New colors in Acadia.

Posted by Julia on January 23, 2015

Fibre Company recently introduced new colors in Acadia, a luxurious blend of merino wool, silk, and alpaca.

We’ve carried Acadia for a few years now, and always delight in adding a new color or two. It’s amazing how just a few new shades deepen the color palette. Suddenly instead of one gray, we have a warm gray and a cool gray, and where we thought we were rich in purples, a deep eggplant shade emerges, expanding the spectrum.

Anne and I have both been working with Acadia of late. Anne has an “Easy Folded Poncho” on the needles in Acadia’s warm gray, “Driftwood.”

Last year, Fibre Company’s Courtney Kelley lent us an Acadia poncho that we missed after we sent it back; Anne’s poncho-in-progress will replace it on our walls. It’s nothing but stockinette, but the simplicity of the fabric lets Acadia shine, its silk slubs peeping out every now and then.

I took three shades of Acadia home to weave a scarf on my Cricket loom, and I’m thrilled with how it turned out.

Using a 10-dent reed, I warped with Acadia in asymmetric color blocks, creating vertical stripes. I used one shade of blue-green for the better part of the weft, delighting in the way it interacted with the two other colors. There are horizontal stripes of those colors at the beginning and end of the scarf, as well, making a kind of plaid.

Working from Betty Linn Davenport’s Hands on Rigid Heddle Weaving, I paid more careful attention to the tension of the warp, tried hemstitching for the first time, and finished the scarf with twisted fringe.

Check out the HYS Pinterest page for more Acadia pattern ideas. Come by the shop to see these new colors and plan your next project!

Back in stock: Cricket looms.

Posted by Julia on January 15, 2015

Our first round of Schacht Cricket looms sold out quickly over the holidays, so we ordered twice as many for our second batch, which I’m happy to say are now here at the shop. Two of them were purchased the moment they came in. You guessed it: Anne and I each have Crickets of our own now, and are eager to learn more about rigid heddle weaving.

I’m anxious to get weaving on scarves and kitchen towels, and just as anxious to see what others are making with their Cricket looms.

Molly wove this scarf on a Cricket loom with a variegated fingering weight yarn for warp and a solid lace weight yarn for weft. She used a 10-dent reed, which makes a lightweight fabric, and a slightly open weave with yarns of this weight. Variegated yarn behaves so differently in woven fabric than in knit fabric; Anne and I were surprised and delighted by the results.

Come by the shop to learn more about the Schacht Cricket loom, and explore the rest of our new little weaving section.

We have books and dvds on the subject, UKI Supreme cotton weaving yarns, Zoom Looms and kits to go with. See you at the shop!

Schacht Cricket Loom.

Posted by Julia on December 9, 2014

Last week, we announced that the Hillsborough Yarn Shop has become a Schacht dealer, and I promised a closer look at the Schacht products we carry. Over the weekend, I put the Zoom Loom in the spotlight here on the blog. Next up: the Cricket Loom.

The Cricket Loom is a small and simple rigid heddle loom, ideal for first-time weavers. The box you see above includes not only the Cricket Loom, but also a warping peg, threading hook, 2 stick shuttles, table clamps, two balls of yarn, and clear instructions; in short: everything you need to start weaving.

When our shop Cricket Loom arrived earlier this year, I was sent home with it and with the enviable task of learning to use it. I’d never woven before, but the instructions made it easy to assemble, warp, and weave on the Cricket. My first attempts were uneven and humbling, but before long, I was producing smooth woven fabric that I was proud of. In just a couple of evenings, I’d gone through the yarn that comes with the Cricket and turned to my stash.

I used Berroco Pure Pima to weave a small kitchen towel, experimented with a variety of lace weight yarns to weave one scarf (pictured above), and then another in bits of worsted weight, from Yarn Hollow Photograph to Berroco Ultra Alpaca.
Before each new woven project, I studied Jane Patrick’s Weaver’s Idea Book, which is full of inspiration and information in equal measure.

On our shelves, you’ll find 15″ Cricket Looms, floor stands, and reeds. The Cricket comes with an 8-dent reed, which is perfect for weaving with worsted weight yarn. For lace or fingering weight yarns, consider a 12-dent reed; for sport or dk weight yarn, a 10-dent reed; and for bulky weight yarn, a 5-dent reed.

Come by the shop to try weaving on our display Cricket Loom, check out our cubby of weaving books and dvds, and consider going home with a Cricket of your own. I can’t tell you how exciting it has been to start at the beginning, learning new words and techniques, enjoying the novelty of creating a fabric so different than what my knitting needles or crochet hooks make. I highly recommend taking on a new craft! See you at the shop.