It seems like fair isle is on more than just the minds of those at JP HQ; fair isle fashion features are everywhere.

These looks were in Toronto’s The Globe and Mail and London’s The Guardian. When it comes to rocking fair isle, I’m partial to one piece at a time, but runway trends point to layering. What’s your preference?

Layers or one at a time? How would you wear your fair isle?

One thing I learned quickly was that because women carry loads of stuff in our purses, the weight of a purse when empty is really important. Oprah’s chiropractor says we shouldn’t carry more than 10% of our weight in purse. Some handbags can weigh more than 8 pounds (3.6 kilos)!

When I first started, Jordana told me that many people commented on how light her bags were. And after toting around the Rio and Bella for awhile, I decided to weigh them all because she’s right! Compared to my other bags, I felt like I was forgetting something they were so light and I’m carrying knitting now.

Every one of Jordana Paige’s bags is under 3 pounds (1.36 kilos), and three styles are under 2 pounds (.9 kilos). To give you an idea, here are a few things that weigh under 3 pounds:

An emu egg, a pool cue, an Olympic Gold medal, a human brain, an NCAA basketball and a spectacled owl.

Thank goodness for Jordana Paige bags! They’ve kept me out of the world of style-less fanny packs and they’re chiropractor approved (by mine anyway) as long as I don’t load them up with soup cans or anything else super heavy. Yarn’s so light it doesn’t really count, right?

Here at JP, the pictures are great because we’ve already had a chance to look at all the colors, touch fabric and put all our tools in the pockets. (It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it!)

Since not everyone has that luxury, we’re sending out samples across the United States in February. If you’re interested in seeing one of our Crafter’s Tool Butlers in action, you’re in luck! Check out our events page to see if it makes a stop at a yarn store near you. If you don’t see your shop, ask them to contact us.

So when the Spring 2012 issue of Sockupied arrived, I wasn’t surprised. But I was delighted to see the L.J. Kaelms highlighted in the “Must-Have Supplies for Socks.”

If you haven’t checked out Sockupied, you can get it here. There’s some great stuff in there. Remember our Knitter Profile about Donna Druchunas? She wrote a great article about Balkan textiles: Did you know the shoes were so flimsy they wore two pairs of socks? They’re so beautiful and intricate, I don’t know how they could bear to cover them up!

(She also raves about her L.J. Kaelms: “I like it so much that it’s now my go-everywhere travel purse.” Thanks Donna!)

And of course, there are some of the most beautiful patterns for socks, which means if I decide socks are my next project, I’ll have some tough decisions to make.

Photo by Wendy D. Johnson

… And it smells like a giveaway! It’s over at Wendy Knits. Have you read her knitting blog?

I’m amazed at all the WIPs she’s got going on and love love love her kitty Lucy, who makes an appearance in every single blog post. That’s her there being insanely adorable.

If you haven’t checked out her blog, now is the time. Wendy’s got her own Tool Butler; She’s planning to use for knitting on the go (which she does a lot of). She’s giving away a Crafter’s Tool Butler to one lucky reader. Check out the post here. You’ve got until noon EST on January 24. Good luck!