Recently in Norwegian Knits-Along Category
Warning: long post. I'll post further updates to any finishers--Andrea and Kerry, great finish, girls!--for the next week or so. See you next Thursday!
All entries | KAL Gallery | CAPS = finished project
Sweaters & Vests
◊ Jen
◊ Rebekkah
◊ JILL
◊ SYDNEY
◊ JULIA
◊ LIZ
◊ CATHERINE
◊ Beth
Socks & Stockings
◊ Rachel
◊ Jessica
◊ JESS
◊ Jenny
◊ Meow Girl has finished her stockings! Research be damned, at least she has socks to keep her warm! Great job, MG!
◊ LIZ
◊ KATE
◊ Kerry finished her stockings too! They look great with the heels, Kerry!
◊ KELLY
◊ Prim has her second stocking but alas, no photo. But hey, it looks remarkably similar to this.
Mittens & Gloves
◊ WENDY
◊ Terri
◊ Paula
◊ VIRTUELLA
◊ Carie
◊ Mary Beth
◊ Katie
◊ VERONIQUE
◊ NANETTE
◊ Blogless TERI R
◊ Liz
Hats & Headbands
◊ JILLIAN
◊ Blogless Ellen
◊ ADRIAN
◊ Angela
◊ ANDREA
◊ Tiffany
◊ SARAH
◊ Susan
◊ MICHELLE
◊ NANCY
◊ JESSICA
◊ KIM
◊ CAITLYN
◊ SARAH W
◊ PHOEBE
◊ EVA
◊ Pixie
◊ MONICA
◊ STACEY
◊ Your host just received this picture from Germany of BF's "niece" trying out her Let It Snow! hat. Sooo cute, she is!
Miscellaneous
◊ Andrea has finished her bag! And it is a lovely melange of colors! It's really, really beautifully done!
◊ Jennifer has her Zombie Wristwarmers published in the April 2006 edition of Magknits! Congratulations, Jennifer! People with yarn scraps; here's a good pattern for you.
Honorary Knitalongers
◊ Strikkelise
◊ Elin
◊ Silja
There *will* be another Norwegian Knits-Along at the end of this year, for those who didn't get to finish their projects (another chance!) or those who want to knit another. If you're still jonesing for Norwegian knitting, why not join the Norge Knit group?
This being my first time hosting a KAL, I was faced with some unforeseen issues. If you're thinking of hosting a KAL, here is my advice:
◊ Set a time limit. It also helps if you indicate the week in your post title.
◊ Decide how the KAL should be managed. Should it be one you monitor and either a: ask participants to email you with updates, or b: check everyone's sites weekly? I prefer this over because I get to look at everyone's site (and thankfully there were less than 50 participants) and read about their progress. OR should it be an absentee host KAL, where participants post their own notes on an independent blog? I don't think this is as engaging as the first option. Besides, as a host, you're supposed to be watching over the KAL.
◊ Expect life to intrude once in a while. There were instances where holidays, work, and more work took priority over knitting and the KAL. This will happen. Just make sure you cover those missed weeks in the following update, or, better yet, have a participant blogger post on your behalf. (I should've thought of that. Earlier.)
◊ Check your emails frequently. Blogless participants send pictures; post those on their behalf. Also, check for people who want to join along the way.
◊ Categorize your participants. If it's a general knitalong such as this was, it's good to know who's knitting what so everyone can compare notes.
◊ Post a gallery of finished work. *Clearly* the most satisfying part of the KAL. I love having a page full of beautiful knitted items. Obtain permission from the owners (or make it part of your rules), give credit, and link to their posts. It's good to have a story.
Here we go, update time for this week and last's. Next week's update (Thursday or Friday) will be the last.
Sweaters & Vests
◊ Rebekkah's finished the body of Ingeborg. Hey, take a look at those (intimidating) steeks!
Socks & Stockings
◊ Kelly's finished her stockings. Go congratulate her, will you?
◊ Prim's making good progress on her first stocking; she's also learned to knit backward. And she made a little change to the heel. Read on!
◊ Meow Girl completed her second sock, with look, no holes in the gusset! She's also written about sock craftsmanship, a worthwhile read.
◊ Kerry's also finished her first sock, which I think looks great. Don't worry too much about the line, Kerry!
Mittens & Gloves
◊ Liz has been hard at work on her Frostrosen mittens; here's a picture of her progress! And here it is in her WIP basket!
Hats & Headbands
◊ Angela hopes to finish her hat before the end of the KAL, which is next week! Hurry, Angela, hurry!
◊ Stacey finished her hat, yay! It's a Snowflake hat for her sister, knitted in blue and white yarn. (Scroll down to her March 22 entry.)
Miscellaneous
◊ Congratulations go to Jennifer, whose wristwarmers have been accepted for publication! It'll be featured in the May issue of MagKnits. Since she can't show you a picture, she's graciously offered her recipe for yummy Scandinavian Almond Bars. Go give her a hug, will you?
In other news, CNN.com updated its site to accommodate a 1024 pixel-wide browser window. (Note, however, that the most relevant information is still contained in the 800 pixel-wide area.) I had been thinking about revising the site to 1024 px; one of the Information Architects I worked with last year talked about how the majoriy of Internet users have a 17" or bigger monitor, which makes the current standard width of 800 pixels (then for a 13" or 15" monitor) a waning trend. Sites I'm designing now still conform to 800 px width but its non-relevant information go to 1024 px or wider. Anyway, this means you'll be seeing more sites upgrading to 1024 px this year. Including this one.
Updates to the KAL in progress. Sorry for the delay! Who knew I'd be stuck in freelance for ever! Here are the updates, and I'll check on my emails tonight for further updates. Three more weeks left after this week! I'll update the gallery with 4 more finished projects later, too.
Mittens & Gloves
◊ Blogless Teri has given me an update on her beautiful Koigu gloves! Here's what she wrote:
"I'm knitting the Snowflake gloves from Homespun/Handknit in Koigu--solid navy and variegated pinks. This is my first project with Koigu, and it's been delightful knitting! As you can see in the photos, one glove is finished. I expect to finish the other this week. Perhaps I'll get to wear them yet this winter (actually, my children have laughed at me because I have already worn the one that is finished--just paired it with a black leather glove.--Yes, it looks funny, but I just do it in the car when I'm driving.)"
Read that with me one more time, people. "When I'm driving." Oh, poopy. I skim way too fast while reading. Teri, you caught me! You wore them while driving. Not knit them. He he. Apologies!
Socks & Stockings
◊ Anyone know what's going on with Rachel? She has been AWOL from her blog in quite a while...
◊ Meow Girl has been busy! She's now on her second stocking (here's her first)and using elastic to reinforce the cuff. Good call, MG!
◊ Kerry's posted her thoughts on yarn dominance--what a great technical topic. Read on.
◊ Prim's progress has been a bit slow but steady.
◊ Kelly gone and knit an entire stocking while I was AWOL. I love, love, love her colors! Can't wait to see the second, Kelly!
Hats & Headbands
◊ Angela is training for an Ironman triathlon; read the rest of her entry, please.
◊ Kim's finished her hat! Woo-hoo! Take a look at her Sweetheart Gryffindor hat. Nicely done, Kim!
◊ Monica's finished her We Be Pirates hat! That was quick, Monica!
Miscellaneous
◊ Andrea just turned 29! Go wish her a happy birthday! And go take a look at her progress on her colorwork bag!
◊ Jennifer's started on the his-and-hers wristwarmers; take a look at the skulls, they're great, aren't they!
◊ Stacey of Off and Off the Needles has joined us! She'll be making wristwarmers, available here, to start off! Strike that. Stacey's designing a hat for her sister. Moving her up to hats now...
Random stuff:
◊ I'm always looking for good books to add to my 2006 reading list, and Living the Good Life: How One Family changed their World from their Backyard by Linda Cockburn, will definitely make my list. I got this from Loobylu; click for a terrific explanation of the book.
◊ Here is a series of pictures of 2-dimensional shapes on 3-dimensional surfaces. Very cool, yah? How about 3-dimensional scenses painted on 2-dimensional surfaces? This is the work of British artist Julian Beever.
◊ The Lost Camera blog has an interesting story, with more details on Boing Boing.
