Tag Archives: wool

Hello, Tukuwool Fingering.

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We are especially excited to announce our newest yarn: meet Tukuwool Fingering!

Anne and I have been particularly excited about this one. So far this fall, we’ve brought in new yarns from companies we already work with, companies who have become like old friends over the years. Tukuwool is not only a new yarn but a new brand for us, and we’re delighted to have found them!

Tukuwool is based in Finland, just like Laine Magazine, where we first read about them, and their yarns are sourced and produced entirely in Finland.

Tukuwool Fingering is, as its name suggests, a fingering weight blend of Finnsheep and Finnsheep-Texel wool. I looked up these sheep breeds in my precious copy of Clara Parkes’ Knitter’s Book of Wool, and learned that Finnsheep are found in the mediumwool category, where each fiber is a notch thicker than familiar finewools like Merino, Targhee, and Cormo. Still, Finnsheep fiber is soft enough for next-to-skin wear, depending upon one’s preferences, and makes a springy and resilient yarn.

Tukuwool Fingering is woolen-spun, like Brooklyn Tweed Loft, a process which makes both yarns lofty and especially warm for their weight. Tukuwool Fingering is a great substitute for Loft, which opens up a world of patterns for this relatively young yarn. First things first, however – check out the smattering of patterns that have been written expressly for the special yarn at hand, Tukuwool Fingering:

Look for more pattern ideas on our “Fingering weight” Pinterest board. I’ve got something in mind for this yarn, which I’m anxious to get on my needles – but more on that later. Look for Tukuwool Fingering here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, where we hope you find inspiration for your next project! See you there.

New colors in Fibre Company Tundra.

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Last week brought four new colors in the Fibre Company’s fluffy Tundra, a super soft blend of alpaca, merino, and silk.

Thusfar, all the glorious shades of Tundra have been solid, sometimes flickering with a bit of hand-dyed variation. We were surprised and excited to find two new speckled shades in last week’s box, each with its own related solid color.

Tundra is ideal for luxurious winter accessories, so keep it in mind as quick-to-make gifts begin to top your to-do list. Think “Arctic Circle,” “Tallin,” “Twin Leaf Loop,” for everyone loves a cozy cowl, no?

Look for Tundra in the bulky weight section here at the shop!

Hello, Shibui Birch.

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Our newest fall yarn is here! Meet Shibui Birch.

Birch is a single ply 100% extrafine merino wool yarn, soft as cashmere, dyed in 14 of Shibui’s signature colorways.

Each 50 gram skein boasts 262 yards, an especially large number for a sport weight. With a suggested gauge of 26-28 stitches over 4 inches, Birch is on the lighter end of sport weight, and would probably work well in many patterns calling for fingering weight yarns, too.

Anne has just cast on with Birch, and spends her quiet moments at the shop knitting “Icon,” a stockinette wrap decorated with short-row colorblocks. She’s using the colors Mineral, Velvet, and Ivory, a high contrast combination for a striking geometric motif.

I had “Icon” in mind as I unpacked Birch upon its arrival, arranging the colors this way and that, seeking pleasing trios.

The pattern for “Icon” is free when you purchase Shibui Birch from our shop for the project, but it’s not the only design Shibui’s Shellie Anderson has dreamt up for this new yarn. Come by the shop to see the whole Fall/Winter 2017 pattern collection, and expect a preview here on the blog this coming week!

See you at the shop!

Hello, CoopKnits Socks Yeah! DK.

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We’re excited to announce the arrival of another new fall yarn: meet CoopKnits Socks Yeah! DK!

Socks Yeah! DK is a thicker version of CoopKnits Socks Yeah!, from designer Rachel Coopey. Both yarns are smooth, tightly plied blends of superwash merino and nylon, which make them perfect for sock-making, as the name suggests. To that end, Coopey has so far published one pattern for this new yarn, a two-tone pair of socks called “Bob.”

But soft, easy-care DK weight yarns have plenty of applications beyond socks. Baby and children’s things come to mind, little sweaters like Dani Sunshine’s “Pixie Dust,” tincanknits’ “Peanut” and “Tenderheart,” and all the squeezable toys from Ella Austin’s Dovestone Smallholding collection. Also consider Socks Yeah! DK for everyday accessories, like Churchmouse’s classic “Welted Fingerless Gloves” and “Welted Cowl & Infinity Loop,” or Sarah Young’s “Rikke Hat.” 

Look for more pattern ideas on our “DK weight” Pinterest board, and look for CoopKnits Socks Yeah! DK in our DK weight section here at the shop. See you there!

Dream in Color Pop Up! Club.

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We’re happy to announce that we’re participating in Dream in Color’s Pop Up! Club 2017-18! That means that every two months from August to February, we’re getting a special new colorway from Dream in Color, a Tuscon-based producer of small batch hand-dyed yarns.

Our August shipment features Jilly, a fingering weight superwash merino wool with 440 yards on each 100 gram skein. This tightly spun single-ply yarn is soft and smooth, painted with streaks and speckles.

One skein would make an excellent pair of socks, a small cowl or shawlette. Buy two for a generous shawl, or get here soon and scoop up a sweater’s-worth. Jilly should play well with a variety of fingering weight yarns, and could be worked into a “Find Your Fade” shawl or “Confetti” sweater, to name just a few recent patterns that showcase speckled yarns.

Look for this limited edition Pop Up! Club colorway in the fingering weight section here at the shop!

Back in stock: Fyberspates Scrumptious 4ply/Sport.

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Our big fall order from Fyberspates came in last week, and one of the yarns we restocked in a big way is Scrumptious 4ply/Sport.

Scrumptious 4ply/Sport is a soft, shimmering yarn, made of 55% superwash merino and 45% silk. It’s a bit heavy for a fingering, and a bit light for a sport, hence its fractured name. In our shop, you’ll find it in the sport weight section, but don’t rule it out if your pattern calls for fingering weight yarn; look carefully at the pattern gauge and check to see if it falls in the suggested gauge range of Scrumptious 4ply/Sport – between 24 and 28 stitches over 4 inches.

I recently completed a shop sample in Scrumptious 4ply/Sport, Purl Soho’s “Two-Color Cotton Cowl.” Though I knit it on the recommended needle size, I didn’t get the recommended gauge, so it’s a smaller circumference than the pattern intends. Still, it’s a fabric I like, and still long enough to wrap once or twice around one’s neck, so in this case, not getting gauge worked out perfectly. It was my first time doing two-color brioche, which was much less difficult than I imagined, and I’d definitely recommend it as an introduction to the technique.

With all these colors back on our shelves, there are lots of great color pairings to be had. Come by the shop to pick up a couple of skeins of Scrumptious 4ply/Sport for a cowl of your own!

Hello, Isager Jensen Yarn.

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A brand new yarn has arrived from Isager in Denmark! Meet Jensen Yarn.

Jensen Yarn is named for Danish knitwear designer Ase Lund Jensen, the subject of Marianne Isager’s latest book. It’s a DK weight wool sourced and spun entirely in Denmark, with about 275 yards on each 100 gram skein.

Jensen Yarn is smooth and round, which will give excellent stitch definition for texture and cable patterns. Wooly and toothsome, Jensen Yarn is not the softest fiber in our shop, but it’s sturdy and full of character, sure to wear well for years to come. I can’t wait to work with it!

Look for pattern ideas on our “DK weight” Pinterest board, and look for Jensen Yarn in the DK weight section here at the shop!

Brooklyn Tweed Vale Trunk Show!

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We are delighted to announce that a new trunk show from Brooklyn Tweed is here to spend a couple of weeks at our shop. Come by before August 20th to see the Vale Collection!

The Vale Collection features five garments: four popular lace patterns from the Brooklyn Tweed archives that have been revised for Vale, and one brand new design from Jared Flood.

The old favorites are “Girasole,” “Rock Island,” “Bridgewater,” and “Lucca,” classic lace shawls in a variety of shapes. “Gully” is the newest pattern, a brioche cowl that takes just one skein of Vale.

Seeing this collection in person is a treat, and really highlights the quality of the yarn. Vale is a lace weight Rambouillet wool, with 450 yards on each 50 gram skein. It’s worsted-spun for a smooth yarn with sharp stitch definition, one that’s spectacularly bouncy in the skein and in the knitted fabric.

These exquisite pieces are on display here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop until August 20th, and while they’re here, we’re offering 10% off purchases of Brooklyn Tweed Vale. Hurry in to see the show and soak up some lace knitting inspiration!

Just a reminder–all sales are final on discounted items; there can be no exchanges or returns. Thanks!

Back in stock: Classy mini-skeins.

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Dream in Color Classy mini-skeins are back in stock!

Dream in Color only occasionally produces these 50-yard mini-skeins of their worsted weight superwash wool, Classy, and the color selection is different every time.

It’s fun to see a mix of new colors and old favorites with each shipment, and even more fun to arrange them in 8-skein combinations for “Technicolor Cowls.”

Nancy Leuer’s “Technicolor Cowl” is a simple but entertaining project with a focus on color.

It’s knit in the round, with stripes of stockinette and reverse stockinette that make a squishy, textured fabric from this springy superwash merino yarn. The pattern is free when you purchase eight Dream in Color Classy mini-skeins for the project.

Look for Dream in Color Classy mini-skeins in the worsted weight section, and have fun picking colors for a “Technicolor Cowl” of your own!

Hello, Brooklyn Tweed Vale.

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We’re happy to announce that Brooklyn Tweed’s newest yarn is here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop! Meet Vale.

Vale is a lace weight Rambouillet wool, with 450 yards on each 50 gram skein. Like all Brooklyn Tweed yarns, Vale is entirely sourced, spun, and dyed in the US, reflecting the company’s steadfast allegiance to domestic textiles.

Vale has a lot in common with Arbor: the fiber is worsted-spun for a smooth yarn with sharp stitch definition, then skein-dyed at the Saco River Dyehouse in Maine. Some of their colorways overlap, appearing in both Vale and Arbor, but there are some new shades unique to Vale, delicate pastels in particular.

Arbor and Vale are also spectacularly bouncy in the skein and in the hand, full of elasticity – one of my favorite yarn qualities.

To welcome their exciting new yarn, Brooklyn Tweed has revised several of their popular lace patterns for Vale. Old favorites “Girasole,” “Rock Island,” “Bridgewater,” and “Lucca” shine in Vale, and so does Jared Flood’s newest design, “Gully.” This one-skein brioche cowl pattern is free with a purchase of Vale until June 30th, 2017.

Look for Vale in the Lace weight section here at the shop!