Author Archives: Julia

Northern Lights: a Collection with Brooklyn Tweed and Amirisu.

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A new book has arrived to inspire your knitting this year and beyond – let’s look inside Northern Lights ($28), a collaboration between Brooklyn Tweed + Amirisu!

For Northern Lights, designers from around the world developed patterns for Brooklyn Tweed’s breed-specific American wool yarns.

“Solstice,” by Kirsten Joel, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Quarry.

“Dyad,” by Thien Kieu-Lam, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Arbor.

Fiona Alice, Sari Nordlund, Alice Caetano, and others contributed garments and accessories inspired by Finnish designers and architects.

“Gyration,” by Keiko Kikuno, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Shelter.

“Alvar,” by Dario Tubiana – RossoCardinale, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Tones.

“Welle,” by Ayako Kataoka, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Arbor.

We are proud to carry every single Brooklyn Tweed yarn featured in this book, and we keep a generous supply on hand in a wide range of colors. We even have a decent (but dwindling) supply of the sadly discontinued Peerie!

“Outrun,” by Alice Caetano, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Dapple.

Northern Lights also includes an in-depth interview with Brooklyn Tweed co-owner and founder Jared Flood, covering his personal and professional histories with knitting.

“Greenery View,” by Hiromi Otsuru, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Loft.

Look for Brooklyn Tweed yarns and Northern Lights ($28) here at HYS, or order online for local pickup or shipping!

“Seabird,” by Sari Nordlund, knit with Brooklyn Tweed Arbor.

Hello, Kelbourne Woolens Erin.

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Brand new from Kelbourne Woolens: meet Erin!

Kelbourne Woolens Erin:

  • bulky weight
  • heathered
  • 60% fine Irish wool, 40% New Zealand wool
  • 158 yards/100 grams
  • $18 each

Erin is a bulky weight wool made in Donegal, Ireland, from a hearty blend of 60% fine Irish wool and 40% New Zealand wool. This rustic, toothy wool is ideal for making rugged sweaters and accessories.

So far, only one pattern has been published for Kelbourne Woolens Erin, a stunning cabled cardigan designed by KW cofounder Kate Gagnon Osborn, “Winter Sweater.”

“Winter Sweater,” by Kate Gagnon Osborn, knit with Kelbourne Woolens Erin. Photo © Kelbourne Woolens

The folks at Kelbourne Woolens are hard at work on a full pattern collection for Erin, and I’m predicting more classic cables – in the meantime, here are some other great ways to use Erin!

Look for Erin in the bulky weight section here at HYS, along with Kelbourne Woolens Germantown Bulky!

Lumos Knitting Light.

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Lumos Knitting Lights were by far the most popular gift item here at HYS this holiday season – we reordered them again and again! Now that they’re back in stock for the fourth time, I figured it was time for a proper introduction here on the blog.

A friend and avid knitter recommended these to us years ago – she swears by them for comfort and clarity, an endorsement that resonated when a wholesale opportunity came up. When our first shipment of Lumos Knitting Lights arrived at the shop, Anne and I each purchased two – an endorsement of our own!

This gadget sits comfortably around the neck and shines directly onto your work, be it knitting, crochet, hand quilting, or embroidery. The Lumos Knitting Light is flexible and easy to adjust, with three color temperatures and dimmer.

Look for them in our notions section here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop!

A Knitting Life: Out into the World, by Marianne Isager.

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This week, as a new year begins, we welcome a beautiful new book by Marianne Isager, A Knitting Life: Out into the World ($47).

A Knitting Life: Out into the World is the second volume of Marianne Isager’s career retrospective, following the Danish designer as she travelled around the world beginning in the 1990’s.

Trips to Latin America, Africa, Greenland, and Nepal all informed and inspired her designs, presented in this book along with photos and prose.

As ever, Isager loves to mix and match various yarns for unique color and fiber blends.

Paging through the book, I was pleased to see Bouclé and Alpaca 3 in the mix, and Anne fell in love with this “Yakke” jacket, knit with Jensen and Silk Mohair.

A Knitting Life: Out into the World is $47, and available here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, along with a wide selection of Isager yarns – you can also order online for local pickup or shipping. Hope to see you soon!

Show and tell: gifts from Anne’s needles.

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I’m always amazed at how much knitting Anne does, between shop and class samples, gifts for her family, and the occasional sweater for herself. Today I want to share some of the knitting she’s done for her grandchildren throughout the year, “with love in every stitch,” in her words.

For her youngest grandson, Anne knit this “Daydreamer,” by Jennifer Steingass. The whimsical rainbow colors come from Brooklyn Tweed, a mix of Loft and Tones Light.

Her granddaughters picked their own patterns this year, and helped arrange the colors over Zoom.

This is Jessica McDonald’s “Little Abloom,” knit with Kelbourne Woolens Camper for the main color and a few precious skeins of the discontinued Shibui Pebble for the contrast colors.

This is Anna Johanna’s “Helianthus,” knit with another discontinued yarn, Brooklyn Tweed Peerie, with a few other yarns from Anne’s stash to fill out the color palette.

For her eldest twin grandsons, Anne made these cozy bed-sized blankets with Malabrigo Mecha, and got them done before Hanukkah, no less. What a feat!

Amidst all those significant projects, she still managed this bundle of hats! From left to right: a “Winter King Hat” in Brooklyn Tweed Quarry, a Super Simple Circular Hat Calculator in Noro Bonbori and Isager Silk Mohair, and a couple “Oslo Hat – Mohair Edition,” knit with Kelbourne Woolens Perennial, Malabrigo Mohair, Sandnes Garn Sunday, and Isager Silk Mohair. 

Thanks to Anne for sharing all her projects with us, and for keeping the shop filled with exciting and inspiring yarns!

Della Q Maker’s Circular Needlecase.

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Brand new from Della Q!

The Maker’s Circular Needlecase is a zippered canvas bag for storing circular needles. It opens up accordion style, revealing eleven pockets for any size or length of circular needle.

One of those pockets holds a sheet of blank stickers so you can label your needle sections as your collection requires.

Della Q Maker’s Circular Needlecase are $50 each, and available in Orange, Plum, Maroon, and Teal. Look for them here at HYS, along with a wide selection of circular needles from Knitter’s Pride and Addi!

Laine Magazine, No. 19.

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Let’s look inside the new issue of Laine!

Laine Magazine is a publication out of Finland, a knitting and lifestyle magazine with a love of natural fibers as its focus, and a reputation for beautiful designs and artful photography.

This Winter 2024 issue is a beauty, celebrating the meditative nature of crafts with serene photos taken in a ceramics studio.

Along with profiles of fiber artists and seasonal recipes, there are knitting patterns, of course, from talented designers all over the world, the likes of Helga Isager, Maxim Cyr, Veera Välimäki, and others.

  

I spotted a cozy colorwork hat in this issue that uses Isager Alpaca 2 and Silk Mohair held together, a luxurious combination! We just restocked these two yarns and have plenty of colors to choose from – look for them in the fingering weight and lace weight sections, respectively.

Laine magazines are $30 each – come by the shop or order online for local pickup or shipping! We also have Laine No. 8 (marked down to 50%, no less!), along with Laine’s recent books, Little Book of Moon-Inspired Shawls, Echoes, Grand Shetland Adventure Knits, Mouche & Friends, Neons & Neutrals, Making Memories, and The Knitted Fabric. See you at the shop!

“Static Mittens” in Sandnes Garn Double Sunday.

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Knit a pair of “Static Mittens” with Sandnes Garn Double Sunday!

“Static Mittens,” by Rows Knitwear, photo © Rows Knitwear

This eye catching pattern by Rows Knitwear uses both sides of the fabric to create a striped illusion pattern with stranded colorwork. They’re knit flat with DK weight yarn on US 6 needles, then seamed up the side to complete.

Bailey made this cozy pair as a sample for the shop, and chose a lovely combination of pale blush and cornflower blue in Sandnes Garn Double Sunday. We had fun picking other color combinations in this plush merino wool – here are a few to consider!

Look for Sandnes Garn Double Sunday in the DK weight here at HYS, along with many other suitable yarns for “Static Mittens” – think Brooklyn Tweed Arbor, Kelbourne Woolens Scout, and Fibre Co. Acadia. See you at the shop!

Echoes: 24 Modern Knits Inspired by Iconic Women, by Susan Crawford.

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Susan Crawford’s new book is out today!

Echoes: 24 Modern Knits Inspired by Iconic Women ($50) is published by Laine, with lush photos, engaging essays, and intricate knitting patterns dedicated to incredible women, both real and fictional, who have influenced designer Susan Crawford’s life.

Susan Crawford is known for her work modernizing vintage knitting patterns, and her scholarly interest in fashion and history comes through in this book. Each pattern is accompanied by a short essay on the iconic woman who inspired it, the likes of Virginia Woolf, Dodie Smith, Kate Bush, Beatrix Potter, Cyndi Lauper, along with other activists, artists, garden designers and more.

Often, Crawford shows her designs in multiple colorways, something I always appreciate, as it can be tricky to visualize a dark garment in a lighter color, and so on.

Echoes is $50 – look for it here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, along with all the materials and tools you need for your next project!

Hello again, Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky.

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As the weather cools and the winter holidays approach, bulky weight yarns become more and more popular here at HYS. With that in mind, we ordered a fresh supply of the soft and cuddly Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky.

Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky:

  • bulky weight
  • 100% baby alpaca
  • 108 yards/100g
  • $19 each

Alpaca fiber is known for its fuzzy softness, warmth, and drape, attributes that make it an ideal choice for cozy scarves, cowls, and shawls. Hats, mitts, and sweaters benefit from a more elastic fabric than alpaca tends to create, but you can stitch it on a smaller needle size or in a cable or rib pattern to add structure.

Here are some pattern ideas for Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky!

Look for Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky in the bulky weight section here at our shop!