Gathered Front Tank by Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark
En Pointe Pullover by Alice Tang
Leaf and Picot Cardigan by Laura Grutzeck

	Heliotropic Pullover by Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark

A note from Kathleen: When I woke up this morning and looked out my window I saw bright blue sky, but when I let the dog out, I was hit with a wall of 12-degree air! I don't know about you, but I'm longing for the spring, with its gardening, warmer weather, and general sense of newness.

The season is meaningful in so many ways, but the "new beginning" aspect of it seems to resonate with all of us. One of my dearest friends is facing a family crisis, and she said the other day that it would brighten her spirits if spring were here.

I agree! But these blue skies are giving me a boost; I'll just enjoy them from indoors with the perfect companion—a preview of the Spring 2011 issue of Interweave Knits.

One of my favorite projects (so far!) is the Heliotropic Pullover by Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark, pictured at right. I love the simple design with the detail on the yoke. (That Gathered Front Tank might be a must-knit, too.)

Here's editor Eunny Jang to introduce the preview!

"A little Madness in the Spring / Is wholesome even for the King"—Emily Dickinson

February is an odd in-between month. In other languages and at other times it's been called Cabbage Month, Mud Month, Ice Month—the month of hard, harsh weather and patient waiting for renewal.

Gardeners finger dog-ear seed catalogs and set up trays indoors, dreaming of ground that can be worked—gastronauts wait for the area's first bursting-with-chlorophyll asparagus—baseball nuts dig in to watch spring training, with its chilly promise of hot sunshine and long days in the not-too-distant future.

We knitters, though, we've found the secret to waiting out February with good grace: We take up projects that hint at spring with bright colors and light fabrics, willing warmer days with every stitch. We shed our wooly skins and try on cottons, linens, and silks; we experiment; we replace heavy, serious expeditions into knitting with playful jaunts. All through the dreary midwinter, we knit on, leaving a trail of brightly colored freshness.

How could spring fail to come? We knitters earn it honestly.

With that in mind, we've stocked this Spring issue of Interweave Knits with all the right projects to get you dreaming about spring: flowing, sculptural knits that take advantage of linen's drape ("Uncommon Flax"); punchy modern colorblock knitting ("Block by Block",); gently sophisticated lace projects ("Fabric Interrupted"); fun modular knits ("Mod*u*lar"), and fresh, sweet ruffles and ruching ("Circumnavigated").

Let the snow fall—we're busy getting ready for daffodils.

I hope you enjoy the preview, and be sure to subscribe to Interweave Knits so you don't miss anything!

Happy Knitting,

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