For Spring Summer 2013 Rowan have released a brand new chunky yarn and a collection of patterns to go with it. The yarn is All Seasons Chunky, which is a sister yarn to the existing All Seasons Cotton that you might already know – the fibre blend is the same (cotton and acrylic) making it a good choice for summer due to its cool and light wear. The knitting weight is heavier in the new Chunky version, and the thicker yarn will give great stitch definition for textured or cabled patterns.

The colour selection for All Seasons Chunky is brand new and perfectly balanced for spring and summer, with cool pastels and vibrant tones of orange, red, purple and blue.

There is a wonderfully summery feel to Marie Wallin’s designs in the All Seasons Chunky Collection which accompanies the new yarn, every item seems to be designed with summer evenings in mind. Imagine the sun goes down and the temperature drops a little, but it never really gets cold so you only want a cool outer layer that will keep the edge off but still let you feel the gentle summer breeze. To this end, there is a strong theme of capped or 3/4 length sleeves, lace panels and wide or low necklines.

I fell instantly in love with Aphrodite. From the front it looks like a fairly standard jumper with a bit of lace decoration on the shoulders, but then you see it from behind where it surprises you with a lovely low v-back, lace over the whole back panel and a scooped curve to the hem. It’s just the sort of thing I’d love to wear on a summer’s evening after lounging in the sunshine all day.

I can be rather clumsy (especially with chocolate!) so a white jumper would never be a good idea, but I was spoilt for choice on what I’d use instead. After much debate I finally decided to keep Pebble for the back and use Stoney for the front:

At the moment all I’ve done is make a gauge swatch as I’m still finishing off another couple of projects, but I’m hoping to get this cast on in the next couple of weeks so watch this space for a full project post once I’ve finished.