunky fiber club about a year ago. Its called Down under. I ended up with about 140 yards in this 4 ounce ball of roving its also very soft which I'm real happy about. Next I want to spin a worsted weight yarn. I have a project planned that I will need 800 yards for a pound of roving.

Color work...What fun

Ok so I recently joined a group on ravelry,called New Project Knit Swap group. Well this was my first kit. What the idea of this swap is to send your partner eveything that they would need to knit a project. Yarn, needles and the pattern. Well I loved this kit. I have seen the Knit Picks harmony needles but have never held them in my hands or knit with them. Well I'm in love. They are so smooth plus they are really pretty to look at . The yarn is knit picks palette in purple and mint. Now when I saw the colors in the balls I wasn't so sure they would look all the great together but as you can see the mitts look just great. I had so much fun knitting these that I think Iwill make some for Christmas gifts this next year. By the way you can find this free pattern by doing a search for endpapers mitts.

Well you know how the best laid plans can go

When it comes to knitting sometimes things can go so wrong is so many ways and so quickly too. I have been working on a top down cable sweater for a while now. I have had to put it down to finish up some Christmas gifts, store samples and other goodies. Well today I was finally able to get back to it. As I was looking it over to find out where I am in the pattern. I got to looking at it and thought humm the collar really looks tall. So I did what any smart person would do. Which is something I don't always do, heck I rarely do. I put the whole thing on a life line and slipped it over my neck. Well if I was a giraffe I was in good shape. Now I wouldn't say I'm neckless either but there was no way I could wear this sweater and not feel like I was recovering from wiplash. So out it will come. I'm not sure what I plan to do with the yarn. I would still like to knit a very classic looking black sweater. That way in about 10 to 15 years when I want a black sweater I will have one already, because I know by then I won't be able to see well enought to knit with black. Oh the pains of getting older. I have been looking at the must have cardigan in the Patons book booklet called Street Smart. I first saw this pattern on the Yarn Harlot's blog earlier this week and am leaning towards knitting it with the black yarn. Yea I know I'm crazy but what else is new.

Favorite yarns and spring knitting

Even though its still the middle of February this week it as being acting a lot like spring around here, so its got me to thinking about what I would like to knit for spring. Now I know Idaho weather can change on a dime. We could have a foot of snow next week, but I am hopeful just the same. As you may remember this year I have been working on things that I can show at the state fair later this year, so with that in mind I have been thinking of my big spinning and knitting project. What I would like to do this year is spin the yarn to knit a gansey. I have 3 pounds of roving in a spice color and I think I have a pattern picked that will work with the roving. So next week I plan to get started on the spinning while I finish up a top down cabled sweater that I have been working on. I think I will have the cabled sweater finished when the yarn is ready for the gansey. I plan on making a three ply that is about a Dk weight. So look for pic to come.

Every time I get asked about what is your favorite yarn, I first say it all depends on what I'm working on. I have say first and for most I really do love to knit with my handspun. With each new skein my spinning gets better and better. But when it comes to store yarn I do have a list.
For discloths I really think there is nothing better then Sugar and Cream http://www.sugarncream.com/ it has a great feel and the colors are just great.
Now when it come to socks I can't pick just one. I really like plymouth Happy feet
http://www.plymouthyarn.com/index.php?nav=cYarn.yarnDetail&yarnid=000284&searchcollection=000005&pattern_id=001887#pattern-tab

I also really like Araucania multi sock yarn, for that matter I really like the worsted and the chunky too.
www.araucaniayarns.com
I also like Mountain colors bearfoot
http://www.mountaincolors.com
and Jitter bug
www.colinette.com
Each one of these sock yarns have a great feel and I just love the colors. I also have in my stash some socks that rock and some of the new sock yarn from Berroco. I haven't knit with either of them yet so I'm not sure how they will work out, I'm sure they will be great.
When it comes to a DK weight in my opinion there is nothing better then Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool. http://www.yarnbarn.com/yarn/colorcard.asp?partNo=KY-ELV-SILKY. I love the colors and its feel. Its just a wonderful yarn.

When it comes to a worsted weight yarn I really love Plymouth's Galway. This yarn is soft enought to knit a sweater with and not feel scatchy. I can feel the tags on a Tshirt so I know about scatchy. It also felts wonderfully,even the white. http://www.plymouthyarn.com/index.php?nav=cYarn.yarnDetail&yarnid=000110&searchcollection=000005

When it comes to a bulky I really love Cascade's Eco wool. The yardage is huge 487 for about 15 bucks. Its really soft and knit up wonderfully.http://www.cascadeyarns.com/cascade-eco.asp

Now every once in awhile a person needs a special yarn so I would have to say my fav in that area is Silk purse from Alchemy yarns. www.alchemyyarns.com . Really anything from Alchemy is totally cool. I have worked with just about all her yarns and I just love them. I have no idea how she comes up with such great colors but I really glad she does.

Lastly a new one that I have really like has been plymouth's Suri Merino. I have been looking at this yarn for almost a year at my LYS and I finally pick up some and I just love the feel. I chose a dark plum and I think it will work up just great. http://www.plymouthyarn.com/index.php?nav=cYarn.yarnDetail&yarnid=000183&searchcollection=000012

SO for now these are my favorite yarns but I do have to confess I may not stay true to them as it seem that there is always a new yarn to try out that has just arrived at the LYS.

Valentie's Day

OK so I really couldn't let Valentine's Day go by with out a little comment. First of all I really can't think of a favorite Valentine's day from my past. What I do remember is the neat thing my Dad did for all the years I can remember before I was married. He would always buy me a box of chocolate and give me a card. Which might not seem like a big deal but when you are 15 and have no boyfriends or even a hopes for one it was nice to know you are loved. Well I am happy to say that my husband has conitued this tradition. Each year he buys some candy and usually a stuff animal for each of my daughters. This year was no execption. It was really special, because out 17 and 13 years were so trilled that they took their stuff animals to school to show them off. There are not to many teenage girls that are that proud of their Dad's that they would tell their friends about it.

Can these socks be yours?

Finally! I have my socks for my sock it to me twice partner finished. It seem that every time I sat down to knit on these sock it seem that something would come up. The pattern is one of my all time favorites. Its called little arrowhead lace socks by Nancy Bush. It can be found at her web site. www.woolywest.com. The yarn is plymouth happy feet, the color way is #12.