I picked up the autumn/winter 2010 Rowan magazine while at Romni Wools last weekend. I drooled over the pattern preview and couldn’t resist the chunky cables of the Nomad collection and vibrant colours of Russian Doll. I think I might have to tackle the Tamara mitts (in a different colour scheme) – just the thing to try out some colourwork!

[All photos from Rowan Magazine 48. Patterns clockwise from top left: Meander, Rover, Rambler, Tamara, Maya, Wayfarer]

I’ve been doing some very belated Spring-cleaning and came across these fantastic indigo-dyed fabrics that my knitting partner for life brought back for me from Togo. I’ve had them for at least seven years and have yet to find the perfect project for them. They’re so beautiful with such deep, rich colour, and hold so many memories of a dear friend being far away. I’m not sure that I’ll ever be able to cut into them!

They were in the back of my mind when I was in Vancouver last weekend, and inspired me to pick up a natural indigo dye kit at Maiwa Supply.

Indigo has likely been in use longer than any other dye and grows in India, China, Indonesia and South America. Dyeing with it is reminiscent of a high school chemistry experiment. You have to remove all of the oxygen from the alkaline dye bath before the indigo will penetrate the material or fibre. Then, once removed from the dye bath, the indigo reacts with the oxygen in the air and returns to blue from green.

I’ve only dyed with indigo once, as part of Julie Sinden’s natural dyeing workshop. It was like magic, seeing the indigo turn from blue to green to blue again. My shibori sampler can be seen above. Maybe the word ’sampler’ is a bit strong; I used quarters and nails to get these tie-dyed effects. Shibori is a Japanese resist dyeing technique that uses tying or stitching. It looks like the fabric from Togo was stitched to get the striping and tied for the oval pattern.

I dyed some merino rovings as well and used my drop spindle to spin and ply it. This was also a Spring-cleaning discovery. My spindle was buried beneath balls of yarn, with the plied merino waiting patiently to be wound off.

HAND/EYE magazine (a new discovery) has some great articles on West African indigo dyeing traditions; namely Benin and Mali. They also have an indigo vat recipe provided by Michele Wipplinger, founder of the Earthues natural dye shop in Seattle. More generally, Jenny Dean (author of the sadly out of print Wild Colour), has a blog devoted to the art of natural dyeing. Plenty of inspiration and tips here! You too could have a living, breathing indigo vat in your studio, or in my case, bedroom.

Photos courtesy of Rowan

I love all of the juicy cables in Rowan Magazine No. 46. Plenty of inspiration for fall knitting! Above are three patterns from the Shadowlands story, inspired by the industrial revolution and photographed in atmospheric Thwaite Mills. I love the Chorley Wrap by Marie Wallin (far left); and Cheadle (far right), also by Marie Wallin, looks like it has an interesting crossover construction.

Photos courtesy of Rowan

One of the other stories in the magazine is Heritage, inspired by the privileged upper classes of 1920s England. Bourne (left) and Buckling, both by Sarah Hatton, call for Kidsilk Haze. From what I’ve heard, this yarn is highly addictive. Kid mohair and silk . . . this could be dangerous.

My Sweet Pea Coat is finished! The pattern was designed by Kate Gilbert and published in Twist Collective Winter 2008. My birthday burly spun was put to good use in this project. The coat is so very cozy.

I love the texture of the stitch pattern. A double moss stitch pattern on the cuffs, plackets and bottom edge set off by stockinette on the rest.

I knit the sleeves using the Magic Loop technique of circular knitting. I’d never tried it before and am a convert -  fully and completely. It’s so much faster than fiddling with double pointed needles!

There’s something a bit retro about this coat – maybe it’s the swing it has to it. I’m really happy with the way it turned out. I was wondering just how bulky Brown Sheep’s burly spun would be. The end result isn’t cumbersome – just soft and very warm!

P.S. By popular demand… A very pregnant sheep at Riverdale Farm.

Photo from Selvedge Issue 27

I thought my subscription to Selvedge had run out, so I had a happy surprise when I received Issue 27 yesterday! The theme of the issue is frugality, which doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun. You can’t go anywhere or read anything these days without being bombarded with economic doom and gloom. It did get me to thinking though – about the handmade tradition and how its resourcefulness is made to weather just this kind of situation. About ways not just to ‘make do and mend’ but to create lovely things without spending as much money as I might like to! Here are some ways that I plan to ‘make do’ in the upcoming months:

1. Reclaim

Whether reclaiming yarn from thrift store sweaters or recycling yarn from pervious projects, this is a budget-friendly way to get yarn. Here’s a helpful tutorial that I will be trying out soon… I have an alpaca/wool sweater that would be more useful wound into fresh skeins!

2. Reciprocity

The best way I can think of to reduce my yarn stash is to make clothes, toys or blankets for donation. The Mother Bear Project is my personal favourite. I have one finished preemie blanket and another in progress for Project Linus. They are crazily multicoloured but I’ll still post them before I send them off! afghans for Afghans is another organization I’d like to contribute to one day soon. They send hand-knit and crocheted blankets, sweaters, hats, mittens and socks to the people of Afghanistan.

3. Just one skein (okay, not an ‘r’)

Knitting small projects can be enormously satisfying. You can buy luxurious yarn, complete a project and not feel too terrible about the money you spent. I’m a huge fan of Ysolda Teague’s Whimsical Little Knits collection – as my tiny shoes can attest! There are so many wonderful designs – I’m struggling to pace myself! Another good resource for small projects is One Skein.

Photos courtesy of Interweave Press

It seems a bit early to start thinking about spring – at least in Toronto where the snow is lingering! But I can imagine a time, in the not so distant future, when I will be able to leave my winter coat and boots behind. To help with some warm weather inspiration, I picked up the Spring 2009 issue of Interweave Knits at The Purple Purl. I love Andrea Pomerantz’s Diminishing Rib Cardigan, pictured above. Clean, simple lines and the ribbing gives it just a bit of flounce. A black merino blend perhaps?

Photos courtesy of Interweave Press

Another great pattern is Hannah Fettig’s Whisper Cardigan. Knit in a laceweight yarn, it has a beautiful drape. Hannah has a helpful schematic on her blog, as well as some tips on the seamless construction. I’m addicted to seamless cardigans. All it took was one! I can hardly wait to make this – I’m thinking about using an alpaca lace. So maybe more of an autumn knit than a spring one!

Photos courtesy of Interweave Press

Vivian Høxbro’s Net Duffel Bag is the perfect market bag. And a good opportunity to learn how to knit mitered squares. The pattern suggests using a strong linen yarn, but I think I might try a hemp yarn instead. Maybe a sprout green? So I may get a spring knit out of this issue after all!