Hurra!

Guro very sweetly gave me a creative blogger award right after my "nedtur." What a good way to improve my mood! Here 'tis, my first ever:


I now get to nominate eight other blogs that I have found inspiring. Kind of like a chain letter, but much less annoying, since this is a way of turning other people on to blogs by people who share similar interests. I am not actually all that widely read in the blogosphere and tend mostly to go back to the same people's blogs repeatedly. One of the things I like most is the day to day updates and personal reflection on these blogs. It's less about learning specific new tips as gaining perspective and thinking about things in new ways. So without further ado, here is my list of eight blogs I love to read, and why (in no particular order):

1. Med pinner - a Norwegian crafting blog that reflects over the aesthetics of the every day and the minutia of the craft. Entries are usually short, insightful and reflective, and nearly always illustrated with just the right image. Ann is the kind of person who can write intelligently about anything, and who sees the world in an interesting way.
2. The Sabo-Hambrick family - not a crafting blog at all, but very creative nonetheless. It contains wonderful reflections about parenting from two very smart and loving first time parents, as well as interesting intellectual and social commentary. They are bi-cultural family trying to negotiate between the US and Norway and forge its own path in the world, so I find a lot of solace and insight in what they write.
3. Knititch - a Danish crafting blog that seamlessly blends handicraft and the ebbs and flows of everyday life, especially during times of transition. Merete is a purist when it comes to knitting, and I found her on Ravelry through her exquisite renditions of Alice Starmore and Brooklyn Tweed patterns. But don't get me wrong, she is the farthest thing from a snobby knitter - her social engagement and love of family shine through in her blog!
4. Trenchwork - yet another American academic in Norway who is obsessed with fiber arts. What's not to love? Here you'll find lovely photographs of amazing handspun yarn, along with atmospheric snapshots of life in Trøndelag and long, satisfyingly reflective entries.
5. Spudsayshi - an American expat academic knitter, this time in Canada. Quirky and fun, with great knitting and snappy insights into popular culture.
6. Hildes hekle-strikkeri-hurra! - a very diverse Norwegian crafting blog that is richly illustrated and full of ideas, and bursting with enthusiasm and curiosity.
   
7. Pinner, garn og barn - here is another blog that merges the various aspects of life and reveals the depth in supposedly mundane and domestic things. Jill is also a Norwegian academic, and she has a great work blog about digital communication called Jill/txt. I love the combination of both blogs in tandem!
8. Archival clothing - Lesli runs an incredibly rich blog on what she terms "archival clothing" - clothing that reflects and reproduces an aesthetic and level of quality from a bygone era. She combs through massive amounts of information (catalogues, stores, film stills, etc.) to document and analyze the components that make up this aesthetic.
   

The rules are as follows for the nominees:
1. Copy the award to your site.
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate 8 other bloggers.
4. Link to those on your blog.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.

By the way, even though I'm not a "foody" I whipped up an incredibly good lunch on Wednesday, the day I stayed home to read. I made pyttipanna (not sure what that is in English - you often find it a good breakfast restaurants in the US as a "skillet"): two leftover boiled potatoes, half an onion, some ham and some feta, all cubed and sautéed in butter. I think it was the best thing I've eaten in about half a year. My day at home was interrupted though - KE was filling in for someone at E's preschool, but got really sick to his stomach and had to come home. I filled in for him for the rest of the afternoon. It was a lovely day with tons of sun and the kids were outside the whole afternoon. It was great to get to know E's playmates and routines better. I want to be as active as I can in his preschool, so I'm glad the opportunity arose, though it was awful to see KE feeling so sick! Thankfully he's much better now, but today E is staying home with a cold and I have to stay late at work for a meeting, so who knows what the state of things will be by this evening!