WE HAVE A WINNER!!!

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone for participating in our first giveaway.  Curlypow and I are thrilled to have so many followers in such a short time and we hope you have been enjoying our blog as much as we enjoy posting. 

Without further adieu, I'd like to send a great big CONGRATULATIONS to

LORA1967

You are the winner of a copy of Wings + a handmade pair of knit socks!!  Thanks for entering!  I've already sent you an email.  We will be mailing your prize shortly!  Stay tuned for more giveaways!

COZY UP WITH A GOOD BOOK GIVEAWAY!!

Welcome to our first giveaway! We have only been blogging now for a couple months and were going to wait until we reached 50 followers but are enjoying it so much that we thought we'd have a giveaway!

So both Curlypow and I like to 'make' things when we're not reading. I just learned how to knit last October. After 7 scarves, I went on to make a little stuffed stripey elephant. Curlypow is a bit of an expert at knitting as she has been doing it a bit longer than I have. So to show our appreciation to our followers, we have decided to do something different and have our first giveaway with the theme -

COZY UP WITH A GOOD BOOK!!

Included in this package are

- One pair of beautiful hand-knit wool socks (Anyone who has a pair of hand-knit socks knows how comfy these are on your feet.  You really should give them a try!)

- Paperback copy of Wings by Aprillynne Pike (Fantastic read!)

I recently finished reading Wings and loved this book. I will be doing a review later this weekend.  In the meantime, take a look at Curlypow's review on Spells, the second book in the series here.

So onto the COZY UP WITH A GOOD BOOK GIVEAWAY!  To enter, you must be a Google follower (sorry RSS peeps...but if you want to win, we have to be able to track you following us).  You can earn extra entries by doing the following -

• Tweet about our contest (+1)
• Add a sidebar to your blog (+2)
• Make a thoughtful comment on this blog (don't just say 'great giveaway') (+1)
• Make a separate blog post about our contest (+5)

This giveaway is for the U.S. and Canada only (of course if you are International and have someone who can mail it to you from one of these areas, that will work).  You have 2 weeks to enter.  The deadline is two weeks from today - September 3rd at midnight EDT.  Don't forget your links or the extra entries won't count!  Fill out the form below to enter!

**Please note, I've changed the deadline from midnight September 2nd to midnight September 3rd!!***

Sorry, this contest is now closed.  Thank you to everyone who entered!  The winner will be announced shortly. 

Cold Feet!

A few weeks ago I posted about listening to books and knitting at the same time and I mentioned that I would occasionally review a knitting or embroidery book. So here goes. Let me know what you think.

Much to my delight, knitting is becoming popular again. I don't think it will ever go completely out of fashion, but it's popularity comes in fits and starts. There are many young designers out there at the moment who are introducing fun new patterns and right now, with internet accessibility to amazing yarns and patterns, there is a bit of a revival going on, and I'm all for that. I have been knitting for many years - made my first sweater when I was 16 (it complimented the first dress I made at the same time) and I've never looked back. I mostly knit sweaters, with a liberal amount of hats and scarves thrown in - but up until about a year ago I had never knitted a pair of socks. OMG, how much fun they are to knit. I don't know if it was the speed at which they knitted up or the amazing self-striping yarn I was using, but I had a blast.

Now I do admit that you have to have at least a basic knowledge of knitting before you start on socks, but with the right yarn and a circular needle all you need to do is knit!












Author: Ann Budd
Released: 2007
Publisher: Interweave Press
# Pages: 136
Copy provided by: Me

I discovered this book when I was in the book store a few months ago and bought it with very little internal struggle. It is full of basic information, clearly set out, with lots of pictures and step-by-step diagrams to explain the details. Not sure if you can handle double pointed needles? Don't worry, this book gives you an additional 3 ways to use circular needles - 5 options in all, so you're bound to find one method you like. The TIPS are wonderful- if you already know how to knit, they might seem a little basic, but not everyone knows about marking your rows to help you count, and other useful hints.

"TIP: Matching Leg and Foot Lengths
Do you ever wonder how knitters make two socks exactly the same size? The secret is in counting rows. This is the best way to be assured that the second sock will be a perfect mate to the first. I use the markers that look like tiny safety pins to mark every 10 or 20 rounds as I work the leg and foot. Then it's a simple matter to count markers to make the second sock match the first." (page 27)

There is a chapter on 'Basic Sock Instructions' which shows you how to adapt your pattern to different yarn weights. Want a pair of warm thick socks to wear with your boots, or a pair of fine lacy ones to wear in the summer? No problem with 'Getting Started Knitting Socks" There are also chapters dealing with colour and texture, and there are several different stitch directions if you want to progress beyond plain socks.

I thought this was a wonderful book to tell you all about the basics of sock knitting, but I feel honour bound to issue this warning: Sock Knitting is Addictive! Try it, you'll see.