New flatware from my contest prize! This is my comparison shot... the old stuff is on the left, the new stuff is on the right. These are huge compared to my old flatware. The small spoons are about the same size as the soup spoons in my old set, the salad forks are about the same size as the dinner forks in the old set. All in all, I'm rather impressed. They're quite heavy and sturdy, and I like the larger sizes. The soup spoons are definitely soup spoons; eating a bowl of cereal with them will be pretty much out of the question. Much too big. They're very comfortable in the hand, and I think I'll enjoy using them. Brian seems to like them, we'll see once we actually get a chance to use them. In case you're wondering, the brand is International, and the pattern is called "Satin Danford". This is a service for 8, with steak knives and extra pieces. I'm definitely happy with them. Thanks again for the contest, Kitten With a Whiplash!

The winner is... me! I'm really excited, I wasn't expecting to win this. So... the prize was a $40 gift certificate for CSN Stores, and if you follow the link you'll see that they have a TON of stuff to choose from. I've been dithering all day trying to decide what to get. I finally decided on a new set of flatware, since Brian and I have been talking about buying an new set. Our current set is running low, thanks to misplaced pieces and the occasional disposer accident. I found a set that is similar to what we've been looking at; we both like a very plain style of flatware, and there were a few choices that were close to what we wanted. This is what we finally settled on: [caption id="attachment_763" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption=""International Silver" Satin Danford 53 Piece Set"] [/caption] I like the simplicity. It's not quite what we were looking for, but I think it will work out beautifully. Thanks for the great contest, KWaW!

Sorry, blog surfing today, so I'm kind of... random. I found another great contest, if you love beads: Denise Yezbak Moore, owner of Rusty Roxx Jewelry, is giving away a massive amount of beads. Seven and a half pounds of beads in one contest. Help her decide if she should give them all to one person, or split them six ways. I had a hard time deciding, but it's been 2 years since I've done any beading at all... so I said six ways. Can you imagine getting all of those beads at once? Bead overload! Anyway.. hop on over to the contest page, and see if you can win!

Not mine this time, but a contest by the winner of my Sock Yarn Haiku contest: Kitten With a Whiplash! Just stop on by his site, click on a link, and find him something red, white and blue for the holiday, and his 200th post. Congrats on 200 posts, Kitten! For those of you who weren't here for the contest, his winning haiku was

Little unmatched sock! Was your mate lost in dryer or just never knit?

I still love it. I need to do this again soon, I think.

Didn't realize it, but yesterday's post was number 100!  Not bad, considering I figured I'd get bored with this blog and stop posting to it after a week (this was attempt 4 or 5 at starting a blog).  I was going to do a contest, but with the move still not completed, it probably isn't a good idea.  Maybe I'll have a "finally moved in" contest once I get settled into the new house (if we ever close, that is).  Any good contest ideas?  I'd love to hear them.   The haiku contest was great fun, and I really loved the submissions to that one. Anyway... just a short post today to keep in touch,  but more later.   I'm hoping it's going to cool off enough so I can start knitting again.  It's hard to knit when it's so hot the yarn won't slip through your fingers. See you all later!