Tag Archives: jonna helin

New colors in Isager Bouclé!

Posted by on

We’re thrilled to welcome seven new shades of Isager Bouclé!

Isager Bouclé:

  • lace weight
  • looped bouclé texture
  • 100% alpaca
  • 190 yards/50 grams
  • $11 each

Bouclé is a fine alpaca yarn with one looped ply, which makes a fluffy, textured fabric. It especially shines when held together with a smooth yarn, enhancing simple stockinette.

Here’s my version of Jonna Helin’s “Lento” pullover, knit with Malabrigo Ultimate Sock and Isager Bouclé. It’s even softer and fluffier than it looks in these photos – be sure to give it a squeeze next time you’re here at the shop!

Seeking even more softness? Hold Bouclé together with Isager Alpaca 2!

Some of the Isager shades match perfectly across yarn lines, like those above – these will come together to make a solid color. Others don’t have a perfect match, like the shades shown below – they’ll come together to make a slightly marled blend of colors, adding depth and interest to the fabric.

We have many more fingering weight yarns to choose from – here are “Lento” color ideas pairing Bouclé with Kelbourne Woolens Cricket, a single ply tweed.

And a few more with Kelbourne Woolens Camper…

And a few more with Sandnes Garn Sunday…

And a few more with Brooklyn Tweed Tones Light!

Look for Isager Bouclé in the lace weight section here at our shop, and browse our entire fingering weight section for just the right match to make a “Lento” of your own!

“Lento” in Isager Bouclé & fingering weight yarns.

Posted by on

We’ve got a brand new sweater on display at the shop – here’s my version of Jonna Helin’s “Lento” pullover knit with Malabrigo Ultimate Sock and Isager Bouclé!

Bouclé is a fine alpaca yarn with one looped ply, which makes a fluffy, textured fabric when combined with the soft and smooth Ultimate Sock.

This yarn pairing is ideal for this simple stockinette pullover. While I was working on it, Anne would ask anyone passing through, “Have you touched Julia’s sweater? It’s so soft!”

I love watching two different yarns come together in a marled project – it always seems to make a fabric that’s more beautiful and intriguing than either yarn would be on its own.

Here are some color combinations in Ultimate Sock and Bouclé that I think would make gorgeous “Lento” pullovers!

  • Isager Bouclé: lace weight, looped bouclé texture, 100% alpaca, 190 yards/50 grams; $11 each
  • Malabrigo Ultimate Sock: fingering weight, hand dyed, variegated and semi-solid colorways, 75% superwash merino wool, 25% nylon, 420 yards/100g; $21 each

Bouclé is unique, but we have many fingering weight yarns to choose from – seeking even more softness? Hold Bouclé together with Isager Alpaca 2!

  • Isager Alpaca 2: light fingering weight, 50% alpaca, 50% wool, 275 yards/50 g; $12 each

Perhaps, like me, you prefer a bit of structure in your sweaters – look to Brooklyn Tweed Tones Light.

  • Brooklyn Tweed Tones Light: fingering weight, woolen-spun 2 ply, overdyed, 100% Columbia wool, 225 yards/50g; $16.75 each

Look for Isager Bouclé in the lace weight section here at our shop, and browse our entire fingering weight section for just the right match to make a “Lento” of your own!

Hello, Isager Bouclé!

Posted by on

We’re pleased to introduce a brand new yarn from Isager – meet Bouclé!

Isager Bouclé:

  • lace weight
  • looped bouclé texture
  • 100% alpaca
  • 190 yards/50 grams
  • $11 each

Isager is a Danish yarn company led by designers and co-owners Marianne Isager and her daughter, Helga Isager. They are known for their sophisticated color palette, and for combining yarns to create unique fiber and color blends.

Bouclé is a fine alpaca yarn with one looped ply, which makes a fluffy, textured fabric. It especially shines when held together with a smooth yarn, enhancing simple stockinette.

While we wait for the Isager design team to release patterns for this intriguing new yarn, I’ve been swatching to satisfy my curiosity. I began with US 5 needles and a single strand of Bouclé, and while the fabric was pleasing, the yarn was a little tricky to work with. When I moved up to a US 9 and added a strand of smooth fingering weight yarn, it became much easier to manage, and the fabric that came out was soft and fluffy, like a teddy bear.

Though I kept swatching, through a few more needle sizes and a colorwork motif from Anne Ventzel’s very appealing “Robinia Sweater,” it was the teddy bear fabric I kept coming back to. The gauge was a match for Jonna Helin’s “Lento” pullover, which is what I’m making now, holding Bouclé together with Malabrigo Ultimate Sock.

Here are some other pattern ideas for Isager Bouclé, when held together with a fingering weight yarn:

Look for Isager Bouclé in the lace weight section here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, along with many other Isager yarns – Alpaca 2, Highland Wool, Sock Yarn, and more!