Tag Archives: show and tell

Show and tell: blanket, shawl, and sweater.

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The last three show and tell photos I’ve collected at the shop have been large-scale projects, long haul knits whose completion is cause for excitement. That excitement made its way to the shop to be shared with us, and now I’ll pass it along to you.

Betsy has been working on a lace patterned blanket in Jitterbug for some time now; it’s warmed her knees as she knit it. Now it is complete–a feat in this colorful fingering weight yarn.

Ever since our Hanne Falkenberg trunk show, Frances has been knitting away on her Promenade, a shawl kit designed by Falkenberg. At times, she had hundreds of stitches on her needle, more than one circular alone could hold. You can see why she’s thrilled to be done with this incredible piece; it’s a real accomplishment.

Margaretta brought a completed sweater in for show and tell, a New Zealand Pullover made in Swans Island Organic Merino Fingering. The pattern is from Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Knit One, Knit All, a collection of designs that make clever use of garter stitch. The New Zealand Pullover is no exception, a simple sweater full of smart details: short row shaping, underarm gussets, phony seams, etc.

Thanks to all for the impressive show and tell!

An abundance of show and tell: part two.

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As promised, here’s another batch of show and tell!

Gail crocheted this beautiful baby dress in Isager Bomuld, a smooth, fingering weight cotton.

Amber made a baby dress, too–this delicate one, knit in Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace.

Margie brought in two beaded scarves to show off, made generously as gifts for two friends. The one on the left is made in Colinette Jitterbug, and the one on the right is made in Malabrigo Sock.

Thanks to everyone for bringing their finished pieces into the shop for show and tell! I’m always amazed by the skillful creations of our knitters and crocheters, and touched to see Hillsborough Yarn Shop yarns in completed garments. Come by the shop anytime to share what you’re working on!

An abundance of show and tell: part one.

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There’s been so much incredible showing and telling going on at the shop in the past few weeks, enough that it can’t all fit into one blog post. Here’s the first of two installments.

Mary has been cranking out hats in the Swans Island Organic Merino Worsted.

It’s been great to see how these colorways look in a finished garment after months of admiring them in the skein. I was also glad to see that these hats were blocked, allowing the yarn to blossom a bit, and creating a more cohesive fabric. The Swans Island yarn is such cuddly stuff!

Mara came in during the Triangle Yarn Crawl with not one, but two finished pieces to share. Here, she models a sweater made in the sadly discontinued Mission Falls 1824 Wool. The pattern is Tubey, a cleverly-constructed pullover in aran weight yarn–and a free pattern, to boot.

Mara also shared these pretty mitts, a gift for her mother. The pattern is Leafy Fingerless Gloves, available as a free download on Ravelry.

Michelle was knitting at the shop the other day when she finished her Stasis Pullover, made in the much-admired Isager Alpaca 2. I happened to be wearing my recently-completed Stasis, and a photo-op was born. What a difference the yarn makes, in spite of the identical patterning. Michelle’s Stasis came out soft and cuddly in Alpaca 2, and mine came out sturdy and slightly more fitted in Jamieson & Smith 2-ply Jumper Weight. Our two sweaters are the same, but very different, with each of us getting exactly what we wanted out of them. I can’t wait to see Anne’s Stasis, in Schulana Lambswool!

Thanks, everyone, for the amazing show and tell, and keep your eye on the blog for part two!

Show and tell: all kinds.

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There are so very many things to knit. Though I often knit the same kinds of things again and again (sweaters and socks, sweaters and socks), I am always delighted by the wide variety of projects I see knitters and crocheters taking on at the shop. Here are some knitted items that have made their way to the shop lately for show and tell.

Monique knit this beautiful shawl for her wedding. The yarn is the fabulously shiny Berroco Lustra; the pattern is Rococo.

Shelley knit this intricate colorwork sweater from Marianne Isager’s Japanese Inspired Knits using the fingering weight alpaca/wool blend that has become a shop favorite: Isager Alpaca 2.

April knit a bunny…

…and a bunny hat to go with. The fuzzy, soft pink yarn is Araucania Azapa. Want to make a bunny hat of your own? Find the pattern here.

 

Come by the shop with show and tell of your own! We’d love to see what you’re working on.

Show and tell: Noro, Isager, String Theory.

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We’ve seen some really special finished projects around the shop lately. How about some show and tell?

Shaunesy brought in her completed Diamond Motif shawl made in Noro Silk Garden. She took Katherine’s class on the shawl, the first in a series of classes Katherine has been teaching on projects from Knit Noro Accessories. If you like the look of Shaunesy’s shawl, come by the shop to see the book and all our colorful Noro yarns.

Natalie’s Volt took our breath away. The yarn is Isager Spinni, and the pattern is from Grace Anna Farrow’s fantastic book, The Fine Line.

Each shawl in The Fine Line makes great use of Isager’s singular color palette, and many of them, like Volt, use chevrons as a central motif. This book is definitely worth looking at if you’re a shawl-maker, and I know so many of you are. Find it with the other Isager books in the Fingering Weight section.

Catherine also brought some chevron-related show-and-tell: a completed North Arrow scarf. I was particularly touched by this as North Arrow is my own design–it is truly an amazing thing to see ones own instructions brought to life by another knitter. Catherine used String Theory Caper Sock for her scarf, and the colors are as gorgeous as the yarn is soft. If you haven’t worked with this yarn yet, do yourself a favor and make up an excuse to do so.

Thanks to all the fantastic knitters and crocheters who come and go at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, wowing Anne and I and whoever else happens to be present with your skillfully-stitched creations. We are so thankful for the inspiration you bring, and so very impressed by all your work! See you at the shop.

Socks and shawls: show and tell.

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I’ve collected a lot of good pictures for show and tell over the past week or two, and they divided themselves nicely into two categories: socks and shawls. Let’s begin with socks.

Above, Sharon models her first completed pair of socks, made in a self-patterning sock yarn that miraculously lined up perfectly to make a matching pair.

Jessica has also recently finished her first pair of socks–the hot pink pair, in Malabrigo Sock yarn–and has started several others, for her mother and sister. Jessica and Sharon are both graduates of Marion’s class on Magic Loop Socks from the Toe Up. There are still spaces in the upcoming session, so if you’re looking to get started knitting socks on one long circular needle, check your schedule and sign up now!

A couple of weeks ago, Rosa came in with some friends and sat working quietly on this exquisite colorwork shawl. She’s knitting it in the round, and plans to steek it–cut it open–so that it will lie flat in a large triangular shape. These crayon-bright colors look particularly stunning against a plain black background. I can’t wait to see the finished project!

Speaking of finished projects, here’s Rebecca’s Color Affection shawl in Isager Plant Fibre yarn, which drapes beautifully at this gauge. As a lover of neutral colors, I particularly like this color combination, and the gradation of light to dark from the top of the shawl to the bottom edge.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing your incredible creations with us!

Another round of show and tell.

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It was another great week for show and tell at the shop. So many knitters and crocheters came in with finished projects to share.

Petra came in wearing a hand-knit top and shrug, proving that it is indeed possible to wear hand-knit garments in even the hottest weather when lightweight plant fiber yarns are used. A beautiful ensemble!

Laura brought in a finished Faraway, So Close shawl to show off, fresh from Katherine’s class on the same project. Laura’s shawl is made with Malabrigo Silky Merino and edged with Louisa Harding Grace Silk & Wool, both of which are dk weight single ply yarns with great luster and drape.

Anne had some show and tell this week, too. She made this cute wool soaker for her new granddaughter, Willa, who is pictured wearing a Boston Whaler Hat in Ella Rae Bamboo & Silk yarn. (The hat has been such a hit that Anne has already taught two classes on it, and we’ve scheduled a third to begin Sunday, August 12th–read more about the Boston Whaler Baby Hat class and register on our website!) For the soaker, Anne used Briggs & Little Sport yarn, with a strand of pink and a strand of white held together.

Thanks for sharing your completed projects with us! It’s such fun to see what everyone’s stitching. See you at the shop.

Show and tell.

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Last week, I had a couple of opportunities to pull out my camera and document incredible finished knits. I can’t tell you how exciting it is for Anne and I to see our knitters’ and crocheters’ completed projects; there’s something very special about seeing that promise-filled yarn grown up into a finished garment.

On Thursday, Catherine came in with her completed Alpaca 2 Stole, and Anne’s mother, Phyllis, modeled it for the camera.

On Friday, Celine came in with her Hitchhiker made in Colinette Jitterbug, a fabulously springy merino sock yarn. As this shawlette nicely demonstrates, sock yarns have many uses besides socks.

Keep the show and tell coming! See you (and your finished projects) at the shop.

The Stole.

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I mentioned a few posts ago that the Stole, with a capital “S,” might be a good way to take advantage of our Annual Inventory Sale. Nine skeins of Isager Alpaca 2 have a way of adding up, and the month-long 15% discount on everything in the shop will help take the edge off. The Stole has become a bit of a hit here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop since we first got the new book Wearwithall. As in, we had to restock nearly every color of Alpaca 2, and we may need to do it again soon. I thought the Stole deserved more than a mention; here is its very own post.

Having seen several beautiful Stoles-in-progress, Anne recently cast on for one of her own, using seven colors of Alpaca 2 whose first life was as a colorwork pullover. After two years on the needles with only a few inches done, Anne decided it was time to rip out the colorwork and give the yarn a second chance as a Stole.

As you can see by all the progress she’s made in only a handful of weeks, she made the right choice. Sometimes it seems painful to rip out a work in progress that you realize you’ll never finish, but this is one of the major joys of knitting: yarn can be reused. Your efforts are not wasted when you rip something out; a pile of ripped-out yarn is a sign that lessons have been learned and a new project can begin.

It’s been such a pleasure to watch knitters break from the colors shown in the pattern to create their own combinations–this one cool in blues and greens, that one warm in neutrals, another autumnal with a pop of chartreuse. The Isager color palette is welcoming in this way, the colors play well together in all kinds of variations.

Come by the shop to quench your thirst for Alpaca 2, and to see Anne’s Stole-in-progress. This is a project that needs to be touched to be understood; photos don’t do it justice. See you at the shop!

Bluestocking. Again.

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Last week, we got another bunch of String Theory Bluestocking in another bunch of gorgeous colors.

This weekend, I finally cast on for a pair of Bluestocking socks, anxious to get my hands on a kind of wool I’d never tried before: bluefaced leicester. I chose a pattern from Clara Parkes’ Knitter’s Book of Socks, called Hickory, with a barklike ribbing down the leg and instep. The whole leg was done in three evenings, which is how I know I love both the yarn and the pattern.

Come by the shop to take a closer look at the Knitter’s Book of Socks, where there are 200+ pages of serious sock knitting inspiration, and to admire the String Theory Bluestocking. See you at the shop!