Things to Keep in Mind…
Hello Folks!
The process of preparation is well underway. I thought it would be helpful to describe the kind of community this is and how it best works.
We are based on the series of knitting/crocheting Secret Pals on Blogspot. Consequently, we are borrowing a lot of things from them, like the Rules and Questionnaire, namely from SP7. Normally, members are assigned a Secret Pal to spoil for three months at a time. Gifts can be anything and everything including (but especially) knitting or crocheting tools and paraphernalia and yarn/fiber. Members will send at least one package a month for each of the three months of each session to the member they are spoiling, and in turn will receive at least one package each month from their own Pal. This go around due to the various holidays in December, we will actually exchange 3 gifts over four months. The December package will be due by the end of January.
Please wait until the Community Rules are posted in the userinfo and you have applied to join the community in the application post before requesting to join via the livejournal system. If you have already, you may have to again if your request expires before your application is processed by the mods of this community.
We will organize the groups based on what you indicate to us in the application. We will have groups based on certain preferences, such as whether you are willing to ship internationally, or whether you smoke/have pets. When you are assigned a pal to spoil, you will also be divided into various groups. There will be one mod for each group. This is so each mod has a smaller number of members to assist, and so you can get more personalized feedback and answers to questions. The mods and contact information will be posted on the userinfo as well as in a post on this community. All questions and communication should be directed towards your group’s mod once assigned.
*Please update your journal regularly without friends locking the posts! (Or at least all things fiber related!) It really makes the whole thing more fun when you do. Not only does the community get to know each other a little better, if we chose to read the community's friends page, but so does your secret pal! Just ask diaphragm about this. She posted longingly about drop spindles in a public entry on her journal, and received one in the mail the next month! =D However, don’t post about what you are sending your secret pal in your journal. Remember, we all have a little Nancy Drew in us, and it may be easier to trace whose pal is who because of leaks like that.
*Think about posting about things like that that you’ve wanted but would never buy for yourself. Bamboo circ, stitch markers in your favorite colors, a particular yarn you’ve always wanted to touch. The pal assigned to spoil needs to have access to your wishes and flights of fancy in order to find out more about you. They want to know what you like and dislike, what the weather's like there, what colors you knit/crochet with often, what kinds of things you knit/crochet, what kinds of books you read, etc., in order to send you goodies you'd actually like and want. You can post about the gifts you receive (but obviously not the ones you send as that would give you away!) in your own journal along with your required community post.
*You’ve Got Anonymous Email! Or some other way to contact them that’s totally anonymous, but whatever you do use needs to allow you to follow the rules in the userinfo about communicating with them. There are plenty of free services out there, like yahoo, or hotmail. Just remember to change your name in the Options section, so that what shows up in people's inboxes; instead of your name/username is something like "Secret Pal" or "Knitting Fairy". Make sure that it’s not a clue to your Top Secret Pal Identity and the address isn’t posted anywhere. (For instance, my pal referred to me as Ms. Joyful in her posts, so that rules out using that addy again in this swap.) Remember to test it put before shooting off an email but if all’s in order go for it. If you have problems getting this setup, feel free to contact your mod at the address below.
One thing I can’t stress enough is using that email address to keep in touch with your pal. Whether it’s letting him/her know that you're out of town and won't be in touch, or if you ordered something for them and it hasn't come in yet, please let them know through your anonymous email what is going on. One email to definitely send is an introductory one after your pal is assigned to you. Feel free to use the email to ask questions of your secret pal and get to know them a bit better. Part of the joy of having a secret pal is getting to involve someone else in your probably oft misunderstood obsession with knitting/crochet/fibers. Well, now you have a buddy who gets it!
If for some reason, you accidentally reveal you’re identity, please try to erase this mistake. If you can’t accomplish this through your own means, please contact your mod with the problem and the LJ of your pal. They will try and contact them to let them know not to look, e.g. "Delete such and such an email without looking at it" or whatever. If it still can't be fixed, just pretend it didn't happen. Both of you. Your pal might not have even have noticed, and if they did, it won't bother them that now they know your name. Continue on as you would have, and just have fun!
*Your buddy may be international if you request it. This can result in great yarn (Thank you, kastra for that great Japanese fiber!) and other internationally flavored trinkets, or it may not. According to Heather, the first SPLJ had members from 4 or 5 different countries, some with only one participant. The countries included Japan, Canada, the UK, and Australia. Please do consider the additional time and cost of shipping you may be taking on if you participate internationally. As the rules state, we will expect you to follow through with the pairing. Please indicate yes to the application question if you’re willing to send to someone in a different country from yourself. This may mean you're sending to Canada to Japan, or the UK to Australia, so just be aware, and if you're outside of the US or Canada, it's quite likely you'll need to send to someone in another country.
*Community Participation really improves the experience for everyone. The swap becomes more fun the more that is shared in the community about spoiling we receive, and the interests we share. This participation can even give new ideas to your Secret Pal. So, we are encouraging lots of participation…there are few rules , but we have several suggestions to make this experience really awesome.
*Please fill out and post the Questionnaire and post it to the community as soon as it becomes available.* It will be posted the first week of the swap by one of the mods. We’d like all questionnaires to be up and available by the time all the pals have been assigned. I consider this a necessity for a good swap. The questionnaire is not required however, it just makes it easier for your Pal to find out a lot about you very quickly and the more you will enjoy the packages you receive.
*Post to the community when you have a general question about preferences or opinions.* Not only will your fellow knitters undoubtedly have a good idea or two, but you will be giving each person a chance to see what their buddy may secretly long for without telegraphing the possibility of their SP getting the gift to them. As with any post to this community, use lj cuts for large photos and blocks of text, otherwise feel free to post with any question that might gather information from a broad groups of SPLJers. One example of the kind of question I mean is asking about the best cotton to make a sweater with.
* Finally, to get you started, here are some ideas for what to send in packages.
Needles, hooks, yarn, fiber to spin, spindles, dye, row/stitch markers, patterns, point protectors, stitch holders, bags for knitting projects and tools, etc. Books (crafty or otherwise, keeping in mind your pal’s interests) candles, bath stuff, collages, pens, tea, coffee, CDs, or anything else you think your SP will like! Homemade food items are yummy, but are not recommended. Things spoil in the mail, and you can never be sure what people are allergic to. However, prepackaged goods such as candies are always fun.
We are going to do our best to make sure that all of you have a good time during the swap, but it takes your help as a secret pal to make it really work. We hope these suggestions help!
Thanks,
Kimberly
The process of preparation is well underway. I thought it would be helpful to describe the kind of community this is and how it best works.
We are based on the series of knitting/crocheting Secret Pals on Blogspot. Consequently, we are borrowing a lot of things from them, like the Rules and Questionnaire, namely from SP7. Normally, members are assigned a Secret Pal to spoil for three months at a time. Gifts can be anything and everything including (but especially) knitting or crocheting tools and paraphernalia and yarn/fiber. Members will send at least one package a month for each of the three months of each session to the member they are spoiling, and in turn will receive at least one package each month from their own Pal. This go around due to the various holidays in December, we will actually exchange 3 gifts over four months. The December package will be due by the end of January.
Please wait until the Community Rules are posted in the userinfo and you have applied to join the community in the application post before requesting to join via the livejournal system. If you have already, you may have to again if your request expires before your application is processed by the mods of this community.
We will organize the groups based on what you indicate to us in the application. We will have groups based on certain preferences, such as whether you are willing to ship internationally, or whether you smoke/have pets. When you are assigned a pal to spoil, you will also be divided into various groups. There will be one mod for each group. This is so each mod has a smaller number of members to assist, and so you can get more personalized feedback and answers to questions. The mods and contact information will be posted on the userinfo as well as in a post on this community. All questions and communication should be directed towards your group’s mod once assigned.
*Please update your journal regularly without friends locking the posts! (Or at least all things fiber related!) It really makes the whole thing more fun when you do. Not only does the community get to know each other a little better, if we chose to read the community's friends page, but so does your secret pal! Just ask diaphragm about this. She posted longingly about drop spindles in a public entry on her journal, and received one in the mail the next month! =D However, don’t post about what you are sending your secret pal in your journal. Remember, we all have a little Nancy Drew in us, and it may be easier to trace whose pal is who because of leaks like that.
*Think about posting about things like that that you’ve wanted but would never buy for yourself. Bamboo circ, stitch markers in your favorite colors, a particular yarn you’ve always wanted to touch. The pal assigned to spoil needs to have access to your wishes and flights of fancy in order to find out more about you. They want to know what you like and dislike, what the weather's like there, what colors you knit/crochet with often, what kinds of things you knit/crochet, what kinds of books you read, etc., in order to send you goodies you'd actually like and want. You can post about the gifts you receive (but obviously not the ones you send as that would give you away!) in your own journal along with your required community post.
*You’ve Got Anonymous Email! Or some other way to contact them that’s totally anonymous, but whatever you do use needs to allow you to follow the rules in the userinfo about communicating with them. There are plenty of free services out there, like yahoo, or hotmail. Just remember to change your name in the Options section, so that what shows up in people's inboxes; instead of your name/username is something like "Secret Pal" or "Knitting Fairy". Make sure that it’s not a clue to your Top Secret Pal Identity and the address isn’t posted anywhere. (For instance, my pal referred to me as Ms. Joyful in her posts, so that rules out using that addy again in this swap.) Remember to test it put before shooting off an email but if all’s in order go for it. If you have problems getting this setup, feel free to contact your mod at the address below.
One thing I can’t stress enough is using that email address to keep in touch with your pal. Whether it’s letting him/her know that you're out of town and won't be in touch, or if you ordered something for them and it hasn't come in yet, please let them know through your anonymous email what is going on. One email to definitely send is an introductory one after your pal is assigned to you. Feel free to use the email to ask questions of your secret pal and get to know them a bit better. Part of the joy of having a secret pal is getting to involve someone else in your probably oft misunderstood obsession with knitting/crochet/fibers. Well, now you have a buddy who gets it!
If for some reason, you accidentally reveal you’re identity, please try to erase this mistake. If you can’t accomplish this through your own means, please contact your mod with the problem and the LJ of your pal. They will try and contact them to let them know not to look, e.g. "Delete such and such an email without looking at it" or whatever. If it still can't be fixed, just pretend it didn't happen. Both of you. Your pal might not have even have noticed, and if they did, it won't bother them that now they know your name. Continue on as you would have, and just have fun!
*Your buddy may be international if you request it. This can result in great yarn (Thank you, kastra for that great Japanese fiber!) and other internationally flavored trinkets, or it may not. According to Heather, the first SPLJ had members from 4 or 5 different countries, some with only one participant. The countries included Japan, Canada, the UK, and Australia. Please do consider the additional time and cost of shipping you may be taking on if you participate internationally. As the rules state, we will expect you to follow through with the pairing. Please indicate yes to the application question if you’re willing to send to someone in a different country from yourself. This may mean you're sending to Canada to Japan, or the UK to Australia, so just be aware, and if you're outside of the US or Canada, it's quite likely you'll need to send to someone in another country.
*Community Participation really improves the experience for everyone. The swap becomes more fun the more that is shared in the community about spoiling we receive, and the interests we share. This participation can even give new ideas to your Secret Pal. So, we are encouraging lots of participation…there are few rules , but we have several suggestions to make this experience really awesome.
*Please fill out and post the Questionnaire and post it to the community as soon as it becomes available.* It will be posted the first week of the swap by one of the mods. We’d like all questionnaires to be up and available by the time all the pals have been assigned. I consider this a necessity for a good swap. The questionnaire is not required however, it just makes it easier for your Pal to find out a lot about you very quickly and the more you will enjoy the packages you receive.
*Post to the community when you have a general question about preferences or opinions.* Not only will your fellow knitters undoubtedly have a good idea or two, but you will be giving each person a chance to see what their buddy may secretly long for without telegraphing the possibility of their SP getting the gift to them. As with any post to this community, use lj cuts for large photos and blocks of text, otherwise feel free to post with any question that might gather information from a broad groups of SPLJers. One example of the kind of question I mean is asking about the best cotton to make a sweater with.
* Finally, to get you started, here are some ideas for what to send in packages.
Needles, hooks, yarn, fiber to spin, spindles, dye, row/stitch markers, patterns, point protectors, stitch holders, bags for knitting projects and tools, etc. Books (crafty or otherwise, keeping in mind your pal’s interests) candles, bath stuff, collages, pens, tea, coffee, CDs, or anything else you think your SP will like! Homemade food items are yummy, but are not recommended. Things spoil in the mail, and you can never be sure what people are allergic to. However, prepackaged goods such as candies are always fun.
We are going to do our best to make sure that all of you have a good time during the swap, but it takes your help as a secret pal to make it really work. We hope these suggestions help!
Thanks,
Kimberly