Show and tell: accessories.

Posted by Julia on October 9, 2016

It’s been less than a month since my last “show and tell” blog post, but already there’s so much to share. Here are some of the finished projects that started life as yarn on our shelves!

Above is the “Rise” hat, knit by Robin, who is teaching an upcoming class on the subject here at the shop. She made it with two yarns held together throughout: Shibui’s newest yarn, Drift, and their classic Silk Cloud. This pattern is free with the purchase of Shibui yarns for the project, and features cozy cables and a tidy tubular cast-on.

Below is Robin’s “Rise” cowl, knit with Fibre Company Canopy Worsted and Shibui Silk Cloud held together throughout, an equally luxurious yarn combination for the project.

Here’s the subject of another upcoming class, Marsha’s “Super Fast Mittens,” a pattern she’s made available for sale here at the shop. Made with Plymouth Baby Alpaca Grande, they’re quick and cozy, designed with ease of knitting in mind. Join the class for an introduction to double-pointed needles!

Peggy brought two finished accessories in for show and tell; above is her “Basket Whip” cowl, knit in the (sadly discontinued) Fibre Company Savannah, and below is her “Holden” shawl, knit in Geilsk Cotton/Wool. Both yarns are well-balanced blends of plant and animal fibers, lightweight from fibers like linen and cotton, but plush from merino wool.

Ruth knit this “Rhys” scarf in Fibre Company Knightsbridge, a fuzzy heathered blend of llama, merino, and silk. It’s a handsome piece, decorated with cables and texture patterns, and the yarn is so well-suited to a next-to-skin accessory.

Petra has been on a Steve Rousseau kick, knitting and crocheting several of his intricate shawls in a row. Her latest is this “Dimitri Rectangular Shawl,” knit in the lightweight, tweedy Shibui Pebble.

Thanks to everyone who shares their creations with us, those who gamely submit to my photography as well as those who’d rather not. We love seeing what you’re working on, and the pleasure and satisfaction that you derive from your finished projects.

See you at the shop!

New colors from the Fibre Company.

Posted by Julia on September 21, 2016

Unpacking shipments is an exciting part of my work at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. Even if it’s not a new product I’m aching to take home myself, it’s always fun to see what’s in the box, and admire and sort colorful bags of yarn. That said, when the box holds something I do plan to take home, the unpacking is that much more exciting. It was with that extra excitement that I cracked open a big box of yarn from the Fibre Company last week.

This box was packed with new shades in Fibre Company Acadia and Cumbria Fingering, the latter of which was the object of my desire, and the makings of my next sweater.

Cumbria Fingering is a tightly-plied blend of 60% merino wool, 30% masham wool, and 10% mohair. For a yarn so sturdy, it’s awfully soft, and though the mohair makes it slightly fuzzy, it still has fantastic stitch definition.

We’ve seen that nice definition in two new shop samples, mittens from the Kelbourne Woolens Year of Mittens Knit-Along. Marsha knit the “August Mitten” (above) and Amy knit the “September Mitten” (below), which is the subject of an upcoming class. Read more about it and sign up on our Classes page!

The new shades of Acadia are particularly vibrant this season, a saturated little rainbow of six that fits beautifully into our existing selection.

Acadia’s silk slubs give it color and texture interest, so it doesn’t take fancy stitching to make this yarn shine; any one of these shades would make a lovely “Easy Folded Poncho” or pair of “Welted Fingerless Gloves,” simple knits that let the yarn take center stage. Look at Kelbourne Woolens’ Acadia Collection for more ideas.

I’m unpacking an awful lot of boxes these days, as fall is fast approaching and new yarns are arriving daily. Come by the shop to see what’s new from the Fibre Company and all our other favorites!

Show and tell: Isager.

Posted by Julia on September 18, 2016

Time for more show and tell! Many of the knitters and crocheters who start their projects here at the shop bring them back when they’re done to show us their work, one of the most interesting and gratifying parts of our job as yarn-shopkeepers. When I’m able, I like to photograph those projects to share here on the blog, and I’ve amassed quite a collection of photos over the past month or so. Last week, I shared finished sweaters, but I confess, I was saving one for today’s post, because it overlaps with today’s theme: Isager.

Here’s Shelley’s incredible “Spring,” knit in Isager Spinni, a lace weight wool. Knit modularly, with each square building on the last, “Spring” features lace and intarsia, making this lightweight pullover a real labor of love. I admired Shelley’s color choice back when she first made her selection, but it’s even more impressive in the finished piece, those playful, colorful squares popping out against the larger neutral blocks.

Shelley was kind enough to lend us her sweater for a little while, so if you hurry in, you might catch it hanging on the wall.

Here’s another amazing piece knit in Isager Spinni: Annmarie’s “Rock Island.” She made this during a recent lace class here at the shop, and we were all blown away by how carefully she knit and blocked it. Well done, Annmarie!

Speaking of classes, this shawl is the subject of an upcoming crochet class. Katherine crocheted her “Transposition” with Isager Alpaca 2, a soft and fuzzy blend of merino and alpaca.

Join her class to learn the basics of triangular shawl construction, crochet pattern- and chart-reading, shell stitches, and blocking. Head to our Classes page to read all about it and sign up!

Sandra came in the other day to pick up some yarn she ordered at our recent Isager Yarn Tasting, and tucked in her bag was her “Stole,” knit in Isager Alpaca 2. She made an abbreviated version, in just 5 colors, but it’s the perfect size for carrying about in case of chilly air-conditioning.

Thanks to these knitters and crocheters for sharing their work with us, and for starting their projects here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We look forward to seeing your newest creations, and watching your ideas come to life on your needles.

Show and tell: sweaters.

Posted by Julia on September 11, 2016

For me, there’s something very special about sweaters. I love making them because the process changes every few inches–different stitch patterns, needle sizes, new shaping, parts, and pieces keep it interesting throughout. Here are some of the finished sweaters we’ve seen at the shop recently, all of whom started life as skeins of yarn on our shelves.

Here Rosi models her “Sonora,” knit with two strands of Shibui Pebble and one strand of Shibui Linen held together throughout. Rosi knit this beautiful, wearable top last year, but I didn’t get a chance to capture it until just a few weeks ago. I love this mustard yellow color, and I love seeing multiple yarns put together to create a unique fabric. Bravo, Rosi!

Here’s Leslie’s “Sundottir,” knit in Queensland Kathmandu Aran Tweed and Swans Island Natural Colors Merino Worsted. Colorwork yokes like this are my passion and my weakness – this just looks like so much fun to knit!

I finished a summer top not long ago, “Dafne,” by Julie Hoover, knit in the discontinued-but-still-in-stock Berroco Linen Jeans. I was moved to knit this by the exquisite armhole shaping, an esoteric inspiration, perhaps, but one that proved satisfying in the knitting.

Baby sweaters are just as fun to knit as adult sweaters, and so much faster! Here’s Paula’s “Milly Tank Top,” knit in Ewe So Sporty.

Thanks to all the sweater knitters who begin their projects at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! To those whose first sweaters are still ahead of them, we offer encouragement and support–we’re happy to help along the way!

Anne’s gifts-in-progress.

Posted by Julia on August 16, 2016

“What are you working on?” is knitters’ small talk, a question Anne and I encounter and ask many times a day here at the shop. Today, we’ll pose the question to Anne herself, taking a rare peek in her personal knitting bag.

Just how much does a large Binkwaffle dumpling bag hold? If you pack as skillfully as Anne, no less than seven works in progress in various stages of completion!

Anne is a tremendously generous knitter who loves clothing her family in handknits, and she’s also a project manager. That means she’s already planned her holiday gift-knitting for the year, completed the first piece (a twirly skirt for her eldest granddaughter), and started on the next few. The sweater above is for her husband, a “Honeycomb Pullover” in Rowan Pure Wool Worsted.

These two skeins of Swans Island All American Sport are destined to become colorwork gloves for her husband. The socks below are for her grandsons, in Colinette Jitterbug and Noro Silk Garden Sock. She’ll work on both pairs at once, switching back and forth between the blue and striped socks until they’re completed. Also note how she stores them safely in DP Wip Tubes, so none of those tiny stitches slide off the needles!

These two skeins of Baa Ram Ewe Dovestone DK will grow up to be a cuddly “Fancy Hen” for Anne’s youngest granddaughter, who gets lots of handknit hand-me-downs, but still deserves something all her own.

Quick to knit and easy to wear, hats and cowls are go-to gifts for many knitters, and Anne has one of each in progress. The hat above was knit in the discontinued Shibui Merino Alpaca, and sits nearly finished with just one lingering question: does it need a pom-pom? The cowl below is a bit of a teaser, since all I can say is that the yarn it’s made of is coming to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop later this Fall. More soon!

(Outside of this particular knitting bag, she also has three sample sweaters going for the shop… more on those another time.)

Are you dreaming of handmade holiday gifts for your friends and family? Follow in Anne’s footsteps and start now, so you’re not limited to late nights, super-bulky yarns and tiny accessories towards the end of the year!

Show and tell: stripes.

Posted by Julia on July 29, 2016

“Show and tell” blog posts are some of my favorites to write, and I’ve been lucky to write lots of them lately. Whenever possible, I take photos of the finished projects that find their way back to the shop, after some talented soul turned them from mere yarn into expertly-handcrafted garment. As I look through the show-and-tell photos not yet published here on the blog, I search for themes. Do these glorious finished projects have a particular kind of yarn in common, or a type of garment, quality of color, motif, or technique? Today’s grouping: stripes.

Anne knit this “Barefoot Knits Twirly Skirt” for her eldest granddaughter using Schulana Sojabama, a silky soft blend of soy and bamboo. The pattern, once published in a magazine no longer in print, took a bit of Ravelry hunting to track down, but its designer offers it up here. Anne modified it just a bit, opting to knit in the round rather than in pieces, adding a fifth color, and using a picot bind off for extra flair.

I knit this “Flying Duchess” shawl as a shop sample using the decadent Sublime Cashmere Merino Silk DK in three shades. I’m used to starting shawls with just a few stitches, then increasing throughout, ending on the very longest rows. “Flying Duchess,” on the other hand, had me casting on over 350 stitches, then decreasing throughout, which gave me the pleasing sensation that I was picking up speed as the project progressed.It was a mighty long cast-on, though, and one that I ended up doing twice. The first time, I tried the cable cast-on, knit a few rows, then ripped, disliking the sloppy look. The second, much more successful time, I used two balls of yarn to do the long tail cast-on, a technique I highly recommend for casting on large numbers of stitches.

Catherine is still busy knitting “3 Color Cashmere Cowls” in Shibui Staccato, and came in the other day with three more to show us. It’s been fun to see how the character of this pattern changes in different colorways: some muted, others bold, some elegant, others playful.

Thanks to everyone who comes by the shop to start a project, solve a problem, share their progress, and show off their finished pieces. There’s plenty more show-and-tell where this came from; looking forward to sharing more soon!

Show and tell: critters.

Posted by Julia on July 23, 2016

Time for another round of show and tell! Here are some finished projects that started life as yarns on our shelves. These knitted things have something else in common, as well: they all feature animals!

Amy designed and knit this “Baby Turtle Frenzy Blanket” for her granddaughter-to-be using Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted. It shows sea turtle hatchlings on their journey from the sandy beach through the breakers to the deep blue sea. She wrote a separate pattern for the tiny turtles themselves; get them together at a discounted price on Ravelry or here at the shop.

Amy’s also offering a Tiny Turtle class here at the shop, for those interested in knitted toys–head to our Classes page to sign up!

Ali came by the shop not long ago with two knitted critters. Above are her “Moose and the World’s Tree” mittens, from Annemor Sundbø’s Norwegian Mittens and Gloves, knit in Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift. Below is her “Hedgehog,” whose belly and face is also made of Shetland Spindrift, with garter stitch spines in Plymouth Galway held double.

I, too, knit a hedgehog from this pattern a couple of years ago, and loved the process as much as the end product. Seeing this one made me want to knit another!

We can’t talk about knitted critters without mentioning the “Baa-ble Hat,” a free pattern with well over 5,000 projects on Ravelry in the year and a half since it was first published. The “Baa-ble Hat” above is my second, and may not be my last. I used bright shades of Plymouth Tweed and Queensland Kathmandu Aran for this one, and love the way the colorwork looks in these speckled yarns.

Amy just finished teaching an introductory class on stranded colorwork featuring the “Baa-ble Hat,” and the hat above was knit by one of her students, Clarine. She used Jamieson’s Shetland Heather Aran for three out of the four shades, knitting the soft green grass with Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed.

Sarah was one of Amy’s students, too; she knit her hat in Malabrigo Rios, and left the shop after class with yarn for another “Baa-ble Hat.” It’s a pleasing little pattern, and a great way to try stranded colorwork for the first time. Amy’s offering another class on the subject in October–sign up now if you’d like to join!

Thanks to all those who share their work with us here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. We are inspired by your great ideas, and love to see them take shape!

Show and tell: summer shawls, part three.

Posted by Julia on July 16, 2016

Time for yet another round of summer shawl show and tell!

Judie knit this “Lionberry” shawl with Colinette Jitterbug, enlarging it a bit to make the most of her one skein.

You can read her detailed notes about this modification on her Ravelry project page, a generous gesture that I always appreciate when I’m scrolling through Ravelry seeking good information!

Petra brought in her “Seascape Stole” for show and tell a few weeks ago, knit in this icy blue shade of Sincere Sheep Cormo Fingering. A semi-solid hand-dyed yarn like this is a great choice for a lace pattern; it’s solid enough to show the lace clearly but varied enough to offer depth and color interest.

Nancy knit this “Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief” in Schulana Sojabama, a dk weight blend of bamboo and soy. This silky yarn is cool to the touch, with excellent drape, making this an ideal warm-weather accesory. It’s hanging on the wall here at the shop, so be sure to take a peek or try it on next time you’re here!

Margie has been working on a pair of “ZickZack” scarves, each knit with Schoppel-Wolle Zauberball and Cascade 220 Fingering.

This simple chevron pattern is made beautiful by Margie’s yarn and color selection. The Zauberball is self-striping, and the 220 Fingering is solid. When the two are striped against one another, two skinny rows at a time, the effect is dramatic.

As soon as she finished one, she cast on for the next, which will surely be completed by the time these photos are posted, knowing Margie.

Thanks to all who start their projects with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, and to those who share their work along the way! Believe it or not, after three summer shawl posts in as many weeks, I still have lingering show-and-tell photos to share. Stay tuned!

Show and tell: summer shawls, part two.

Posted by Julia on July 9, 2016

Time for a second round of summer shawl show and tell! Here are some colorful shawls that started life as yarns on our shelves.

This one is a work in progress, a shawl-to-be on Amy’s needles as she prepares to teach a class on the subject. The pattern is “Dreambird KAL,” and Amy is knitting it with Shibui Staccato in the background, the solid black setting off the self-striping Kauni Effektgarn to great effect.

Catherine came in recently with this beautiful “Chevron 15” shawl, knit in two shades of Isager Alpaca 2.

The fabric is soft and light, and the surprising combination of bold chartreuse and soft teal works so well. Catherine has knit many shawls with this alpaca/merino blend, coming back to it again and again, a high form of praise in a world full of lovely yarns.

Loretta started this “Quill” in a class here at the shop, working with the sport weight Berroco Ultra Alpaca Lite.

This 5 color shawl is large enough to be considered a blanket, and looks cozy and classic in neutral shades, punctuated by a nice deep red.

Thanks to the many knitters, crocheters, weavers, and other fiber artists who use yarns from our shop in their creations; we love seeing what you make. More show and tell to come!

Show and tell: summer shawls, part one.

Posted by Julia on June 27, 2016

We always love to see what you’re making with HYS yarns, and I love to take photos of your beautiful finished pieces to share here on the blog. As I was sifting through my large (and growing!) stash of recent show-and-tell photos, I noticed one brand of yarn popping up over and over again: Fibre Company. Here are four exquisite shawls knit in Fibre Company yarns.

Loretta recently finished two Fibre Company shawls. Above is her “Twinleaf,” designed by Grace Anna Farrow, and knit in Meadow. This two-color garter stitch shawl is elegant in its simplicity, decorated with thin stripes and shaped with short-rows.

Above is Loretta’s “Quaking Aspen” shawl, a free pattern designed by Courtney Kelley, and knit in Acadia. It looks especially good, by my estimation, in a high-contrast color combination like this one, where the lace edging shines in a lighter shade.

Pam’s “Piper’s Journey” shawlette, pictured below, was also knit in Fibre Company Acadia. This yarn strikes me as a good choice for patterns like these with lots of garter stitch or stockinette, for the silk slubs and tweedy texture show nicely in simple stitches.

Here’s Sidney’s “Sundry,” knit in Fibre Company Cumbria Fingering, a yarn she loved working with.

It’s nice to see this pattern in a lower-contrast color combination than my own; the effect is much more subdued, the two colors blending softly in the slip-stitch section.

Thanks to these knitters for sharing their beautiful work, and to the Fibre Company for creating such special yarns! Look for more show-and-tell on the blog in the coming weeks, I have so many lovely things to share.