Month: January 2007

I recently signed up for a knitting buddy exchange and had to introduce myself to my buddy. I figured it would make a good blog entry.

I’m from Baltimore, MD and used to work in Washington, DC. Now I live in Nebraska and still experience culture shock now and then.

I’m a graphic designer and loved the advertising world, just hated the stress. Now I am self-employed and love being my own boss.

I have a baby girl, who is 4 1/2 months old. I take care of her and work from home. I’m still trying to balance all of that out.

I’ve been knitting for two years and I’m hopelessly addicted to it. A friend of mine taught me how to knit because she thought it might help me with anxiety and stress. This was about a year after we moved to Nebraska for my husband’s job and he decided to quit and start his own business. Knitting has kept me quite sane, and his business is doing well, so I guess everything has worked out.

I have taught a few people to knit, one of whom is my mother. None of them have stuck with it. I hope that isn’t a reflection on my teaching abilities!

I regularly attend two different knitting groups in Lincoln and I’ve met some of the most wonderful women through them.

I have a cat who is almost 15 years old. I love her dearly and hate that she is getting old.

I’ve been to England a few times. The first was to take a London Theater class in college. I lived in Maida Vale for five weeks and going to the theater was my “homework.” I fell in love with the city and almost didn’t come back to the US! The second was with my husband. We stayed in London a few days on the way back from a trip to India. We were horribly jet lagged—up too early and to bed too early. We had fun, but it was definitely a different kind of trip than when I was in school! We’ll be heading to Brighton this summer. My brother-in-law is getting married and his fiancée has dual citizenship. Maybe with a little planning, we can meet up and knit together! You’ll have to advise me on yarn stores.

I have a blog (like everyone else these days) to stay in touch with friends and family on the east coast. Occasionally I post about my knitting.

My birthday is in November. I love the Fall season and hate to see Christmas decorations out before Thanksgiving. The retail industry always seem to rush us through my favorite time of year.

I thought I’d have a tough time writing this, but it seems like I can babble on about myself quite easily.

It all started one Sunday morning in November:

Me: Why is Liz calling on a Sunday morning?

…Hello.

Liz: Kay Gardiner is coming to String of Purls to teach a Log Cabin class on December 28th. I’m calling at noon to register myself and Mary Pat. Wanna go?

Me: Yes!

Notice I didn’t ask any questions like: How much does it cost? What’s the time? Will I be able to get someone to look after M? I just say “Yes!”

For you non-knitters out there, Kay is from Mason Dixon Knitting and wrote the pattern for M’s baby blanket in the book she co-authored with Ann Shayne. Y’all, this is my favorite knitting book right now and I want to knit practically every pattern. And the log cabining—well, I just love it.

I was lucky that Jocelyn was free that day; she took M while I headed up to Omaha for a fun-filled day with yarn. The class was awesome (you can see me right over Kay’s shoulder). Kay is a great speaker and shared her thoughts on knitting, log cabining, yarn, color and more. We worked on a pillow cushion that I am knitting up in a color scheme to match our bedroom. After the class, I bought the Manos for my socks and then we went to lunch. Before we had a chance to order, guess who walked in needing a lunch buddy? Kay! So we got to have lunch with her and talk about the book and publishing process.

After lunch it was off to Personal Threads. Every year after the holidays they have a huge yarn sale. I finally got to touch yarns that I had only seen online and wound up with some Koigu KPPPM and some Noro Kureyon.

It was my first day away from M for more than a few hours and I was worried that I wouldn’t do so well. Thank goodness I had all that knitting and yarn to keep myself from going crazy. Great friends, knitting and yarn—you can’t ask for anything more!

A few weeks ago I signed up for another KAL. This one was also for Larissa’s book; a quick an easy sock knit in Manos del Uruguay. I have always wanted to try this yarn and I was planning a trip to our LYS in a few days. I have a lot of knitting projects on my plate right now and I needed a new one like a hole in the head, but I couldn’t resist. The colorway I picked was beautiful and since I live in brown, black and denim, it was a perfect choice. It was as if the stars had aligned and said “You must knit these socks.”

And now I am in love with Manos. These are the softest and warmest socks I have ever owned. I’m debating a whole sweater in Manos. Oh, to wrap myself up in that warm and soft wool—how divine! I think this is maybe how yarn addictions start. I must be careful, or next year I’ll be taking the knit from your stash challenge.