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Thursday, January 09, 2014

Ravelry, a Swap, and Yarn

On the weekend, I was surfing around Ravelry, checking out patterns and the forum.  I remembered taking part in a few swaps and secret pals, and thought Id look to see if there were any currently going on.  From what I could see, there was no secret pal (it almost sounded like there had been a lot of people not following through on obligations, so they turned it into various swaps), but there were several different swaps going on.

One of the swaps I took part in a few years ago was the International Scarf Exchange. Unfortunately, I ended up losing that scarf (I think one day when I was doing some supply teaching. I either lost it, or it was taken out of my bag – which could have happened at the particular school I was at.  However, it doesnt look like that one is going on, though there are some starting up in that group – they are just under different names.
Anyway, I joined one that is called the Alphabet Swap.  In the package, we have to send 3-5 items (have to double check if that includes the scarf we knit, or if that is in addition to the scarf), and the items must all start with the first five letters of the alphabet.  So, for example, you might send a skein of Alpaca yarn,  the scarf might be shades of blue, there might be some chocolate, a pattern for an item that starts with a d (the name of the pattern that is), etc.

The lady Ive been partnered with in the swap lives in Wisconsin. Since this isnt a secret pal type of exchange, we are allowed to contact the other person and ask questions.  We can also stalk their profile, questionnaires and posts with regards to things they are interested in to possibly include in the package we send.

Im looking for different patterns as options to knit for her, but havent settled on anything just yet (we only just got our partner names last evening) and Im waiting for her to contact me before I make any final decisions.  Also, I want to know if there is a specific colour she would like me to use.  Then I need to get the yarn – which might mean I need to order it online and that could take awhile to get to me (at least two weeks).  We have to have our packages mailed out by February 14th, so Id like to get started on this ASAP.

About a week ago, I visited the Knit Picks website because they were offering free shipping to Canada on orders over a certain amount.  Well, I surfed their site to look for some yarn, patterns, kits or whatever caught my interest.  I havent bought any yarn online for eons (Ive bought a bit of yarn in the last few years, but its been from Michaels or Wal-Mart), and I thought I would treat myself – sort of a Christmas present to myself.

I ended up ordering a couple of patterns (argyle hat and mittens).  I will post a link to them in the next post and also Ill take a picture of the yarn I ordered for the patterns as well.  I should be getting that package in the next week, so Im kind of excited for that.  And, since my birthday is coming up in less than two weeks, I think I might just ordered some more yarn as a birthday present for myself.  This time, I think Im going to order from the Loopy Ewe, which I also havent ordered from in a long while.

Well, off to do some more searching on Ravelry for scarf patterns for my scarf swap partner!

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