Just last week, as the chill of autumn filled the air, something very welcome arrived from Rowan – their latest Knitting and Crochet Magazine Number Magazine 74, full of cosy autumn and winter designs.

There is always so much more than just knitting patterns in Rowan’s magazines. In this season’s, you will find: “Clever Construction”, the benefits of top-down and in-the-round knitting; and “Felted & Fabulous”, all about Rowan’s Felted Tweed yarn and the many reasons why it is so popular. However, I will concentrate on the two knitting design stories: “Felted Tweed, My Way”, a design story dedicated to the very popular yarn Felted Tweed; and “Fine Tweed Haze”, Rowan’s newest yarn.

Let me take you through some of my favourites…

I’ll start with “Felted Tweed, My Way”. The Rowan designers put their own unique spin on Felted Tweed, resulting in a delightful blend of diverse designs and styles.

Boulder by Vibe Ulrik

Boulder is knitted top-down and in-the-round, which is my preferred way to knit – no sewing the sections together, so when you’ve finished knitting you’re done! Boulder is shown here knitted in Camel and Phantom but with 56 Felted Tweed shades to choose from I might opt for something more colourful like a red, or a purple, or a pink…

Brooks by Vibe Ulrik

Brooks is also knitted top-down and in-the-round but using Felted Tweed and Kidslik Haze. One strand of each yarn is held together to give this sweater a lovely ethereal quality.

Gully By Lisa Richardson

This stylish jacket designed by Lisa Richardson is knitted using a combination of Felted Tweed and Felted Tweed Colour yarns. The subtle shift in colors within the Felted Tweed Colour yarn accentuates the slip stitch pattern that is skillfully incorporated throughout the design.

Himalayas by Lisa Richardson

The pattern for Himalayas comes in two versions – a cardigan and a jumper. Both are knitted top-down and in-the-round with the additional technique of steeking used to create the cardigan.

Matterhorn by Chloe Thurlow

Matterhorn is a cheerful-looking cardigan knitted using the intarsia technique and three shades of Felted Tweed. I love the shade choices – I wouldn’t change a thing!

Now for “Fine Tweed Haze”, Rowan’s newest yarn.

The yarn itself is a finer version of Tweed Haze with a similar blend of superfine alpaca and extra fine merino wool. This gorgeous yarn is accented with contrasting tweed-like specks, making it an appealing option for single-color designs. Furthermore, because of its lightness, it is ideal for colorwork, thanks to its harmonious palette, which is ideal for creating beautiful Fair Isles.

At the moment Fine Tweed Haze comes in 10 shades, but hopefully, Rowan will add more if it proves popular.

I have a ball of the shade 003 Rose. It is a beautiful strawberry red.

And my favourite designs in this section…

Bobbin by Chloe Thurlow

Bobbin is knitted in three shades of Fine Tweed Haze with striking bands of Fair Isle zig zags. I did consider knitting Bobbin but would swap the green shade Lawn with Rose, Verd with Blush, and Rose with Deep.

Sarsnet by Quail Studio

Sarsnet is a poncho-style sweater with a cosy roll neck. I’m not keen on ponchos – too big and baggy for me – but I might consider knitting this sweater-like one.

Dobby by Lisa Richardson

Dobby, with its Fair Isle yoke and plain stocking stitch body and sleeves, is knitted top-down and in-the-round. Another sweater I am considering knitting but using Rose as the main colour and Blush and Deep for the yoke pattern.

Reed By Martin Storey

Reed is a simple crew neck cardigan that can be knitted in a single colour. Or how about knitting a fun version with varying thicknesses of stripes using 3 different shades? I am hoping to knit the striped version of Reed in Rose and Blush but will knit it all in either thin stripes or thick stripes – I’ve not completely decided just yet. Check back soon to see what I come up with.

Well, that ends the quick tour of my favourites from Rowan’s Knitting and Crochet Magazine Number Number 74. If you need more inspiration and would like to take a look at all the designs, click here.

What do you think? Do you like any of these designs? Maybe you’ve already decided what you’re going to knit this Autumn and Winter. Please let me know by leaving a comment – scroll down to “Leave a Reply” below.

Happy knitting!

Esther x