Sooza's Knitting Stuff

 
This spring I've put five little plants of the lovely herb we call 'Waldmeister' in front of our house in the hopes of having a decorative as well as useful addition to our garden. And to my utter delight so far they are obviously thriving well in the shadowy north facing spot. Today I picked some branches, let them wilt for a bit and then dipped them into a jug of white wine/water mixture for about 30 minutes. The 'Waldmeister' gives off its particular flavour into the wine and makes a lovey 'May vine'.

Galium odoratum is a perennial plant in the family Rubiaceae, native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. A herbaceous plant, it grows to 30-50 cm (12-20 ins.) long, often lying flat on the ground or supported by other plants. Its vernacular names include woodruff, sweet woodruff, and wild baby's breath; master of the woods is probably a translation of the German Waldmeister. It is sometimes confused with Galium triflorum and Galium verum.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galium_odoratum

Ja, gestern war es wieder so weit. Ich bin wieder ein Jahr älter. Ich nehm es locker, was soll man auch sonst tun. Es war also mein Geburtstag und der beste Ehemann von allen ist an meinem Geburtstag außer Landes. Und trotzdem schafft er es, mir eine riesige Geburtstagsüberaschung zu bereiten. Ich konnte aus seinem Versteck im Kleiderschrank einen funkelnden, niegelnagelneuen iMac hervorholen. Mein alter Computer gab so langsam aber sicher den Geist auf und ein neuer war ein ganz großer Wunsch. Und nun steht er hier und ich bin begeistert. Einziger Wehmutstropfen: Es gibt keine Apfeltaste mehr Die war doch immer so süüüüüß

Yeah, it was this day of the year again. Again I'm one year older. It doesn't feel any different than the day before yesterday. As I said, it was my birthday and the best husband of all is abroad for a business trip which is kind of sad but can't be helped. But he still manages to procure the greatest birthday surprise ever. A call clued me in that in the back of our bedroom wardrobe a big box was waiting for me. And in the big box was a shiny new iMac! Wow! What a present. He is without a doubt THE BEST. And now it sits on my desk all ready for work and I'm totally smitten. The only drawback: They dumped the Apple key Not that anyone really needs it for anything but it was soooo cute

Did I ever tell you that my handknit socks have to withstand the most horrible treatment imaginable? They go through the washer with all my other clothes at 30-40°C, they have to endure fabric softener and last but not least they have to put up with my feet. Commercial sock yarn is usually more than up to these tasks without complaining. So far some did better than others but all in all my socks are usually with me for a long, long time. You want to know what happend to this one pair of socks knit out of lovely Colinette JitterBug sock yarn that's supposedly "easy care Merino"? It gets treated just the same as the other socks in my sock drawer because that's what I always do with ALL my socks, of course. I seem to remember that the label read "easy care" but there was also this little symbol incicating a washing machine. So what can possibly happen? Obviously "easy care" is NOT the same as "machine washable" even though it might take a couple of washings to show. What can I say other than "May they rest in peace"?! Maybe that I'll stick to real commercial sock yarn in the future or at least to the stuff that's been 100% washing machine tested?

Auch diese Woche fragt das Wollschaf wieder was: Weißt du noch, was das erste Strickblog war, das dir über den Weg gelaufen ist? Und wie lange hat es gedauert vom Entdecken der Strickblogwelt bis zum eigenen Blog? Vielen Dank an Eva Liese für die heutige Frage!

Ich habe ehrlich gesagt keine Ahnung, welches Strickblog mir als erstes begegnet ist. Ich meine mich zu erinnern, dass ich relativ spät von dem "Trend" mitbekommen habe und dann einfach mal nach "Strickblog" gegoogelt habe. Es tat sich eine Welt für mich auf. Allerdings habe ich mir das ganze erst mal eine Weile angeschaut, habe regelmäßig Blogs gelesen und das noch ein wenig kritisch beäugt. Bis ich von meiner Website (die sich leider immer so schlecht aktuell halten ließ) auf ein eigenes Blog umgestiegen bin hat es also noch eine Weile gedauert. Mittlerweile gibt es mein Blog aber schon 2,5 Jahre. Kinder wie die Zeit verrennt.

Es hat mich nicht losgelassen, das Thema Scones. Es kann doch nicht so schwierig sein, mit so ein paar grundlegenden Zutaten was Vernüftiges hinzubekommen. Ich habe also noch mal das Internet gewälzt und mich zum Thema belesen. Sehr schön ausführlich kann man sich bei JoyofBAKING.com Appetit auf Gebäck aller Arten holen. Mit einem klassischen Scones-Rezept bewaffnet habe ich mich heute also noch mal daran gemacht. Das Resultat war auch beim zweiten mal eher bescheiden Der Teig war extrem kleberig, so dass er sich praktisch überhaupt nicht wie vorgeschrieben kneten ließ. Die Teile waren wieder lecker nur eben irgendwie keine richtigen Scones. Also alles zurück auf Anfang und dieses mal mit einer Variation des ursprünglichen Rezeptes ans Werk. Schon die Sache mit dem Kneten ging nun wesentlich besser. Was da aus dem Ofen kam sah nun endlich aus wie Scones, hatte diese weich-krümelige Konsistenz wie sie Scones eigen ist und schmeckten noch besser als alle vorherigen Versuche. Wäre doch gelacht gewesen, wenn mich so ein bißchen Backwerk unterkriegt.

Scones Rezept - variiert von Sooza
280 g Mehl
50 g Zucker
1 Pck. Vanillezucker
10 g (2/3 Pck.) Backpulver
Prise Salz
80 g kalte (ungesalzene) Butter
1 Ei, leich geschlagen
120 ml Buttermilch

Trockene Zutaten gründlich vermengen. Kalte Butter in kleine Stücke schneiden in die Mehlmischung geben und mit den Fingern möglichst zügig zu groben Krümeln verarbeiten. Ei und Buttermilch verquirlen. Die Flüssigkeit schrittweise zu den Streuseln geben und verrühren. Nur so viel Flüssigkeit zugießen, bis Teig eine kohärente Konsistenz hat und noch nicht zu feucht und kleberig erscheint. Nicht übermäßig verrühren. Teig auf bemehlter Arbeitsfläche leicht kneten und zu einem runden 4 bis 5 cm dicken Laib formen. In dreieckige, nicht zu große Stücke schneiden und diese aufs Backblech legen. Bei 190°C (Umluft) 15 bis 18 min backen.

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Yesterday's scones - I just couldn't let it go. How hard could be, honestly. It's only baking for goodness sake. And not a lot of ingredients at that. So I consulted the internet again and read up on the whole topic. A wealth of information on baking all kinds of stuff can be found at JoyofBAKING.com. Armed with a classic scones recipe I set out once again. But things were not looking up. Even though I followed the instructions to the letter the dough turned out very moist and way too sticky and there was hardly any way to kned it. Well, I got those suckers into the oven but as you might guess, they came out not very scones-like. Taste was good but again - no scones. Alright, back to square one. I took the basic recipe and varied it a bit. And suddenly things went as I wanted them to go. The dough wasn't as sticky anymore and kneding actually worked this time. What I got out of the oven this time finally resembled scones and they had this soft-but-crumbly thing going. Yummy. Now who's the champion here

Scones Recipe - Variation by Sooza
280 g flour
50 g sugar
1 packet vanilla sugar
10 g baking powder
dash of salt
80 g cold (unsalted) butter
1 egg, slightly beaten
120 ml buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients thoroughly. Cut cold butter into small pieces and blend to mixture until it looks like coarse crumbs. Whisk egg and buttermilk and pour gradually into dough. Stop as soon as dough seems to gain a coherent consistancy and is not yet too sticky. Do not overmix. Kned dough gently on floured surface and form a round loaf about 4-5 cm thick. Cut into triangular, not overly large pieces and place onto tray and put into oven for 15-18 min at 190°C.

Angeregt vom gestrigen Stricktreff im Teehaus Aurum und den dortigen sehr leckeren Scones dachte ich mir, ich probiere diese Dinger selbst einmal. So schwer kann es ja nicht sein. Obwohl, vor einiger Zeit hatten wir mit unserer original aus dem Vereinigten Königreich stammenden Strickerin BerlinerBabe beim Stricktreffen eine angeregte Diskussion über das richtige Backen von Scones, die Unterschiede zwischen Jam und Marmelade und was es mit Clotted Cream und Lemon Curd so auf sich hat usw. Ganz so einfach scheint die Sache also nicht zu sein. Eine Recherche im Internet beförderte dann auch jede Menge unterschiedliche Rezepte zu Tage. Ich habe noch dazu ein Kochbuch konsultiert und dann einfach mal eine in meinen Augen sinnvolle Version gebacken.

Ergebnis: Geschmack - lecker, Konsistenz - so wie Scones, Aussehen - leider mehr wie Kekse, nicht wie Scones. Dazu gabs leckere Erdbeermarmelade von Landliebe und Ersatz-Clotted-Cream aus je einem Teil Butter und einem Teil Mascarpone.

Nächstes mal: Eventuell Buttermilch anstatt Sahne für den Teig, noch mehr Backpulver, richtige kalte Butter für den Teig verwenden, nicht ganz so gründlich kneten, Teig nicht so dünn ausrollen.

Inspired by yesterdays knit meet at tea room Aurum who serve very tasty scones I thought it would be cool to bake some scones myself. Couldn't be all that hard. But right then a discussion with our resident UK knitter BerlinerBabe sprang to mind about the best recipe for scones, the differences between jam, jelly and marmelade, what clotted cream and lemon curd was all about and so on. Well, might not be quite as easy. But I'm always up for a challenge. I searched the internet for recipes, consulted a cook book I own and made up my own scones.

Results: taste - yummy and very scones-like, consistency - like the scones I know, appearence - more like tea biscuits and not quite like scones. I had tasty strawberry jam and ersatz clotted cream (1 part butter 1 part mascarpone)

Strategies for next time: maybe use buttermilk instead of cream, use a tad more baking powder, use really cold butter for making the dough, kned not quite as thouroughly, roll out dough not quite as thin

Die Rittersterne (Hippeastrum) sind eine Pflanzengattung aus der Familie der Amaryllisgewächse (Amaryllidaceae). Die Rittersterne umfassen etwa 80 Arten von Zwiebelpflanzen, die in Südamerika in Gebieten mit einer ausgeprägten Trockenzeit wachsen. Die in Europa als Zierpflanzen kultivierten Rittersterne sind überwiegend Hybriden. Die Hippeastrum-Hybriden enthalten, ebenso wie auch die Belladonnalilie das Alkaloid Lycorin.
Umgangssprachlich werden die Arten dieser Gattung oft auch Amaryllis genannt beziehungsweise mit Vertretern der Gattung Amaryllis verwechselt. Ursprünglich war von Carl von Linné die Gattung Amaryllis viel weiter gefasst worden als heute. Später kam es dann zu einer Aufteilung der Großgattung und zur Abspaltung der südamerikanischen Gattung Hippeastrum. Botanisch korrekt klassifiziert umfasst Amaryllis heute ausschließlich die südafrikanische Gattung Amaryllis mit der Belladonnalilie (A. belladonna). Mehr in Wikipedia >

Hippeastrum is a genus of about 70-75 species and 600+ hybrids and cultivars of bulbous plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas from Argentina north to Mexico and the Caribbean. Some species are grown for their large showy flowers. These plants are popularly but erroneously known as Amaryllis, an African genus in the same family.
"Hippeastrum" is Greek for "horseman's star" (also known today as "knight's star") and was chosen in 1837 by the Honorable Reverend William Herbert, Dean of Manchester. No one is entirely sure why he picked this name although buds on the verge of opening do look something like a horse's ear and clearly the blossoms do resemble six-pointed stars. It seems likely however, as William Herbert was both a clergyman and something of an expert on early medieval history, that he chose the name because of the plants striking resemblance to the 'morning star', a medieval weapon used by horsemen. A version of the weapon was also called a 'holy water sprinkler', an ecclesiastical object the Dean would have been familiar with. Read more on Wikipedia >

Gerade las ich im Blog von Yarnharlot einen unglaublichen Beitrag über Blue Moon Fiberarts und deren Sockenstrickclub. Ihre Bank hat hinter dem Geschäftsmodell - Kunden werden Mitglieb, überweisen Geld und erhalten in regelmäßigen Abständen Sockengarn - einen großangelegten Betrug vermutet und hat das von Kunden per Kreditkarte überwiesene Geld zurückgewiesen! Auch nach Erläuterung des Geschäftsmodells bei der Bank war man dort überzeugt, dass es nicht so viele Leute geben kann, die an Sockenstricken interessiert sind (sic!). Hallo?! Auf welchem Planeten leben die denn?!
> Yarnharlot berichtet über den Vorgang (EN)

Reading Yarnharlot's blog I was totally dumbfounded at her latest article concerning Blue Moon Fiberarts' sock knitting club. Obviously their bank assumed some sort of elaborate scam and refunded people subscribing to the Rockin' Sock Club 2007 their money. Even after they got the business model explained - people subscribe to the club, send money and regularily receive sock yarn to knit of course socks - they refused to support the idea. They could not be convinced that this many people actually want to knit socks! Helllllooooo!!! On which planet are they living exactly?!
> Read Yarnharlot's blog entry about the whole sad thing



Passend zum Thema sind auf dem oben stehenden Bild zwei gerade heute angekommene Knäule handgefärbtes Sockengarn von der mittlerweile in Bloggerkreisen recht berühmten Wollmeise zu sehen. Ich habe noch nie mit dem Garn gestrickt und bin schon sehr gespannt. Farben: Veilchen (oben), Am kalten Polar (unten).

Quite fitting for this whole topic is the picture above showing just recently arrived skeins of sock yarn - hand-dyed by the infamous Wollmeise. I've never tried this yarn before and can't wait get my fingers and needles on it. My chosen colors are Veilchen/Violets (top) and Am kalten Polar/At the Cold Pole (bottom).

Lolly from Lolly Knitting Around initiated this fun experience and since I've got quite a few socks coming up for the holiday season I thought it would be fun to join the Socktoberfest.

And off we go into the fun with the Socktoberfest meme:

When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?
My grandma has been knitting socks as long as I can remember. One time I asked her about how she does it and she taught me to turn the heel, to pick up gusset stitches and to do the toe. That has been years ago when I still was a teenager. All the other flashy techniques like short row heels, toe-up-socks or socks on circular needles I learned from the internet. I enjoy varying the techniques I use depending on pattern, yarn or situation but I'm still doing most of my socks the way my grandma taught me - heel flap and nordic heel.

What was your first pair? How have they "held up" over time?
As sad as it sounds, but I cannot remember. It has been so long since I've startet sock knitting. I seem to recall some cheap acrylic yarn in an apricot colour, but I might be mistaken.
My first pair out of real sock yarn I knit while I was in college. They where out of Regia 4-ply in a variegated camel colour. The socks did hold up admirably and I've worn them for years before even thinking about throwing them out.

What would you have done differently?
Being more careful with picking up the gusset stitches. It took some time to get the hang of that.

What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?
Most of the socks I've knit over the years were made out of variegated Regia yarn. It's the yarn most readily available around here and you can get it on discount quite often. I've used Opal yarn too and some skeins I liked, some skeins not such much. I'm not quite decided about the colours Opal yarn comes in. Some of their colour combinations are freaky. It makes you wonder about potential colour blindness in the designer. Lana Grossa sock yarn is nice too. They've got some cool stripe patterns. Oh, I've got one pair of socks out of Lorna's Laces Shepard sock yarn. Love the feel and hand of the yarn but it's definitely way too expensive compared to the wonderful Regia and Opal and Lana Grossa yarn that's available in the local stores.
I also like to work with cotton sock yarn from time to time.
Still on my list to try out one day are Trekking XXL, Koigu and the handdyed yarn from Wollmeise.

Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?
Since I'm a clumpsy chrocheter I refrain from doing it all that often let alone crochet socks. I'm most comfortable with 5 dpns, size 2.25 to 2.5 mm. Lately I've discovered the magic loop method which I like for the projects I take on travel or public transport - no having to worry about needles to fall out is a real relief.

Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)
For myself I still prefer grandma's nordic heel with a flap and the little short row cap. I still think it's best fitting heel. I do a short-row heel from time to time especially with toe-up-socks.

How many pairs have you made?
Too many to count. I've been knitting socks for at least 10 years now and each family member gets at least one per year, be it for Christmas or their birthday. This adds up to quite a few pairs over the years.

The following picture was taken in 2002 showing some of the socks I did over the year:

Ich konnte nicht umhin über dieses Quizergebnis zu grinsen. Mein Mann wüsste Geschichten zu erzählen | I couldn't help grinning at this quiz' result. Dearest husband could tell you stories

What kind of yarn are you?
	You are Mohair.You are a warm and fuzzy type who works well with others, doing your share without being too weighty. You can be stubborn and absolutely refuse to change your position once it is set, but that's okay since you are good at covering up your mistakes. Take this quiz!
Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

instigated by the wonderful and funny Grumperina

1. Wearable And Not So Wearable Things
Until a short time ago one out of two garments I knit usually ended up completely unwearable. It didn't matter whether I followed a commerical pattern or how religiously I swatched. It's gotten better with time, though. That's the reason why I often revert to knitting socks, shawls, gloves and such things. There will always be somebody who can wear them.

2. Too Short
I can't stand knitting socks on short DPNs. Obviously my hands are too large to handle them because I keep poking my palms on their rear end. For the fingers on gloves on the other hand I like them just fine. Go figure.

3. Sock Knitters Anonymus
I love knitting socks. I will never stop knitting socks, ever. There are times when there is hardly any room for large or more complex projects. But there will always be the time to knit a few rows on a colourful, stripy, plain stockinette stitch sock.

4. Of Holes And Other Practical Applications of Math
Knitting lace came to me easily and without even knowing what it was called. My grandma showed me the Feather and Fan pattern - which was all the rage in the late 80s and early 90s - and and explained about the increases and decreases and how the have to balance each other after your pattern rows are done. Patterns with yarn over and de-/increases have never been a mystery from then on. It's all in the math.

5. Stranded
Despite being a proficient long time knitter I have never done any large stranded knitting project. I am really planning to start something this fall though.

6. Beware Intarsia Knitting.
As much as I love lace and textured knitting as much do I abhor intarsia. The technique isn't to blame. It's me, I am sure. But no matter what I try it drives me around the bend. Stranded knitting I can understand. It appeals to me on a certain level but Intarsia with all those ittle, bittle, fickle pieces of yarn, a humongous amount of ends to weave in and the obligation to knit flat - *grrrr*. I like to go with Elizabeth Zimmerman's advice here "If you don't like it, don't do it".

7. Getting People Started
For years I've been asking myself why is it that scarves are regarded as perfect beginner projects. I started out with a scarf once, too. I taught my sister to knit with a scarf project. But me, I don't like knitting scarves. They are way too boring, take to long to complete. For a beginner I would now advice to choose something smaller. How about some pulse warmers? You can choose some fancy yarn, knit them flat in garter stitch or stockinette or rib and sew them up afterwards in any direction you like, maybe even leave a hole for the thumb. Perfect beginner project, if you ask me. And if you have an adventurous beginner you could even get them started with knitting in the round on 5 DPNS (YES *five*, not four).

8. Imperial Nonsense
Why is it that the imperial measuring system is so insistent on staying alive? I hate it, I really truely hate it. It's not logical and way too inaccurate. How the hell am I supposed to remeber that 12 inches are 1 foot? And how can you get your garments to fit if your smallest unit is one inch (which equals 25.4 whole mm)? And I hate the fact that some knitting magazines and publications - I'll refrain from telling any names here - still refuse to acknowledge that most of the world and therefore a good part of their audience deals in metric dimensions by now.

9. Of Right And Wrong
Yes, I am an opinionated knitter but I will never tell anybody that they are knitting/doing this or that wrong. I might point out the problems they might encounter while doing so, though.
Take this girl from my spinning and knitting group. She is a really enthusiastic self-taught knitter. Her stockinette fabric looked okay but while trying her hands on a lace knitting pattern she got stuck. Her decreases just did not work out. Well, the more experienced of you can probably guess what happened. She did her purl stitches with the yarn going UNDER the needle. As long as you uncross the stitches in the knitting row you won't know the difference. But if you try to follow the standard instructions for your common decrease, it will leave you with strangely twisted stitches. After explaining this dilemma to her she was able compensate, either through purling the standard way or by working the decreases differently. See Annie Modesitt's page for more about what she calls Combination Knitting.

10. It's Not Rocket Science
That's what I keep telling people all the time. I'm preaching to the choir here but is has to be said - All it takes is two sticks and a piece of string. And someone to show you the ropes can't hurt either.

Our lovely and caring Secret Pal 8 hostess Alison asked us to answer some questions to get to know us better. Well, here you are:

1) What is your favorite season of the year?
I really couldn't say. Every season has its up- and down-sides. In generally I like spring and autumn because the climate is usually temperate, which I really appreciate. And both seasons are great for going on vacation, because most places are not quite as crowded yet/anymore.

2) Where is your favorite vacation spot?
My perfect vacation country is France. It has everything from beaches to mountains to everything in between. I love Paris and seeing as I'm taking French classes it's a really good place to practice

3) If you could visit any place in the world, where would it be?
Mhm, well, do I have to decide? If money wasn't an issue I would probably go to Japan for a bit longer. It's such a fascinating country.

4) If you could pick any job, and be paid well, what would it be?
Gosh, Alison is really not playing fair, isn't she?! I think it's not so much about which job I would choose but the company and the people I would like to work with.

5) If you were going on vacation for 1 week, and had to take ONLY one project with you, what would it be?
I would definitely take some large lace project with me. A Niebling pattern maybe or something from Heirloom Knitting.

6) If you won a shopping spree to your favorite Yarn shop, what would you get??
I do not have a favourite yarn shop per se. But if I had the money I would definitely mail order some Euroflax linen yarn, wich comes in lovely colors but the prices are just way out of my price range, no matter what a great quality the yarn may be.

So, there, all done

Okay, here we go with the secret pal Q&A.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely not like?
I love natural materials, be it wool, silk, linen, cotton. I'm a sucker for tweed and variegated yarns of any kind. I don't particularily go for glitzy, fuzzy, slick novelty stuff, tape yarn or squeaky polyacryl.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
I have my circular needles ordered by size in zip-lock bags stored in a ring binder. My dpns and hooks reside in a little case originally intended for cosmetic stuff.

3. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I've been knitting practically all my life. I cannot remember when I learned, maybe when I was 7 or 8? That would add up to nearly 20 years a knitter now, wow.
As for skill levels, I don't believe in any of these labels. If you can knit and purl you can do anything, assuming you are motivated and don't shy from a bit of research and good old trial and error. Other people might consider me an advanced knitter, looking at my projects.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
Yes, it's at amazon.de.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)
I like vanilla, light flowery scents, green tea, lavender if it's not too heavy.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
Guilty as charged I do love M&M's Peanut Butter. Mean thing is, they are not distributed in Germany, or Europe for that matter. How do I know? Well, I wrote a letter to Mars Inc, of course. As for the rest, well, keep an eye on your gummy bear stash, or it's gone faster than you can blink And did you say you've got dark chocolate anywhere?!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I do cross stitch from time to time, got into spinning some time ago and of course am hooked now and on the odd occasion that the muse strikes I even grab a crochet hook and do some crochet. I'm not of a crocheter, though.

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 the singer/songwriter kind of music. Take Tori Amos or Jack Johnson for an example. On the other hand I can appreciate a good Garth Brooks album or some well done rock. On the readio I usually listen to my favourite classical station. I can play MP3s and even own a little iPod Shuffle.

9. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?
I am a "cool summer" girl. That means everything I wear has to have a blueish undertone, from cool pinks and reds, purples, to all kinds of blues, turquoise and a few rare green tones. I really can't pull off any yellow, orange and most the natural earthy colours. You so don't want to see me in olive green or anything like that, I swear.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
Married, no kids, no pets. Or do the dust bunnies count?!

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
Yes to the first three items. Not sure about the ponchos. I haven't had one since I was a little kid.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
I love knitting lace shawls. They are so rewarding, beautiful and size doesn't matter. Socks are a good thing, too.

13. What are you knitting right now?
More than one pair of socks, a lace shawl, a summer raglan t-shirt for me and there is still an unfished Rogue waiting to get done. I probably forgot something or other here.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
I certainly do.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
Thumbs up for circs. They are a fabulous invention. I choose material according to the yarn and the project I'm working on. Slippery yarn and Addi Turbos are a nightmarish combination, in my experience.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
Nope. But I've got a niddy-noddy and a nostepinne.

17. How did you learn to knit?
My non-knitting grandma taught me, because I was getting on her nerves while being ill or spending holidays with her - I can't really remember anymore. Thing I know is, though, I had never seen this grandma knit anything in my whole life but she obviously knew how to do it, since she managed to teach me. My paternal grandma was - and still is - always whipping up some knitted thingie, only, she didn't have the patience to teach anyone. She would drive you nuts with the fast speech and the funky explanations

18. How old is your oldest UFO?
Oh well, there is still this bouclé sweater, waiting for some sleeves. Is it 2 years old, or going on 3? I really can't tell.

19. What is your favorite holiday?
Every holiday is a good holiday, as long as it's getting me a day off from work

20. Is there anything that you collect?
I'm not a collector per se, but I do have an little assortment of drop spindles accumulated by now. And does yarn count? Oh, and what about the knitting and handcrafts books taking up shelf after shelf? Yeah, well, you know how it is...

21. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
I've got Interweave Knits and Spin-Off. I would dearly love to get my hands on a skein of Koigu sock yarn or some Cherry Tree Hill sock or lace weight yarn.

22. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
I learn as I go along. Projects are chosen for their appeal not the technique used or the skill level given. I've only taken one knitting class in my life so far and that was because I wanted to meet the infamous Horst Schultz in real life.

23. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes, yes, yes! And can I say yes? My shoe size is a european size 42 (28 cm long). My feet are a bit on the narrow side considering the size but I usually can't wear short row heels. They are too tight across the span.

24. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)
February 11th