Back to school, blah blah, leaves changing, blah blah, apple picking, whatever... let's not get bogged down with all that stuff that comes along with the Autumn Season. Let's get right to it and talk about what we're all thinking: knitting! Am I right? You've been poking around Ravelry instead of Facebook more, sniffing around your stash and discovering those gems you bought last season, reading blogs like this one and planning out what you'll be knitting and the yarn you'll be buying as your budget for Rhinebeck keeps going up and up. I know. We're all there.

Absolutely nothing makes me happier than saying goodbye to summer... and hellooooo Fall! This Fall is especially exciting. I have probably said this before, but I think THIS ONE is my favorite collection: BT FALL 14. It's here. I love it.

The Design Team's inspiration for this collection was the Fisherman Sweater. I salivated at the very thought. Cables, cables, cables! That's all I could think about. But how to make them more modern? What's the twist, no pun intended, that I could put on a cabled sweater design. Many would argue that the options are infinite, which they are. But, I know when I'm dealing with something as traditional as the fisherman sweater and cables, I get stuck in my own brain. The same images of the same sweaters keep popping up in my head. In fact, as you're reading this, we're probably picturing the same sweater: off-white, aran weight, honeycomb or lattice down the middle, twisted rope cables on either side, crewneck, boxy fit...

Anyway, I started out swatching some cables, churned out some that I liked and put those aside while I decided on some silhouettes I wanted to use. The shawl-collared cardigan, of course. Something oversized and comfy; something that could have been stolen from your Dad or boyfriend; something to wear while sipping tea in front of a fireplace; something to throw on to check the mail or walk your little special someone to the bus.

Because of the oversized nature of this cardigan, Bellows, I liked using Shelter held doubled to give the fabric enough oomph. It also makes stitches more three dimensional, and the two strands really make the knit-purl patterning stand out. And it's "cable-light". Just a few repeats up each front, and down the sleeves. The rest is easily memorized and perfect TV knitting.

One swatch I had knit up really stood out to me. i was determined to use it, but it took a while to figure out what kind of silhouette I wanted to use. I wanted simple shapes to really show off the stitch pattern and make it the focus of the design. The "arrows" or upside down V's at the base of Ondawa was the swatch I built around.

I really love Ondawa - the smaller scale cables and texturing really gives this piece a carved look. The front and back pieces are identical and are rectangles. No shaping whatsoever. The cropped silhouette was my attempt at making it modern. I know it's a hard one to actually wear though. But you can easily make the front and back longer to suit your taste. Just don't forget to add more yarn - cables and twisted stitches tend to eat up quite a bit.

And then there's Shackleton. This scarf is lush with a big monster cable motif running up the middle. Like Bellows this is also knit with Shelter held doubled. I love its magnified effect. The cable motif really looks blown up.

And last but not least, Rowe. What's Fall without a cardi-coat? I started with the large center cable on the back.

And auditioned quite a few smaller motifs to use alongside, and down the fronts and sleeves.

I love the thick bands of 2x2 ribbing that frame this piece. And instead of trying a tubular bind-off along the collar/placket, it's knit twice the length and folded under and crocheted down. It gives this cardi-coat some nice weight around the opening, making up for its lack of closure. I can't wait to wear this one around town. I'm thinking I may need one in Fossil, too.

So that is my interpretation of the Fisherman Sweater. I tried to design for all ages, tastes, styles and physiques, so I hope you'll find something to your liking! Happy Autumn and happy knitting!

Autumn, finally.