On my very enjoyable visit to the Rowan Mill last month I learnt many things about how a luxury yarn company like Rowan operate from season to season. One fundamental process of their work is to produce new yarns to reflect the ever changing trends of the world of fashion. This process is not some kind of half-hearted or hurried procedure but a carefully researched and considered approach to produce the desired yarn quality in the most appropriate shades.

For the Autumn Winter 2014/15 season Rowan have added a collection of five new yarns reflecting a trend in “simplicity and quiet modernity”; classic but also creative and original. Here’s my survey of each of these new yarns……….

Rowan Finest

Rowan Finest is a luxury blend of wool, cashmere and royal alpaca. It is amazingly soft and incredibly lightweight with a great palette of both strong and subtle colours.

It knits to a standard 4 ply tension so you can use it to knit any pattern that requires a 4 ply yarn. However, Rowan has also produced a brochure to accompany Rowan Finest containing fourteen elegant designs by Sarah Hatton created with a modern feminine feel which are perfectly suited to this soft classic yarn. The collection features neat cardigans, sweaters and gloves with great colourwork and cables and knitting in the round. Here are some of my favourites……

Big Wool Colour

Big Wool Colour is a fantastic addition to the Big Wool family. This bright and fun yarn is an easy and quick knit; projects can be completed in a matter of hours and is also great for the beginner knitter. It knits to the same tension as Big Wool and so knits to all Big Wool patterns which makes this yarn ideal for adding colour to any Big Wool garment.

To go with Big Wool Colour is the brochure Big Wool Colour Collection designed by Lisa Richardson. Ranging from cowls, scarfs, hats and caplets all the way through to warm and cosy sweaters and cardigans, this collection shows Lisa’s signature style for unusual fastenings and interesting stitch techniques. Here are some of my favorites……

Brushed Fleece

Brushed Fleece is a super soft blend of extra fine merino wool and baby alpaca. It is a quick knit chunky yarn and is indeed super soft to the touch and incredibly light. When I picked up a big ball of Brushed Fleece it was as light as a feather; you get all the chunkiness but none of the weight with this yarn. It creates a lightweight fabric which shows cables and textures beautifully. The yarn has a soft marl colour effect and is available in 12 shades.

The Brushed Fleece brochure to accompany this yarn is a collection of beautifully soft and featherweight knits for both men and women all designed by Martin Storey. These knits are all extremely light and cosy to wear. The 16 piece collection features cocooning wraps and shrugs, voluminous capes, sweater dresses and classic long and cropped cardigans. I have 7 balls of this yarn in the lovely pink colour Grotto; I would love knit the 3/4 sleeve cardigan Esk…….I think I may make it a bit longer though. Here’s a look at that cardigan and a few others from the collection……..

Fazed Tweed

Fazed Tweed is a mix of wool and fine alpaca with a filled tube-like construction. When you see a ball of Fazed Tweed in your local yarn store don’t be put off by it’s appearance…..it looks like the yarn itself is wrapped in a network of loose threads; these just seem to disappear altogether when knitted up! This yarn produces a lightweight and soft blended tweedy fabric with a fluffy aura. It knits up on 6mm needles so is a fairly quick knit which is always great for novice knitters but everyone else as well! I really enjoyed knitting with this yarn; it creates a great looking fabric. I used the shade Oak while I was at the Rowan Mill to design a coatigan…….lets hope Kate and Marie at Rowan like it. Here’s all the 10 shades………

The Fazed Tweed brochure contains 16 garments and accessories designed by Marie Wallin. Cardigans, sweaters, wraps and hats display a range of aran, cable and tweed stitches through to colourful stripes and colour blocking. Here’s a look at a few of the designs……..

 Fur

Rowan Fur is made from wool with a little polyamide to bind it. It knits to create a soft fluffy fur texture and comes in four natural shades.

Fur is a huge trend for the Autumn Winter season and is a great yarn for knitting toys, homeware, accessories and trims like collars and cuffs and small gilets. When I was at Rowan I tried on this gilet called Helter (pictured below) knitted with Rowan Fur in the shade Panda; I love it!

The Big Accessories brochure includes this gilet and 14 other designs using Rowan Fur but also Thick ‘n Thin, Tumble and Alpaca Chunky. Here’s another two of my favourites using Rowan Fur from the hats, scarves, cowls and capes for men and women designed by Marie Wallin, Martin Storey, Lisa Richardson, Gemma Atkinson and Sarah Hatton.

Mohair Haze

Rowan Mohair Haze is a premium versatile yarn that suits many projects, It is a gorgeous delicate looking yarn which is both warm and light to wear and is so incredibly soft…….softer than soft….with a beautiful fluffy aura. I have already knitted with this yarn, in fact I doubled it up as I was using it to design a tunic sweater knitted with Pure Wool Worsted, and I loved it. The colour palette is sophisticated soft pastels mixed together with highlights of jewelled brights. I have four balls in the blue colour Tumble; not sure what I will make with it yet? Here are all the 16 shades…….

Mohair Haze can also be used for all Rowan patterns using Angora Haze however for every 1 ball of Angora Haze you will need approximately 1.5 balls of Mohair Haze. Here’s a some of the designs from the Angora Haze collection that I would love to have the time to knit up in Mohair Haze………..

 

 

Now for things to Click on!

Rowan website: new yarns

Rowan website: latest brochures

I would love to know if you have seen any of the new yarns and what you think. Also, what would you like to knit or crochet from the new brochures and if you have any ideas or comments you would like to leave for me and my other readers. Here’s how to leave a comment: click on the Leave a reply link found below at the bottom of this post or click here, and when the new page opens scroll to the bottom of the page to the ‘Leave a Reply’ box..

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Happy Knitting and Crocheting!