Author Archives: Julia

Noro Kureyon Sock.

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I know I already mentioned Noro Kureyon Sock when I introduced Week 3 of the Going-to-Market sale. But this morning, as I pulled every skein of Kureyon Sock out from back-room storage to display our whole supply in one big basket, I thought a bullet-point on a list might not have been enough. After all, this yarn has its devotees. 

I’ve seen many pairs of incredible socks made up in Kureyon Sock. Like most Noro yarns, Kureyon Sock is self-striping, making a simple vanilla sock exciting, and shining in entrelac and colorwork patterns. Kureyon Sock is also ideal for fine-gauge scarves, shawls, cowls, hats, and mitts. I haven’t worked with it myself, but again and again, I hear that it softens and blooms after washing.

Come by the shop this week to snag a skein or two of Kureyon Sock at 25% off. At less than fifteen dollars a skein, it’s a good time to stock up on a yarn you love or sample a yarn you’ve never tried. See you at the shop!

 

Just a reminder–all sales are final on sale items; there can be no exchanges, no returns, nor will we special order. Thanks!

Berroco Touche.

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Here’s another Berroco yarn that we have on sale this week: Touche.

Touche is a machine-washable, worsted weight blend of cotton and rayon. It’s soft and squishy, with a bit more elasticity than one usually expects from plant fibers, making it quite pleasant to knit with. It’s softness and easy care make it perfect for baby things, like this simple baby hat. I made it with one skein of Touche this week, and it took only a few hours. The pattern is the Super Simple Hat Calculator, a free pattern that gives instructions for a variety of sizes and gauges. This means that whatever yarn you choose can successfully become a hat with the help of the Super Simple Hat Calculator. This means that we turn to the Super Simple Hat Calculator again and again and again.

Touche and many other Berroco yarns are 25% off until Sunday the 10th, which, as I write this, is tomorrow, so come by soon to shop Week 2 of our Going-to-Market sale! Many of these Berroco yarns were quite affordable to begin with, making them irresistibly inexpensive at 25% off. Between the free pattern and the sale yarn, you could be knitting this baby hat for less than four dollars. Irresistible, no? See you at the shop!

 

Just a reminder–all sales are final on sale items; there can be no exchanges, no returns, nor will we special order. Thanks!

Berroco Pure Pima.

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Allow me to introduce you to one of the Berroco yarns we have on sale this week: Pure Pima.

Pure Pima is a dk weight cotton which comes in bright, solid colors, with 115 yards on each 50 gram ball. I’ve written here before about a lovely Norah Gaughan sweater we have at the shop made in Pure Pima, which beautifully illustrates its use in garments. Poking around on Ravelry, I found a cute free pattern from Knitty which calls for Pure Pima–a retro-styled sleeveless top called “Petrie.” What else is a dk weight cotton good for? Baby sweaters, blankets and hats, of course, as well as lightweight shawls and scarves, market bags… and dishcloths.

Yes, I took home a few fistfulls of Pure Pima over the weekend and started knitting a kitchen towel, using the classic Ballband Dishcloth pattern with a few extra pattern repeats. It’s a classic for a reason, as it turns out: free, easy to memorize, and pleasant to look at. I never thought I’d knit something that I planned to wipe my hands, dishes, and counters with, but there you have it: I’m knitting a kitchen towel and loving it.

Come by the shop to pick up some Pure Pima for your own burgeoning collection of handknit kitchenwares, or for any other project wanting dk weight cotton. Be sure to check out the other discounted Berroco yarns this week, too!

 

Just a reminder–all sales are final on sale items; there can be no exchanges, no returns, nor will we special order. Thanks!

KnitScene Accessories.

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A special issue of KnitScene has arrived at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop.

KnitScene Accessories is filled to the brim with patterns for cowls, mitts, hats, socks, and shawls.

Several techniques are featured as well, and explained in a friendly way. If you’ve never done colorwork before, or worked a pattern with intentionally dropped stitches, there’s enough information in these tutorials to get you through a project with these techniques.

In fact, a small project like a hat or a pair of fingerless mitts is the perfect place to learn a new technique. Short and sweet, then onto the next thing. Little projects with little challenges like these keep me motivated between (and sometimes during) bigger, more involved projects.

Come by the shop to take a closer look!

Going-to-Market Sale! Week 2.

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Our three-week Going-to-Market sale continues! This week, we’re featuring select Berroco yarns at a 25% discount. 

Tuesday June 5th – Sunday June 10th: Select Berroco yarns are 25% off!

  • Boho
  • Cotton Twist
  • Inca Gold
  • Jasper
  • Latitude
  • Linen Jeans
  • NaturLin
  • Pure Merino
  • Pure Pima
  • Touche

Come by the shop between Tuesday June 5th and Sunday June 10th to get these Berroco yarns at a 25% discount. We’ll have select Berroco pattern books at a discount, too. Most of these yarns are plant fibers, rather than animal fibers, so lovers of cotton, linen, and rayon will find some great deals for warm-weather knitting and crocheting. I’ve spent the last week knitting a few simple projects with these yarns, to give a sense of how they work up and what they’re good for. More on that soon. See you at the shop!

 

Just a reminder–all sales are final on sale items; there can be no exchanges, no returns, nor will we special order. Thanks!

Noro Knitting Magazine.

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The premiere issue of Noro Knitting Magazine has arrived at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop.

Inside, you’ll find many, many projects that make good use of Noro yarns, which self-stripe in vibrant and often surprising color combinations. These patterns take advantage of those qualities to create all kinds of garments, from dresses, sweaters, and skirts to shawls, hats, and other accessories.

Despite the its title, Noro Knitting Magazine offers crochet patterns as well as knitting patterns.

Come by the shop to take a closer look at Noro yarns and Noro Knitting Magazine!

Jane Austen Knits, 2012.

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Interweave has published another edition of Jane Austen Knits magazine, which features a wide variety of knitting projects inspired by the writings of Jane Austen.

This issue is packed with projects, including socks, shawls, sweaters, tea cozies, bonnets, bags, book-covers, and fingerless mitts. And probably even more. Take a look:

Come by the shop to snatch a copy of Jane Austen Knits.

Bluestocking. Again.

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Last week, we got another bunch of String Theory Bluestocking in another bunch of gorgeous colors.

This weekend, I finally cast on for a pair of Bluestocking socks, anxious to get my hands on a kind of wool I’d never tried before: bluefaced leicester. I chose a pattern from Clara Parkes’ Knitter’s Book of Socks, called Hickory, with a barklike ribbing down the leg and instep. The whole leg was done in three evenings, which is how I know I love both the yarn and the pattern.

Come by the shop to take a closer look at the Knitter’s Book of Socks, where there are 200+ pages of serious sock knitting inspiration, and to admire the String Theory Bluestocking. See you at the shop!

Creative Knitting.

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The July 2012 issue of Creative Knitting is here.

This issue is full of cardigans, shawls, vests, and lightweight tops, with a bag, a necklace, and a pillow thrown in for good measure.

Come by the shop to take a closer look at Creative Knitting and a whole stack of other spring and summer magazines.

Be Sweet shawl kits.

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Many a visitor to the shop has been wooed by the Be Sweet shawl kits. The sample shawl and scarf that hang by the kits are feather-light and translucent, but made of a textured mohair yarn in thick, bold stripes–qualities that seem to contradict one another, and thus, entrance. It’s simplicity, too, is appealing, for after all, it’s just garter stitch.

Each kit comes with a pattern and five 25 gram balls of the lace-weight Be Sweet Extra Fine Mohair yarn, enough to make one striped shawl or two striped scarves. They’re neatly tucked into a Hillsborough Yarn Shop notions pouch, making them an ideal gift for a knitter.

This past week, many missing colorways were replenished, filling the basket with tempting options, making it harder to decide which one you’ll take home. Come by the shop to see them all.