Shibui swatches.

Posted by Julia on December 2, 2013

Since Shibui Cima, Silk Cloud, and Pebble arrived last month, I’ve enjoyed seeing more and more projects come together with one or more of these yarns. Folks are planning cowls, shawls, mitts, and hats with the stuff, and I’ve cast on for a pullover knitting Silk Cloud together with Isager Highland. I’ve also enjoyed the task of knitting Shibui swatches for the shop in all three yarns and all manner of yarn combinations.

First, I knit a swatch in each yarn, following the suggested gauge on the ballband.

Next, I knit swatches in each of the yarns held double.

Then came the most fun: I made a swatch for every possible combination of the three yarns.

Each yarn brings its own characteristics to the finished fabric when combined; Cima lends a certain bounciness to whatever yarn it accompanies, Pebble gives a loftiness and tweedy texture, and Silk Cloud shimmers beneath its fuzzy mohair halo.

I noted the gauge and needle size for each swatch, but don’t limit yourself to these gauges alone. Like all yarns, this trio can be worked up at a wide range of gauges for different kinds of fabric and purposes.

Our Shibui Mix Party may be full, but you can still come by the shop to see and touch these swatches, which give a tangible sense of how Shibui yarns play together. Follow our “Inspiring Stitches” board on Pinterest for pattern suggestions for these and other HYS yarns. See you at the shop!

Granny Square Flowers.

Posted by Julia on November 30, 2013

We recently placed a big book order, filling in holes on our shelves where favorite books should be. Restocking old books isn’t nearly as exciting as ordering new ones, though, so we tend to get at least one new publication with every order. This time, it was a crochet book that caught our eye: Granny Square Flowers.

Granny Square Flowers is a collection of 50 botanical crochet motifs, along with essential granny square techniques and projects that make use of them.

Charts as well as written instructions are given for each granny square, and the construction, gauge, and seaming techniques are paired with clear photos and descriptions.

Come by the shop to take a look! See you there.

Holiday gifts.

Posted by Julia on November 28, 2013

The holiday shopping season is upon us! Those of you shopping for special gifts for knitters and crocheters may find yourself at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, seeking goodies for the fiber-lovers you love. Yarn is always welcome, of course, but it can be hard to choose yarn for someone else, especially if you’re not sure what they’ll make with it, or what needles they might have, or what colors and textures will most appeal to them. What else might make a good gift?

These yarn-ball controllers are great gifts for most any stitcher. The Wool Tree holds your yarn on a spindle while you work with it, keeping it from rolling out of your lap and onto the floor. These silk yarn-out boxes from Lantern Moon do the same thing, keeping your yarn safe and sound in a soft fabric cube as you work.

Knitters and crocheters may also appreciate a new bag, especially one from Namaste with plenty of pockets for housing projects and notions.

We have two styles of Namaste bags in stock at the moment: Monroe and Harlow. We also have some Buddy Cases, Skinny Mini notions pouches, and Circular Needle Cases–all good gifts.

If you truly want to spoil a knitter, consider a set of interchangeable circular needles. We have several kinds from Addi and several from Knitter’s Pride. Addi also makes a set of interchangeable crochet hooks, designed to be used with Addi Click cords to make long hooks for Tunisian crochet. Come by the shop to see all the choices!

There are plenty of other potential gifts lurking here, as well: inspiring books, patterns and yarn packed up into kits, and of course, gift certificates in any denomination. Come see us on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or any day we’re open; you’ll find our holiday hours on the main page of our website. We so appreciate you considering our shop as a gift source!

Addi Turbo Rockets.

Posted by Julia on November 25, 2013

As I’ve written here before, knitters have all kinds of preferences when it comes to needles. Smooth, slippery, pointy, blunt, round or square… there are lots of choices, and we try to have a little bit of everything, knowing that these preferences differ from knitter to knitter and from project to project, depending upon what kinds of techniques or fibers are in use. Addi has recently produced a new kind of needle that meets a need none of our other needles have yet met. Meet Addi Turbo Rockets.

We’ve always stocked Addi needles, first their slick Turbos, made of nickel-plated brass, and then their Turbo Lace needles, with a sharper point for precision in the trickiest knitting maneuvers. The Addi Turbo Lace needles are also made of brass, but have a resin coating that makes them a little less slippery, which is nice for keeping stitches steady on the needle, especially when using slick fibers like silk. For a long time, that has been the choice when selecting Addi needles: slick and blunt, or sticky and pointy. Addi Rockets, which are nickel-plated like Turbos and pointy like Lace, bridge the gap between the two. For a certain kind of knitter, Addi Rockets are the dreamiest of needles. In her recent post on Knitter’s Review, Clara Parkes wrote, “Addi Turbo Rockets are the best needle Addi has made to date.”

We got a small selection of sizes and lengths to start with: for magic loop sock knitters, the Sock Rockets, which are 32″ from point to point, in sizes US 0 to 2; for anyone anxious to try a slick and pointy new needle, the Turbo Rockets, which are 24″ from point to point, in sizes US 3 to 8. Give them a try, and let us know what you think!

Kauni Color Wave Shawl.

Posted by Julia on November 23, 2013

A few weeks ago, I wrapped up the knitting of a new shop sample: the “Kauni Color Wave Shawl.”

The shawl is knit using one skein each in two colors of Kauni Effektgarn, a self-striping sport weight wool with long stretches of color. One skein made stripes in shades of black, brown, and gold, while the other shifted from greens to purples.

Not only do the yarns make stripes, but the shawl itself is striped. I worked two rows from the first colorway and two rows from the second colorway, back and forth throughout the piece.

The knitting was simple–mostly garter stitch, with steady increases and a small lace border–but the shawl is colorful and interesting to look at, cozy to wear. Knit from the top down, it’s easy to lengthen or shorten. In fact, this particular “Kauni Color Wave Shawl” is somewhat longer than the pattern suggested, and I didn’t even use up all the yarn.

Look for the pattern in our Kauni Patterns binder, where you’ll find many other intriguing uses for this singular yarn. See you at the shop!

Knits of a Feather.

Posted by Julia on November 21, 2013

Another new book has found its way to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop: Knits of a Feather, by Celeste Young.

As its title suggests, Knits of a Feather is a collection of bird-themed accessories and garments.

A variety of knitting techniques are represented, including beading, cables, lace, duplicate stitch, and colorwork. Young pairs information about these techniques with the patterns that use them, and includes photos of what the work looks like in progress–tremendously helpful when learning a new skill. I was also pleased to see that the charts in this book are large enough to read easily, without making a trip to a copy shop to enlarge them.

You’ll find Knits of a Feather on the teacart, with the newest books and magazines. See you at the shop!

Show and tell: shawls and wraps, Swans Island, capes, and caps.

Posted by Julia on November 19, 2013

We love it when knitters and crocheters come to the shop with finished garments to share. It happens even more frequently than I can pull out my camera to document these projects; still and all, I have a beautiful bunch of show-and-tell photos to share here today. I hope you find them as inspiring as we do!

Margie knit this incredible lace cape in about three weeks, a testament to her perseverance and to the pleasures of lace-knitting.

There are times in life that call for simple, soothing projects, and times when we’d rather work on challenging projects that keep us thinking as we stitch–this belongs to the second category. The pattern is “Lady’s Circular Cape in Shell Pattern,” from the fantastic Victorian Lace Today, and the yarn is Isager Tvinni.

Katherine is a teacher here at the shop, offering a variety of project-based classes for knitters and crocheters alike. Above is her Guernsey Wrap, knit in Berroco Ultra Alpaca. I love this pairing of yarn and pattern; the 50/50 blend of wool and alpaca is structured enough to show the texture patterns and soft enough to drape gently in this generous rectangular shawl.

Many of Katherine’s students are knitting their own Guernsey Wraps in Ultra Alpaca, too, though I know that one is working with Fibre Company Canopy Worsted–I can’t wait to see all these Guernsey-Wraps-to-be!

Katherine also brought in her Belle Epoque shawl, a crochet design by Kira Dulaney. Katherine’s shawl is crocheted in Baa Ram Ewe Titus Shades, a special yarn for a special project.

Last week, Chris came in wearing this cuddly cowl she knit in Swans Island Organic Merino Worsted. The pattern is “Anna Cowl,” a loop scarf long enough to wrap twice around one’s neck, and decorated with lace and garter stitch. From the provisional cast-on to a careful blocking, Chris did a great job, and finished her cowl just in time for cold weather. Look for the “Anna Cowl” and other patterns for Swans Island yarns in the Swans Island pattern binder.

Rosi has been working with the Swans Island Organic Merino Worsted, too. She used it to design and knit this stunning aran sweater with the guidance of Janet Szabo’s “Follow-the-Leader Aran Knit-along Workshop.” Swans Island is a great yarn for cable patterns; this sweater really shows the yarn’s sharp stitch definition, as well as the knitter’s precision and attention to detail.

Just as I anticipated, Anne’s third grandchild hat was on and off the needles in no time. A variation on “Wurm,” a free Ravelry download, this whimsical little hat is knit with String Theory Merino DK, with embellishments in Sublime Cashmere Merino Silk DK.

Thanks to everyone who starts, works on, and shares their projects at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We love to see what’s coming off your needles and hooks.

Malabrigo Book 5.

Posted by Julia on November 17, 2013

We keep many Malabrigo yarns in stock at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, offering a range of weights from Lace to Mecha. They’re well-loved yarns, known for their soft hand, beautiful hand-dyed colorways, and good value. We’re always delighted to see new patterns that make good use of them, like this collection, Malabrigo Book 5: In Soho.

Inside, you’ll find all manner of interesting accessory projects for Malabrigo yarns–shawls in Finito, scarves and wraps in Rios, cowls in Arroyo, and more.

There are also a couple of great patterns for Mecha, which is Malabrigo’s newest yarn, a single ply superwash merino in a bulky weight.

Look for Malabrigo Book 5 on the teacart with the latest books and magazines!

Interweave Knits.

Posted by Julia on November 14, 2013

The Winter 2014 issue of Interweave Knits is here, full of cozy garments and accessories for cold weather wear.

I’ve been on the lookout for textured pullovers lately, and there’s no shortage in this issue. From simple knit/purl texture patterns to loopy, intertwining cables, these promise to be as pleasing to knit as they are to wear.

For some knitters, cold weather means starting big projects, wooly sweaters and warm blankets; for others, it means that friends and family are suddenly asking for hats and scarves, and perhaps one’s own ears are chilly, as well. Small projects like those work up quickly, and it’s quite satisfying to bind off and immediately don whatever has just left your needles. Here are two hats that are knit with just one skein of incredibly tempting yarn, the first in Swans Island Organic Merino Worsted and the second in Fibre Company Canopy Worsted.

Come by the shop to pick up a copy of Interweave Knits and plan your next project, whether large or small!

Araucania Atacama: now on sale!

Posted by Julia on November 12, 2013

************As of October 31, 2015, we are now sold out of Araucania Atacama!************

Araucania Atacama is a 100% alpaca yarn from Chile, hand-dyed in variegated colorways. Soft and fuzzy, but no longer manufactured, we’re offering it now at a deep discount of about 45% off its original price.

Atacama’s label suggests an aran weight gauge of about 4.5 stitches per inch, but many knitters and crocheters have commented on Ravelry that it’s happier at a tighter gauge, on smaller needles or hooks. Like most yarns, Atacama can be used at a range of gauges–think about how dense or loose you’d like the resulting fabric to be, do some swatching, and choose a needle or hook size that makes a fabric that suits you and your project.

Come by the shop to snag some Araucania Atacama at this great price while it’s still in stock!

A reminder: all sales are final on discounted yarn. There can be no returns or exchanges, nor special orders–the discount applies only to what we currently have in stock. Thanks!