Tag Archives: show and tell

Show and tell: stripes.

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Time for another round of show and tell! Today’s projects all feature stripes, whether high-contrast or low, many-colored or few.

First up, Margaretta’s “Chevron Cloud,” knit with Hand Maiden Superkid Silk and Isager Alpaca 2. Pattern by Espace Tricot.

The color and yarn combination here is subtle, but exquisite – variegated mohair creates painterly stripes, and Margaretta picked a shade of sage green Alpaca 2 that matches without blending in or disappearing.

Karin came by the shop wearing her “DRK Everyday Cowl,” by Andrea Mowry, knit with Malabrigo Arroyo. The solid Natural is a perfect complement to the wildly variegated Aniversario.

Here’s the “Versa Cowl” I knit as a shop sample with Malabrigo Seis Cabos. Pattern by Aimee Pelletier.

People often ask how hard the slip stitch pattern is, and I’m happy to say that it’s neither hard nor a slip stitch pattern – just knits, purls, and stripes!

Last but not least, here’s Kristin’s “Stole” in Isager Merilin. Like Anne, she used just five colors to make a narrower wrap that’s just right for spring.

Many thanks to the knitters who shared their stripes with us today, and to everyone who starts their project with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. We are inspired by your stitches and can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

“Cumulus Blouse” in Superkid Silk + Silk Mohair.

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Bailey’s most recent shop sample is a showstopper – a PetiteKnit “Cumulus Blouse” knit with Hand Maiden Superkid Silk and Isager Silk Mohair held together.

This mix of hand dyed and solid lace weight yarn creates a painterly fabric, lightweight and ideal for cool spring days.

Before casting on for her “Cumulus Blouse,” Bailey swatched Superkid Silk in Swan Lake with six different shades of Silk Mohair, each one striking a different tone. It was hard to choose, but she went with Silk Mohair in 62, a blush pink that let the blue streaks in Swan Lake stand out.

Hand dyed yarn is some of the hardest to picture in a finished project. In the skein, we see big swaths of color, but in the knitted fabric, these vibrant colorways transform depending on the stitch pattern and the number of stitches cast on.

To balance the color pooling, Bailey carefully alternated skeins of Superkid Silk, working two row stripes with two or three different balls of yarn, all while carrying along a strand of solid Silk Mohair. It involved some ripping out and re-knitting, but was worth it for this harmonious fabric that lets each color shine.

Look for Bailey’s “Cumulus Blouse” on display here at the shop – it’s here to admire, inspire, and try on! We have all of her swatches on display, too, to give you a sense of how solid and variegated mohair colorways can come together.

If you’re inspired to make a “Cumulus Blouse” of your own, we’re here to help you find the perfect yarn blend, with more mohair and brushed alpaca to choose from than ever before. Hand Maiden Superkid Silk and Isager Silk Mohair, yes, but also Malabrigo Mohair, Kelbourne Woolens Harmony, Isager Soft Fine, Fyberspates Cumulus, and Sandnes Garn Tynn Silk Mohair… look for them all in our lace weight section!

“Sophie Hood” in Sport, Superkid Silk, and Silk Mohair.

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Anne cast on for her PetiteKnit “Sophie Hood” on one of the coldest days of winter, suddenly recognizing the urgent need for just such an accessory. She finished it just when the weather warmed up again, and thought she might have missed the window to wear it. But winter’s not yet over, and when the temperature dipped again, she had her chance!

Anne knit her little red “Sophie Hood” with three strands of yarn held together. For structure, she used Briggs & Little Sport, a single ply wool. For added softness, warmth, and color, she added Hand Maiden Superkid Silk and Isager Silk Mohair.

We are all smitten with the resulting fabric, a vibrant red with subtle streaks of orange, fuchsia, and burgundy that liven up this simple garter stitch hood.

We couldn’t resist picking out alternate colorways in the same magical trio of yarns – here are some ideas!

 

If you prefer to work with a single strand of yarn for your “Sophie Hood,” check out Isager Soft and Alpaca 3, Fibre Co. & Make Aran, and Kelbourne Woolens Lucky Tweed in our aran weight section.

See you at the shop!

Show and tell: blankets.

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Time for another round of show and tell!

Today we’re celebrating the most ambitious of projects – blankets! This stack was knit by Anne for three of her grandchildren, colorful and cozy in Malabrigo Mecha.

Don’t be deceived by their small stature when folded – these are generous bed-sized blankets, a labor of love Anne stitched on consistently throughout 2024.

Margaretta’s most recent blanket is smaller in scale and in gauge, a delicate lace and texture “Little house baby-set” blanket made with Fibre Co. Amble. Pattern by Anne B. Hanssen.

Rosi has two finished blankets to share; first up, a stunning modification of Irina Poludnenko’s “Falling Leaves Scarf,” knit with Noro Silk Garden Lite.

Here’s Rosi’s “Building Blocks Blanket,” knit with soft and cuddly Ewe Ewe Baa Baa Bulky.

Thanks to Anne, Margaretta, and Rosi for sharing their work, and to everyone who starts their projects with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We can’t wait to see what you make next.

“Nightshift” in Noro Ito.

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The shop just got more colorful… we’ve got six new shades of Noro Ito in stock!

Noro Ito:

  • aran weight
  • single ply
  • self striping
  • 100% wool
  • 437 yards/200 grams
  • hand wash, lay flat to dry

Noro Ito has long been a popular choice for Andrea Mowry’s “Nightshift.” This triangular shawl is decorated with bands of a simple slip stitch pattern, trimmed with an attached i-cord edging, then finished off with a clever striped i-cord bind off. Though Mowry calls for six different colors, two balls of Noro Ito will do the color changing for you – just switch colors A and B every 20 rows.

Carolina came in wearing this gorgeous “Nightshift” in two shades of Noro Ito, knit for her by her aunt, Vera. It inspired us to order these new shades!

Here’s a color combination similar to Vera’s beautiful creation, followed by a few more ideas from us.

Look for Noro Ito in the aran weight section here at HYS – see you there!

Show and tell: soothing stockinette.

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Sometimes there’s nothing more pleasing than plain old stockinette stitch, its soothing rhythm and smooth surface. Here are some soothing stockinette projects from knitters in our community!

First up, here’s Katherine’s “Stockholm Slipover” in Fibre Co. Cumbria. Though PetiteKnit’s pattern calls for DK and lace weight yarns held together, Katherine cleverly picked a single worsted weight yarn that knits up to the same gauge all by itself.

Here I am in my “Melange Sweater” – coincidentally, almost all of today’s show and tell was knit from PetiteKnit patterns! I held two contrasting shades of Sandnes Garn Sunday together, cobalt blue and light beige; check out this blog post for more color ideas. I knit this over a year ago, but never shared a photo of the finished sweater, though it’s become one of my most worn.

Kay is a serial “Oslo Hat – Mohair Edition” maker, and I know these aren’t the last ones we’ll see from her! Above and below, she combined Isager Alpaca 2 with either Soft Fine or Silk Mohair.

Yep, Kay made this third “Oslo Hat – Mohair Edition,” too! This may be my favorite of her color combinations yet, Kelbourne Woolens Camper and Isager Silk Mohair.

Here’s Hyesol’s “Monday Sweater,” knit with Sandnes Garn Sunday and Hand Maiden Superkid Silk held together. Photos just don’t do this justice – ever since she brought it in, I’ve been daydreaming about knitting a stockinette raglan for myself.

Joanne held Koigu KPPPM and Lang Cashmere Premium together for one super squishy hat! The pattern is Ysolda Teague’s “Musselburgh,” which is knit with two layers, even more stockinette to enjoy.

Many thanks to Katherine, Kay, Hyesol, and Joanne for sharing their handiwork with us! We really appreciate everyone whose projects begin with a trip to HYS, and we can’t wait to see what you come up with next.

Show and tell: Isager.

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Back with more show and tell! I’m always collecting photos of finished projects that began life as yarn at HYS, and especially love it when a theme emerges. Today, the theme is sweaters knit with Isager yarns – let’s take a look!

Here Joanne models her “Lento,” knit with Alpaca 2 and Bouclé held together throughout for a soft, textured fabric. Joanne is now on her third “Lento,” a sure sign of a great pattern! Designed by Jonna Helin.

Hyesol came in wearing her “Light Loop Sweater,” also knit with Bouclé . Designed by Other Loops and knit at an even bigger gauge than “Lento,” “Light Loop Sweater” has a slightly lacy look. Here’s a close up!

Below is Bailey in her “Anorak,” knit with Jensen and Silk Mohair held together in the main color, and Jensen on its own in the contrast color. This pattern is from Marianne Isager’s A Knitting Life Out Into the World. 

Earlier this year, Katherine taught a class at HYS on thepetiteknitter’s “mayflower jumper,” a colorwork yoke pullover. She knit hers in Alpaca 2 held double and the fabric is somehow even softer than Alpaca 2 on its own – look for the sample hanging here at our shop!

Isager yarns are not all wooly and fuzzy – their plant fiber blends are some of the most unique in our shop. Here’s Victoria’s “Reef,” a delicate tank knit with Bomulin. Pattern by Libby Johnson.

Thanks to Joanne, Hyesol, Bailey, Katherine, Victoria, and everyone who starts their projects with a trip to our shop! We love seeing what you make.

“Night & Day Cowl” in Isager Alpaca 3 & Silk Mohair.

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When Katherine proposed teaching a slip stitch class on Andrea Mowry’s “Night & Day Cowl,” we immediately started calling out DK weight yarns she could work with. Kelbourne Woolens Scout, Berroco Ultra Wool DK, Brooklyn Tweed Arbor, and Sandnes Garn Double Sunday would all be nice – but Katherine had other plans.

She picked out matching shades of aran weight Isager Alpaca 3 and lace weight Silk Mohair to hold together throughout, making a thicker fabric at a bigger gauge. If she used these (gorgeous!) yarns for her “Night & Day Cowl,” she’d need to use larger needles than the US 6 called for in the pattern, and her cowl would come out bigger. “I don’t mind if it’s bigger,” she said, and went home with an armful of Isager and plans to use a US 9 needle and see what happened.

What happened was this stunning cowl, a super soft fabric at the perfect size! Andrea Mowry’s pattern is written in such a way that it’s easy to stop when you reach your desired cowl size, so Katherine got to knit without even worrying about the difference in gauge.

Now that I’ve seen Katherine’s extra cozy “Night & Day Cowl,” I can’t stop thinking about other color combinations in Isager Alpaca 3 and lace weight Silk Mohair – here are a few!

Look for Katherine’s cowl here at our shop, along with the Isager Alpaca 3 and Silk Mohair to make one of your own!

Show and tell: Kelbourne Woolens.

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Time for another round of show and tell! Today I have a bunch of projects to share that were made with Kelbourne Woolens yarns. KW makes some of the best loved and best selling yarns at our shop, covering a wide range of gauges and fibers. Let’s see what folks are making with them!

Sandra made her “mayflower jumper” in Katherine’s recent class here at the shop, using Kelbourne Woolens’ DK weight wool, Scout. She added a slip of Hand Maiden Superkid Silk to a few of these motifs, giving them extra depth and a fuzzy halo. Pattern by thepetiteknitter.

Jill knit these “Shetland Solstice” hats for her granddaughters with KW Camper, a fingering weight version of Scout that’s superb for colorwork. Pattern by Gudrun Johnston.

Jill returned to Kelbourne Woolens for her “August Hat,” a free pattern from KW’s Year of Hats. This one was made with Germantown, a sturdy worsted weight wool. Pattern by Sarah Solomon.

Not long ago, I completed a sample for the shop with KW Erin, a bulky weight Donegal wool. Here’s my “Orla” vest, designed by Kathleen Meehan.

Jaime knit this incredible “Powdermill” cardigan using KW Camper.

Kate Davies’ pattern shines in Jaime’s color palette!

Jaime also used Kelbourne Woolens yarn in her “Tessellated Cardigan,” knit during Nancy’s recent class on Andrea Mowry’s pattern. Jaime used KW Andorra along with Isager Silk Mohair and a few special skeins of her very own handspun.

Thanks to Sandra, Jill, Jaime, and everyone who starts their projects with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We love hearing your ideas and helping you find just the right yarns and tools to realize them. See you at the shop!

Show and tell: little critters.

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Time for another round of show and tell! Sharing finished projects from our crafty community is an ongoing part of our daily Instagram posts, but I have a glorious backlog of projects I want to share here on the blog, too. Today, let’s admire these cute critters!

Rosi knit this “Fox (Knit a Teddy)” with Berroco Ultra Wool, a cozy washable wool that’s perfect for toy-making. Check out the fox wearing a “Raincoat (Knit a Teddy)” below!

Ross also made a “Panda (Knit a Teddy)” dressed as a “Doctor (Knit a Teddy),” using Ewe Ewe Sporty in the perfect scrubs color. Patterns by Sarah Gasson.

This “Tearoom Elephant” is Rosi’s handiwork, too, using Berroco Ultra Wool for the body and a mix of leftover yarns for the outfit. Pattern by Susan Hickson.

Victoria has fallen in love with toy-making, too – so far, she’s made “Mouche the Bear” and “Mina the Pig” from Cinthia Vallet’s oh-so-popular Mouche & Friends: Seamless Toys to Knit and Love. For both of them, Victoria chose CoopKnits Socks Yeah!, a soft and sturdy sock yarn.

Karin knit this “Turtles’ Journey Blanket” with Malabrigo Rios, choosing semisolid hand-dyed colorways to evoke sand, surf, and sea. Pattern by Heather Anderson.

Last but not least, here’s Katherine’s “Cody the Cattle Dog,” crocheted with Kelbourne Woolens Scout.

Thanks to Rosi, Victoria, Karin, Katherine, and everyone who starts their projects with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! We love hearing your ideas and helping you find just the right yarns and tools to realize them. See you at the shop!