Back in stock: Malabrigo Rios.

Posted by Julia on April 14, 2013

We’ve been lucky this week: not one, but two boxes came to us from Malabrigo! On Friday I shared the contents of the first box, and today, I’ll share the second, which contained bag after bag of Rios.

Rios is Malabrigo’s worsted weight, superwash merino wool. It seems to be always in demand, whether for hats, sweaters, shawls, or blankets. It’s soft, beautifully hand-dyed, easy to care for, and well-priced for its 210 yard skeins. All of those qualities make it somewhat irresistible; come by to see it in person and see if you’re not tempted.

We’re especially happy to have the Azul Profundo colorway back in stock–the one I used to make Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Chambered Nautilus Tam, a sample that hangs out in the Rios cubby.

This cleverly-constructed hat is always attracting attention, for the gorgeous semisolid color as much as for the design.

Look for Malabrigo Rios in the worsted weight section next time you’re in the shop, and remember it when you’re seeking soft, washable wool. See you at the shop!

Back in stock: Malabrigo Finito and Arroyo.

Posted by Julia on April 12, 2013

Last week, we were delighted to receive a 45 pound box from Malabrigo, stuffed with their Finito and Arroyo yarns.

Malabrigo Finito is a fingering weight yarn composed of the finest merino wool fiber, produced just once a year in limited quantities. Anne has frequently called it “the poor man’s cashmere” because of its incredible softness, but to my fingertips, it feels even softer than some cashmere yarns. We ordered two bags of whatever colorways were in stock, which filled out our Finito selection nicely. I’ve seen it made up into cowls and heard whispers about sweaters; next time you’re in the shop, be sure to ask Anne to pull out the beginning of her cowl-neck sweater in Finito so you can feel the lovely fabric it creates.

The pattern is from Hannah Fettig’s lovely Knitbot Essentials, a great source for simple, wearable sweater and accessory patterns.

Meanwhile, the Arroyo part of this shipment is even more tempting, with new colorways and greater quantity than we’ve seen in a long time. I managed to squeeze 30 bags of the stuff into our inventory room with the mantra, “There’s always room for more yarn.”

Arroyo is a sport weight superwash merino wool, soft and sturdy. I made a pair of socks with it, as well as the Drop Stitch Scarf that hangs in the shop. Arroyo’s easy machine-washability makes it ideal for baby or children’s things, hats, mitts, or larger garments. A knitter came by during the Spring Triangle Yarn Crawl wearing a poncho made in Arroyo that we all admired; she reported that in spite of its delicate softness, it wears tremendously well, holds its shape and shows no signs of pilling.

Come by the shop to see our newly abundant collection of Malabrigo yarns, and stay tuned for the next blog post, featuring even more Malabrigo!

Back in stock: Yarn Hollow Photograph.

Posted by Julia on April 10, 2013

In mid-February, we announced the arrival of a new yarn, Yarn Hollow Photograph. We’d paired up the colors and packed them up into kits to make Range Wraps. By the end of the month, our Yarn Hollow stock had dwindled to a handful of lonesome, beautiful skeins. We reordered Photograph as soon as we realized what a hit the yarn was, but because it’s carefully hand-dyed by a team of three at Yarn Hollow in Michigan, it wasn’t ready for us until this past week. Anne and I were so excited to open the box from Yarn Hollow, and its contents did not disappoint.

Photograph is a worsted weight yarn made of 100% wool from Bluefaced Leicester sheep, a breed that’s British in origin. Bluefaced Leicester wool is known for its long fibers, which make for sturdy, lustrous yarn with a bit of a fuzzy halo. Photograph shows off its beautiful drape on the Range Wrap, which begs to be tried on, not only so the fabric can be touched and admired, but so the wearer can experiment with different ways to wear this highly flexible garment.

This time around, we skipped the kits, and we’re offering the yarn and pattern separately so that Range Wraps and other garments can be created in any color combination that suits you.

As you’re looking for other patterns for Photograph, take a peek in the Swans Island pattern binder and look for patterns calling for Swans Island Organic Merino Worsted. There are so many wonderful ways to use Yarn Hollow Photograph, from smaller accessories like hats and mitts to cowls, shawls, and sweaters. Come by the shop to see all the new colors, and to contemplate all that your needles or hooks could do with a skein of Photograph.

No. 11, No. 12, No. 13 … Trunk Show.

Posted by Julia on April 8, 2013

The last of our expected Isager Trunk Shows has arrived!

Come by the shop to see garments from No. 11, No. 12, No. 13 … , a collection of knit and crochet patterns from Danish designers using Isager yarns. As ever, the garments are more vivid in person than in photographs, and it makes such a difference to touch the fabric that these yarns create, to see the colors with your own eyes, and to try on a sweater for size before you decide to make it.

Do come by soon, before these garments have to move on to their next destination, and see more of what’s possible with Isager yarns. See you at the shop!

Knitting Traditions.

Posted by Julia on April 6, 2013

The latest issue of Knitting Traditions is here, beckoning from the teacart.

Many of us already anticipate the twice-yearly publication of Knitting Traditions, eager to get our hands on this history-filled magazine. For those of you who haven’t picked up a copy before: Knitting Traditions looks at the craft from a historical perspective, focusing on techniques and styles from all over the world and across time. There are patterns informed by these traditions as well, but for me what sets this magazine apart from the others is all the good reading material.

There is one pattern that jumped out at Anne and I, an aran vest designed by Anna Zilboorg, featuring her “perfect buttonhole.”

Come by the shop to get this latest issue of Knitting Traditions, and peruse the Spring knitting and crochet magazines. See you there!

Show and tell: sweaters, scarves, and cowls.

Posted by Julia on April 4, 2013

So many amazing finished pieces have been finding their way to the shop lately that a backlog of show-and-tell photos has accumulated on my camera. Without further ado: here are some of the things that we and the knitters around us have been busily creating!

Anne recently completed Lemon, a short-sleeved sweater designed by Helga Isager. Lemon is unusually and cleverly constructed, beginning with center panels on the front and back, from which stitches are picked up to work the sides and short sleeves. It’s decorated with lateral braids and welts, little details that make for a unique design.

The pattern calls for Isager Spinni, a single-ply lace weight wool, but Anne substituted Isager Tvinni, a 2-ply wool in a light fingering weight. The finished garment is remarkably lightweight because of the tiny gauge, a perfectly fitting sweater and quite an achievement.

I finished a sweater recently, too: here’s Gemini, a free pattern from Knitty, made in Katia Linen. I’m so pleased with how this linen/cotton blend blocked, softening the fibers and smoothing out inconsistencies in the tension.

I’m also happy to report that it fits nicely; not tight at all, though I took a leap of faith and knit it with the suggested 4″ of negative ease. It’s hanging now at the shop for anyone who’d like to try it on for size. This was a quick knit, and it’s not too late to join our informal Gemini Knit-Along!

Here, Francesca models a jacket she made out of Debbie Bliss Donegal Chunky Tweed. She’d already made one from this free pattern using a thicker, textured yarn and was disappointed by how dense the fabric was. This time around, she’s delighted by the beautiful drape of the Donegal Chunky Tweed. Finding the right yarn for a project makes all the difference!

Margie brought in this lovely lace scarf to show us; a gift for a friend. She made it using the soft and tweedy Fibre Company Acadia, and a free pattern, Christmas Lace. After the knitting was complete, she carefully sewed a few beads in to add a bit of sparkle.

Debbie came in a few weeks ago wearing this gorgeous White Caps Cowl, made in Alchemy Silken Straw and Habu Cotton Nerimaki Slub. The pattern photos show this cowl in a subtle white-on-white colorway, but I love the way it works up when the stripes are a little more visible, as Debbie has done by choosing similar, but not identical colors in each yarn.

Thanks to everyone for the amazing show and tell! I’m so inspired by all that you create.

Lana Grossa Linea Pura Taglia: now on sale!

Posted by Julia on April 2, 2013

UPDATE: As of 11/19/2014, we are totally sold out of Lana Grossa Linea Pura Taglia!

*************************************************************

We’ve just discounted Lana Grossa Linea Pura Taglia, a yarn with many names.

Taglia is a bulky weight yarn made of 100% organic Mako cotton, but its unusual construction keeps it remarkably lightweight. Many yarns are composed of strands of fiber twisted together, but Taglia is essentially a knitted tube, which gives the usually-inelastic cotton fiber extra stretchiness. Taglia suggests a US size 10 needle to obtain a gauge of 3.5 stitches per inch, and yet the fabric it creates is much lighter in weight than more traditionally-constructed bulky weight yarns.

A quick visit to Ravelry reveals that many have used Taglia for sweaters, which makes sense, given that it knits up quickly but creates a light fabric–a rare combination. Taglia is also well-suited to accessories and baby things, since it happens to be machine-washable. Come by the shop to get Taglia at 25% off!

(A reminder: all discounted yarns are final sale, so we can’t offer exchanges or refunds. Thanks!)

Sweaters, knit and crocheted: the latest books.

Posted by Julia on March 31, 2013

Three new books have arrived from Interweave Press in the past couple of weeks, filling up the teacart with project ideas for knitters and crocheters interested in creating sweaters. These are sweaters broadly defined–some for cold weather and some for warm, some basic and some highly patterned, some close-fitting and some roomy.

Blueprint Crochet Sweaters, by designer Robyn Chachula, teaches the basics of sweater construction and offers advice to help you crochet a well-fitting garment.

Chachula covers sweaters constructed from the top down, from side to side, from smaller motifs, and more. Crocheters interested in taking the leap from accessories to larger garments should take a look at Blueprint Crochet Sweaters.

Vicki Square’s Light and Layered Knits focuses on creating lightweight garments using a range of different fibers.

In addition to a variety of patterns, Square also teaches a bit about those fibers along the way, offering up interesting information as well as wisdom about how different fibers behave in knitted fabric.

Another new book from Interweave is the revised edition of The Crocheter’s Companion, an excellent resource filled with all manner of crochet stitches and techniques. Not only can The Crocheter’s Companion remind you how to read a crochet pattern, it also covers basic finishing techniques and a variety of stitch patterns.

Find them all on the teacart at the shop, along with the latest knit and crochet magazines!

knit.wear.

Posted by Julia on March 29, 2013

The Spring 2013 issue of knit.wear magazine has made itself at home on the teacart at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop.

This issue is filled with what we’ve come to expect from knit.wear: knitable, wearable, modern-looking garments, and attention to detail in knitwear design.

This loose-fitting, textured dolman sweater is made in one of our favorite yarns, Fibre Company Acadia.

Composed of merino wool, alpaca, and silk, Acadia is sure to make a soft, gently draping pullover.

This Gradient Pullover adds interest to a plain stockinette sweater with big blocks of color; simple, but effective.

It’s made with three colors of Cascade 220 Superwash Sport, a soft, easy-care merino wool that comes in a big, inviting color spectrum.

Come by the shop to get your own copy of knit.wear, and contemplate warm-weather knitting. See you there!

Hello, String Theory Merino DK.

Posted by Julia on March 27, 2013

The recent publication of my Welting Fantastic Cowl + Mitts led to an increased interest in String Theory Merino DK, specifically, in the Garnet colorway. When it vanished from the yarn tree in the DK weight corner, Anne and I did a quick inventory and talked ourselves into a Merino DK order. “We’ll have to get more Garnet,” we told one another, “and wouldn’t it be nice to have Merino DK in Charcoal? And Pewter?” It doesn’t take much for us to call String Theory; we love everything about their yarn, from ordering to unpacking to photographing to knitting to wearing it.

The box arrived yesterday, and it was a pleasure to unpack. This squishy, soft, superwash merino wool is perfect for so many projects–hats, mitts, scarves, shawls and other accessories, and sweaters for adults and children alike. I enjoyed every stitch of my Welting Fantastic Cowl and Mitts, and I’m sure I’ll use the Merino DK again when my next project wants between 5 + 6 stitches per inch from a yarn that holds its shape and has great stitch definition.

We couldn’t resist ordering just a few more colors of String Theory Caper Sock. Here are a few lighter colors, to brighten up the String Theory sock yarn cubby. From left to right: Pewter, Atlantis, Light Teal, and Mead. If you haven’t yet tried this soft-and-sturdy blend of superwash merino, cashmere, and nylon, consider Caper Sock for your next fingering weight project.

Come by the shop to see all the String Theory yarns. See you there!