Tag Archives: biches & bûches

Show and tell: stripes.

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Time for another round of show and tell! It’s been a busy season for show and tell, so I have a big collection of photos, and among them, some themes have emerged – today’s projects all feature the humblest color technique: stripes.

I love the colors and buttons Marie-France chose for this little “Seaside Set” sweater, knit with a smooth merino wool, Sandnes Garn Sunday. Pattern by PetiteKnit.

Michele added thick stripes to her “Tolsta Tee,” knit with Cascade Nifty Cotton in an eye-catching color combination. Pattern by Rebecca Clow.

Speaking of eye-catching colors, check out Sudi-Laura’s “Terra” tee! Made with Knitting for Olive Cotton Merino held double, this tee exudes joy in chartreuse and cream stripes. Pattern by Melody Hoffmann.

Below is Anne’s garter stitch baby blanket, knit with a cool cotton, Kelbourne Woolens Skipper. Big garter stitch stripes are simple as can be, but they shine in this thoughtfully chosen colorway.

Liz’s “Heimathafen” showcases another kind of stripe, made with a dip stitch colorwork technique. She chose a high contrast color combination in Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool, something to let the design shine. Pattern by Isabell Kraemer.

Thanks to Marie-France, Michele, Sudi-Laura, Anne, and Liz for sharing their striped projects with us! We can’t wait to see what you make next.

Hello, Biches & Bûches Le Gros Lambswool.

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We’re excited to share a new yarn for our shop: meet Biches & Bûches Le Gros Lambswool!

Biches & Bûches Le Gros Lambswool:

  • aran weight
  • woolen spun, 2-ply
  • 100% lambswool, made in the UK
  • 210 yards / 100 grams
  • gauge: 16-18 sts = 4″ (10cm)
  • needle size: US 8-9 (5-5.5mm)
  • hand wash cool, lay flat to dry

Biches & Bûches is a small yarn company based in Burgundy, France, run by Danish designer Astrid Troland. She traces her love of knitting back to her Scandinavian heritage, a passion that has brought her to pattern design as well as wool production.

Le Gros Lambswool is spun and dyed in Scotland, just like its fingering weight counterpart, Le Petit Lambswool. We love Biche & Bûches’ intriguing heathers, made by blending brilliantly dyed hues of unspun wool, like an artist mixing paints. When spun, these solid colors mingle into richly heathered shades, though some flecks stand out more in this aran weight yarn than they do on the smaller scale of Le Petit Lambswool.

Soft and rustic, this aran weight yarn is made for sturdy sweaters and cold weather accessories. Here are some pattern ideas!

“Natures Cardigan,” by Ozetta – photo © Ozetta : Hailey Smedley

“Amalie sweater – Biches & Bûches No. 8” – photo © Biches & Bûches

Look for Biches & Bûches Le Gros Lambswool in the aran weight section here at HYS!

Show and tell: slip stitch shawls.

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Here’s another batch of show and tell, projects that started their lives as yarns here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. All of today’s knits happen to be shawls, whether rectangular or triangular, high contrast or low, warm and wooly or light as a feather. They also have a colorwork technique in common: mosaic or slip stitch knitting, with just one yarn in use per row.

Here are Debbie, Michele, and Dee, friends who often knit the same patterns. When they come into the shop together, we all have fun picking out colors and yarn combinations! I had to stop them for a photo when they came in modeling their “Xyla” shawls, a striking design by Natasja Hornby. From left to right: Debbie knit hers in Brooklyn Tweed Tones Light, Michele used Loft, and Dee used Retrosaria Rosa Pomar Mondim.

For more subtle but no less colorful slip stitching, we turn to Margaretta’s “Floating Squares Wrap,” by Amy Christoffers. She knit it with the best-selling Isager Silk Mohair in a stunning sunset palette.

Hazel was inspired to make this “Isla Shawl” in Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool after seeing Bailey’s sample here at the shop.

She had so much fun making it that she came back for another, and then a few more – I’ve only captured photos of two, but let her prolific “Islas” be an endorsement of Astrid Troland’s charming pattern!

We’ve since put together Isla Shawl Kits in all kinds of colorways, including Hazel’s own!

Cindy knit this “Picnic Shawlette” in Lang Cashmere Premium, letting the stitch pattern pop in solid colors.

Here’s Katherine, a familiar face to many of you – she’s been teaching knitting and crochet classes here at HYS for years! Here, she wears Andrea Mowry’s “Nightshift,” knit with one of her favorite yarns, Malabrigo Rios.

Thanks to the many knitters, crocheters, and weavers who bring in their work to show us what they’ve made! You inspire and amaze us, and we can’t wait to see what you get into next.

2025 in review.

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It was another big year here at HYS – though we were sad to say goodbye to Brooklyn Tweed, we refilled the space they left on our shelves with no less than 12 new kinds of yarn. They’re a diverse group: solids, heathers, and variegated colorways, cool plant fibers and fuzzy animal fibers, and a variety of weights from lace to bulky. This year, I wrote a blog post about each one of them, with my impressions, insights, and pattern ideas for how to use them. Click the links below to review our year in new yarn!

Which of these new yarns have you worked with, and which is next on your wish list? Tell us in the comments, we love hearing about the things you make!

“Isla Shawl” in Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool.

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Bailey’s most recent project for the shop is “Isla Shawl,” a sweet little kerchief knit with Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool.

“Isla Shawl” was designed by Astrid Troland, using a slip stitch colorwork motif she has returned to again and again.

Bailey’s color palette is relatively low contrast, so she knit a few swatches with the colors in different arrangements until she came up with one she liked. We encourage you to do the same, since there’s plenty of yardage on each ball for the whole “Isla Shawl,” along with extra swatches!

I picked out six more color combinations besides, and doodled them for a preview of the scarves I hope they become!

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Inspired to make an “Isla Shawl” of your own? Come by the shop and see all the options in our fingering weight section, from Biches & Bûches and others!

Hello, Biches & Bûches!

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We’re excited to welcome another new brand to HYS – meet Biches & Bûches!

Biches & Bûches is a small yarn company based in Burgundy, France, run by Danish designer Astrid Troland. She traces her love of knitting back to her Scandinavian heritage, a passion that has brought her to pattern design as well as wool production.

“Afterparty,” by Astrid Troland, photo © Astrid Troland

Our first Biches & Bûches yarn is Le Petit Lambswool, a fingering weight wool spun and dyed in Scotland. It’s soft, lofty, and light as a feather due to its woolen-spun construction.

Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool

  • fingering weight
  • woolen spun, 2ply
  • 100% lambswool, made in the UK
  • 270 yards / 50 grams
  • gauge: 22-24 sts and 32 rows = 4″ (10cm)
  • needle size: US 2.5-US 4 (3-3.5mm)
  • hand wash cool, lay flat to dry

Le Petit Lambswool has the widest color palette among their wools, so we had fun selecting these 16 shades to start with. We paid special attention to the most intriguing heathers, made by blending brilliantly dyed hues of unspun wool, like an artist mixing paints. When spun, these solid colors mingle into richly heathered shades that are harmonious across the entire palette – ideal for stripes and colorwork!

What to knit with Le Petit Lambswool? Here are a few accessories that caught my eye…

“Isla Shawl,” by Astrid Troland, photo © Astrid Troland

…and a bunch of sweaters, of course!

Look for Biches & Bûches Le Petit Lambswool in the fingering weight section here at HYS, and in our online store!