Lessons learned from test knits

I've had a few patterns test knit by now and most have gone really well. One, however, did not. Serves me right for calling a pattern the Everyday Rockstar! It ended up all fine in the end and I had some great test knitters with plenty of grace and patience, but just about everything that can go wrong did go wrong.

You know I pride myself on sharing both the ups and downs with you here, that's the purpose of the blog after all. But while I knew I wanted to share the experience with you at some point, I also felt a need to distance myself a little from it first.

A little time has now past and I'm ready to share the lessons I've learned:

Always get more testers than you 'need'

Someone will drop off of the face of the earth, someone will get very sick, someone will simply not make it. It's a lot easier to handle all those someones with grace when it doesn't mean your entire test knit process has failed. 

Be Santa Clause 

Check that list time and again. Somehow a computer glitch resulted in me sending out an old version of the pattern at first, I only realised this after a lot of mistakes had been corrected, mistakes that felt familiar. Why? Because I had in deed already corrected them and then promptly lost the file it appears.

Be Firm

Don't set flexible deadlines. I learned that the hard way. Give people plenty of time to do the test, and hold them to that non-flexible date. 

Be thankful

People are working for you for free. Yes they do get the pattern, but they also have to deal with the mistakes. Please and thank you's never hurt anybody.

Everyday Rockstar will be out next Friday. The proceeds will go to the Danish Cancer Foundation, since cancer fighters and survivors are true rockstars, but more on that next week.