Happy Birthday To Me (and you): A Giveaway
Here I am (a little blurry) on my birthday last year. Little did I know what was coming...but, hey, I had that nice pink mocktail to get me through (lower right).
Yes, folks, today is my birthday. I am (mumble) years old. It’s been a good year, with a lot of changes and a lot of knitting…and a lot of you people. I think it was around this time last year that I started giving away yarn like there was no tomorrow, and all kinds of folks came out of the woodwork to give my stash a good home.
Aside: my mother used to call me on my birthday, not just to wish me a happy day, but also to remind me of the story of my birth. Some years, she’d call more than once, giving me a sort of blow-by-blow of the day (“This time 25 years ago, I was still at the garage sale, and my water broke!”). At the time, it was one more sign of her quirkiness. Today, preparing for my own kid’s birthday, I say: Thanks for all the hard work, Mom.
So to thank all of you for the love, support, and stash-busting over the past year, I give you: some more yarn.
Handspun yarn from Cardiff, Wales: one lucky commenter will get to make an amazing hat/pair of mitts/something from this.
I bought this yarn at a little yarn shop in Cardiff a couple of years ago. Here is what the tags say:
- PINK: Ragged Robyn. Merino, Linen, Blue Faced Leicester. 188 yards.
- BLUE: Ragged Robyn. Merino. Thread Ply. 202 yards.
What I know is that it’s handspun from a woman who lives in Cardiff, or used to live in Cardiff. A little Google-stalking came up with nothing definitive about the mysterious Robyn, but I can tell you that this yarn is gorgeous and soft. If it were me, I’d make a pair of mis-matched (fraternal twin) hand mitts. But whoever wins can make whatever they like with it!
The yarn has lived in a plastic, airtight container in our one-cat, non-smoking home since purchase (plastic container was shipped abroad when we moved). Details on all stash giveaways here. Deadline is Wednesday, April 11, at noon GMT+1.
Happy Birthday to me, thank you to all of you, and happy commenting! Tell me about how you celebrate your birthday, or the most unusual handspun you’ve found in a yarn shop.
Knit Like You Mean It. 
Happy Birthday, Kathleen! I too share an April birthday but I still have a couple weeks before I turn mumble…really old! I have a best friend whose birthday is a couple days before mine so we always celebrate together. This year she is flying out for a visit from Montana and maybe she’ll bring some of that lovely mountain yarn! We plan to celebrate at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival and then share a Springtime Farm Table Dinner hosted by Chef Chittum at Arcadia at Woodlawn Plantation. I like to celebrate by doing things that I really enjoy, so that pretty much sums it up. Once again, Happy Birthday and enjoy your special day!
Happy Birthday Kathleen! I have an April birthday too (coming up) and for the past few years I have celebrated my birthday by buying a pair of shoes. Works for me. I’d love to win your yarn and make a “fraternal twin” set of mitts because I AM a fraternal twin. But only if I can pay postage. Have a fabulous day!
I didn’t know that you’re a twin! My father is a fraternal twin, as well. It’s quite the bond, it sounds like.
Happy Birthday! I always thought our children should give us gifts on their birthdays not the other way around… think about it.
Instead of telling you about my just passed birthday I would rather tell you that I too celebrate every birthday of my first born by telling her the story of her birth the night before when I tuck her in. If I skip a part she will chime in and say and what about when Grandma came and then left and I still wasn’t born. This year she turned 18 and was still asking for the story!!!!
Happy, Happy Birthday,Kathleen!
I love to celebrate the day you were born and all your mother’s hard work because you are truly a gift to my life!
Love, Kay
Happy Birthday. You will soon have your own birth day story to pass on to your beautifull little one. Every mother has at least one.
My birthday is in June and this year it is on the same day as the annual carnival that I organise as part of my job so it will be up at the crack of dawn having gone to bed late the night before after marking out the stall pitches and printing off the final site plan. Stall holders start arriving at about 8 am dispite the fact that they are told access is from 9 am and someone has to make sure they pitch their stall in the right place. Once the fair opens I will be doing the regular announcements, appealing for mothers of lost children and telling people they have won prizes. If I’m lucky one of the stall holders may bring me a glass of Pimms or an ice cream. When it is all over I will have to help clear the park and get all the tables and chairs back to our building. At about 7 pm I will lock up and go home totally knackered and no doubt fall asleep on the sofa as soon as I sit down only to wake up in the dark at about 3 am!
I know all this because I have had my birthday on the same day as the carnival before.
My birthday is only ten days before Halloween, so I usually try to arrange a trip to one of the big ‘haunted house’ places. Another thing is that, I’m not particularly fond of cake, so my birthday ‘cake’ is usually brownies instead.
I haven’t actually looked much for handspun in any stores… I have, however, attempted (somewhat clumsily) to spin my own.
Happy birthday, Kathleen! BTW, I need to email you because I’m going to be in Oxford this summer! Perhaps, even though we couldn’t hang out in the same state, we can meet up across the pond–though I have a feeling you’ll be a little busy in July. 🙂
My mom used to tell me all about the day I was born also, and it involved a monitor that kept picking up the local country-western station instead of my heartbeat. Oh, and a teddy bear shaped cake for which I now have the mold. Maybe I’ll use it this year!
Megan! How great that you’ll be here! Let’s email immediately. Clearly we were separated a birth, as the country-western monitor could well have been part of my birth. Also, our baby kicks the monitor every time someone tries to listen to her heartbeat. Our kid: not afraid to express her opinions.
All I can tell you is “Thanks for all the hard work, Mom” does not quite cut it as you will find out in a few short months…No, there’s one more thing I can tell you: It’s true. You do not remember the pain. Even without drugs, should you choose or end up going that route, you will not remember it. If we did remember it, the world would be populated by nothing but twins and other multiples because no woman in her right mind would go through it again.
; -)
Happy Birthday!
My birthday is in October and I’ll have to admit to largely ignoring it in recent years.
Happy Birthday, Kathleen! How special that your mom used to call you throughout the day on your birthday, and how *exciting* that very soon you’re going to be able to pass on the tradition – I’m so excited for you! That was a lot of use of the word exciting, wasn’t it. Yet another reason I’m not a writer.
A story about handspun… I haven’t tried my hand at spinning yet (punny) but I recently traded some yarn via ravelry with a super-nice woman who sent me some yarn that *she* spun by hand, and it was so fun knowing that every inch of the super-soft yarn I was knitting up had been carefully run through her hands. Twice, if I understand correctly! And all I had to do to get it was trade her some funky old novelty yarn that I didn’t want anymore 🙂
My birthday is half a year away in November, and I’m not celebrating it much anyway. Congratulations on yours!
Last year I’ve found a very nice yarn without a tag. I think it was handspun linen, and I loved the color – teal grey and golden copper. It seemed like a perfect yarn for an autumn scarf:)
First of all…Happy Birthday!!! Enjoy “your special day”, in your own special way! The yarn is gorgeous!!! I think baby hats would be on my list… I’m getting a new granddaughter in August, and a new nephew in June (the colors are perfect)!!!
Again, enjoy your birthday!
Happy birthday. I love birthdays! We have set birthday rituals here beginning with birthday breakfast always of hot chocolate and croissants and a special day out. For my 50th (oh yes!) we did a little more than a day out and took a large house in France and we all (me, Mr H and the 4 offspring) invited friends for a week’s holiday. We ate drank slept in the sun and played games all week
A story about handspun yarn……………………………………….
Well I nearly passed out at Unravel in Farnham a few weeks ago when I saw the most beautiful handspun yarns by Daniela Kloppmann, it is just to die for. This is where you can get it: http://www.etsy.com/shop/feltstudiouk
I was looking at thoday’s birthdays on the Wikipedia page for 4/5 earlier today because today is the day my sister had her baby (a boy they named Silas), and clearly it was missing you on that list!
My birthday the last few years has been fairly low key. Seems to always be on an inconvenient day for celebrating. Last year, I went to Wales to celebrate. 🙂
Happy birthday, Kathleen! I hope you had a great celebration. 😉
Happy Birthday! I went to Fibre Space last month for the first time and boy o boy did i enjoy it. Ive been knitting for 3 years and in thouse 3 years I have tackled 4 pairs of socks and plenty of scarves and hate sets. May next adventure is a cardigan sweater which i would love to have some beautiful fiber to make it out of although im still searching for a pattern. Anyway I win the giveaway and see you one day at Fibre Space. Congrats on the baby!
Yikes my spelling was horrible bad day for my carpel tunnel…
Just wanted to say happy happy birthday. You can expect more changes in the next year.
Happy happy birthday! You will have a lot of changes in the next year.
Happy birthday, Kathleen!! I love that your mom tells you the story of your birth! I do that with my 2 boys who are now in their twenties. It’s amazing how much one forgets as the years go by…. your blog is a wonderful way to keep track of all the changes you are experiencing…
my birthday was last month & after work, where folks decorate the cubicle, my SO & I went out to dinner & then home to enjoy the birthday red velvet cake he had made for me!!
Happy (belated) Birthday!
Most unusual handspun I have seen would definitely be paper. Japanese paper, so sturdier and more spin-able than most, but still… paper.
My parents are renowned for always singing a lovely, harmonious duet of Happy Birthday to the birthday person…they are now in their late 80s, so every time they sing is bittersweet. I savor every song! Even my husband wanted his “song” this year on his birthday… said it wouldn’t be the same without it! Long live birthday memories!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you ahd a wonderful birthday week! 🙂
~Mippy 🙂
Thanks for the giveaway!!! So exciting to give some of your stash a home!!! I have sent you an e-mail w/my info, and I would love to donate to offset the shipping…just let me know the cost of shipping & I’ll send it via paypal.
Again…thank you so much for the opportunity!!!
Hurrah! Just take a look at the label when the package arrives, and send whatever you like. And let us know what you make with the yarn!
Again…Thank you so much, and I will post pics when I finish knitting w/the yarn.
Hi Kathleen and fellow followers I was just doing a random search on google to see if my etsy shop came up and I found you! Hooray! I am Ragged Robyn and it is great to find the picture of these yarns and I can’t wait to see what becomes of them now!