Tag Archives: self-striping

Show and tell: stripes of all kinds.

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Time for another round of show and tell! We love seeing what folks are making with yarn from the Hillsborough Yarn Shop – here are a bunch of projects we’ve had the pleasure of seeing in person, featuring stripes of all kinds.

Above is Cindy’s “Bat Shawl,” a pattern from Lotta H Löthgren’s Observations. She used Dream in Color Smooshy Cashmere and Malabrigo Ultimate Sock, a perfect match that shows off the slip stitch texture.

Here’s Michele’s “Stripes of Joy” pullover, knit with Malabrigo Rios leftover from various other projects. Pattern by Tif Neilan.

Above is April’s “Pressed Flowers Pullover,” knit with BC Garn Loch Lomond and self-striping Noro Silk Garden Light. Pattern by Amy Christoffers.

Margaretta made this “Shadow Stripe Pullover” with a lovely mix of high and low contrast stripes, a mix of Brooklyn Tweed Tones Light and Loft. Pattern by Jared Flood.

I knit this newborn-sized sweater as a sample for the shop when Kelbourne Woolens Skipper came out last year. The pattern is “French Macaroon,” by Noble Knits, a free download from Ravelry.

Robin saw my “French Macaroon” hanging here at the shop and was inspired to make her own – she modified it into a cardigan and sewed matching baby pants!

Thanks to Cindy, Michele, April, Margaretta, and Robin for sharing their work with us! We love to see what you make with our yarns, and can’t wait to see what comes off your needles next.

Capital Luxury Sport + Zauberwolle.

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The newest arrivals to our sport weight section are Neighborhood Capital Luxury Sport and a restock of Schoppel-Wolle Zauberwolle, and they look like friends to me. Combining semisolid shades with self-striping yarn makes for exciting colorwork, whether stranded, striped, mosaic, or brioche.

What to make with these color pairs? Here are some ideas!

Sweaters:

Accessories:

Look for Capital Luxury Sport and Zauberwolle in the sport weight section here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop – we’re open from 11am – 5:30pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays! We’re still taking online orders for local pickup or shipping, as well.

Back in stock: Zauberwolle.

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We refilled our baskets of Zauberwolle this week – check out all the new colors!

Schoppel-Wolle Zauberwolle:

  • sport weight
  • marled, self-striping
  • 100% merino wool
  • 273 yards/100 g
  • $23 each

Like other Schoppel-Wolle yarns we’ve carried, Zauberwolle is a marled yarn that slowly changes from one color to the next several yards at a time, so that whatever you’re knitting or crocheting with it comes out striped. These colorful balls of yarn entertain you as you stitch – when will the new color start? Just one more row…

Any two of these would make a great “Inclinations Cowl,” by Andrea Mowry – here are some more ideas for Zauberwolle:

Speaking of Andrea Mowry, I knit her “Flicker & Flame” hat with Zauberwolle earlier this year, choosing Kelbourne Woolens Andorra in Snow White for the Main Color.

Look for Zauberwolle in the sport weight section here at our shop – we’re open 11am-5:30pm, Tuesdays-Saturdays, and we do require masks for entry. Thanks for your cooperation and support!

Zauberwolle + solid colors.

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Schoppel-Wolle Zauberwolle is the latest arrival here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, a marled self-striping merino wool. I wrote in its introductory post about mixing two contrasting colors, but Zauberwolle plays well with solid colors, too. Read on for some color and pattern ideas!

Here, I’ve paired Zauberwolle with Swans Island All American Sport – a hand-dyed yarn, so you can expect a little bit of variation in the skein, but an overall semisolid effect.

Swans Island All American Sport: sport weight, hand-dyed, 100% Rambouillet wool, 185 yards/40 g; $12.50 each

Kelbourne Woolens Andorra is a great playmate for Zauberwolle, too – a soft and slightly fuzzy blend of merino and highland wool with a dash of mohair.

Kelbourne Woolens Andorra: sport weight, 60% merino, 20% highland wool, 20% mohair, 185 yards/50 g; $12 each

What to make with these color pairs? Here are some ideas!

Sweaters:

Accessories:

Look for Zauberwolle, All American Sport, and Andorra in the sport weight section here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop – we’re open from 11am – 5:30pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays! We’re still taking online orders for local pickup or shipping, as well.

Hello, Zauberwolle!

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Meet the newest arrival here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop: Schoppel-Wolle Zauberwolle.

Schoppel-Wolle Zauberwolle:

  • sport weight
  • marled, self-striping
  • 100% merino wool
  • 273 yards/100 g
  • $23 each

Like other Schoppel-Wolle yarns we’ve carried, Zauberwolle is a marled yarn that slowly changes from one color to the next several yards at a time, so that whatever you’re knitting or crocheting with it comes out striped.

One fun way to use self striping yarn is to combine two contrasting colorways. When two self striping yarns are striped against one another, it creates multiple levels of stripes and gradations of color in the finished piece. The premise is simple but the effect is impressive, and works well with mosaic patterns and stranded colorwork, too!

To that end, here are some pattern ideas for Zauberwolle:

Zauberwolle plays well with others, too – more on that in an upcoming blog post!

Back in stock: Zauberball Crazy.

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After nearly selling out of the stuff during our July sale, Schoppel-Wolle Zauberball Crazy is back!

Zauberball Crazy is a marled fingering weight yarn that slowly changes from one color to the next several yards at a time, so that whatever you’re knitting or crocheting with it comes out striped.

I love to see patterns that set off a self-striping yarn with a solid color – it can break up the stripes, softening the appearance, or draw attention to the construction of the garment. Here are a few pattern ideas:

We’re happy to help you find just the right solid color to set off the Zauberball Crazy in your next project, sending photos of several options, helping calculate yardage, and so on. We also keep the single-ply Schoppel-Wolle Zauberball in stock, along with the sport weight Zauberball Starke 6 – get in touch with questions or to place an order!

Sale Spotlight: Kauni Effektgarn.

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Everything in our shop is 15% off during July, our Annual Inventory Sale! All month, I’ll be shining a spotlight on the yarns we have in stock – today, let’s look at Kauni Effektgarn!

Kauni Effektgarn:

  • sport weight
  • 2 ply, self-striping
  • 100% wool
  • 440 yards/100 grams – sold in 140, 150, and 160 gram balls
  • prices vary by weight – $29 – $36 each

Kauni is unique even among its fellow self-striping yarns at the shop for its long stretches of color. It can be difficult to visualize exactly how the colors are going to play out in a gradually self-striping yarn like Kauni – this octopus-like book of swatches helps, showing what each colorway looks like when it’s knit up.

This kind of yarn lends itself to patterns shaped with short rows, like “Wingspan,” “Dreambird,” and “Bermuda Scarf,” where the changing color highlights the construction of the piece.

Order online for local pickup or shipping via USPS Priority Mail!

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

Sale Spotlight: Noro Silk Garden Lite.

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Everything in our shop is 15% off during July, our Annual Inventory Sale! All month, I’ll be shining a spotlight on the yarns we have in stock – today, let’s look at Noro Silk Garden Lite!

Noro Silk Garden Lite:

  • DK weight
  • single ply, self-striping
  • 45% mohair, 45% silk, 10% wool
  • 136 yards/50 grams
  • $12 each

Silk Garden Lite is a DK weight yarn that slowly changes from one color to the next several yards at a time, so that whatever you’re knitting or crocheting with it comes out striped. This bias-knit “Argosy” scarf that hangs in our shop shows this well.

Scrolling through Ravelry, I saw that over 300 knitters had used Silk Garden Lite for Jared Flood’s “Noro Striped Scarf,” though the now-classic pattern calls for a heavier yarn.

For “Noro Striped Scarf,” pick two different colors of Silk Garden Lite, two balls each. Not only do the yarns make stripes, but the scarf itself is striped, for a simple knit with big visual impact.

Order online for local pickup or shipping via USPS Priority Mail!

 

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

Back in stock: Zauberball.

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Last week brought a colorful box of yarn our way – hello again, Zauberball!

Schoppel-Wolle Zauberball is a single ply fingering weight yarn that slowly changes from one color to the next several yards at a time, so that whatever you’re knitting or crocheting with it comes out striped.

While we were at it, we refilled our baskets of Crazy Zauberball and Starke 6, which are also self-striping, in fingering and sport weight, respectively. The 2-ply construction of these yarns gives the finished fabric a marled look.

All three of these yarns are great for sock-knitting, as they share the same sturdy fiber content: 75% superwash wool, 25% nylon. They’re also well-suited to shawls, however – think “Wingspan,” “Hitchhiker,” and “Daybreak.” Look for more ideas on our Fingering weight and Sport weight Pinterest boards, and come by the shop to scoop up a Zauberball or two!

Back in stock: Kauni Effektgarn.

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While we like to keep a decent supply of Kauni Effektgarn on hand, our stock had dwindled recently. Where there was usually a nice selection of colors, from quiet neutrals to bold brights, there were just four or five balls of yarn looking lonesome in their cubby. A shipment arrived this week that brightened up that cubby and indeed, the shop – Kauni Effektgarn is back in stock!

Kauni is a sport-weight, self-striping wool, unique even among its fellow self-striping yarns at the shop for its long stretches of color.

This kind of yarn lends itself to patterns shaped with short rows, like “Wingspan,” “Dreambird,” and “Bermuda Scarf,” where the changing color highlights the construction of the piece.

Kauni Effektgarn is also often used in mosaic knitting and stranded colorwork, like the “Dovetail Shawl” and “Autumn” cardigan. Double knitting and brioche can work nicely with this yarn, too – see the “Rainbow Scarf” and “Humboldt Scarf.”

One of the simplest ways to use Kauni Effektgarn is also one of the most appealing – stripes. When you go back and forth between two different self-striping colorways, you get a mesmerizing stripes-on-stripes effect. So many wonderful patterns use Kauni this way – check out the “Wiggle Wrap,” “Color Wave Shawl,” and “Point Beach.”

We’re thrilled to have these Kauni colors back in stock, and to see what kinds of projects you’ll dream up for them! See you at the shop!