Holy Purple!

Okay, so can I tell y'all a story about being spoiled completely rotten? I am ruined for swaps from here on out, I'm sure of it. So, I had the great swap pal who contacted me regularly and very obviously asked the right questions or stalked my blog or Ravelry or something. Make sure to read to the end of this post to find out who my swap pal was...you'll be jealous when you see the spoiling she did! I came home today from a rather stressful day and was all excited because I was pretty sure my sock club kit from Woolgirl, my Loopy Groupie package from The Loopy Ewe, and my April shipment from Harmony Semi-Solids would be in the mail (yes, I do have a problem). But there was this mysterious 4th package and the HECK if I could figure out who it was from! The name and address were unfamiliar and I was baffled. Had my yarn problem grown to a point where I have ordering black-outs? Very possible, I suppose. So I tore into the box. Within the box were all these little things wrapped in beautiful tissue paper and black ribbons. Well, many yarn stores wrap things up all fancy, so maybe this was a new supplier for my habit? I tore open the first one and was REALLY confused. It was a stunningly gorgeous yarn that I have heard of but I just knew I hadn't ordered any. Or had I? Yes. I am a little slow on the uptake. But suddenly it dawned on me. This was my Favorite Color Swap Gift! I quickly put the yarn back in the tissue and set up the package contents for a photo session (photo quality is not great as I used my iPhone). Here is what my first glimpse was (we won't discuss that I already ripped into one package and then quickly rewrapped...): Now that a picture was taken and I realized that I had not yet reached the blackout-yarn-ordering stage of my habit, I allowed myself to savor the opening of the contents. Since you probably can't tell what everything is, I will share a complete list. There were little notes on many things, which I will include as well. Black Currant superwash finger weight sock yarn from Have You Any Wool? This is lovely. Gorgeous deep plum colors, and oh so soft. I cannot wait to knit it, but I also want to admire it in the skein for a bit. Handmade (by my swap pal!) dishcloths. 1 black, 1 purple, 1 black and purple. I have never received a knit item before. I almost cried. They are fabulous and I can't decide if I should use them or frame them! I love these, and I love that my pal went to the effort to make me something special. Little note: "Handmade by me! I absolutely love these dishcloths." 2 Bath & Body Works hand lotions...Sea Island Cotton and Sensual Amber. My pal knew of my hand lotion habit and my favorite supplier, but somehow managed to find two scents that I have never tried. I love them! These go on the list of favorite scents. For the life of me I cannot remember if I told my pal about my hand lotion habit or if she stalked that info. Either way, it cracked me up! The little note on these said, "Feeding your hand lotion addiction - hope you like the scents!" Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate bar. Oh yum. How I managed a picture before scarfing this down, I do not know. Oh how I love the chocolate! And my pal has magical powers. The chocolate is NOT MELTED! It is 80+ degrees today, and it is fully intact. But to be on the safe side, she thoughtfully packed it (and the lotion) in an individual ziplock. Little note: "This is my favorite chocolate!" Stitch Markers. Beautiful, tiny, PURPLE stitch markers for sock knitting. I do not own tiny stitch markers! The best part? Also made by my pal! And I really need tiny stitch markers cause I am getting ready to try some fancy sock patterns and they will be a life saver. Little note: "Handmade by me, from my Etsy store! Thought they would be good for socks." Etsy store is here, and I highly recommend that you visit and buy buy buy. I can tell that these will never be in the way and will never snag, but will distract the heck out of my because they are SO PRETTY! Big bag of Starburst Berries & Creme. Oh. My. Gawd. Yum. I love these things. And when I say big bag, I mean a BIG BAG. I have to hide this and the chocolate from DH. He tends to steal, and I do not want to share. Little note: "I know you said you liked berry flavors - I hope you like these!" Well, pal, I do not like them. I love them with every fiber of my being. Wee little teeny tiny bamboo crochet hook for picking up dropped stitches. Now I know I did not say anything anywhere about this. What are you, a mind reader??? I have the hardest time with picking up stitches and making repairs, and a lot of it is due to a lack or proper tools! I have a zillion crochet hooks and they are all too dang big and awkward to use. I seriously had no idea such a tool as this existed, and I am crazy about it. I use a small bag for my sock projects and I like to limit the amount and size of tools to conserve space. This is the most perfect thing EVER to add to my essentials. Little note: "I love this for picking up dropped stitches. It's a life saver!" I'm sure it will be. And last but not least by a long shot! 5 gorgeous postcards from her homestate. The pictures are beautiful. I think I need to move to New Mexico now. Seriously. These are going on the mirror in my knit room. I love them and they really make me want a vacation. So, wow. Has anyone read this far? Can you tell how happy I am? I've had a very rough couple of months and very few things have made me smile this much in quite some time. But dang! This may be getting me out of my funk. Thank you so much to our lovely swap hostess and my secret pal (told you I was spoiled!), Nichole D. aka SavingNine.