Author Archives: Julia

Dream in Color Pop-Up Club: November 2022.

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Dream in Color’s Pop Up Club is back! Every month, we’re getting a special new colorway from Dream in Color, a Tucson-based producer of small batch hand-dyed yarns. November’s new limited edition colorway is here while supplies last!

Dream in Color Smooshy Cashmere:

  • fingering weight
  • 70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon
  • 400 yards/100g
  • $34 each

November’s special colorway is a pale lavender grey, with speckles of plum and burgundy.

It pairs beautifully with the David Hess colorway in Neighborhood Fiber Co. Loft – this trio of skeins is perfect for Andrea Mowry’s “Birds of a Feather” shawl!

“Birds of a Feather,” by Andrea Mowry, photo © Andrea Mowry

Here are a few more such combinations using other Pop-Up Club colorways, a flock of shawls-to-be.

Look for Dream in Color Smooshy Cashmere in the fingering weight section here at our shop! We are open between 11am – 5:30pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays; you can still order online for local pickup or shipping, as well.

Amirisu, Issue 25.

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A new issue of Amirisu is here!

Amirisu is a knitting magazine based in Japan, each issue filled with articles, interviews, and patterns from designers all over the world.

Bristol Ivy, Paula Pereira, Alice Caetano, and others have contributed to this issue, designing garments and accessories with a special emphasis on silhouette – sculpture is the theme.

I spotted a couple Brooklyn Tweed yarns in this issue – a colorwork hat in fingering weight Loft and a pullover in DK weight Arbor.

Amirisu often includes tutorials and essays on crafts other than knitting, and this issue has a braided rug – a craft I’ve taken up myself, so I was pleased to see it here.

Amirisu is $24 – swing by to pick up a copy or order online for local pickup or shipping!

Hello, & Make Aran!

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The Fibre Company has just launched a new line of yarn, & Make! These are yarns for stitchers at every stage of their crafting journey, made of natural, sustainable fibers from renewable sources. We’re starting with & Make Aran, a soft and squishy blend of Highland wool and alpaca.

The Fibre Co. & Make Aran:

  • aran weight
  • 2-ply
  • solid and heathered colors
  • 50% Highland wool, 50% alpaca
  • 164 yards/100g
  • $17.50 each

What to knit with & Make Aran? Here are some ideas!

Garments:

Accessories:

Come by the shop to see & Make Aran for yourself! We’re here from 11-5:30, Tuesdays-Saturdays; masks required.

Koigu Collector’s Club: Maie Landra’s Original Paintings.

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The Koigu Collector’s Club continues! Each month, we’ll receive 21 skeins of KPPPM in a limited edition color dyed especially for a select group of local yarn stores that carry Koigu. KPPPM is a fingering weight superwash merino, hand-dyed in vibrant colors by mother/daughter team Maie and Taiu Landra on their farm outside of Toronto, Canada.

Koigu KPPPM:

  • fingering weight
  • hand dyed, variegated
  • 100% superwash merino wool
  • 175 yards/50 g
  • $15.50 each

This month’s limited edition shade is Maie Landra’s Original Paintings, a variegated mix of deep blues and purples, streaked with shades of gold, berry, and sky blue.

Above is one of Koigu founder Maie Landra’s paintings – head to the Koigu blog to see more, and learn about Landra herself!

We have quite a collection of Koigu KPPPM right now, so much that the yarn has outgrown its cubby – here it is freshly reorganized, a tantalizing color palette. It got me thinking about Churchmouse’s “Koigu Linen Stitch Scarf” pattern, which blends disparate variegated shades into a harmonious fabric that almost looks woven. Here are a few color combinations using Maie Landra’s Original Paintings along with other Koigu Collector’s Club colorways!

Look for Koigu KPPPM in the fingering weight section here at our shop, along with many others! We’re here from 11am – 5:30pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays; masks required for entry.

Making No. 14: Inside.

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The newest issue of Making is here!

Sadly, this is the final print issue of Making, as the magazine is evolving into a monthly digital zine, Bright Collective. On the bright side, this 14th issue is something to savor, a warm collection of craft, knitting, and crochet projects with the seasonally appropriate theme “Inside.”

Contributors include Kristine Vejar, Paula Pereira, Leila Raven, Susan B. Anderson, Aimee Sher, and others.

Beautifully photographed and lovingly produced, Making is a treat of a publication – we’ll miss paging through new issues. We still have copies of No. 9: Simple, No. 11: Dawn, and No. 12: Dusk, and No. 13: Outside, in case you missed them – $30 each. Look for Making and other new publications here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, or head to our online order form to purchase a copy for local pickup or shipping!

Hello, Neighborhood Fiber Co. Loft!

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We’d like to introduce an exciting new arrival from Baltimore’s Neighborhood Fiber Co – meet Loft!

Neighborhood Fiber Co. Loft:

  • lace weight
  • hand dyed in semisolid and variegated colorways
  • 70% kid mohair, 30% silk
  • 459 yards/1.75 oz
  • $28 each

Not to be confused with Brooklyn Tweed Loft, NFC Loft is a fuzzy and luminous blend of mohair and silk, hand dyed in Neighborhood’s unique colorways.

NFC Loft is soft and shiny, lightweight with a fluffy texture, and often used in tandem with heavier yarns. We’ve seen so many patterns calling for a lace weight mohair like this one, sometimes paired with a fingering weight yarn, sometimes a DK – think Tin Can Knits’ “Love Note,” or PetiteKnit’s “Oslo Hat – Mohair Edition,” “Novice Slipover,” and “September Sweater Junior.” We’ll share some yarn and color pairings here on the blog soon – stay tuned!

Look for Neighborhood Fiber Co. Loft along with Studio Sock, Capital Luxury Sport, and Ombre Mini Bundles here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We’re open 11-5:30, Tuesdays-Saturdays; masks required for entry. See you there!

Sark, by Kate Davies.

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Kate Davies’ newest book is here! Let’s look inside Sark ($28).

Davies’ newest collection is focused on twisted stitches, shown in delicate natural shades of wool that show off the embossed appearance of the texture patterns.

Davies took inspiration from designer Norah Gaughan and her recent Twisted Stitch Sourcebook. Sark includes an interview between Davies and Gaughan, and it’s a pleasure to listen in on their conversation.

All of the projects in this book are knit with Kate Davies’ own line of yarn, Ooskit, a DK weight wool. We don’t have it here at the shop, though we wish we could, but we have a great many excellent substitutes – Isager Jensen, Kelbourne Woolens Scout, Brooklyn Tweed Arbor, Fibre Co. Acadia, and more. We’re happy to help you come up with yarn and color substitutions!

Come by the shop to browse this and other Kate Davies books – she’s a favorite of ours, so we do try to keep her books in good stock! Currently we have Inkling, Bluestockings, Yokes, West Highland Way, Milarrochy Heids, Warm Hands, Inspired by Islay, Ten Years in the Making, Shore, Colours of Shetland, The Book of Haps, and Davies’ memoir, Handywoman. 

Ready Set Socks.

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Ready Set Socks is here!

This new book from Pom Pom Press is all about sock knitting, complete with patterns, tutorials, and inspiring modifications.

Ready Set Socks is a follow-up to Pom Pom’s excellent beginner book, Knit How, and invites improving knitters to take another step forward in their knitting skills. The book is a collaboration with designer Rachel Coopey, who is known for her extensive portfolio of sock patterns as well as her CoopKnits sock yarns.

The patterns are written for both fingering and DK weights, and are beautiful in their simplicity. This makes them a blank slate for modifications – the section on “Variations, Tutorials + Adjustments” will see you through different heels, cuffs, decreases, yarn and color choices, and more.

Ready Set Socks is $29.50 – look for it here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, or order online for local pickup or shipping! Masks are required for in-store shopping.

Dream in Color Pop-Up Club: October 2022.

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Dream in Color’s Pop Up Club is back! Every month, we’re getting a special new colorway from Dream in Color, a Tucson-based producer of small batch hand-dyed yarns. October’s new limited edition colorway is here while supplies last!

Dream in Color Smooshy Cashmere:

  • fingering weight
  • 70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon
  • 400 yards/100g
  • $34 each

October’s special colorway is a semisolid teal that plays well with other solid or variegated skeins – it particularly favors a recent Koigu Collector’s Club colorway, The Pond.

These three shades would make a striking “Temperance Shawl,” or a “Free Your Fade,” by Andrea Mowry!

Look for Dream in Color Smooshy Cashmere in the fingering weight section here at our shop! We are open between 11am – 5:30pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays; you can still order online for local pickup or shipping, as well.

16 years of HYS!

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October 2022 marks the 16 year anniversary of the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, a milestone we’re proud to have reached! Anne’s goal has remained the same since she first opened the shop in 2006: to bring the best natural fiber yarns, tools, and publications to stitchers in the Triangle. By that measure, in my opinion, Anne has succeeded tremendously, and I am so proud to be on her team, spending my days in this special shop.

We like to celebrate with a sale – this Friday and Saturday, October 21 and 22, everything in stock will be 16% off, with the exception of the already discounted yarns in our Sale Trunk. This is the time to treat yourself to some exciting new yarns, splurge on an inspiring book, and save on that special project you’ve been wanting to start this fall. We’re happy to apply the sweet 16% discount to prepaid special orders made during the Anniversary Sale, provided that the yarn in question is available – some of the yarn companies we deal with are still experiencing long backorders and sourcing delays.

We are still requiring masks in the shop, and no longer accept cash or checks – debit and credit cards only, please. You can read all our in-store shopping policies here. Thanks for your cooperation!

 

A reminder: all sales are final on discounted items; there will be no exchanges or returns. Thanks!