I am SO excited to be finally getting the Rowan New Shapes pattern book – I love the Anise jacket (shown here on the cover) and tried to make a Blythe-sized version (abandoned halfway through, boo!) over a year ago. I didn’t think I’d be knitting anything adult-sized so I never bought the book – until I saw Jenny/Wikstenmade’s beautiful cardigan on Flickr and Ravelry. That pushed me over the edge and I had to go searching for New Shapes – found it on Kaleidoscope last week and now it’s on its way to my hot little hands.  I got my copy through Kaleidoscope Yarns!

I’m a bit nervous about trying the patterns, though. First of all, Rowan yarn is not exactly cheap. About eight balls of yarn are required to make a garment, and I hesitate spending $120 on yarn that I may destroy with my novice knitting. And, I am absolutely terrible at seaming. I can’t hand-sew to save my life. Oh dear, what have I gotten myself into?! After some thought, I’m most likely going to purchase a few balls of practice yarn (Perhaps LionBrand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick?) and do a few practice runs. At $5 a skein, it won’t break my heart too much if I mess up… right?

As scared as I am, I’m still pretty excited about trying my first Rowan patterns. I can’t wait!