Foreign Objects

Other spinners warned me that once I got my first wheel it would be a slippery slope towards acquiring more wheels after that. I didn't believe them. After all, I'd settled on a Schacht wheel which is one of the most versatile wheels on the market. What else could I want??? Weellll - portability. The Schacht is a bit of a brute. That's what makes it such a work horse. I hadn't factored in that my spinning guild would be so active in terms of displays and spin days. It wasn't long before I started eyeing up the new folding wheels.

I'd spun on a Lendrum for a few months and it is a very nice wheel - no doubt about it. It did fold down a bit but was still substantial to transport (13 lbs). I was quite taken with the Louet Victoria wheel which clocks in at around 7.75 lbs and comes in a nice carrying case. A friend of mine got one for Christmas and I had a chance to spin on it over the holidays. It treadled beautifully and spun nicely but was a bit tinier than I needed. My friend and her family go North camping quite a bit and she wanted something to take back and forth every weekend. I wanted something between the Lendrum and the Louet Victoria. When I saw the specs on the Kromski Sonata, I sensed I was getting close. Weighing around 11.5lbs, the Sonata is made of Birch and Alder (I recall reading somewhere but I'm trying to verify that) and is made by the Kromski family in Poland. Their wheels tend to be more ornate and "old world" but the Sonata had a nice touch of that ornate design without being too gingerbread. It's a true double treadle meaning there are two treadles with two footmen each attached to the wheel crank. It's a reasonably priced wheel and the reviews from people who'd purchased from the first December shipment were glowing. I contacted Wildrose Fibres in Alberta and put my name on the list. I asked Colleen about the Walnut stain which was marketed as an introductory limited edition offering. Since the first shipment sold so quickly, I assumed these were long gone. When Colleen sent me an e mail indicating there was a rumor of more walnut stained Sonatas in the next shipment, I was thrilled. I think of the Schacht as the classic blond American and the Kromski as the dark sultry brunette European. I simply wanted something different from my Schacht for variety. I ordered the bag especially designed to carry these wheels as well. A four day Easter weekend and a two day business trip kept my Sonata and I apart much longer than necessary but last Wednesday I came home and had a chance to see it up close.

Here's the wheel folded up. There is a hole in the wheel and the frame that match up allowing you to place a screw through both holes to anchor the wheel shut. The wheel folds open quickly and easily (19" x 22" folded) and comes with a total of 3 matching bobbins and a lazy kate that folds out from the foot of the frame. There's a bottle of oil too to get everything lubed and good to go.

Here's the wheel set up before its first run. I chose some Lisa Souza Blue Faced Leicester roving in the buttery Jonquil colourway to futz around and get the wheel to a point where I was spinning consistent yarn. I'd planned on a day or two of adjustments before I was happy with the results. I was shocked to discover that with 3 little tweaks, the Sonata was spinning beautiful, consistent yarn. The take up was perfect and the treadling smooth as silk. The wheel is nice a quiet and will be perfect for seminars and demonstrations. It felt solid and stable and I had lots of space on the treadles. I took the wheel apart and packed it in the bag to take it out again this past weekend. Once again, after a brief set up, a couple of adjustments had me on my way. I'm extremely pleased with my choice and this will be a great complement to my Schacht. I do miss my Woolee Winder though but hopefully, they will make one for the Sonata soon.

It's been postulated that spinning's growth in popularity has come from knitters turned spinners. As The Yarn Harlot puts it "Cool! Another way to get yarn." Knitters like knitting largely because it's portable and therefore this explosion in folding/portable wheels is an off-shoot of that expectation.

If you're wavering between a Louet Victoria and a Kromski Sonata I would suggest that the degree of portability you need be your guide. If you're like my friend and travel to a cottage, camp or travel on business a lot - I would recommend the Victoria. It takes up little room and delivers a nice spinning punch pound for pound. If you have a closet or two to store a slightly larger bag and want a wheel that will feel like a full sized wheel but be more portable - the Kromski Sonata is a great solution. Louet = traveling wheel, Kromski = portable wheel.

My Sonata and I have much beautiful yarn to make. I'm looking forward to taking it to my upcoming seminar on how to spin yarn to make socks in May. There's just something extra mysterious about an import.

The Shell Game

So what's up with us having a green Christmas and a white Easter? This past weekend was cold, damp, snowy and overall, great for knitting. I have an idea as to what my summer projects will be but since it was still cold, I decided to resurrect Rheingold and get back at it. I always make my own charts when I'm making a Fair Isle sweater. I use stitch and motif maker and make a nice big colour chart. I love this pattern. It caught my eye from the start because I find that the Starmores tend more towards the jewel tones than the softer earth tones, pinks and lilacs I tend to favour. The greens, golds and coppers are right up my alley. I'm about 2/3 to the armhole steeks so I did "book it" a bit on the weekend. The Hebridean 2 ply is another of my desert island yarns. Each stitch is so wonderful. I find that projects using this yarn tend to become finished objects which is a big plus in its favour. I've enjoyed watching the older cherished patterns find new life in the Hebridean yarns. The colour pallet is much smaller than the yarns used when Alice Stamore was designing earlier yet the new interpretations are still stunning.

One classic Stamore pattern I've been jonesing to make forever is Luskentyre. Here is Luskentytre as it appeared in the rare and much sought after Scottish Collection. My buddy Hope actually knit that sweater for the photo in the book. I think it took her 47 minutes or something ridiculous. She lets me sit next to her at lunch some times and tells me again all about knitting it (after I beg her to tell me one more time). This also appealed to me because it was a design in delicate pastel shades - a departure from other colourways.

About 2 years ago, I heard from Virtual Yarns that they were planning to re work Luskentyre as a cardigan with a square neckline. Since Rheingold is a pullover and I prefer cardigans - I thought this would be right up my alley. The kit was posted recently and I fell hard. A surprise assignment for some freelance writing funded my purchase and the kit was soon winging its way to me from the Isle of Lewis. My Scottish grandmother who taught me how to knit is smiling from heaven for sure.

The picture doesn't really do the design justice. I believe it's a bit big for the model (Jade Starmore) and the sleeves look quite baggy. The sleeve picks up roughly the same number of stitches as other designs they produce but does not narrow down quite as much so is a bit fuller than normal but not quite as much as it appears to in the picture. The design itself is named after Luskentyre Beach in Scotland where the shells lie opened on the beach. The middle design is of this shell and gives quite an Art Nouveau sort of feel. I love Art Deco and Art Nouveau so this is probably a large part of the draw for me. I had a hard time imagining the colours used - the photos don't really show them off.

I had some left overs from other projects that matched the colours for Luskie and so, I swatched to get a sense of how it will actually look. I'm REALLY excited about this one. I think Alice Starmore has honoured the original design with a very elegant twist. I still love the original sweater and will most likely make it in the original yarns...some day.

To finish with a bit of a teaser...the Kromski Sonata arrived yesterday while I was away on business. I set it up tonight when I got home and spun on it a bit.

It rocks.

Full details after I've finished bonding with it.

Blue on Blue

I didn't even know Blue Face Leicester existed as a breed of fibre until this past year. I encountered it first as a spinner using Lisa Souza's lovely roving. I learned that the fibres are long and luscious and that I needed to allow more twist to enter the wool before winding it on the bobbin. Otherwise, it would shred because it was under spun. Since I like to have a rapport with the breeds I knit and spin with - I decided to see what they looked like. Pretty cute.

The references I found on the Internet called it the "poor man's cashmere". Extremely soft yet resistant to pilling and able to show off the stitch definition beautifully. I had been so pleased with my BFL hand spun that when I saw the Fleece Artist BFL in aran weight at Red Bird Knits, I suspected that I'd found the perfect yarn to make Ariann. Fleece Artist is to yarn what Godiva is to chocolate. Their colourways are breathtaking and range from bright to subtle. I rarely work with yarn that hasn't got some colour variation (unless I'm knitting Fair isle or Intarsia) because I really love how a yarn with a bit of variation (such as a tweed) dances with the cables or lacework to shift everything around. When it works, it really works. I had swatched in Berrocco Ultra Alpace and Lisa Souza merino angora but neither seemed to be the perfect yarn for Ariann. I decided to give the Fleece Artist BFL a try since it was the perfect gauge. As for colour...I chose blue of course and bought 3 skeins in the colourway Lagoon.

I worried a bit when I received the yarn that the colour changes would be a bit too dramatic to not overshadow the lace work in this pattern. I swatched and liked what I saw but the final proof would be in the larger sweater. I must say that I am absolutely in love with both this design and the yarn. The yarn is soft like butter with the perfect amount of spring. When I had a few inches on the needles I was able to see that the design and the shading of the yarn complemented each other perfectly. One did not over-shadow the other. In fact, it looks a bit like gentle waves lapping on to the beach of the lagoon- no?

This is turning into one of those projects that just has it all going on. I'm lovin big ole blue and given that this yarn has amazing yardage and comes in colours that are to die for, I think I may just have to go back for more. Not for a while though...summer knitting is up next.

I am quite excited because I finally decided on a second smaller wheel for travel. I love my Schacht, especially with the Woolee Winder but it is a brute to take to guild meetings etc. My friend has a Louet Victoria and she recently took it to Florida where she spun by the pool all week. I spun on it in December and loved it but wanted something a tad bigger. Enter the Kromski Sonata. I've ordered it from Wild Rose Fibres in Alberta and according to Colleen who owns the operation, the wheel shipped this past Monday. This is the second shipment (the first sold out in December very quickly). I had expressed an interest in one of the limited edition walnut stained wheels and lucked out when I got one!! I guess they decided to do a few more. I've ordered the bag as well. I had hoped that it would arrive by yesterday since Tuesday will be our next delivery but alas - my wheel is probably sitting in some Canada Post warehouse as we speak. Next post, I'll hopefully have some pictures of the new baby and a review of the wheel. I'm also hoping that Nathan Lee creates a Woolee Winder soon for the Sonata. Do you think he accepts bribes?

Ta da

At 11:57 pm last night, the final end was woven in and Poppy joined the elite (and I use the term elite to imply something rare and scarce in these parts) group of knitting FOs that live at my house. Here she is done and dusted awaiting her debut.

When I modeled Poppy for my husband, he grinned and exclaimed "Wow - that's hot!". Perhaps he was referring to the weather forecast for today or he was momentarily channeling Paris Hilton but heck, my sweaters will take their compliments any way they can. We went out to enjoy the lovely spring evening and took some outdoor shots of Poppy.

And because knitters want to see all the gory details, here is the back.

The specifics of the Project are as follows:

Design: Poppy from Yarnplay by Lisa Siobhana Mason.
Yarn: Noro Cash Iroha in shade #103 violet and Noro Silk Garden in shade #224
Size: made: 36"
Needles: 5mm Addi Turbos (que light sabre sound effects courtesy of Brenda Dayne)
Modifications: shortened armhole to ensure join between yoke and body hit above the bust and shortened arms by decreasing every 7th row.

A great fun knit overall. I enjoyed every stitch. The bottom was fun to do free form I just winged it and it worked out fine. The crochet edgings were new for me and I had to refer to a couple of resources to make sure I knew what to do but in the end, Lisa's explanation in the back of the book was perfect. Noro is amazing yarn to work with and I'm really pleased with this colourway. If you're considering this project - go for it.

Not only does my husband approve of Noro (good taste - that's why I married him), he went to the Needle Emporium and treated me to this amazing knitting bag by Offhand designs for my birthday. Of course, a bag like this deserves only luxury yarn! Right? Do ya think I'm in a violet phase?

Knits shoots and leaves

Until recently, I figured bamboo was good for feeding Panda Bears and making patio furniture. When the owners of Webs announced on a podcast last month that the hottest yarn trend for spring was bamboo - I became intrigued. Thus began the tale of two yarns: RYC Bamboo soft and Berroco Bonsai (bamboo tape). Interweave Knits Spring 2007 includes an article about bamboo which unfortunately reads more like an advertorial for all of the yarn companies than it is informative. From what I've found on line, bamboo has antibacterial properties, is soft as silk and more absorbent than cotton. It's being called the "cashmere from plants". According to bambooclothes.com, the manufacturing process for bamboo yarn is similar to that for rayon. The bamboo stems and leaves are pummeled into a starchy pulp in hydrolysis alkalization. A finishing treatment transforms the pulp into soft fibers. The bamboo yarn is then bleached and dyed.

Since most yarn journeys for me have to involve an "object of affection" - I settled on a couple of designs to test drive with these two yarns. First up is this amazing little shrug from Lalana Wools called the Truly Tender Shrug. The pattern calls for Phat Silk Fine by Lalana which knits to sport weight. The RYC Bamboo soft is sport weight and I picked up a ball to play with from Julie at the Needle Emporium in an icy blue (#103 Moonstone). This stuff feels better than silk and does split if you rub it on the ball but I didn't have problems knitting it. Here's my swatch and the gauge seems to be spot on for stitches but a little tight for rows. I can adjust when knitting since the directions say to knit to a certain height. The RYC bamboo more closely mimics traditional yarn in that it's tube shaped. The RYC bamboo comes in lovely subtle colours.



The second design I grew to adore as I looked at it more and more is the Bonsai Tunic by Norah Gaughan from the Spring IK. I've been further inspired by the amazing job this blogger at One by One has done on her version. This design calls for Berroco Bonsai which presents as a matte and shiny ribbon tape. I struggle with ribbon yarns. I do tend to rip back when I don't like how something looks and I don't "tink" I pull out the needles and rip a few rows then thread the stitches back on. Now good old wool or cotton stays nice and perky during this type of exercise. Slippery ribbon goes everywhere. I swatched last night for the Bonsai tunic (again with one trial ball purchased to see if I like it). I struggled to get this pattern down pat. The first yarn over goes from a knit to a purl stitch and until I figured out how to do them so the yarn over was shorter - the holes were huge in this location. I ripped this swatch back so much the shine came off. Normally, I'd throw in the towel at this point and move on to another project. Something just wouldn't let me give up. I knew if I could nail the pattern, I'd fall in love with this yarn. Somewhere around the second repeat - I did. Here's my swatch and after much deliberation, I think I'll make it in the same colour (the Satsuki Green). This yarn is also so soft, you want to disappear into it. I think that's what made me stick with the swatching process.

If you're thinking about giving a "green fiber" a try - I'd certainly recommend bamboo. This trend does make me wonder though...are the sheep worried about their jobs being outsourced off shore?

Gone Clubbing

The wine industry regularly markets "wine clubs" to those winery customers who are (as the marketers would say) highly involved in the category. Generally, this means they want the scoop. The story. How the vineyards are doing. Did the grapes get enough sun and cool nights? It's all about origin and scarcity. Wine Club members have two bottles of an exclusive vintage delivered to their home each month along with tasting notes and perhaps a recipe from Chef. I became intrigued when so many yarn retailers started "sock of the month clubs" but was very interested in the infamous Rockin Sock Club from Socks That Rock. So, in the interest of consumer research (clearing throat loudly) - I signed up. The first shipment came this week and I must say, it appears to be a very well thought out program. Here is the "exclusive" colourway for the first shipment. It's called Monsoon. I've taken the picture outside to truly show the beautiful charcoals blending into moss green. It's military but much richer than normal camouflage colours.

The binder is branded nicely and contains a welcome letter describing the theme for this year's club which is "celebrating the foot". Facts and figures about feet in general and the beating they take on our behalf. So far so good - this is the detail highly involved consumers go for. The pattern is nice. It's a reversible sock - the toe and heel are garter stitch. The leg is a reversible ribbing. I'm eager to start this sock. I'm a bit of a "sock virgin" having only knit one pair of Regia self-striping socks 6 years ago. I gave them to a friend as a last minute birthday gift so I've never worn a pair of hand-knit socks myself.

I was planning to liberate my rosewood double points from this Opal sock using Wendy's toe-up pattern. I started it about 5 years ago and then stopped before the short row heel. I've discovered that I often abandon projects when I'm nearing a point where I have to do something I've not done before. If I'm feeling bold - I go ahead but if I'm not in the right mood, I put it down. There's no comparing the STR with the Opal for tactile stimulation so rather than bash away at the Opal sock, I picked up a second set of dpns from Crystal Palace from Julie today. My ball winder and I have a hot date planned for tomorrow.

Poppy continues to rock into the home stretch. In my never-ending quest to seek out new ways to show you my knitting - I present Poppy sleeve 2 with Cabernet Sauvignon. Let's face it. EVERYTHING goes better with wine and luxury fibre.

You Zig - I'll Zag

A reader named "Yarn It" left this comment on my last post. "I would love to see how the first side of your skirt turned out! I have been eyeing that issue came out and I just looked at is yesterday to reconsider the skirt again. Has it been a fun knit?" To answer your question - absolutely! It's Koigu. It's pink. It's a variety of stitches and patterns with just enough "mindless" stockinette to make it portable. In fact, the first side is complete. The pattern does warn would be knitters that the twisted lace pattern does put the knitting on the bias so the resulting piece is quite the crooked spectacle. All should be well once the mirror image is complete and these little quirks are hidden with some kick-butt mattress stitch. I may put the second side on hold for a bit because I've been using my beloved Holtz and Stein ebony 3.25mm circular needles for this and they need to go back to their first commitment.




Meet Rhinegold.

I began Rheingold about 2 years ago and for some reason - she fell by the wayside. I absolutely love this design by Jade Starmore and the Hebridean 2 ply is wonderful. Looks like Rhinie will be the resurrected UFO for 2007. This one's for you Anmiryam! At any rate, I swiped the needle out from under Rheingold to do the front of the skirt and I figure if I get back at it with gusto, it should finish up quickly. Famous last words. I want to wear Rheingold at Rhinebeck. There's a Dr. Seuss story in there somewhere.

Front burner project now is Poppy. I completed the first sleeve and decided to sew it in and try it on to ensure that my alterations to shorten it were acceptable. I'm pleased to report that the sleeve is perfecto! I'm also very excited after trying it on with the one sleeve. It's going to fit perfectly and I'm really pleased with the colours.

I did find a really cool site in the UK with amazing sock yarn. It's called Piece of Beauty Yarn Store and this colourway is the very "Zenlike" Robe and Bowl. Isn't it pretty? I think I'll make the Rozas socks from the new IK.

Dr. Stephannie jokes that she's working on time shifting and parallel universe strategies to get us all more knitting time . I'm cheering her on from the sidelines. I may just have to take that girl some wine to facilitate the research!

Knitlit

There's not been much knitting done around these parts lately. A new editor is finally in place at one of the pubs I write for so things need to get turned around quickly. I'm spending most nights researching and writing. I have however, read a pretty good book recently. I rarely make time to read fiction. I spend so much time reading for my work that I need to shift gears when I get home and do different things. I love to read and was a book worm as a kid but since I had the boys - other things keep getting in the way.

I purchased a copy of The Friday Night Knitting Club a couple of weeks ago and finished it last night. I was skeptical but decided to buy the book when I learned that Julia Roberts had bought the rights to make it into a movie. I doubt she'd be interested if it was truly awful so I gave it a whirl. I really enjoyed the book and was pleased to see that the Knitting Club and the shop around which the story revolves were utilized appropriately. In other words, the store and club merely served as vehicles to develop the characters and the entire text wasn't peppered with long passages about long tail cast on versus cabled cast on. I felt the characters were nicely developed and I did have an interest in where they were headed. It was a light- hearted easy read ...until the last 3 chapters or so. I won't spoil the plot but I will say that the story took an unexpected turn that surprised me. This particular plot turn hit WAY too close to home for me so I would imagine it hit me a bit harder than most readers. I would give the author credit for not taking the safe, predictable route and I was definitely moved emotionally. Knitter or non-knitter this book is thoughtfully told and well written. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

I was so verklempt at the book's ending that a little retail therapy was in order. My favourite local boutique just got their spring line in and this new label called One Girl Who is dynamite. I purchased this lovely cardigan (left) in the white colour shown. It's based on those lovely circle jacket designs that we're seeing in knitwear right now and the one side falls lower than the other. I LOVE it.

I also got this cardigan(right). Mine is black but you get the picture. Great to dress up and dress down with a little whimsy.

I did complete the first side of the Vogue Knitting pink Koigu skirt so, once that's blocked, I'll show you the completed piece. Poppy shoulders are seamed and I just have to sew in the first sleeve. I want to try it on with one sleeve to make sure the length is correct before I make the other one the same. I could just go for the Venus di Milo look and call it a day!

Scout's Honour

At the end of January, I surveyed my editorial calendars for the publications I write for and breathed a sigh of relief. Nothing due until the end of February! Oh how I would wile away the winter evenings knitting and spinning. Poppy would be done by Valentines! Out of nowhere came 2 other assignments both with tight deadlines. You see I write so I can buy yarn which I don't have time to knit with...because I write. As I take "mini breaks" from my work, I surf the net and sometimes stumble over really cool projects that jump out at me. Such was the case with Bonne Marie Burns' new take on her popular Ribby Cardi. She's re-designed the ribby-cardi as a pullover and the cool twist is she's used an interesting combination of hand painted variegated yarns. I found this electric blue with black mixture "very eighties" and I really loved how it blended with the black and white hand paint. Chic Knits has partnered with Scout's Swag to sell these patterns and provide the yarn for them too. I'd recently purchased some of the Pippikneesocks roving from Scout and her responsiveness and customer service were excellent. (More on the roving later on but it totally rocks)! I originally ordered the exactly same colour combination as shown in the model but when I saw Scout's "hot fudge sundae" colourway I immediately switched the colour for the top portion and subbed it instead. Hot fudge combines wonderful shades of caramel, gold, cream, chocolate brown and blue to tie in with the main colourway for the bottom part of the sweater. This yarn is so soft - it'll be a delight to work with and as usual, Scout's service was perfecto! One thing I admire about Bonne Marie's patterns is how wonderful they look on so many different people in so many different yarns. I'm looking forward to finally working with one of her designs. I'm not sure yet if it will be Ribby Pullie or Ariann on the needles next. I have to finish Poppy first.

Here is Poppy with one completed sleeve. I did one less increase on the sleeve and made the increases every 7 rows instead of every 9. This gives me a final length of about 21". I plan to assemble the shoulders and sew in the first sleeve before I proceed to make the second one. I'll need to make sure that it's just the length I want.

I probably shouldn't feel guilty about relieving my stress by purchasing yarn. After all, I could be pulling a Brit and giving myself a whole new hair style. Yeah, that's the ticket. Now I'll need to buy yarn for new hats!

The Long Law of the Arm

It's taken a long time for me to actually accept that I need to factor my unique body type into the knitting process. Remind me sometime to show you the Kaffe Fassett Rowan Leaves sweater I made that fits like a tunic and has arms that hang to my knees. As I came to knit the top of Poppy, I realized that one wrong move and that horizontal join between the yoke and the bottom section could hang a bit low and cut a very nice swath in "all the wrong places" if you get my drift. I was told by a seamstress about a year ago that I had a very short armhole depth. Good to know! So, I decided to shave about an inch off of the arm hole shaping for Poppy. I simply knit to the height I thought best, and cast off as evenly as possible the remaining stitches in three equal parts for the shoulder steps. I then re-knit the back to match the shaping. Here is Poppy thus far. She's not properly blocked yet, but you get the drift. I quite like to colour progressions in this shade of Silk Garden #224. I quickly realized that I needed to finish the top section before I knit the sleeves. The pattern calls for a final sleeve length of 25+" including sleeve cap. I know that will be much longer than I need. I want the sleeve to hit just where my thumb joins my hand so I figure about 20" will be plenty. To make the sleeve shorter, I'm increasing every 7 rows instead of every 9 as the pattern calls. This should eliminate several inches and then I'll pin the final sleeve in and see how it falls. I'm thoroughly enjoying this project. It's colourful, easy but interesting and is knitting up quite quickly.

I've also been spinning. You may recall a few months ago I bought some Blue Faced Leicester roving from Lisa Souza. This colourway is called Jonquil and is shades of gold, butter with little flecks of blue and sage green. I struggled a bit with the BFL as I found the longer staple need more time to twist and so some of my sections weren't as nicely spun as they could have been. I am very excited however to report that I learned how to Navajo ply (aka chained singles). Learning how to do this was one of my knitting resolutions and a fellow Niagara Spinning Guild member at spin day showed me how. I love this method and am extremely pleased with the results. Lisa refers to it as "Goldilocks" and I can see why. I'm toying with the idea of making the Yarn Harlot's "One Row Hand spun Scarf" out of this. We'll see. I have more of this roving in the same dye lot and will probably spin it up first before I decide.

I'm still plugging away on the Lake Park hat. The lovely "pulled stitch" design doesn't show up well in this shot but I'm extremely pleased with how it's looking! I can't wait to wear it. Knitting with my own hand spun and knitting more small projects. Strike two more resolutions from the list. Maybe the hat will add some excitement to what's starting to feel like a very long winter. They're predicting a snow storm tomorrow. Please let it be enough to stay home with my yarn!

A Few of my Favourite Things

Each spring and fall I celebrate the new Rowan magazine by visitng the Needle Emporium to buy my issue and then by curling up in my favourite leather chair with a glass of wine, usually devouring the issue page by page. I choose a good wine - something befitting the occasion. This year's pick was a beautiful B.C. Syrah - 2004 Peller Estates. I usually get a peek at the new issues on line like most people. I think we all agree however that it's very difficult to truly see the detail on the designs from small images on a computer - you have to see the book. As I went through the Spring 2007 Rowan I was thrilled to see that they'd managed to produce a very wearable, knitable collection that was pretty yet not too matronly or boring. Quite frankly - there wasn't much I didn't like but here are my top picks from the new issue:

Number 1: Maritime by Sarah Dallas

I didn't really look twice at this design when I saw the small image. Upon closer inspection when I got the book, I noticed that the bottom ribbing, button bands, collar and cuffs are knit in pretty pastel shades of Cotton Glace in pink, pale blue and lavender. The main stripe is a deep blue and white combo. The dainty ribbon adds just the right touch. I'd love to see this one knit up.

Number 2: Lydia by Sarah Dallas

3 words - Kid Silk Haze. This is so pretty and I love the way it ties in at the front. I might make the ties just a tad shorter if I were to knit this one. The new colours of Kid Silk Haze are lovely and there is a nice aqua colour that I like.

Number 3: Henley by Martin Storey

Yummm...Calmer in driftwood and a nice french blue. This would be a great all year round sweater. Calmer is almost as addictive as Kid Silk Haze and I did say that I wanted to do more cabled projects when I made my knitting resolutions.

Number 4: Bonita by Sarah Hatton

I love the back detail with the medallion. This is a definite possibility but I'll wait to see the yarn.

Number 5: Lords and Ladies

Again- Kid Silk Haze. This shade is called ice cream. Yarn with food names...now that's just playing dirty. Very feminine and looks to be very wearable.

Number 6: Wisteria Skirt

I'm really loving the knit skirt trend. This one uses short rows and is made of Cotton Glace. I'm still finishing the Vogue Koigu pink skirt so I'm not sure this would be a priority project but I'd love to see it made by someone.

Number 7: Peony

This was the first image I saw from the magazine. I love it and assuming the new Damask yarn is nice - augmenting with kid silk haze puts the icing on the cake for sure. I wonder if the floral embellishments are a tad too large or if it's too young looking? Very pretty though.

Number 8: Suzani Wrap

Vintage Kaffe in Summer Tweed. I love this colourway and it would make an amazing blanket. I do need to get my Morocco completed first before I even consider something like this.

So, there you have it. My top picks... for today anyway. The next phase of any issue is usually to see what Knit Alongs are created and which designs are made and modeled by real people. Often, a design I've not looked twice at takes on a whole new dimension. Or - maybe it's just the Syrah talking.