Secret Pal 10 Reveal

There was something waiting for me when I got home last night....

Hey, it's the reveal package from Secret Pal 10! Wonder what's inside?


All kinds of goodies, as it turns out. Four different yarns, some tourist goodies from Oklahoma, a lovely picture frame for dog pictures, a handy gauge gadget, two knitting bags, and a beautiful little potpourri pouch. Wow!

Notice that the potpourri pouch is so beautiful that the dogs want to check it out, even if that means risking smelling good.


Here are a couple highlights. This cute little fish-shaped massager didn't make the group picture, because I was so excited by the other goodies that I didn't notice the dogs had carried off one bag. The bag was marked 'For tired "knitters shoulders,"' and it definitely falls into the "Just what I needed!" category. I've already put it to good use. And it's fish shaped. How cool is that?


Then there's the yarn. These two skeins are destined for something special, although it make take me a long time to figure out what. The brown one is from JR Alpacs, "raised, sheared & spun in Oklahoma!" The multicolored one is a wool-and-silk blend from Mystical Creations Yarn.

I know what will happen to the other two - they're destined to be socks! The beige ball is from Yarn Art, and the blue one is Opal's "Frosch" (frog) color. I don't see much frogginess in the color, but I love the pattern pictures. It's going to get stashed away to be my emergency project the next time I have to travel suddenly. Going on a trip without enough knitting is not something I ever want to experience again.

(Yes, there's space for an aside here. This happened to me once - I went on a 3-week trip with so little notice (and so little stash) that I only had one work-in-progress with me, and I finished it in the first few days. So there I was with nothing to do on long bus rides. The flight home was even worse....no knitting, I'd read all my books, and my teaching responsibilites were over. For the first time I can remember, I had about 12 hours - one very long afternoon - with nothing to do....and nothing I should have been doing. It was weird. I didn't like it. This yarn will prevent that. I feel secure.)

But the bigger question is, "who's in the package?" Or at least who's revealing her identity - no actual Secret Pals were shipped. My fabulous SP10 pal is Mimi of mimiwontonknits. She's a retired realtor, a grandmother, President of her local knitting guild, and a wonderful Secret Pal! And yes, she lives in Oklahoma, which explains the cards, the toothpick holder, and the red knitting bag from her newest Local Yarn Store. She even sent a picture of herself, a really great idea and something I wish I'd thought to do for my pal.

Thank you, Mimi! I've felt wonderfully spoiled this summer.

Going the other direction, I'm getting ready to send the final reveal package to my own pal. My latest FO will be part of it - this little crocheted bead bracelet. And what's that beautiful blue background? It's the heel of my Braided Rice Sock, which will have a mate any day now!