It is the Leonora jumper by Sarah Hatton, and I got the pattern from issue 44 of The Knitter magazine. I loved the simple shape with the lace panels on the front and back neck and the cuffs, it just looked like being the perfect spring/summer knit.
And, shock horror, I even knitted it in the recommended yarn. Bearing in mind that it is a Rowan yarn, and my budget never normally stretches to Rowan, however much I covet it, I was thrilled to be able to get this yarn.
It was actually a massive bargain courtesy of Black Sheep Wools at the Spring Knitting & Stitching Show at Olympia in March. If you've never been, book your tickets for the Autumn show at Alexandra Palace as soon as you can, it's BRILLIANT!!! So much yarn and fabric all in one place - kid in a candy store just doesn't cover it! Black Sheep's tactic is to just have a massive mountain of packs of yarn on the floor and then you just dive in and see what treasures you can find. I was nearly at the end of my afternoon looking round and was delighted when I plunged my arm elbow-deep into the pile and came back up with a pack of Rowan Purelife Revive. Yes, a pack, that's 10 whole balls of matching dye lot yarn. Even better was the 70% discount off the RRP, so really I just couldn't say no!
The pattern is actually pretty straightforward, mainly stocking stitch, which I like for knitting while I'm watching TV, but the lace panels just make it a bit more interesting. And I did have to concentrate on these, not having knitted much lace before, some serious counting was needed. I went wrong a couple of times and had to undo a couple of rows, but nothing disastrous. I still dislike picking up stitches for the neckband, and actually this one was a little awkward, I probably should have done it on a circular needle for the flexibility rather than straight needles. You live and learn.
Now it's finished and I'm really pleased with it. I think it's the best fitting thing I've knitted so far - I made sure I chose the size based on the 'actual measurements', and I suspect my tension is getting more even as I get more practice too. I love the colours in this yarn, it's called Loam, and has a mainly lilac-y base with lots of multicoloured flecks running through it. I've seen this kind of colour mix referred to as 'heathered' which I think is a pretty way of thinking of it, it certainly adds lots of texture and depth to the colour. The same yarn also comes in several other colourways, I particularly like the orange-y 'Silt', and there are a couple of pattern books recommended too with some simple, classic designs.
OK, don't shoot me, but I never block my knitting - I don't have a space big enough to lay things out - but I will be hand washing this one and drying it as flat as I can to make sure it keeps its shape.
So now I have the fun of deciding what to knit next. This is not as easy as it sounds as my yarn stash keeps growing (of its own accord I'm sure...) and I have a huge pile of patterns to choose from. But I think I'm narrowing it down, I'll keep you posted with what I decide.
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