about the blogroll

I have to start off with a bit of knitting porn (ie: a photo of knitting) because this will be a rather photo free post. I want to talk about my blogroll over on the right, and how I chose the blogs to include there. But first, here is a photo of the Kimono Shawl in progress.

Not much progress you say, and you would be correct. But there is enough here to make me think that I'm liking it. When I started this shawl previously with the lace weight (Cascade Petite) alone, I was not liking it. Too whispy. Now it is a little stout. Can you see the glintiness of the shiny and matte yarn combined?

I am making the first sleeve of Bird Doo Klaralund. I knit the back and decided to make a sleeve before I knit the front to make sure that the horizontal seam would hit at the right place - above the bustline. The front that I made blocked out larger than I had planned, but that is ok. The alpaca/silk blend lacks elasticity, so I don't want body cling. To give you something else to look at, here is the sleeve in progress.

Now, on to the blogroll. I am trying to be selective in providing links to blogs that I think are really good. There are two rough categories of blogs: what I call Fug Fashion Blogs -- those that make fun of dress styles, especially celebrity dress, but also focus on fashion- and knitting blogs.

For either type, I do not link to blogs that do not post regularly, although there are exceptions to this rule. For knitting blogs, I favor blogs that focus on design and give you practical information about how to do things. I tend not to like blogs that cover a lot of different subjects, but rather stick to knitting. There are so many blogs out there, numbering in the multi millions, that I hope to highlight lesser known blogs that are worth reading.

Here is a rundown on the blogs I currently have up on the blogroll:

Fashion

Go Fug yourself - Jessica and Heather post daily (except on weekends) photos of celebrities trying to look good. The Fuggers point out how they fail in this. I think they are really funny. This blog provides vicarious nastiness.

Project Rungay - extension of one of my secondary obsessions- Project Runway. Tom and Lorenzo are both hilarious and instructive as they critique the designs that parade down the runway on this show. They also provide gossipy little tidbits and previews of upcoming design challenges. I love them.

The Thoughtful Dresser - New to my blogroll, this blog features somewhat philosophical but entertaining observations about fashion. I like that it takes fashion seriously.

Knitting

The Girl From Auntie - Jenna, who writes regularly and instructively for Knitty, posts infrequently. However, her website contains all kinds of good things: free patterns, tips and techniques, widgets, and l a link to her wonderful Knitty articles. An ultra educational blog.

Grumperina needs no introduction. She writes a lot about design and practical techniques, and I just can't resist her blog name.

Knitting Fiend - also posts infrequently - very infrequently. But like The Girl from Auntie Lucia has many knitting aids on her website. The primary focus of her blog seems to be educational.

Purlwise -Melinda of Purlwise posts regularly and links to variuos techniques. Her emphasis is on knitting technique.

Ruthless Knitting - Ruth (who else?) of Ruthless Knitting is majorly creative. Her blog focuses on design and links to her own original designs.

Slipped Stitch -UK knitter Alice Bell of Slipped Stitch is also a creative designer with links to her designs. In her day job, she is getting an advanced degree with a thesis on children's science writing, which is, to me, an interesting topic.

You Knit What? - Fugly knitting.