Primavera

A lacy little spring-time coverup made from Rowan Handknit Cotton. This is a 100% cotton yarn, listed by Rowan as a DK weight, with 85m/50 g. ball -- color, aqua. It was soft and very pleasant to work with; hopefully it will be pleasant to wear also.

It was worked in one piece from the hem to the armhole openings. From there the back and each front piece were worked separately. The pattern stitch used for the body was from a Japanese stitch dictionary -- "Crochet Patterns Book 300", pattern #139. I've mentioned this book before, and it is turning out to be a real treasure trove of attractive stitch patterns. It was purchased from YesAsia, although I don't know if they still carry it.

The short sleeves are worked in a simple mesh stitch, and edged with picot.

The front border pattern is from "Complete Book of Crochet Border Designs" by Linda Schapper. This is an older book in my collection (copyright 1987), so I'm not sure if it is still generally available. It is also a book I go to time and again when I want a nice border. It has 342 different designs, with stitch patterns arranged by the (predominate) type of stitch used, and patterns are both charted and written, and range from simple to quite complex. Production values are fairly primitive (seemingly hand drawn charts, black and white photos) but I wouldn't part with it for the world. If you enjoy putting together your own designs it is well worth snapping up if you ever run across it anywhere!