June 25, 2008
We wonder….
Ever wonder what we talk about as we pack your orders here at Loopy Central? Well, pretty much everything from A to Z, actually. (We have fun!) But today I kept a list of the things we wonder about all of you. (I thought this was a good “wonder” pose from Gracie.) 
So here are the things we’ve been wondering and discussing lately. Feel free to leave us some answers if you’re so inclined. (Also, feel free to let us know what you wonder about us!)
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others? (Elf Marianne says the trunk is a great place to hide stash. Not that we’re encouraging that.)
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn?
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups? (Many of us would rather be F5-ing than cleaning house, for instance.)
4. Do you knit at stop signs?
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week?
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline? (We get emergency calls. We know.)
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency? Other than a deadline or a birthday gift that you needed yesterday?
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? (Some of you may take the Fifth on this.)
9. What is your favorite colorway name? (We liked Blended Frog, in a weird sort of way.)
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos? (Elf Donna had someone call her a freak when she did this out in Colorado.)
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret?
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?” (I told them they all have to learn to knit their own socks. Some are socks knitters, and others …. are not. But we’re working on that.)
Sheri wealsotalkabouttheinterestingstreetnamesyouallhave,
theincrediblygoodtasteyouhaveinyarn/bags/patterns,
thenicenotesthatyouleaveforusinyourordernotesandinemails,
andthefactthatyouallprovideuswithjobsecurity.Y’allareverylovedaroundhere!
Ksigman said,
June 25, 2008 @ 1:44 pm
Yes to all of the above!! I even stash at school!!
SUmmers are hard because I can’t have it sent to school and my best friend only checks her mail once a month (weird, I know).
Thank you and the Loopy ELves for all you do!!
Kerry said,
June 25, 2008 @ 1:57 pm
The only thing I wonder about you all is if you have a hard time letting the yarn and goodies go once they’ve been bought. I think it would make me sick to have to pack the boxes.
1, 2, & 11. I’m very fortunate in that I don’t have to hide anything from my wonderful hubby. He’s happy if I’m happy. And as long as the bills are paid and he and the kids are taken care of, I’m happy when I’m buying yarn and knitting.
3. I always seem to miss the Wollmeise sneak ups. I totally have to do something about that.
4. I don’t knit at stop signs but I do knit while stuck in road construction which happens quite often around here in the summer.
6. I cut it so close on knitting deadlines that sometimes I completely miss them.
8. I’m totally pleading the Fifth on this one.
9. Creatively Dyed Saranac Lake.
Thanks for this! It was lots of fun!
Jess said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:01 pm
I kind of hide stash… out of sight, out of mind right? Although he knows where it is. But he doesn’t go digging or ask questions. I think he’s accepted there will be one. As long as it doesn’t overflow into his line of sight I’m good to go. I think I once stuck a few new skeins into my sock and underwear drawers quickly before Hub saw them. They later went into the sock stash, but at the moment there was no time!
However, one thing I do all the time is make sure I check the mail before he gets home. And now I have to do it without the kids noticing because sometimes my 4Yo will tell on me. lol! And I always hope and pray that no yarn comes on Saturday!
Elves… HOW could you work in that lovely store full of GORGEOUS yarns and not be casting on your own socks?! That would be SUCH temptation!
Deadline? What’s a deadline? I’m late for everything.
I do not knit at stop lights, but I do in drive thru’s.
Penny said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:02 pm
I do hide stash - no place weird, just here and there. In an effort to organize my sewing room, last week I tossed all my sock yarn in a storage tub. Over stuffed it to be exact. Later, while moving it out into the hallway, it slipped, the lid popped off, and several skeins tumbled down the stairs. I think my husband was wise enough not to say anything.
I do knit at stop signs, traffic lights, Sonic, etc. Last week I turned an entire heel in the drive thru lane at Starbucks. It was a cold-ish rainy morning.
My last order included a skein of Schaeffer Anne in “Penny Lane” because its the same name as my blog
I used to have yarn shipped to my office all the time, but now I work for a larger company, and I don’t want them to know about my fiber addictions just yet….
Amy said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:06 pm
Well, I certainly don’t have answers for all of them, but I’ll attempt a few. I don’t have to worry about hiding yarn from anyone - a benefit of being single. : ) I have time to F5 because I’m good at multi-tasking, lol. I now have to figure out how to work, plurk and F5 for sneak-ups! I managed it this week, so I think I’m good. No weird looks yet when taking Little Loopy pics - I have a fun one to blog about - need to do that soon. And, send to TLE, too! I haven’t knit socks for anyone other than myself - but will one of these days - I’ll add the elves to my list. I mainly worry because I’m afraid they won’t fit the recipient. I can try them on for me and I have a smaller foot than average - and I like mine tight. Must stop the worrying. Anyway, sorry for squishing all my answers together - but it goes faster, lol! : )
Danielle from SW MO said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:11 pm
OK you asked for the answers your gonna get HEHE
1 and 11: I dont have to stash yarn Brian actually encourages the stash aquisitions. As long as the bills are paid and I allow him to play his games hes happy
2: Laying in the open on our bed HEHE, Brian cant “see” what is right in front of his face so I’m safe that way (he isnt blind just a guy
3and 4: I dont F5 for Wollmeise usually, well ok you got me HEHE. I knit whenever I’m in the car…I dont drive!!
I have 5 pairs of socks started (I updated my blog today with the pics) The Cardi hasnt gotten anywhere past the swatch.
I’m loving the Lime and Violet Blended Frog also!
Lynne E. said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:18 pm
Do KIDs (Knitting Is Done) count as unfinished? In that category, I have a kimono, two sweaters, and a vest waiting to be seamed up, plus a shawl that needs blocking (five items).
In the Hibernation category, I have three large shawls, an Alice Starmore Henry VIII pullover, a Bohus Red Edge cardigan, and a side-to-side Xmas cardigan (six items). These should be finished eventually. In the WIP category, I have three pairs of socks, a cardigan sweater, and two large shawls (six items). These should be finished by the end of the year.
So that’s 17 unfinished projects, counting KIDs, Hs, and WIPs. I will take the Fifth on my SDS (Some Day Soon) projects! Lucky for me, my husband encourages knitting, and doesn’t object to the size of my stash–although he probably should.
Sherry said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:19 pm
Let’s see … first off, I noticed in your last lines, you commented on noticing interesting street names. I’ve worked on list management for non-profit special events. I’m always amazed & amused when looking at the lists and seeing the names of people & their spouses. Sometimes I think “oh that’s a nice name”. But often I think how could that be a person’s name.
Anyway, I live on my own so I don’t have to worry about the stash. But, even though I’ve been trying for years not to care what others think … I still worry that my mailman thinks I get too many packages. Honestly, I only get a package once or twice a month.
So many questions, not enough time to answer.
Barbara said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:22 pm
I don’t even know what F5 is. I am computer illiterate and I always miss the Wollmeise. That means that means that the Universe says I really don’t need it.And
I have learned the hard way that it’s only yarn. I only hide yarn from
myself. It scares me to see so much stash that I haven’t knitted and probably
never will. Still keep buying though. I don’t do deadlines anymore. Too stressful.
Jan said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:36 pm
I used to knit in slow traffic, the kind that moves 2 feets, stops for 5 minutes, moves another 2 feet. Lots of dishcloth knitting done then. Now I don’t usually encounter that kind of traffic anymore, since I ride the train.
Projects started and not finished — I’m attempting to get a handle on how many there are, and then start to work them down. But new needs keep getting in the way. A friend is ill and needs a prayer shawl. A coworker is having a baby. Etc. There are many started years ago for children who are now much older, some grown ups now. Don’t know if I should donate the end result to charity, or ask them if they want the ‘heirloom’ I didn’t complete during their childhood!
Why am I not knitting socks for the Elves? Why am I not knitting socks for me?? Why do I keep using sock yarn for other projects (baby sweaters, a shawl, and now a clapotis)? I love the weight of sock yarn, but I’ve always knit it at a looser gauge than socks take. The only socks I’ve knit so far were Magic 28 socks for charity from worsted weight yarn. One day, maybe.
Hope you’re all safe from the flooding, both at TLE and at home.
kit said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:42 pm
I have my stuff shipped to my work address so I can fondle it right away. I currently have 60% of my stash in the kitchen pantry, some in plain sight as decor and in my loveseat there is a neat little cubbyhole for keeping TV remotes that holds a few skeins. Yes, I keep my husband in the dark about the true size of my stash, there are some things he doesn’t need to know.
Beth said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:42 pm
No need to hide, the cats don’t care when new yarn arrives. Well, they like to play with the boxes and the red crimpy paper stuff in the bag with mints or kisses…
I do find the instinct to hide is strong when my boyfriend is visiting, but he doesn’t really care about the stash as far as I can tell.
I don’t have a ton in progress, 3 socks, a sweater, a scarf and some dishclothes.
Don’t knit at stop signs, but occasionally at a long red, or a train crossing or when stuck in a traffic backup. Depending on the pattern, I can knit and walk at the same time which can be an invaluable skill some days. The go-knit pouches are great for that!
I’m partial to amusement park-ish colorway names… there is a good chunk of my stash that was named for some variation of “carousel”.
Timmie B said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:48 pm
!. I don’t have to hide stash (single). My trunk is full of quilt fabric so couldn’t hide anything there.
2. If my husband was still around and I had to hide yarn, I’d hide it in a trash can. Emptying them was his job and I’m still waiting for him to empty one and it’s been 30 years.
3. Never F5ed for Wollmeise but have for other things. Last time at work I set Mozilla on autorefresh every 5 seconds and did some work that didn’t require much attention or computer.
4. Stop signs no knitting, stop lights yes.
5. Wendy blogged about Shibui
6. I’m deadline oriented so I set a deadline for every project and am pretty good about not cutting it too close. But frog happens…
7. Knitting emergency short 50 yards of colorway from indie dyer who’s sold out and waiting for supplier to send her stock so she can dye more. Really not emergency yet.
8. I’ve got 5 projects in the works OTN and one true UFO that just needs assembling (for 2 years now)
9. Whiny Bu*t has to win this one.
10. No funny looks yet. Those in my presence when I did pose Lil Loopy were bloggers who understood.
11. have shipped to work to give my mail carrier some rest but not to hide
12. Dear Elves, Sorry–I’m selfish. I knit socks they’re for me. I’ve made 2 pairs of dorms socks for my nieces, 4 mini socks, and a pair of exchange socks. I’ll make you a prayer shawl, dishcloths, dishtowels but the socks are MINE!! So take Sheri’s advice and learn to knit your own.
meg said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:50 pm
Oh, boy. I hope it wasn’t MY phone call that started you all wondering about “cutting it close” knitting projects. I must say, normally I knit well on deadline. I was missing a color of DC Classy for the Tulip sweater and realizing I was missing it and ordering it were the reason for my delay. I swear it is true, but it does sound a bit “the dog ate my homework” doesn’t it?
What I wonder, is what you all really think about all of the Loopy crazed knitters. I would love to know if you have nicknames for the ones who order weekly or if you have inside jokes with each other about our funny quirks or street names or whatever.
Spill it girls!
Jes said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:54 pm
1. I don’t really hide the yarn, so much as I don’t announce its arrival. Then I pull it out of the china hutch that it all lives in and go, “This? Oh, I bought this AGES ago…”
2. Sneakiest was in a box of diapers ¬.¬
4. Stops signs, waiting for meetings, yes ¬.¬
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? That I haven’t had the courage or honesty to frog? Um, more than 20
9. What is your favorite colorway name? Pirate Booty!
Heather said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:58 pm
You asked & shall receive!
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others? (Elf Marianne says the trunk is a great place to hide stash. Not that we’re encouraging that.)
Yes, that’s what under the bed space is for right?
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn?
The flour container, don’t ask, yes, it was clean =)
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups? (Many of us would rather be F5-ing than cleaning house, for instance.)
Well, I put off potty training for a week, the house sustained itself on hot pockets all week & my Mom & I tag teamed to get the wollmeise we wanted =)
4. Do you knit at stop signs?
No, can’t afford an accident, my yarn budget would plummet
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week?
Not me, have 4 other projects going… but maybe I need another one?!?
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline? (We get emergency calls. We know.)
Finished a baby blanket & sent it on the mom’s due date. It was waiting for her when she got home from the hospital from having the baby.
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency? Other than a deadline or a birthday gift that you needed yesterday?
Does stabbing yourself with a knitting needle count? Oh, not THAT kind of emergency.
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? (Some of you may take the Fifth on this.)
(sigh) OK, I have a 3 yr old. That sums it up (5.. I forgot to add one in the above count)
9. What is your favorite colorway name? (We liked Blended Frog, in a weird sort of way.)
Wellensittichvogelfeder….. the world’s best name for blue/green/yellow =)
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos? (Elf Donna had someone call her a freak when she did this out in Colorado.)
None, my son took it & claimed it as his. Once again, 3 yr olds.. what to do….
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret?
No, but I have the only mailbox key in our household…. Muahahahahaha
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?” (I told them they all have to learn to knit their own socks. Some are socks knitters, and others …. are not. But we’re working on that.)
Well, maybe if we had some dern measurements, color & fiber preferences etc.. that wouldn’t be a PROBLEM!?!!!
Leslie said,
June 25, 2008 @ 2:59 pm
1. We just don’t talk about my stash. He knows better.
2. Hmm…sneakiest place? stuffed in an old purse that was buried in my closet. In my car trunk, of course. Other people’s houses?
3. My job requires me to be on a computer all day long anyway, so it’s easy. It’s beating everyone else TO the Wollmeise that’s the problem.
4. No knitting at stop signs, but I did knit in the drive through at McDonald’s once!
5. I have no idea about the jitterbug. lol
6. I don’t like to get myself into deadlines. I try to finish way ahead of time.
7. I’ve never had a knitting emergency. Aside from obtaining Wollmeise. That qualifies, right? It certainly gets MY adrenaline going.
8. Definitely going to take the 5th on this one. I’ve finished more than I haven’t, if that counts for anything.
9. I like Sarah’s Perfect Day self striping colorway called “Ten Thousand Daffodils”. It just sounds so heavenly.
10. I had to muster up the courage to ask Lucy Neatby (LUCY NEATBY, FPS!) who I’d only just met to pose for a photo, but she was so nice about it.
11. No, I’m not in deep enough to ship something somewhere else. Yet.
12. Socks take too long.
And I’m greedy and like knitting them for myself.
Monica said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:00 pm
First of all, to Sheri and the Elves a big thank you for your terrific service. I have to say yu have spoiled me. I am so used to getting my orders so fast and efficiently that it drives me crazy when I have to wait on orders from other places.
I am a stash hider. Some people think I have more yarn than I will ever knit, and for that reason thinks I don’t need more (nonknitters ???) But he knows it makes me happy
I knit in traffic jams, but not at stop signs. I have back up knitting in the van for such knitting emergencies.
UFO’s … not as many as I first thought, and they are all big progects, sweaters, and shawls and 2 or 3 single socks, that will be finished after the SoS and before the Fall weather.
Hariamrit said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:09 pm
I’m boring. I have no one to hide stuff from.
Most of the socks I make are gifts. I have made socks for someone at The Loopy Ewe, so Elves ask the Big Loopy who got socks from me.
Beth said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:14 pm
No stash hiding here, just long, exaggerated sighs from the children when a box arrives…. Hubby has his own hobbies; and his is a LOT more expensive than mine (an airplane!).
One UFO, ’cause I haven’t gotten around to practicing steeking on my swatch yet so I can put the arms into the sweater….
I have knit at stop lights, but not stop signs, and even that not often. Mostly doctor’s appointments and sermons!
No F5ing for me these days…I’m painting the inside of the house….boy, do my feet hurt….
I like the Wollmeise colorways…’cause it challenges me to figure out what they mean in English!!
Hariamrit said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:14 pm
OOPS, Sent before I was finished.
I love the name Whiny B@TT.
I don’t F5 because I never have enough hours in the day and have little computer time. Usually I buy after all the sneak up fun.
Karen said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:18 pm
I have all my Loopy stuff, as you know, shipped to my office. It’s not that I’m hiding it, it’s that I’ll never get it if it goes to home.
People look at me a little strangely when I’m with Little Loopy and taking pictures, but I shrug it off. The looks when he was in the Cherry Tree were just priceless. I should have taken pictures of the on lookers, but really now, what fun would that be?
I’m sitting at the computer ususally when Wollmeise comes along, right now, I’m waiting for Poison #5 and hope to score one soon.
I have about 4 projects going that I am actively working on and definately a few that probably won’t see the light of day anytime soon. Always knitting though is a good thing
Wendy in Cambridge said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:29 pm
I’m single, so no hiding for me. My kitty thinks the more yarn, the better!
I’ve always missed the Wollmeise Sneak Ups; I’ve been fortunate enough to get some from Claudia’s site, though, so I want to let someone who doesn’t have any Wollmeise have a chance. Not that I would’t love more!
Projects not completed? Definitely taking the fifth on that!
I don’t knit at stop signs or traffic lights. I live in Boston, the city of crazy drivers. It can be tough enough just to drive here!
For colorway names, there are lots that I love. For a funny one, I’ll have to go with Numma Numma’s Whiny Bu*t!
Knittin' Diva said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:32 pm
I am happy to say, I don’t have to hide my stash from my husband. Since it is stored on sweater shelving in our bedroom closet, he can see it all there in plain sight. I am a stay at home, of 2 very busy little boys. I think he feels that the yarn is cheaper than therapy, so I can indulge all I want.
On the needles, well, I do face some teasing about that. currently, I have 7 “active” WIPs, with 2 others that were put aside, that I’ll get back to. He’s forever asking me if I ever finish anything other than socks. I do, but I guess I don’t get as excited as some of them, as I do about my socks. I’ve always got socks on the needles, and carry my “project” with me, every where I go. You never know when I might steal a few minutes to knit a row or 2
Tan said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:44 pm
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others? My husband is so nice, I don’t have to hide it.
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn? N/A
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups? (Many of us would rather be F5-ing than cleaning house, for instance.) I teach piano lessons, so I am free during the day; and in the evening DH usually watches the news all evening.
4. Do you knit at stop signs? Only when traffic is bad.
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week? Not me
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline? (We get emergency calls. We know.) I have had to stop knitting on deadlines to save my sanity.
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency? Other than a deadline or a birthday gift that you needed yesterday? I think L-B once went to the ER with a knitting needle thrust through her backpack into her back; I would call that a true knitting emergency.
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? (Some of you may take the Fifth on this.) I couldn’t even begin to count them.
9. What is your favorite colorway name? (We liked Blended Frog, in a weird sort of way.) I really like Mars Quake.
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos? (Elf Donna had someone call her a freak when she did this out in Colorado.) I haven’t gone anyplace
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret? Heck no, I want to see it in MY mailbox!
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?” (I told them they all have to learn to knit their own socks. Some are socks knitters, and others …. are not. But we’re working on that.) OK, I will adopt an elf. Send me her name and her foot and low calf measurements. Wait, is she buying the yarn?
Janet said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:45 pm
I own every color of jitterbug except two (which are on my wish list). Which are the popular colors of the week? I haven’t heard anything.
Keri said,
June 25, 2008 @ 3:53 pm
1. I don’t have husband or SO, and as long as I pay my parents the rent I owe them, they don’t say a word. Other than my mom occasionally lusting after the socks I am working on, anyway.
2. I don’t hide anything.
3. I don’t F5. I love Wollmeise, but really …
4. Heck no.
5. No idea!
6. I don’t do deadlines. You get presents from me when you get them. And you like it!
7. No emergencies here.
8. Currently on the needles and not touched in over a week (or waiting for a second sock for at least a month) .. 6 projects.
9. I really like Whiny Butt. Wish I had seen it in time!
10. I haven’t taken any pics yet!
11. Nope.
12. Send me a skein of yarn and a foot size .. you’ll get socks back!
Jocelyn said,
June 25, 2008 @ 4:12 pm
Regarding the hiding of stash from the husband, I am lucky in that he doesn’t pay too much attention, so as long as I slide it into the yarn bowl when he’s not looking (with the price tag hidden underneath), I’m generally pretty good
As for yarn emergencies, I did have one once, when I was test knitting a pattern and took it to the doctor’s office to work on. I hopped up to get the door for someone in a wheelchair (when the perfectly fit young man right next to the door wouldn’t get up), and tangled my feet in my yarn, and ripped half of my lacework right off the needles and down the shawl. If that’s not an emergency, I don’t know what is! Luckily, an hour or so of work put it right again, whew!
Tammy said,
June 25, 2008 @ 4:39 pm
Not stop signs… but I have been known to knit at red lights.
Allison said,
June 25, 2008 @ 4:47 pm
I sneak the yarn in the house and stick it in the stash when he isn’t looking, he hasn’t seemed to notice that. For some reason the sock club packages he always seens to be home for, but he knows about that!
f5 who has time for that?
I haven’t knit at stop signs but I have knit while standing in lines, you get funny looks.
Right now I have so many projects that I am supposed to be kntting I don’t even want to think about it!!!
Have no idea about the jitterbug
Our vacation isn’t till the end of July, I am sure that my sons will give me some looks
I am all over the name whinny bu*t!
Could you include my daughter in the knitting lessons, I am trying but she is left handed and I am right, so we have not had too much luck as of yet! But she FINALLY learned to cast on so there may be hope yet!
Tracy said,
June 25, 2008 @ 5:09 pm
I don’t do any hiding or sneaking around of stash or orders since I live alone and the cats don’t mind as long as they get their nightly treats, a fresh container of grass available, and food, water, and lots of hugs
I’ll take the 5th on projects started and not finished although recently I frogged several cause I figure if they sit for too long, then I’ve lost interest and am ready to move on to something else with the yarn (which perhaps makes me at least 50/50 as far as process/product?).
“Butter Peeps” is my favorite name. Several years ago a (FUNNY) sister of mine had a running Peep gag thing going every Easter with everything from “Peep Pie” (jello with embedded Peeps) to a Velvet Peep Painting (yes, very big) and my favorite, a video of a Peep doing farm activities that was a play on the old Mr. Bill of Saturday Night Live fame (let’s just say that the Peep driving the tractor didn’t do well!). I finally indulged in a skein of Butter Peeps Baby for the lace KAL
Kristi - Ohio said,
June 25, 2008 @ 5:28 pm
No hiding here. My husband said he’s happy if I’m happy. Therefore, he bought me the Atenti bag which I’lI get when we get home this weekend. However, he did sit right there when I bought the bag so nothing else could jump in my cart. I am typing this from my seat here at Wrigley Field waiting to watch the Cubs & Orioles play. It’s sooo hot & steamy sitting here. Love guys!
Kristi - Ohio said,
June 25, 2008 @ 5:29 pm
Meant to say “love you guys”
Kristi
Deirdre said,
June 25, 2008 @ 5:42 pm
Okay, I have to learn what F5′ing is, because I feel like I am missing out on a secret club of something.
And I’ll tell you about my mom - now, I am okay with ordering whatever whenever (as Sheri well knows) because I’m a single parent with two boys who know if I’m not knitting, I must be sick, so yarn is a way of life for all of us…
but my mom… orders yarn and has it sent to my house, then takes it out of the packaging and tucks it into grocery bags, and THEN waits till my dad is out walking the dog before she brings it in from the deep recesses of her car trunk -
I swear he thinks she’s been knitting the same thing for 30 years…
penny said,
June 25, 2008 @ 5:45 pm
1: Yes. I have. But not often.
2: The couch pillows. I did leave a skein in my bag for a week once…
4: Yes. I knit at stop signs and green lights. Despite a learner’s permit for much too long (everyone I once baby sat can drive now) I don’t drive. It’s great for knitting …
7: I forgot my commute knitting on the day I had to go to the dentist. I didn’t want to buy overpriced needles or yarn (only thing near the office is $$ and I don’t like them very much).. Thankfully the bead store near the train had a ball of crochet thread and a double crochet hook (two diff sizes) for about $4. It was worth it. so was finding out that I didn’t need my wisdom tooth yanked.. yet. Why couldn’t I take the stash that I keep in the office? I didn’t want to own up to the extent of it infront of my admin. He’s seen some of it (and i’ve made him socks) but … (it’s really not much .. but ..)
8: I hide these more than the stash…
12: Give us yer foot sizes elves. Otherwise I’ll make ‘em all my size, and I think I qualify more as “brownie” feet than elfish.
Marylu said,
June 25, 2008 @ 6:36 pm
Lately I’ve been ordering late at night and not telling my husband. I don’t know why though. He supports my hobby(habit). I guess I’m feeling a little guilty for some reason.
I would love to knit socks for the Elves. We need foot sizes and free yarn!!!!!!!!!
Debra I said,
June 25, 2008 @ 6:51 pm
Stash? Nah, I share my apartment with 2 minature poodles, who know better than to get into my yarn. I do keep a notebook and list sock yarn by company, so I don’t *have* to get it out the yarn every time I’m looking for something. Right now the yarn is in boxes, moving next door so I can have my floors refinished. It surprised me how many boxes there are!!!
Don’t knit in the car, knit mainly at home. Haven’t knit socks for anybody else yet, though my niece’s measurements are in my sock book. I did knit her legwarmers for Christmas last year, and have a new pair that I’m working on for her.
UFO’s — there are quite a few. At least 5 pairs of socks on needles and half a dozen shawls. I’ve broken through the 400 yard barrier on a shawl I’m knitting out of Somoko, so I feel pretty proud of that. It’s knit from the top down, and I’m well into the border, so maybe within a month, it will be a Finished Object.
I haven’t taken pictures of Little Loopy yet, but when he arrived last week and I was showing him the office, one of my bosses chuckled — I think it was because of the bag of peppermints wrapped in his arms.
Y’all at The Loopy Ewe are great!
Teresa (NC) said,
June 25, 2008 @ 7:11 pm
Hiding stash? Yes, I hide packages when they come. In fact, I go so far as opening the box and then going to the recycling center to get rid of the box. Otherwise, hubby would want to know what I got in the priority mail box. Not a good thing, always. I don’t do this for the sock club, since he knows those are coming.
I don’t F5, so I always miss the Wollmeise.
Favorite name so far is Whiny Bu**.
No, I don’t knit at stopsigns and usually not a stoplights unless I know its going to be a long one.
I have 5 socks OTN, and probably 10 other various projects. I love the starting of projects but can sometimes have a problem with the finishitis part. What usually happens is I have about 5 coming off the needles at the same time and then I freak because I have “nothing” on the needles…..15 projects-5 finished = 10 still otn. Makes no logical sense, but its okay.
I’m sort of having a knitting emergency right now. It would take a novel to tell the details, but I am working on Cider Moon Rainbow trout socks, which I bought from TLE awhile back, for my brother who has size 12 feet. Well, even though this is generous yardage, I’m not going to have enough, I don’t think. So, I pulled some Claudia’s handpainted from my stash and made the toe of the first sock. I’m hoping this small change will help enough so I can finish the second sock in the same way. Because, as I understand, the Cider Moon girls aren’t dying anymore yarn so I can’t get anymore rainbow trout colorway yarn. If I run out this will be an Emergency!
Usually the comment I get about Little Loopy or Flat Loopy is, “Okay, what’s up with the loopy kid?”. LOL. So of course, you get an advert then :-).
Caroline said,
June 25, 2008 @ 8:46 pm
Y’know, I would be happy to knit socks for the elves & test new sock yarn at the same time. Just send me 1)foot measurements of elf in question, 2)sock yarn
3) pattern or needles, where applicable. But I do like to knit socks.
I have somewhere around a dozen UFOs right now. I am really trying to cut down on yarn purchases until I get them done.
I don’t knit at stop signs. I don’t knit while the car is running (hell-o, waste of gas), but I do knit while it is off & I am waiting for something or someone.
Angie said,
June 25, 2008 @ 9:04 pm
I must be a pretty boring knitter because none of those questions apply to me. As for stash, I get lucky because DH used to come home from work after me. Guess who got to the mailbox first!! And he’s never asked about my never-ending supply of yarn. He has his hobbies, which cost more than mine, so I think he feels less guilty about his.
Once, I mentioned the Spring Fling to my DH and a couple of friends. I got the “deer in the headlights” look. They just don’t get it:-)
JoAnn-WI said,
June 25, 2008 @ 9:37 pm
I don’t hide my stash intentionally - I just want to keep it conveniently “out of sight”. The less he knows, the better. He does know I get packages and do sneak ups, but I don’t think he’d like to see how much it’s accumulated. But he does know I’m always knitting on socks, so it must get used, right?
Sneakiest place? Probably under our bed until I could get it to the stash place when he wasn’t looking
I have never sent yarn other than my home. I have nothing to be ashamed of.
I have 3 skeins of Wollemeise, so F5ing non-stop isn’t important to me now. If I luck out without trying too hard, well so be it.
I do not knit at stop signs or lights. I do knit at my son’s 3 hr golf lesson, while getting a pedicure, dentist office, work lunch time, etc.
I haven’t taken Loopy’s post card anywhere yet, but people have asked what The Loopy Ewe was after seeing it on my water bottle & red knitting bag. I proudly tell them.
Sorry, I don’t have a funny street name. And I can’t think of a funny yarn colorway at the moment, although I know some have made me laugh. I did like Pecan Pie from Frannies Farmhouse cuz it’s a favorite pie of mine.
That’s all the answers I have for you.
kate lathrop said,
June 25, 2008 @ 9:42 pm
I can really only answer #10 - when I posed Loopy (postcard version) on Leon Trotsky’s tombstone in Mexico City, both my dad and the museum curator gave me the hairy eyeball. even after I explained why. I suffer for my art
Gina said,
June 25, 2008 @ 9:46 pm
Too many questions…. I don’t knit at stop signs (yet). I plead the Fifth on No. 8! I do hide stash in odd places and have had friends get yarn for me at their homes… I’ve done my share of F5ing for Wollmeise, sometimes to no avail. Loopy is going to Guatemala with me next month!!! I’ll try to get some good pics. So what is the hot color in Jitterbug? Now I’m curious.
To the elves I would say, teach the elves to knit socks and you’ll have sock knitters for always. Give them socks and they’ll just want more but won’t know how to do them (kind of like the fish story)
Christine said,
June 25, 2008 @ 9:48 pm
This is what I wonder about the elves: As they pack our orders, are they thinking….
1. Why did she order the same color from different companies?
2. She must like blue
3. Didn’t we just pack her an order yesterday?
4. Wow, this order can pay for my week’s groceries!
5. Our Boomerang are not moving.. Sheri - can you blog about Boomerang?
6. oh-oh, it’s that crabby lady again. We better make sure we get her order right
7. Wow, this order is bigger than my car payment!
Sometimes, my mind wanders…
Sharon said,
June 25, 2008 @ 10:11 pm
One of the many “perks” of no DH—I can buy as much yarn as I can afford without someone giving me the evil eye!! I have about 4 pairs of socks on the needles, a Forest Canopy shawl, 2 purses, a baby sweater…waaaay too many UFO’s. I HAVE to finish something soon! I bet the elves think I live on an Indian Reservation in a teepee ..my street name is Algonkin and my town is Manasquan!!
Kate said,
June 26, 2008 @ 12:42 am
My knitting emergency was years ago when I entered a competition, handspun and knitted a jersey (sorry, sweater for those of you in the US), then had to start again because I missed the bit about pure wool (I had included mohair). I stayed up all night before the entry deadline and knitted so much I wore a strip of skin off my finger (noticed when the blood stains appeared in the knitting!). It was all worth it though - I won first prize, and the garment is now in the local museum.
valerie said,
June 26, 2008 @ 4:25 am
hiding yarn–while i don’t HAVE to hide the yarn i buy, i do get the “what are you making with that?” from the hub when i order some yarn without a specific reason other than NEEDING IT RIGHT NOW. so, i’ve started to squirrel it into my craft room before he can see it just to avoid the questions. he mostly doesn’t care–he’s a musician with a bad guitar habit, which is far more expensive.
also, i’ve been lucky and made all my deadlines. so far…… of course i start knitting for christmas and weddings months in advance, so that helps. i also keep a stock of baby blankets on hand should someone magically pop one out when i wasn’t paying attention. you might think that wouldn’t happen, but i’ve given away 2 blankets last second….for other people.
none of the other questions really apply to me. i’m kind of surprised there wasn’t a question about ordering at all time of the day and night. that’s an easy one–i work 3rd shift. other people’s night is my day. it’s why i prefer to shop on-line—–they’re never closed.
Seanna Lea said,
June 26, 2008 @ 4:45 am
I don’t really worry about hiding my stash. I will usually come home and say, I’ve been bad. It’s when I’ve ordered yarn or went to the LYS after work. Occasionally it is “I’ve spent a lot of money.” but those tend to include donations to charity and other things.
If I knit something sexier, he’s pretty willing to forgive yarn purchases for quite a while. ^_^;
another Michelle said,
June 26, 2008 @ 6:26 am
I think there is a reality show (or YouTube video) in the making about Loopy Central!
Loopy and the Elves Explore the Yarny Side of Life and Share the Secrets of Yarn Stashers Around the World!
Hear About the Lives of the Loopy Clan and their tales of surviving 2-3 days inside a Priority Mail box with a suffocating amount of yarn, knitting patterns and gadgets (to say nothing of all that tissue paper and plastic wrap!) It’s amazing that the Little Loopies don’t resort to eating those chocolate kisses and mints to survive!
You get the idea…I’d be glad to come to Loopy Central and make the video…gotta keep my job skills up so I can continue to buy yarn!
And who would send yarn to a friend’s house? I can’t imagine that I’ve done it more than once or twice?
And it would take me a while to answer the other questions, and I really need to get ready for work!
Karen said,
June 26, 2008 @ 7:17 am
Hi there,
Nope, don’t hide anything from the husband. His business, turning wood, means we have 1,000# burls and huge logs and stacks of wood everywhere. Yarn pales in comparison. And I haven’t been buying all that much this year anyway. (You may have noticed. )
I don’t attempt to knit while driving, even at stop signs, but I do take the easy sock in progress along to knit while sitting at my Farmers Market booth. I do have a neighbor that bemoans the fact that the socks are never for him. I haven’t looked but I suspect he has big feet since he is a rather big man. That would mean lots of yarn and lots of knitting. Eeep! Although I would make him socks, he’s that nice of a man.
Hmm, maybe I should take Little Loopy to market with me? Do you think he’s like that?
Karen
Chris in NJ said,
June 26, 2008 @ 7:24 am
I guess this is one of those times I feel lucky I’m single. I never have to hide my yarn from anyone! I live amongst my yarn and have it all around my knitting chair, so I’m surrounded by my favorites.
I never get the Wollmeise either. One day when the popularity has calmed down I may get some, in the color I love that’s on my wish list.
Oh - and I do have my yarn sent to the office, but because I have a tiny mail box and want the yarn NOW. That and I hate having to pick up the boxes at the PO.
Here is what I wonder about ya’ll… How do you not spend your entire salary on all the yarns there? Aren’t you tempted to knit all day?
Kim B. said,
June 26, 2008 @ 8:32 am
I’m not single but I don’t hide a skein. Husband says I won’t live long enough to knit all the sock yarn and other yarn I have — but gee, that would be a good goal! I have sock yarn (for socks, scarves and shawls) stored in the extra bedroom and all the other yarn in a rented storage area where we keep other stuff.
If I knit while in the car, I’m not doing the driving.
Deadlines! LOL I have been known to cut it way too close. One time (all too recently) I wrapped the knitted gift with the needles still in the unfinished project and then finished it that day. Here’s a good excuse/reasoning…then the recipient knows I personally knit it! LOL
At to number 8 — I plead the 5th and beyond!!
I haven’t posted yet with Loopy and I know I will get some really weird looks and shakes of heads from co-workers and even the boss because of who I am planning to pose with in a few weeks. Am taking off a few days from work to do a political tour with my boss and our party’s nominee.
Dear Elves — we should knit for you. You wrap and pack our orders so nicely and ship them immediately. However, you do need to learn how to knit socks. I learned because my sister refused to knit me any more … which was her way of getting me to learn to knit them. Now I’m addicted!
Martha DC said,
June 26, 2008 @ 8:43 am
In answer to a couple of your wonderings:
I can buy and put yarn anywere I want becasue I am Single! I don’t have to send it to a friends house but I am a receiving location for a friends yean. And I sometimes store yarn for her so her husband does not complain. (behing the loveseat).
And becasue of the Loopy on vacation program; you have inspired my association to adopt a mascot and get two stuffed animals (badgers) and make them available for staff to take on vacation and bring back pictures of the badger and staff on vacation and having fun. You should have been in our department meeting last week when everyone was telling about their time off and showing pictures and I got up and showed all the loopy at the beach pictures. ( I thought that they would have me committed). But as you can see we have a fun department. I’ll try to post a picture of our new mascots on my account.
Andrea said,
June 26, 2008 @ 9:20 am
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others? (Elf Marianne says the trunk is a great place to hide stash. Not that we’re encouraging that.)
I do not hide my stash—I’m lucky that my husband is understanding, but I must confess that my stash is not something that we talk about—I don’t think I want to know what he really thinks!
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn?
No sneaky place to stash yarn.
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups? (Many of us would rather be F5-ing than cleaning house, for instance.)
There is no Wollmeise in my stash.
4. Do you knit at stop signs?
Only if I am a passenger in the car.
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week?
It was not me—I’m a very bad blogger!
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline? (We get emergency calls. We know.)
Luckily I rarely have a deadline…..but I must confess that although I finished a shawl last week for a wedding next weekend, it is still not blocked, so I may have a cut it really close call next week!
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency? Other than a deadline or a birthday gift that you needed yesterday?
When I first started knitting, and was working on my first (and still not completed) sweater I definitely thought that a dropped stitch was a knitting emergency, as I did not know how to fix it or what I had actually managed to do, so each time it happened, I had to rush down to the LYS (luckily we had one back then—no such luck anymore) to have them fix it. It was an emergency for me—just ask my husband—boy I would freak out!
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? (Some of you may take the Fifth on this.)
Ummm….I’m afraid to count them, but having the ones on Ravelry has helped me to at least become better aware. Three on Ravelry that I am not currently working on and I’m afraid to count my pre-Ravelry ones—I’d venture to guess 5 or so. I always seem to be lured away by the next project…..good thing I like small projects.
9. What is your favorite colorway name? (We liked Blended Frog, in a weird sort of way.)
Pookie. It is the name of my husband’s favorite dog.
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos? (Elf Donna had someone call her a freak when she did this out in Colorado.)
I do not have a Little Loopy, and have not posed with my Loopy Postcard yet, but I may be doing so this weekend. Who knows what people will think…..but we do amuse people when we take pictures of or have people pose with our plastic squirrel that we take on vacation with us!
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret?
Not yet.
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?” (I told them they all have to learn to knit their own socks. Some are socks knitters, and others …. are not. But we’re working on that.)
They have not posted their sock measurements on the web site yet. ; )
Debbie said,
June 26, 2008 @ 9:35 am
I live alone so there should be no need to hide my stash but I do put it in plastic bins and bags to keep it safe from bugs. It sometimes requires some creative storage solutions due to space limitations. I sometimes hide it so well I can’t find it when I need it. I also move my knitting into the bedroom closets when visitors come. It is easier than trying to explain the concept of yarn stashing and multiple UFOs to a non-knitter.
Joanne Edwards said,
June 26, 2008 @ 9:38 am
Hello to all. Ha, stash…well in actuality, I have some yarn stash which I have in big handwolven baskets under the wall secretary in the living room and some in a basket at the end of the bed…but people still ask, “Why do you have all that yarn?” There is not all that much…but I also have cross-stitching, quilting, weaving, spinning, painting, card and rubber stamping stuff down in the den on shelves…my sons say that it is supposed to be the children that make clutter…but in my case, it is me. I try to finish what I start, probably because someone is panting in anxiety, waiting for it. The stuff that are UFO’s are usually mine. I have been knitting on my black shawl and have about six inches to go…when the multi-colored yarn gave out. I knew that I had more in my stash, so looked and found 5 more skeins, AND ANOTHER SHAWL that I had started for me with a different green/turquoise color that completely changes the texture and colorway of the multi. Groan…….now I want to finish that shawl, too. Sound familiar. I don’t hide my stash..what does my husband care, as long as he is fed and the bills are paid. I could talk, and the man does not know I even have spoken. His favorite word is, “Huh.”
As much as I love all of you elves, you need to learn to make your own socks….goodness, you have TEMPTATION at every turn…pick up those needles and get moving!!!! By the way, a big thank you to Sheri and the elves for all that you do. You guys are the best! Take care everyone, Love, Jo
Liz in IN said,
June 26, 2008 @ 9:53 am
I tell my dh that the yarn is on its way, and I show it off to him when it arrives! To hide the yarn altogether, or even temporarily (to be able to say it’s not *new* yarn) would be…um…how can I put this? Well, maybe I won’t put it at all. Yeah, that’s a good idea. We will celebrate our 34th wedding anniversary this Sunday, so I can say honesty has worked for us. YMMV.
If I’m driving, it’s in the country or ‘to town’ (they call it a city, but eehhhh, I dunno). Not much time spent in traffic. If “we” go places, dh drives. I knit. This also works well.
I love names! People names and street names and colourway names. I’m always disappointed when a dyer chooses to use only numbers for colourways. Who wouldn’t rather knit with “Midnight Iris” than “X57D3″??
I identify with the Loopy Elves. My favourite job ever was “yarn girl” working for the (then) importer of a line of British yarn. It came in BIG BOXES and we had to twist the skeins and label them. So. Much. FUN! Just wholesale, though, so we only dealt with yarn shops.
So, Elves, you want socks? What size feets do you have? Colour/yarn preferences? Etc.? Non-knitting elves, I predict: one pair of handknit socks suggling up to your tender tootsies, and you’ll find yourself looking at the sock yarns in a whole new way!
Paula said,
June 26, 2008 @ 10:15 am
1. My DH doesn’t say anything, but I do anyway.
2. Under my desk at work and behind shoes in my closet
3. No, I’m working.
4. Yes, but not all the time.
5. Not me!
6. I try to finish early
7. No
8. Five. Four will get finished. Fifth needs to be frogged.
9, DIC Cocoa Kiss
10. I don’t have a LL
11. Usually shipped to work
12. I didn’t know they needed socks. Don’t they have those cool shoes with those curved toes?
Castiron said,
June 26, 2008 @ 10:57 am
No hiding here. My husband stashes car parts; I stash needlework supplies; we don’t complain about each other’s stashes. And I’ve found that when I feel iffy about showing him a yarn purchase, it’s because *I* feel I spent too much.
My sock yarn stash lives on a couple shelves in my bedroom, which does rather keep me from buying more :-P. (Or at least it’s incentive to use it so I can justify buying more!)
I try not to knit to hard deadlines (garment someone’s going to wear for their wedding, for example). That way, if I don’t finish a shawl by this Christmas, it can be a present for next Christmas.
Favorite names: BellaModen’s Very Long Engagement. J-Knits state and city names (though occasionally I scratch my head over why she chose place X for color Y — Houston doesn’t make me think pale orange, and I lived there for five years!). Wollmeise’s Rittersporn,because it makes my inner middle-schooler snicker (and because I love the color).
Frances said,
June 26, 2008 @ 11:02 am
I don’t have to hide my stash from anyone (also single). My stash clearly consists mainly of sock yarns. I have never been able to get to a Wollmeise sneak up. I have many unfinished projects. The unfinished projects are not socks. I usually manage to finish those.
My biggest knitting emergency is when the swallowtail I was making in Malabrigo lace came flying off the needles. Have not been able to fix it yet.
I would really like to know what Jitterbug project people are working on. Yarnballboogie has a great sock pattern with jitterbug that I am working on, but he blogged about that awhile ago.
Sabrina said,
June 26, 2008 @ 11:04 am
1. I use to have to, but oh how i love single life no need to hide my stash nor my quilt stash nor my crossstich stash.
2. My undie drawer and behind my quilt stash
3. No time for that
4.I dont drive so i get to knit anywhere as long as it is light out
5. good question cant wait to her this one
6. depends on how busy i get it can be minutes until to too late so belated.
7. Cat undoing my project or one of the nieces trying to knit and making a mess
8. I may take the Fifth on this, cause honestly i dont know and would rather not try to find out.)
9. Favorite, now how can i ever choose! I am a Gemini?Cancer cusp and i am known as hard to make up my mind.
10. Little Loopy is in my wishlist.
11. Yes i have.
12. Why dont we get some Sock fairies to nknot the non knitables some socks?
THen love the kitty picture. You should see my newest addition, shhh my daughters dont know that yet! suppose to be here for just a little bit. It is 7 weeks old, we think, guesstamate, and is so tiny that it fits in the palm of my hand with room to spare. The rest of the litter didnt make it and though adoptive mama cats take care of it it just doesnt get enough all the rest of thier liter are quite bigger in size and appetite.. It follows me around like a puppy and when it found our organic cat food it doesnt like replacement milk anymore as main meal so we are soaking the cat food in that milk. It has such big eyes and large ears for the tiny face that ti reminds me of ET.
loveya
amy mac said,
June 26, 2008 @ 11:05 am
I have had a knitting emergency! Way back in my teen years, I somehow backed into a 14 inch aluminum Susan Bates needle that was sticking out of one of my project bags. I then had to pull it out of the back of my thigh……and weave down the hallway, trying not to faint as I told my dad it was time to go to the ER. Knitting has been good to me since, no further injuries!
As for stash, there is no point in hiding it from husband. I do try to keep it in multiple places, so he is never face to face with ALL of it. One time I was knitting as we waited at the airport, and a man asked my husband if he’d had to build an addition on to the house yet, (apparently he had)!
tracey in mi said,
June 26, 2008 @ 12:37 pm
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others? (Elf Marianne says the trunk is a great place to hide stash. Not that we’re encouraging that—in plain view- I have a house full of men- trust me they can’t find ANYTHING if it’s righ in front of them. Bonus- no guilt cause I’m not REALLY hiding it.
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn? N/A
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups? (Many of us would rather be F5-ing than cleaning house, for instance.) I use the f 5 as a REWARD for completed work.. clean something- f 5, clean the toilet, f 5… works great
4. Do you knit at stop signs? SHHHH , yes. But I’m not supposed to.. A friend once caught me- I’ll never hear the end of it.
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week? No clue.
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline? (We get emergency calls. We know.) THE VERY LAST MINUTE. Or worse.
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency? Other than a deadline or a birthday gift that you needed yesterday? I once woke up with a cable needle in my tank- could have been a shish-ka-b**b emergency
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed? (Some of you may take the Fifth on this.) No clue. If I move on.. they are gone from my memory.
9. What is your favorite colorway name? (We liked Blended Frog, in a weird sort of way.) Velvet plum.
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos? (Elf Donna had someone call her a freak when she did this out in Colorado.) None, for some reason,very little I do surprises anyone any more.
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret? NO. But have been tempted… However my fear of… would they want to keep it makes me leary
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?” (I told them they all have to learn to knit their own socks. Some are socks knitters, and others …. are not. But we’re working on that.) I think You’re going to have too many socks to count soon.
Vis Major said,
June 26, 2008 @ 12:54 pm
Oh, fun - a virtual “interview” with your groupies!
1. How many people hide stash from husbands or significant others?
I don’t hide my stash, but neither do I draw attention to it.
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn?
We have a very small storage area off our bedroom that’s perfect for secret yarn stashing.
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups?
Alas, I haven’t participated in this yet.
4. Do you knit at stop signs?
Who told you?!
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week?
Hmm, no idea.
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline?
Really, really close. I have no idea why, because in all other areas of my life I’m a Serious Planner.
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency?
Nope, can’t think of one.
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed?
Just 3 so far: a cashmere scarf that I’m deliberately taking my time on to maximize my knitting enjoyment; a vest for my husband - he has a 50″ diameter chest; and a baby blanket that I plan to frog - it’s not an enjoyable project in its current form.
9. What is your favorite colorway name?
Dream In Color’s “Flamingo Pie” - that name cracks me up.
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos?
Just general looks of “huh?” or bewilderment.
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret?
Umm, yes. To my work, and then I’ve snuck it into the stash as if it had been there all along. Thank goodness a lot of my new secret yarn looked just like older stash yarn to the untrained eye…
12. And the most important question the Elves want to know - “How come no one ever knits socks for us?”
An excellent question for which I don’t have an answer.
tabitha said,
June 26, 2008 @ 12:56 pm
1. Do you hide stash from husbands?
I only hid stash if the yarn is for a gift for him. Luckily, my hubby is quite supportive of my knitting habit. Think I won him over with the first pair of hand knit socks.
2. What is the sneakiest place you’ve ever stashed yarn?
I normally mix the hubby yarn in the with all the rest of the stash. He never thinks pays it any attention. If I put green yarn on top of it he will never see it since he is colorblind.
3. How do you find the time to F5 for Wollmeise Sneak Ups?
I have never managed to be online near a Wollmeise sneak up. It is normally sold out before I realize there is a sneak up.
4. Do you knit at stop signs?
Stop signs,no. Don’t normally stay there long enough to warrant the time to pick up the needles. Traffic lights, railroad crossings and traffic jams, yes.
5. Who blogged about a Jitterbug project lately that has everyone buying the same colors this week?
Afraid not. I haven’t found a Jitterbug color that really speaks to me yet.
6. How close do you cut it when knitting on a deadline?
Usually, as close as it can be cut. I am afraid that I am a procrastiknitter.
7. Speaking of emergencies, has anyone had a true knitting emergency?
Not unless you count accidentally destroying your favorite needles an emergency. Knitting helps me avoid emergencies, for the most part. I have knitted in the emergency room and ICU waiting rooms though.
8. How many projects have you started and not yet completed?
I don’t know if I can count that high. Do I have to count the ones that have been frogged in disgust? At any given time, I normally keep half a dozen or so projects on my needles in varying stages of completeness. Normally, if a project stays on the needles for more than a couple of months it generally gets frogged.
9. What is your favorite colorway name?
Dragon Slayer or Lipstick Lava
10. What kind of funny looks have you received when posing Little Loopy or the Loopy Postcard for taking photos?
People usually just back away quietly and avoid eye contact.
11. Have you ever had your order shipped to someone else’s house (or your work) to keep it a secret?
Nope. My family motto is “ask me not questions and I’ll tell you no lies.”
12. How come no one ever knits socks for us?
Because you forgot to send me the yarn and your sizes.
Kathy Sue said,
June 26, 2008 @ 1:27 pm
7. I ran out of and indie dyer’s yarn with ten inches of binding-off left, and sold out color. The angel had me send her my scraps, and died me a little skein and DID NOT CHARGE ME!!!
1-6 are no, or I don’t.
8. I have 3 projects that have been sitting for years, and one that is three yeasr old. I have learned to pick patterns that I will finish!
9. Anything purple or green or blue. Otherwise, not picky.
10. Haven’t tried that one yet.
11. Yes–my Mom is great secret keeper.
12. Wellllllll-I would be willing to try, but you might regret it.
P>S> I just could not imagine working around all that yarn, and not taking half of it home every day! I would never get a paycheck!
Doris said,
June 26, 2008 @ 1:46 pm
What is F5 and is that why I keep missing the Wollmeise? I don’t really “hide” the stash…it’s just under the bed and my husband doesn’t realize that that is why we sleep so well at night…it’s the wool fumes wafting through the room….I’m very lucky that my husband has no problem with my wool addiction. As a matter of fact he tells people all the time that he feels fortunate that I have a talent that provides such beautiful end products. Plus he has more fishing lures that Bass Pro Shop, so he has no room to speak! And I can justify my yarn purchases easily by thinking of the hours of therapy that knitting has provided me in times of stress and strife. I know what a psychiatrist would cost…I am nowhere close!
Wanda in AR said,
June 26, 2008 @ 1:53 pm
You asked so here it is. No I don’t hide stash from hubbie. I have eased it into the house but it isn’t hidden. I have a craft room which he is afraid of. He is a hunter so he has no run to talk about how much I spend on yarn. I have never had to ship to someone else’s house to hide from hubbie.
I always forget about the sneak up until all of the Wollmeise is already gone.
I don’t knit why I am in the driver’s seat but I do knit while I am in the passenger seat.
I don’t know who blogged about jitterbug but I can’t wait to find out.
I don’t think I have ever had an emergency knitting situation.
I have only 4 project that I have started and have completed.
I could knit socks for you but you need to learn to knit for yourself. That is what I told my mother and so I have been teaching how to knit socks.
1
northmoon said,
June 26, 2008 @ 2:09 pm
As others have noted, one of the advantages of being single is not having to hide my stash. However, I do have to be careful not to leave it lying around - I keep it in mothproof ziplock bags and my cats will chew the corners, defeating the purpose of the bags!!
I have way too many unfinished projects - 3 different socks on the go, 2 cardi’s, a baby sweater that never got done, a shawl and a shrug. I tend to frog if I get discouraged. Some black alpaca I had was three different items, frogged three times and finally completed as a shawl.
I never have knit emergencies. That’s the beauty of knitting - if it doesn’t work, frog and start over. If I don’t finish a gift in time for a birthday, buy something else and aim for Christmas.
Liz said,
June 26, 2008 @ 2:09 pm
1. Not so much hiding it as not telling BFF Sarah that I bought something. Because…yeah. The stash is embarrassing.
2. I live alone, so I don’t have to be sneaky.
3. Haven’t done it. The one time I got lucky enough to get Wollmeise it was just that…luck. But I wonder about that, too.
4. No, since I don’t drive…but I knit at the bus stop, on the bus, on the train, waiting to cross the train tracks to get to the bus…etc., etc.
5. Dunno. Sort of worked through my Colinette phase a while back…maybe it will resurface eventually.
6. So close that a major mistake in a mitt at Christmas time led to me giving someone a gift I had received instead of the mitts. Yeah. It wasn’t pretty.
7. Let us not discuss a broken strand of Morehouse Merino Lace in this: http://www.morehousefarm.com/KnittingKits/LaceShawls/Waves/ I still don’t know how to fix it.
8. Aside from the show in #7? Yeah. A lot. Too many.
9. Ooh…I’m big on the name. I have bought yarn just because of the name. I think my most recent favorite is Rose-Lipt Maiden. And I have a skein called Dunderskund that I just like to say aloud. Dunderskund.
10. Dude, I got the Pittsburgh Pirates’ announcer to sign my Flat Loopy and pose with him in a photo (which I still have to send you). I think I get credit for confusing the heck out of him…hard to do with a guy who thinks on his feet for a living.
11. I’ve sent yarn as gifts, but not to hide.
12. I’m too busy petting and buying yarn to actually knit anything with it.
Gretchen said,
June 26, 2008 @ 3:02 pm
1. It’s not so much hide as it is, avoid the question “Don’t you have enough yarn?”
2. Sneakiest place would be my laptop bag, so I can take it to work and fondle when I’m having a bad day.
3. I work on computers, so it’s not too hard to keep a browser open, and refresh regularly.
4. Stop signs no, stoplights once or twice. We don’t have much traffic where I live.
6. I avoid cutting close to deadlines by not setting myself any. Sure it may take three years to knit up those socks for Christmas, but Christmas comes EVERY YEAR.
8. Three projects currently ‘on hold’, in the closet. Frogged projects, plead the fifth.
11. No, but I’ve thought about it.
Question for the Elves:
How can you work there and not knit, or crochet, or collect that yarn?
TMTTYRR said,
June 26, 2008 @ 3:25 pm
OK, I’ll play.
1. Does hiding it from Mama and the cat count?
2. In the boxes with the rest of my stash, but before anyone sees.
3. I don’t.
4. I’ve been known to knit or crochet in heavy traffic (in the dead of winter when it takes half an hour to go half a mile due to a blizzard), but not at stop signs.
5. I don’t have a blog.
6. As close as I can possibly cut it. I’ve even been known to still be working AT the baby shower.
7. Nope, no true emergencies.
8. ERm….. I’ve lost count…..
9. Hmm… Knit Commando, Blender Frog, You Can’t Seee Meee (reminds me of the cat)….
10. None, though my friend Jeff looked at my vacation pics and asked, “What’s with the sheep?”
11. Nope. No need. Mama has no idea what’s in the packages. Could be anything.
12. You all are on the list! Really!
Patricia said,
June 26, 2008 @ 5:05 pm
I don’t hide my stash from husband but it’s stored and stacked in clear plastic containers 6 ft high 3 across in my laundry room. He never goes in the laundry room.
Also my only knitting emergency relates to my husband. When he cut off his thumb 2 days after our daughters wedding in another state I found the lys and coped with needles and yarn. He’s fine now and woodworking again. If you have a woodworker look at the saw stop tablesaw.
The Loopy Elves ROCK!!!!
Michelle said,
June 26, 2008 @ 5:52 pm
No idea what F5ing is….
No I don’t knit at stop signs, but I do knit at red lights.
I have 18 WIP’s at the moment. And I have more than a few thousand $$ worth of yarn stashed here. Hmmmm… I wonder if there’s a clause for wool on my homeowners?
Sherry said,
June 26, 2008 @ 6:35 pm
1. No hiding. Hubby does say I have a problem but as long as I don’t make us broke he is OK.
2. see 1.
3. Just hit F5 as I am walking by the computer.
5. No.
8. Only 1 at a time!
Ronni said,
June 26, 2008 @ 6:41 pm
1. I used to hide fabric stash back in my quilting days until I realized how dumb that was. I was spending my own money after all. I’ve never bothered to hide the fiber/yarn stash. He’s been right there for the worst of them - like the time I had to buy a second suitcase for yarn while on vacation. (That would be two new suitcases bought - both for bringing home mostly yarn and a few other vacation purchases.)
2. Don’t hide yarn so don’t have sneaky places for it.
3. I don’t have time to F5 at all which is why I haven’t gotten Wollmeise since that first time.
4. I have been known to knit at stop lights but not stop Signs. Yet.
5. Huh? Whaddi miss?
6. I usually miss deadlines. Knitting or otherwise.
7. I’ve had to have emergency room knitting more than once but no knitting emergencies. Thank goodness.
8. I’d need more than a fifth to have the courage to count them all up.
9. Actually, I kinda like Blended Frog too. But otherwise my eye is always drawn to the ones with Raspberry in them somewhere. It’s much too hard to pick out favorites though. So many of the indie dyers have such great colorway names too.
10. My daughter rolls her eyes in a particularly entertaining way sometimes.
11. I’ve had it shipped to work to keep it safe but it wouldn’t be kept secret there.
Jean said,
June 26, 2008 @ 7:18 pm
1. I don’t hide it, per say… but I do try to play down the true size of it. *L*
2. In a coffee mug!
3. What is F5ing? I assume it’s refreshing the screen… I have a mac.
4. I’ve been known to knit a a long light…
6. I either have things done WAY ahead of time, or I’m too late. *L*
7. Nothing I couldn’t handle.
8. He he, there’s no way I want to even try to look for them all.
11. Yep!
Not that my fiancee would be upset - it’s more of a way of not letting him use my yarn purchases as an excuse to buy more video games. *LOL*
Charmaine said,
June 26, 2008 @ 10:38 pm
I received my goodies today from my sister in KY…I love everything she picked out for me…the loopyewe is adorable…I will take him on vacation & the card..thank you all again for letting Cheryl shop!!! Can’t wait to knit up the yarn!!
susan-loopy elf said,
June 27, 2008 @ 7:35 am
Thank you everyone for your comments and answers to our questions.
We do like working in our “rainbow” of colors. We are planning our own little knit night soon, and Marianne and Donna have agreed to show us how us a few things. Sheri taught me to knit last summer, and I have made a few scarves, but it is time to try socks. Our newest elf, Karen, used to knit, and I suspect she will be knitting again soon.
Answers to Christine’s questions…things we wonder while packing orders: we do comment on colors, and we have said, “wow, she must like blue..or purple..or green..”. We have heard the comment, “Didn’t she order yesterday?” We have commented on how some yarn matches perfectly with our outfit…and we should sit down and knit socks to match. We always seem to have some conversations going on, and I’m not sure how it started, but we were discussing the game “Clue”, and we came up with our own rooms (Loopy Central, the photo room) and new weapons, (knitting needles, avalanche in the Roving aisle, Poison #5, crocs…) I think maybe it started because of the Roving aisle which has recently been renamed “Jenga”, because we were afraid for Marianne’s life. Those plastic bags just kept jumping off the shelves. (Not to worry, we weren’t plotting against Loopy, or anyone…or any customers
….and Christine…no crabby customers here at the Loopy 
Thank you for answering our questions, and your willingness to make us socks… ….of course, most of you are right…we just need to knit our own!
Happy Friday!
Bronwyn said,
June 27, 2008 @ 3:13 pm
1. I don’t have to hide my yarn, though it’s definitely spread out all over the place so no one really knows exactly how much I have.
2. I’m not all that sneaky, but probably in dresser drawers.
3. I always miss the wollemeise
4. I generally don’t knit in the car, oddly enough
5.It wasn’t me, I swear!
6. Not very
7. Nope
8. Too many.
9. omg..it’s really hard to say but I think I love most of the DIC names. Pansy Golightly is kinda cool.
10. None cos I haven’t had the chance.
11. NOOOO way!
12. It’s cos I’m too busy knitting for me. I’m selfish!