It's the most wonderful swap of the yeaaaaaaaaar

Well, that’s the goal, anyway. So, if you think Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year (no Scrooges here!) , join us to swap 3 Christmas-y packages between now and the Big Dance.

Overview:

Sign ups: September 6 – 19
Partners assigned: on or about September 21
Length of swap: 3 months, September 21 – December 19
Packages: 3, to be RECEIVED by October 31, November 30 and December 19
Swappers: Knitters and crocheters in the U.S. and Canada, unless you’re overseas and desperate to join, and I’ll see what I can do
Cost: $45 - $70 over 3 months, not including postage
(you’ll have the opportunity to tell me whether you prefer to be on the high or low end of that range so I can assign partners accordingly)


The Knitty Gritty (see what I did there?):

October package: Send your spoilee a handmade ornament, plus any extra goodies, $10 - $15.

November package: Send your spoilee a pattern for a winter-y accessory (hat, scarf, mittens, cowl, etc.) and the yarn to make it, plus any other goodies, $15 - $25.

December package: Send your spoilee a Christmas stocking, which does NOT have to be handmade, stuffed with goodies, including (at least) one skein of yarn, and one knitting (or crocheting) notion/gadget, $20 - $30.

The October package is the only one that requires a handmade item, but you’re encouraged to send handmade goodies in any or all of your packages. That might be something knit, but could also include stitch markers, tote bags, Christmas cookies—anything. We’re all crafters, right? And isn’t it nice to send your handmade goods to someone who really appreciates them?

This is a NON-Ravelry swap—that is, you don’t have to be a Ravelry member to sign up, and we won’t be doing a Rav group. Instead, over the next couple days I’ll set up a swap blog, and ultimately all participants will be invited to post to the blog.

You will, however, be asked to provide your Rav ID if you have one, to give your spoiler another place to stalk you.

You also need to have your own personal blog (with some knitting content!), and post WEEKLY so your partner knows you haven’t been crushed to death by a towering pile of holiday gifts or something equally terrifying. As usual, once the swap gets going, I’ll supply a nosy questionnaire for you to post to your blog to help your spoiler get to know you.

And let’s go with a secret swap—so get yourself a secret email address.

One of the things that will be posted to the swap blog is a biweekly (Wait, does that mean twice a week, or every two weeks? Well, I mean every 2 weeks.) “egift” you need to send to your spoilee: an ecard, a recipe, a free knitting pattern, etc. This will encourage communication, and help prevent partners from getting caught up in a cycle of “so, how’s the weather?” emails (I hope).

So, those are the basics. I'm sure I've forgotten something, so feel free to ask question.

Want to sign up? Send the following info to merryknitmas @ gmail . com.

Full name:
Mailing address:
Email:
Rav ID:
Blog address:
Willing to ship outside your country (US to Canada or vice versa)?
Would you be a swap angel, or be willing to donate $ or items to angel packages?
Do you prefer a $ swap or a $$$$ swap?

Now, every swap runs the risk of not getting enough participants. If I don’t get a decent number here, I will, sadly, shut the swap down. So, please spread the word about the swap to the Christmas lovers you know!