Sublime Brocade

Today I had a Day Off. I didn’t sew anything for anyone, I stayed in bed and read a good book, and I sat on the sofa and began to knit a new cardigan.

Oh, and my credit card may have accidentally fallen down in the general direction of some new wool.

My copy of Rowan magazine number 38 arrived in the post this morning. I’ve been putting off buying this for ages, because I balked at the idea of paying £10 for yet another knitting magazine. (Believe me, I have many.) What I didn’t realise is how completely amazing it is. More than sixty patterns, each one more beautiful than the last.

Obviously the magazine is a showcase for Rowan’s range of yarns, but of course you’re not morally obliged to use the yarn that’s specified for the pattern. Which is just as well, as this particular book is three years old, and the yarn used for this jumper has now been discontinued.

Thankfully, the lovely Mim shared a link to a website which was having a clearance sale, and I am now anticipating the arrival of fourteen balls of Sublime, in black and pink. It’s 100% merino, but it’s machine washable, which means that this jumper will actually stand some chance of being worn, rather than staying hidden in the wardrobe because I’m too afraid of ruining it in the wash.

I’ve never tackled an intarsia project quite this ambitious before – my only other attempt has been the pirate jumper, which I wear a lot. I’m a little bit intimidated by the enormous chart, but at least I don’t have to deal with any shaping until I get up to the armholes. That gives me 96 rows to work out what I’m doing. Hopefully that’ll be enough!