She did it... she really did it!

She really dyed her hair purple! My cousin will have purple hair until her red roots start coming in again (that's a scary combo, no?) The things she will do to support her cause for multiple sclerosis are extraordinary. Go Robyn!!!! I'm so proud of you, honey.

Month of May Swap

About Your Yarn Passion

1. Do you knit, crochet, or do both? When did you first learn? I do both, but I don't really enjoy crocheting (possibly because I could only do granny squares and it got boring after a while. It's also a pain sewing all of those squares together). I really enjoy knitting and do it every day. I love the assortment of yarns available and the fabric that knitting makes. I learned when I was about five or so and did not knit for years, but I have been knitting consistently now for about the past 15 years.


2. Do you like using a particular type of needle or hook? (wood, metal, straight, circular) Is there something you've been wanting to try, or a particular size you always seem to be short on? I love the Knit Picks Harmony needles and have many of them. I'd like to try the longer options needles, but not the interchangeables. I just treated myself to several Addi Lace needles and had them shipped from Germany. They are excellent! I am always short of size 8 needles. I usually have five or six projects going at once and they usually seem to need size 8s.


3. What kind of projects do you enjoy making? Any types you just haven't ever gotten into as much as others? I love making baby clothes. They just seem to go so quickly and it's great getting that instant gratification. I find that I knit in cycles... right now I'm into making lace shawls interspersed with longies and hats.



4. What's on your needles\hook right now? What's your oldest UFO (unfinished object)? On my needles currently are a shawl for my daughter's teacher, a pair of longies, the start of a blanket and I'm about to start a sweater for my brother-in-law so I can have it in time for his birthday. My oldest unfinished object is a sweater for my daughter that I started when she was 3 and has outgrown years ago (because she's now 12). Obviously, if it ever gets finished, it will be for someone else.


5. What are your favorite types of yarns? Any you're allergic too, or just hate working with? Anything in particular you've been dying to try? My all time favorite yarn is 100 Pure Wool from Uruguay. I am not allergic to anything, but I dislike working with acrylic. I would love to try Socks That Rock. I just have not gotten around to ordering any yet.


6. What sort of colors do you love in yarns? Brights? Pastels? More muted colors? Variegated? Are there any you can't stand? I love variegated colors, jewel tones, earth tones, the brighter, the better. I'm not a fan of pastels or baby colors. I pretty much like most colors, EXCEPT bright orange or yellow. I dye a lot of my own yarns and enjoy that very much.

About coffee and chocolate...

1. Do you prefer caffeinated or not? decaf for me please... can't handle the caffeine.

2. Whole bean or ground? For what type of pot or press? I use single serve packets for my single serve coffee maker.


3. Do you enjoy going out to coffee shops like Starbucks? What are some of your favorites? I don't particularly care of Starbucks. I think their coffee is exceedingly strong or they just burn it. And let's not mention the cost factor. They are so expensive it's ridiculous. I love coffee in diners and Dunkin' Donuts.

4. What kinds of chocolate or candy do you like? Is there anything you won't eat? I love all things chocoloate, vanilla and caramel. I would never eat coconut. My favorite candy (currently, because it changes often) is Twizzlers multicolored package. Yum!

All about YOU!
1. Do you have other hobbies like spinning or scrapbooking? I did scrapbooking religiously when my daughter was born and right through her fifth birthday and then I let it go. I should pick it up again because it seems as if her life stopped when I stopped scrapbooking, hahahahaha. I like to make my own stitch markers. I dye my own yarns and then knit one-of-a-kind garments from that. I read voraciiously and absolutely love www.paperbackswap.com .


2. Do you collect anything? Books. I buy them as my authors write and then I throw them on my "to be read" shelf in my living room. That shelf is 18' long and now is lined double deep with books waiting to be read.


3. What sort of scents do you enjoy? Any difference in what you like for your house versus what you like for your body? I love the smell of vanilla for both my house and my body. I also love citrus smells for both. My favorite perfume scent is Elizabeth Arden's Red Door.

4. Are you allergic to anything? Nope

5. Are you on Ravelry? What's your ID? Yes, it should be dontquityourdyejob but it ran out of space, so it's dontquityourdyej.

100 Things About Me

I've seen this list on several blogs and never thought I'd do it myself because I'm just not that interesting and didn't think I'd have many items on the list to bold, but here goes...

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band, well an orchestra anyway
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo i karaoke counts
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (nah, I'd scare too many people, hahahahaha)
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (I'm assuming Cos Cob counts)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied for a brief, shining moment
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance (too many times)
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (with dolphins)
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater (ah, those were the days!)
55. Been in a movie (how about was on TV six times?)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (3 of them)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (though I never was a girl scout)
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (and Newsweek Magazine)
85. Read the entire Bible (assigned reading in college)
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club (see >paperbackswap link above!)
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Totally copied a post from someone else’s blog to your own (only this one)