Tag Archives: classes

Virtual knitting classes with Pam Grushkin!

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We are pleased to have partnered with Pam Grushkin, a nationally recognized designer and teacher, to offer Virtual Knitting Classes with Pam Grushkin™ !

We have dearly missed having classes here at our shop since we closed our doors at the start of the pandemic. While we’re open for appointment shopping, we’re still not quite ready to open our classroom. Virtual classes, however, are a safe and accessible alternative, and Grushkin’s class offerings look a lot like those we used to fill our own calendar with – learn to knit, magic loop socks, brioche, shawls, sweaters, and more.

When Grushkin approached us offering a 10% discount for our knitters, we were delighted to help connect our community with her virtual knitting classes. Head to her website to check out the current class offerings and enroll, using our special coupon code for 10% off:

HillsboroughYarn-NC-10

Brooklyn Tweed Sample of the Month: Orime.

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Our Brooklyn Tweed Sample of the Month for February is here! Come by this month to see “Orime.”

“Orime” is a short sleeved top designed by Veronik Avery for BT Early Fall 2018. It features knit stitches arranged diagonally on a background of reverse stockinette, a folded collar and neckline facing for structure and a professional look.

Amy is offering a class on it, to guide you through the fit, construction, and finishing details – read all about it on our Classes page!

“Orime” is knit with Peerie, Brooklyn Tweed’s fingering weight merino. It comes in 45 colors, so there’s plenty to choose from. Even better, we’re offering them at 10% off during February – come by soon to take advantage of this discount!

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

The Weekender KAL: show and tell.

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Back in April 2019, Anne and I embarked on an informal knit-along, knitting Andrea Mowry’s “The Weekender” sweater and inviting anyone and everyone to join us. We were delighted that so many folks were inspired to make the sweater, each bringing their own style and taste to this simple design, each knitting at their own pace. Some finished right away and then had to wait patiently for sweater weather to arrive, others signed up for Amy’s Weekender class to have her guidance as they knit along through the fall and winter. Many are still knitting, and we’re looking forward to seeing their sweaters in use this winter or next. As far as I’m concerned, our KAL has no end-date, so consider this round of Weekender KAL show and tell the first of many!

Michele was the first to finish. She knit her “Weekender” with Debbie Bliss Luxury Tweed she picked up on sale a few years ago, putting that sweater quantity to good use.

Here’s Debbie in her “Weekender,” knit with Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in Snowbound, BT’s softest gray. Something about the reverse stockinette seems to let the heathered colorway shine – flecks of dark gray and black pop out from the overall light color, giving a simple stitch pattern more interest.

Anne and I had our own “Weekenders” on display at the shop all through the fall, and in fact, hers is still hanging – I was excited to wear mine and brought it home last month! Anne’s is on the left, knit with Shelter in Soot, and mine is on the right, knit with Kelbourne Woolens Scout in Sunflower Heather.

Amy is well into teaching a handful of classes on “The Weekender,” and so finished hers in a productive flurry of preparation for teaching. She used Shelter in the marled Caraway color, a good match for this design, with its plain texture and simple shape. She also modified the neckline for a turtleneck, and opted to knit the entire body in the round and steek the armhole openings – very clever!

Many thanks to Michele, Debbie, and Amy for sharing their sweaters and knitting along with us! We know there are many other Weekenders in various stages of completion out there in our HYS knitting community – let us know how it’s going, we can’t wait to see you all in your sweaters!

Koigu Collector’s Club: Tulips.

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The Koigu Collector’s Club continues! Each month, we’ll receive 21 skeins of KPPPM in a limited edition color dyed especially for a select group of local yarn stores that carry Koigu.

May’s special colorway is called Tulips, a riot of greens with flecks of other bright colors dyed on KPPPM, Koigu’s signature fingering weight superwash merino.

This highly variegated colorway has so many different colors in it! I had fun pairing it up with solid shades in other fingering weight yarns, thinking of Andrea Mowry’s brioche “Harlow” hat, which Amy is teaching in an upcoming class here at the shop. Brooklyn Tweed Peerie and Shibui Staccato are both wonderfully soft, come in a range of rich solid shades, and are the right gauge for pairing with Koigu KPPPM.

Peerie, with its stellar elasticity, is perhaps especially well-suited to the “Harlow” hat, if your interest is piqued by that pattern. Head to our Classes page to sign up now for a fun introduction to two-color brioche!

Other two-color projects that you might consider include Craig Rosenfeld’s “Drea’s Shawl,” Stephen West’s “All the Angles” and “Clockwork,” or Christy Kamm’s “ZickZack Scarf.”

Tulips and Riviera are a nice match to my eye – two limited edition colorways aligned!

Look for Tulips in our fingering weight section here at the shop. See you there!

Back on the shelf: Knitting Ganseys.

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Beth Brown-Reinsel’s Knitting Ganseys is back on our shelves! This classic book was revised and updated last year, and after selling out of two orders, we’re delighted to have a fresh stack of them on our teacart here at the shop.

Originally published 25 years ago, Knitting Ganseys is a book of knitting history as well as knitting patterns. Ganseys were traditionally worn by Scottish and British fisherman during the 19th century, designed to be hard-wearing and comfortable, but decorated with intricate texture patterns.

In the book, Beth Brown-Reinsel shares some of the history of this classic garment, then explains how to knit a traditional gansey on a smaller scale for practice. She covers all the techniques required, from cast-ons and stitch patterns to fit and finish.

Our friend and teacher, Nancy, has recently taken a class with Beth Brown-Reinsel and wants to share what she’s learned in an upcoming class here at our shop. Focusing on the “Newhaven” pullover, students in her class will learn about traditional gansey construction and techniques. Head to our Classes page to learn more about it, and sign up now if you’d like to attend!

Look for Knitting Ganseys here at the shop!

Roadside Beanie kits.

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The shop is buzzing with excitement about the “Roadside Beanie,” Shetland Wool Week’s featured pattern for 2019. Nancy will be teaching a class on it, and we’ve just made up kits in several colorways with Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift.

The pattern shows the hat in four different Shetland yarns, including one in Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift. I’ve made up several kits in the suggested Shetland Spindrift colorway, another in shades similar to the Jamieson & Smith colorway, and two more of Anne’s design – shades of gray with pops of blue or purple.

Come by the shop to pick out a kit, or select your own color combination – we keep over 100 shades of Shetland Spindrift in stock, so the possibilities are plentiful.

See you there!

Old and new patterns from Churchmouse.

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We got a new bundle of Churchmouse patterns in!

For some years now, we’ve carried knitting and crochet patterns from Churchmouse Yarns & Teas, a lovely yarn shop in Washington State. Their designs are known for being user-friendly and elegantly understated, the better to show off good quality yarns. Our most recent order features knitting patterns for a variety of garments and accessories – hats and socks, vests and cardigans, even a skirt.

The “Ribbed Beanie” and “Basic Socks” below are the subjects of upcoming classes here at the shop – check our Classes page to see all the exciting things on our schedule!

Come by the shop to see our full selection of single patterns – we have many binders full of them! It’s great to be able to read through a pattern before you buy it, to get a sense of what you’re getting into. Ask us if you’re looking for something special, and we’ll be happy to help you find it!

Show and tell: from the classroom.

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As of today, the shop is closed for a Thanksgiving break. Those of us who work and teach at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop are taking time to be with family and friends, to relax and take note of what we’re grateful for. One thing we are particularly thankful for is the community of makers that has grown in and around the shop, especially through our teachers and their good work in the classroom. With that in mind, here’s some show and tell – knitting projects completed during classes here at our shop.

Here’s Trich modeling her “Ilia” cardigan, a labor of love she completed during a class with Marsha. This intricately cabled garment was designed by Michele Wang for Brooklyn Tweed and knit with their Loft yarn, and Trich did a skillful job knitting it.  

Leslie was among the first in Amy’s class to complete her “Sammal,” a cardigan that looked simpler than it turned out to be for many knitters. She pushed through the short row shaping and textured stitch pattern that was tricky to read on the needles and wound up with a perfectly-fitting garment. Tukuwool Fingering was the suggested yarn and Leslie liked it so much, she came back for more when this sweater was done!

Gwen tried her hand at a few different colorwork techniques during Robin’s class on the “Yipes Stripes Cowl.” I love the colors of Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted she chose for this project, a mix of brights and pastels that really make the various patterns pop.

Linda knit this “Galloway” cardigan during Amy’s class on the subject, taking one of Jared Flood’s suggested colorways and tweaking it by substituting a bright teal for a medium blue. She knit it with the recommended yarn, Brooklyn Tweed Shelter, and the result is something special, a sweater that fits just how she wanted in colors she loves. Great job on your knitting and steeking, Linda!

Many thanks to our teachers and to all the knitters who challenge themselves to learn something new in classes here at our shop. We love seeing what you make and watching as you grow your skills! Check out our Classes page for information about upcoming courses – you can sign up online if you’d like to attend.

Happy Thanksgiving to all, we’ll look forward to opening the shop again on Tuesday, November 27th.

Show and tell: colorful shawls.

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Time for another round of show and tell! We always love seeing what you make with our yarns, and lately I’ve had the pleasure of seeing and photographing more finished projects than I can share in one blog post. For today, let’s look at some colorful shawls that started life as yarn on our shelves.

Above is Donita’s “Wisdom Wrap,” knit with Alchemy Silken Straw and Sanctuary. She brought it in to show us before felting, which will transform this partly-wool shawl from a colorblock rectangle to a softer, more organic shape – we can’t wait to see it after she takes the leap!

Gwen loves working with Ewe Ewe yarns. She’s worked with Baa Baa Bulky and Wooly Worsted before, and has come back to the latter to make the “Whenever Wrap” above. With so many exciting yarns to choose from, this return to the same yarn for multiple projects is quite the endorsement!

Nancy recently knit this “Butterfly / Papillon” shawl with Brooklyn Tweed’s newest yarn, Peerie, and is preparing to teach a class on the subject here at the shop.

Many of the “Butterfly / Papillon” projects on Ravelry have been made with self-striping or hand-dyed yarns, so it’s particularly striking to see Nancy’s solid color version. I’m looking forward to seeing the shawls that come out of her class!

Nancy’s next project is another colorful shawl, Felicity Ford’s “Efflorescent,” from her latest book, Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Playbook. The swatches below were knit with Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift, and show two of the three colorways for “Efflorescent,” more class prep. Read more about Nancy’s upcoming class on our Classes page – there are still a few spaces if you’d like to attend!

Many thanks to the talented knitters who shared the projects above, and to everyone who starts their projects with a trip to the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. We love seeing what you make!

The Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Playbook.

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Meet Felicity Ford’s Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Playbook! 

A sequel of sorts to her Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Sourcebook of a few years ago, this Playbook picks up where she left off, transforming the imagery of daily life into stranded colorwork projects.

Ford’s colorwork is surprising, whimsical, and often collaborative, like the knitted correspondence above, or the tarmac-inspired bunting below.

Above all, Ford’s designs and ideas are playful, and invite knitters to play along. Her book does include patterns, but encourages knitters to adapt them to their own tastes and ideas.

Our friend and teacher, Nancy, recently met Felicity Ford at Meg Swansen’s Knitting Camp and came away inspired to make the “Efflorescent” shawl from Ford’s Playbook. She’s leading a class on the subject here at our shop, and we couldn’t be more excited to see the shawls that will emerge from it – sign up now if you’d like to attend!

Look for the Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Playbook on the teacart here at the shop, where a variety of new books and magazines are waiting to inspire you. See you at the shop!