yet another offer!

A new store, Stitch Markers and Cards is offering a 10% discount and free shipping to all SP7 participants! Check it out. It's new, and many more items will be added through out the week.

Another Sweet Offer!

Angela, from Material Whirled, is offering a bonus to SP7 participants, 10% discount and free snazzy gift wrapping thru March 31, 2006 on her handspun yarn. Check it out!

More discounts!

I hope everyone is having fun figuring out how to spoil their pals! Here are two more discounts that were recently added to our list!

Katie, over at Pink Sheep Stitchmarkers is offering free shipping on her adorable sheep stitch markers!

Susie at Perchance To Knit is offering your choice of either a 15% discount (you pay shipping) or a 10% discount (free shipping) on her gorgeous handspun yarn. Check out her post from January 18th for the details!

More Special Discounts!

We've got a couple of new special discount offers for participants of Secret Pal 7 (see sidebar for all available discounts). Thank you to the owners for extending their generous offers! Have fun shopping!

Denise Knits! Beaded Stitch Markers - 10% discount to participants of SP7. Additional details are available on Denise's blog.

Gracie & Company - 10% discount on all wooden knitting needle orders until March 31, 2006. Note promotion code SP7disc10 with your order. Free gift wrapping available.

Got A Match?

By now everyone should have received their pals information. If you haven't been contacted by a hostess with the name of the person you will be spoiling please write to us at sp7hostesses@yahoo.com so we can get your match out to you. It's much easier to find your information through the email account than from the information left when you post a comment to the blog. We know you're all excited to get started and this will help us to get your information to you much more quickly. :-)

If you have received your pals information and haven't dropped them a note to let them know you're out there please do it now. If you've received a note from the pal who will be spoiling you please respond to let them know you got their message. We have lots of worried pals out there because they haven't heard from their spoiler/spoilee.

Have a great time playing and let us know if we can be of any help!

On your marks...

So we're just about to get started with Secret Pal 7! Before we begin, I want to make sure everyone re-reads the rules and makes sure they are still committed to the exchange. If you decide that you would like to withdraw from SP7, contact your hostess immediately so we can substitute in an angel for you. The sooner we find out, the better- and you don't need to give a reason unless you'd like to. If you decide to bail and don't inform your hostess, you will be blacklisted- which means you cannot participate in ANY exchange now that there is a Universal Banned list (that means Knitters Review SP, and Scarf Exchanges and the like all have the same list).

SP7 Questionnaires need to be posted by Friday, which is the day SP7 starts officially. Please post the questions and answers in a place on your blog that is easily accessable. Also, Secret Pal is a blog-based exchange. In order for your spoiler to pick gifts they think you will like, you need to update your blog! Try to do this at least once a week if possible, the few minutes it takes to post something, even if it's just a "not much is going on" post, will keep your pal from worrying that you've bailed on them. If you will be out of touch for a while (on vacation, or busy), please let your pal know, especially if you'll be out of e-mail contact.

And on a final note, make sure to have fun! Spoil your pals rotten, send lots of post cards, letters, cards, e-cards, and gifts! Treat your pal as you'd like to be treated, and we will have fun all around. And remember, if you need your hostesses, we are just an e-mail away!!

Special Discounts

We've had several offers from some great online stores for special discounts for participants of Secret Pal 7. Although I am not in any way affiliated with The Knitter or Knitting Zone, I have shopped with them both and have had great experiences. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the owners for extending their generous offers and also pass along the information to all of you. Have fun shopping!

TheKnitter.com - 10% discount by entering SP7 at checkout. Free ground shipping on all US and Canada orders.

The KnittingZone - 10% discount by entering secretpal at checkout. Shipping is free on qualifying US orders of $50 and over. Frequent buyers club with no expiration date and no cost to join.

Purlescence - 10% discount by entering secret7 at checkout.

Button Contest Winner

I tried really hard to think of a really clever title for this post but I've got nothing. So without further ado I give you the winner of the button contest...

Sarah Brown

Congratulations to Sarah and thank you to everyone who took the time to create such awesome buttons for this round of Secret Pal!

EDIT: By popular demand, here are Sarah's two button contributions. And just so you know, winners are chosen in a random drawing with as many entries as buttons they submitted. We received so many creative buttons, picking by talent would be impossible! :)

Comments.

Hi everyone! The hostesses are working hard on getting everyone matched up, and they should be out by friday the 13th!

I want to mention that we are now requiring that all comments have a name. If they are listed as anonymous, they will be deleted. If you have something to say, please use your name.

Questionnaire

Here it is folks...the moment you've probably all been waiting for. The official SP7 Questionnaire. OK, I realize it's not THE moment. :-) But it's almost as exciting as receiving your pal. Right? Right? Have fun with it and be sure to get it posted to your blog in a timely manner as your pals will be dying to find out about you. Also, please be sure to post your answers in a place where they can be easily found.

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand?

2. Do you spin? Crochet?

3. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

4. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

12. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

17. What are you knitting right now?

18. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

21. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

22. How did you learn to knit?

23. How old is your oldest UFO?

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

25. What is your favorite holiday?

26. Is there anything that you collect?

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

28. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on?

29. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

30. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

31. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

Check please!

Could all of the participants please check our participants site and make sure that your blog is on there correctly? When entering the name of the blog, we used the name at the top of the blog. Please e-mail the hostesses at sp7hostesses@yahoo.com ONLY if your name is missing, and put "blog missing" in the subject line. Otherwise we will assume that you are on the list.
Thanks!!

SP7 Odds and Ends

Well folks, looks like signups for SP7 are complete!! Just thought I'd toss out some totally trivial facts about our group:

1. Almost 25% of participants live outside the United States. In all, there are participants from over 20 different countries.
2. Of those participants who live in the US, the largest number call California home. Folks in the Big Apple (NY) are fiber fanatics, too, coming in a close second.
3. The runaway winner for most popular hobby: Reading. Most interesting hobby: I don't think I'll touch this one - there were so many! Share them with your pals....
4. Over 75% of participants have a pet. And all kinds of animals share our homes - cats, dogs, llamas, birds, mice, hamsters, guinea pigs, bunnies, chinchillas, and even a corn snake.

All in all, we're a pretty diverse group, yet similar nonetheless. We've all come together in sharing our love for fiber arts with a soon-to-be-named new friend. We'll be posting the SP7 questionnaire soon. Although it is similar to the questionnaire for SP6, we've added some new questions, so please make sure your answers are complete. Questionnaire responses should be posted on your blog for your pal to peruse - if your blog isn't open to public viewing, you'll need to create a version that is open for this exchange. Also, please try to keep your blog current - remember, your blog is the best way for your pal to learn more about you.

Thanks for all of your enthusiasm and encouragement as we embark upon Secret Pal 7. Matchups will be coming soon, so keep an eye out for an email from us with information on your pal. We're looking forward to a great round!

Heather