Tag Archives: colorwork

Allover, by Kate Davies.

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Kate Davies’ newest book is here! Let’s look inside Allover ($28).

Allover is a vibrant collection of colorwork garments and accessories, drawing inspiration from the colorwork traditions of Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Shetland.

Many of the patterns are shown and charted in multiple colorways, offering a glimpse into the limitless possibilities of each design – the same pattern can have a totally different look and feel in a different set of colors!

Come by the shop to browse this and other Kate Davies books – she’s a favorite of ours, so we do try to keep her books in good stock! Currently we have Inkling, Bluestockings, Yokes, Milarrochy Heids, Warm Hands, Argyll’s Secret Coast, Shore, Colours of Shetland, The Book of Haps, and Davies’ memoir, Handywoman. 

See you at the shop!

Modern Daily Knitting Field Guide No. 23: Glow.

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The twenty third installment of the Modern Daily Knitting Field Guide series is here!

MDK’s series of Field Guides are pocket-sized booklets focused on a particular theme, knitting technique, or designer. This newest Field Guide features designs by Arne & Carlos – let’s take a look inside!

Arne & Carlos are known for their colorful, richly patterned designs, which bring a playful sensibility to Norwegian knitting traditions.

All four of the patterns in this Field Guide feature stranded colorwork, clearly a favorite technique of Arne & Carlos. Ease into it with a hat or neck warmer, embellish your mittens with embroidery, or dive into a pullover for a cozy winter-long project.

DK weight yarn is used for all of these, and we have loads to choose from – Brooklyn Tweed Arbor and Dapple, Kelbourne Woolens Scout, Fibre Co. Lore, Isager Jensen, Berroco Ultra Wool DK, and more.

MDK Field Guides are $15.95 each; order online for local pickup or shipping, or come by to shop in person – we’re open from 11am – 5:30 pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays!

The Knitted Fabric, by Dee Hardwicke.

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Another gorgeous book from Laine! Let’s look inside The Knitted Fabric, by Dee Hardwicke ($50).

Dee Hardwicke is an artist and designer who works in multiple media, including chinaware, mosaics, stationery, and knitting. No matter the mode or material, Hardwicke’s work is colorful, and reflects her great love of the British landscape.

The Knitted Fabric is a collection of colorwork projects for you and your home, a mix of garments and accessories, pillows and blankets.

Throughout the collection, Hardwicke shares the process and practice of design, the paintings and sketches and iterations that became the patterns in the book.

She invites readers and knitters to customize these colorwork designs as well, to enjoy the patterns by playing with different colors and motifs, as well as scale.

Swing by the shop to pick up a copy of The Knitted Fabric, and browse all our other books and magazines – inspiring publications like these make lovely gifts for knitters, especially with a Hillsborough Yarn Shop gift certificate tucked inside!

Knitted Kalevala, by Jenna Kostet.

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Let’s peek inside the newest book from Laine!

Knitted Kalevala ($45) is a book of colorwork patterns inspired by Kalevala, a collection of mythic poems and folklore of Finland. The Kalevala is full of ancient symbols, mythical creatures, and nature, which you’ll see reflected in Jenna Kostet’s patterns.

The garments and accessories of Knitted Kalevala are decorated in striking large scale colorwork motifs in a range of gauges – here’s one in Isager Jensen, a rustic wool you’ll find in the DK weight section here at our shop.

The poetry and stories of the Kalevala are interspersed with the patterns, making this book an intriguing read.

Knitted Kalevala is $45 – look for it here at our shop, among the latest publications. We’re also happy to take your order online for local pickup or shipping!

HYS Color Club: Shelter + Rockfall Hat.

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HYS Color Club members just got their first project for Autumn!

Inside the bag, there are 4 skeins of Brooklyn Tweed Shelter to knit a “Rockfall Hat,” by Tin Can Knits. We included an addi knitting thimble, too!

“Rockfall Hat,” by Tin Can Knits, photo © tincanknits

Shelter is one of my very favorite yarns in the shop, a worsted weight, woolen spun Targhee-Columbia wool that comes in over 45 colors, so I had great fun selecting HYS Color Club colorways. Here’s a combination in each of the color palettes – Warm, Cool, Neutral, and Surprise.

We also have the shades of Shelter shown in Tin Can Knits’ pattern photos, relatively low contrast color combinations – the large scale of these motifs mean that the pattern shows clearly even when some of the colors are similar in value.

I made a “Rockfall Hat” earlier this year, when the new solid shades of Shelter first came out – look for this sample in the worsted weight section next time you’re here at the shop!

Shelter + Color Story.

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Brooklyn Tweed’s vibrant new shades in Shelter have us itching for colorwork, and Tif Neilan’s new “Color Story” sweater looks like the perfect project!

“Color Story,” by Tif Neilan, photo © Tif Neilan

This five color, top down, short sleeved pullover encourages playful, intuitive color combinations. Neilan has selected a light neutral background color and four shades dark enough to contrast against it – here’s a similar palette in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter.

I had fun putting together a few more “Color Story” colorways, sticking with a light background color, but varying the value of the contrast colors a bit.

Between the solid and heathered shades, Shelter now comes in over 45 colors, so there’s lots to choose from – look for Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in the worsted weight section here at our shop, along with Tones, Ranch 02, and much more! We’re open from 11-5:30, Tuesdays-Saturdays; masks required for entry.

The Nordic Knitting Primer, by Kristin Drysdale.

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We’re excited to have a new book on the teacart here at the shop – let’s take a look at Kristin Drysdale’s Nordic Knitting Primer!

Drysdale is a designer known for colorwork patterns inspired by her Scandinavian heritage. This is her first book, a step-by-step guide to Scandinavian colorwork, with patterns for all ages and genders, and a few projects for the home.

The patterns are arranged from simplest to most complex, building skills along the way, and clearly showing each technique in photo tutorials.

Flipping through the book, I spotted a few of our favorite yarns – the “Eva Jumper” and “Linnea Pullover” in Brooklyn Tweed Arbor, and “Kristiania,” “Maja Pullover,” and “Magnus Pullover” in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter. These are excellent yarns for colorwork knitting, and we have many more to suit the projects in this book!

The Nordic Knitting Primer is $22.99 and available here at the shop – swing by between 11am – 5:30 pm, Tuesdays – Saturdays, or order online for local pickup or shipping!

Colorwork tams.

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It’s been a few years since I knit Sandy Blue’s “Autumn Tam,” but it’s still getting plenty of attention here at our shop.

This intricate colorwork hat is knit with 10 shades of Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift, the fingering weight wool in this showstopping display.

What I remember most about knitting this “Autumn Tam” is how fun it was so watch the colors come together.

There are such subtle differences between some of these shades, and designer Sandy Blue arranged them so thoughtfully – it was entertaining just to see what she did with them, and notice how they related in the knitted fabric.

At the moment, we have all 10 shades needed for the “Autumn Tam,” and those for Blue’s “Midnight Sun Tam,” as well.

Look for Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift and Sandy Blue’s patterns at our shop! Seeking other colorwork patterns for Spindrift? Check out my blog post from February, there’s a nice list of ideas there.

Bonnie Isle Hat.

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We’re so excited about “Bonnie Isle Hat,” Shetland Wool Week’s featured pattern for 2022!

“Bonnie Isle Hat,” by Linda Shearer, photo © Linda Shearer

This five-color fair isle hat is currently available as a free pattern download from the Shetland Wool Week website. A new Shetland Wool Week hat pattern is something I look forward to every year, so I downloaded it as soon as it was available, and then went straight to our Jamieson’s of Shetland Spindrift to play the color game. I spent some time putting together five color combinations, inspired by the five colorways shown in the pattern.

Yarn bundles for “Bonnie Isle Hat” are $50.40 – 6 balls of Shetland Spindrift (2 in the main color, and 1 each in 4 contrast colors) at $8.40 per ball. We just got a fresh delivery of Shetland Spindrift with this project in mind, so all five colourways are currently in stock – come see us or get in touch if you’d like to order a “Bonnie Isle Hat” yarn bundle!

Traditions Revisited: Modern Estonian Knits, by Aleks Byrd.

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Let’s peek inside the newest book from Laine!

Traditions Revisited: Modern Estonian Knits is designer Aleks Byrd’s introduction to Estonian knitting techniques, a collection of richly textured garments and accessories.

Knitted fringe, braids, and bobbles adorn these colorful pieces, along with twisted stitches and roosimine, an Estonian inlay technique that creates the look of embroidery.

Traditions Revisited is $43 – look for it here at our shop, among the latest publications. We’re also happy to take your order online for local pickup or shipping!