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“Nasrin” in Camper, Loft, and Tones Light.

“Nasrin” is a colorwork sweater by Isabell Kraemer, and the subject of Anne’s upcoming class, which starts Saturday, May 18.

“Nasrin,” by Isabell Kraemer, photo copyright Isabell Kraemer

She’s knitting hers with Kelbourne Woolens Camper, a soft fingering weight wool in heathered colors, and an excellent choice for colorwork.

You can choose between the “solid” or “outlined” colorwork motif at the yoke; both charts are included in the pattern. A high contrast color combination shows the pattern best, in my opinion – here are some ideas in Camper!

I also like the idea of flipping the color arrangement so that the main color is dark, and the contrast color at the yoke is light.

Brooklyn Tweed Loft is another yarn that seems designed with colorwork in mind, a woolen-spun fingering weight wool with a bit more structure than Camper.

Loft plays well with Brooklyn Tweed’s other fingering weight yarn, Tones Light – which has a much more vibrant color palette!

Look for all of these and many others in the fingering weight section here at our shop, and read more about Anne’s class if you’re inspired to make a “Nasrin” of your own!

Hello, Malabrigo.

Here is a yarn with a fanbase. Malabrigo Silky Merino and Malabrigo Rios are back in stock! It’s been a long wait, and as we waited, our Malabrigo stash dwindled into a sad little stack of mismatching skeins. “Is the Malabrigo here yet?” became a common inquiry, always met with a sad shake of the … [more]


Flower Child.

Sometimes knitters come into the shop with something in mind. They have a pattern, they need some yarn. They have some yarn, they need a pattern. They have a problem, they need some help. They have an idea, they need some encouragement. Other times, though, knitters and crocheters make their way to the shop with … [more]


Knit One, Knit All.

It’s here. We’ve been eagerly awaiting the arrival of this new Elizabeth Zimmermann collection at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, and today was the day. First there was excitement, then there was quiet. Anne and I each sat down with a copy and slowly paged through, admiring the inventiveness of the patterns. Vests, jackets, hats, gloves, … [more]


Marion Foale.

Something new has just settled in on the teacart. Marion Foale, a British fashion designer, has just released a book of knitting patterns and a line of 3-ply wool yarn to go with it. The patterns are exquisite, finely tailored, and classic-looking. The yarn is soft and fine, a light fingering weight which Foale sometimes … [more]


Mission Falls baby sweaters.

Happy Mother’s Day, folks. Speaking of which: look at what’s hanging in our window. Two tiny baby sweaters, one in Mission Falls 1824 Cotton, and one in 1824 Wool. Perfect baby gifts for brand new mothers. 1824 Cotton. As I mentioned before, the Mission Falls yarns are perfect for baby things. Each one is soft … [more]


Knit and Spin.

A special issue of Interweave just arrived: Interweave Knit and Spin is full of wonderful information for spinners, to be sure, but is also worth a look even for those of us that don’t create yarn. After all, as knitters and crocheters, yarn is our medium, and it behooves us to learn about some of … [more]


Karaoke.

SWTC’s Karaoke has been in our sale trunk for a little while now, but I only recently got around to knitting a swatch with it. My little stockinette swatch was so pleasant, and the color changes so enticingly long, that I decided to make it the center of a log cabin square, knitting until the … [more]


Royal Alpaca.

There’s been a lot of talk about cotton around here lately. Now, for something less seasonally appropriate, but equally if not more appealing: 100% alpaca, from Aslan Trends. We’ve carried this yarn for some time now, but recently received three new colors. The combination of chocolate brown, golden yellow, and bubble-gum pink is purely accidental, … [more]


Cotton Supreme Batik.

Another new cotton yarn has arrived at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, just in time for spring and summer knitting. Cotton Supreme Batik, from Universal Yarns, is a machine-washable, worsted-weight, self-striping, and extremely soft cotton. The striping is unusual: the colors don’t exactly fade into one another, it’s more of an abrupt change, but there are little … [more]


Habu cotton shawl.

Perhaps you remember our Habu cotton, a soft, airy, laceweight boucle yarn that Anne has been using in a striped shawl. Perhaps you remember my promise to post pictures of said shawl soon. I was reminded of this promise when the latest shipment of Habu cotton came in this week, boasting more of all the … [more]