May Giveaway!

In just a few days it will be 4 months since my first blog post, and I'm having a lot of fun so far!  I enjoy reading every comment, in fact I'm tickled to bits when you find my posts and pictures interesting enough (or silly enough) to comment about!  Thank you so very much. 

Since January, readers have visited from places that stir my imagination: from Brazil and Romania, from Australia and Pakistan, from Portugal, South Africa, Ireland, Russia, from all over the UK...the list goes on and on.

Places I have visited in years past, and places I would love to visit.

Places I've learned at least a little bit more about, thanks to readers' comments, and their blogs.  It makes the world seem smaller.  And friendlier.

This morning I noticed that there have been 6,897 separate "pageviews" here, which simply staggers me.  Thank you for sharing my tiny bit of this smaller, friendlier world!
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So, what do you think? Time for a celebratory giveaway???

I'm thinking yarn...

First idea: a skein of the yarn so many people commented on back in January.  The yarn that turned into these socks, which you've probably forgotten:

I know, anything so bland and dull is easy to forget, right?

Off I go!  To market, to market...

Oh dear.  This jolly yarn, it turns out, is no longer available!  This particular Opal is discontinued.  Out of print, so to speak.

Sorry!

I'll have to think of something else for the giveaway.
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How about we give away those 'adorable' baby goats?   I am SO sick of everyone making a fuss over those little paddock-rats.

Oh, erm...did I say that out loud?  No, wait - I'm a dog!
Whew. That was close!

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Oh, no, Piper, I can hear your thoughts on the baby goats loud and clear, every day.  And those adorable little goats are staying right where they are.  Here, have another chewy beef treat.
And maybe one more.
Good dog.
~~~

But in other news, whilst going through one of my big plastic storage boxes of yarn...look what I discovered!

Gosh, it actually DOES look bland and dull in that picture, doesn't it?  Let's take it outside in the natural light.

THAT'S more like it!

Now, as you can see, the ballband has been removed and a few yards of the yarn were unwound and then rewound loosely around the skein before being stored in this ziplock bag.  The unwound yarn suggested that some of the yarn had been used, and my initial excitement at finding the Actual Yarn of my Giveaway Dreams turned to disappointment.

But...

I couldn't remember ever knitting with any yarn from this skein.  I think after making the first pair of socks, I may have unravelled a bit of this second skein to try to figure out if it would be possible to duplicate this kind of self-patterning yarn as one of my dyeing projects.  (The answer, as you may have guessed from a closer look at this yarn, is NOT VERY LIKELY!)

So, could it be a complete skein, suitable for giveawaying?  Could it?  Just to be on the safe side, I weighed the yarn.  It came it at just a whisper over 100 grams, so it seems safe to call this a complete skein.

YAY!

One skein.

Enough for a pair of these:

These adult woman-sized socks are knitted quite high - easily midcalf.  And even with the few yards sacrificed in order to start the second sock at the same point in the yarn pattern as the first (to make them so matchy-matchy), there was plenty of yarn in one skein: 465 yards per 100-gram skein.  That's what I call a generous skein of sock yarn!  Thank you, Zwerger Garn!!

Opal Zirkus/Circus

by Zwerger Garn

Fingering / 4 ply

75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon

465 yards / 100 grams

Colorway #2005

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If you would like to win this skein and knit a nifty pair of socks that will enchant your friends - oh, go on, you know you want to! - just leave a comment on this post.

Easiest socks ever. The yarn is doing all the work!

Or...you could make multiple pairs of darling little child-sized socks!  Or some other project entirely - a hat?  a cowl?  the pockets and trim on a grey sweater?  Oh, I can't wait to see what the winner will decide to do with this yarn!

Nuts and bolts: 

• Leave a comment, right here, do!
• Make sure I will know how to reach you if you win.
• Enter by midnight (EST), Tuesday 21 May.
• Drawing will be done after morning chores (aw, those adorable goats!) on Wednesday the 22nd.
• I will post the winner's name here, so please check back, just in case an email or Ravelry PM or whatever is delayed through the mysterious workings of the internet!
• If for some reason I don't hear back within 48 hours of posting the winner's name here, I will draw another name.

Three bits of good news:

1. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere!  
2. You are very welcome to share the giveaway or link to this post or whatever you like, but you don't have to follow this blog or tweet the giveaway or pin it on Pinterest or like it on FB or anything.  (I like simple, don't you?)
3. I will happily mail the yarn to the winner at any address on the planet.

Good luck!

~~~~~