KAL Conundrum

I love knit-a-longs. It's like a club or a party that you can join virtually through the internet with people all over the world and  up close with knitters in your community.  I enjoy running them at Westport Yarns and seeing all the different yarns and results people get with the same pattern.

The Summer Flies kal is winding down at Westport Yarns.  I have some thoughts about what I'd like to do in the fall.

Often on the internet, if you blink, you can miss a kal.  Somehow I have found 3.  It's like a compulsion, I want to do all three.

The first one, Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl KAL 2012 by Wendy Johnson, I've started.  First I started it with yarn I dyed last year with Trish.  The first bunch of rows have nups.  Nups are basically tiny bobbles.  I don't like bobbles, I find them annoying.  In good faith I did one row of them.  Man, they are time consuming.  For me, it sucked the joy right out of the project.  To be fair the designer, Wendy Johnson, does give you the option to nup, bead, or skip it.  I decided not only to skip the nups but change the yarn and work beads instead.

 I had to find just the right yarn/yardage.  I found both and am very happily cruising along.  I am caught up to the 3rd clue. 

The next (mystery) kal along I've discovered is the Mystery Shawl 2012: Rockefeller by Stephen West.  This one hasn't begun yet and you can still sign up through July 13th, then it closes.  I've yet to knit a Stephen West pattern.  I have to pick out yarn for it, it requires two colors. 

The third one is a sweater I have queued. What better time to start it than with the company of others.  It's the Pan-Am Jacket.  Here is a link to the kal details. 

I actually have yarn planned for this sweater already.  Malabrigo Worsted in Purple Mystery. 

OK, gotta go knit.  Come play along.