New from MJ Yarns, part 2.

Posted by Julia on January 2, 2017

I’ll continue this virtual unpacking of our recent MJ Yarns shipment with the newest yarn at the shop: say hello to the Simple Sock mini-skeins.

These 50 yard mini-skeins are semi-solid colors hand-dyed on a fingering weight blend of Corriedale wool and nylon, machine-washable and sturdy enough for socks.

They’re perfect for small, decorative projects, like Churchmouse’s “Jolly Wee Elf,” Kate Gagnon Osborn’s “Holiday Cheer Ornaments,” Tanis Lavalee’s “Love You Forever” hearts, or Anna Hrachovec’s “Tiny Fox” and “Tiny Owl.”

Any of you out there working on “Beekeeper’s Quilts” with your fingering weight leftovers? A handful of Simple Sock mini-skeins could augment your collection, provide a little pop of color. The smallest toddler size of Kathryn Folkerth’s “Badlands Mitts” calls for just 50 yards, too!

Mini-skeins like these are also well-suited to striped or fair-isle socks or mitts, many-colored shawls, hats, or cowls. Consider Melanie Berg’s “Solaris,” Martina Behm’s “Leftie,” and Joji Locatelli’s “Fine Tune.” Here are a couple of combinations I dreamed up with no particular pattern in mind, just an impulse to play with the colors at hand.

Look for a basket full of MJ Yarns Simple Sock mini-skeins in the fingering weight section here at the shop, and create color combinations all your own! See you there.

New from MJ Yarns, part 1.

Posted by Julia on December 29, 2016

A couple of weeks ago, we got a big box from MJ Yarns in Lafayette, Colorado. It was stuffed with colorful hand-dyed yarns, half of them new shades in a familiar base and the other half a new yarn altogether. For today, we’ll look at that first half: new colors in Opulent Fingering.

Opulent Fingering is a tightly-plied blend of 80% superwash merino, 10% cashmere, and 10% nylon, with 416 yards on each 100 gram skein. It’s perfect for a special pair of socks, a cowl, shawl, or pair of mitts.

MJ Yarns specializes in variegated and semi-solid colorways, some of which have short color runs to minimize pooling. Others, like the shades in the new Weird Sisters line, are dyed specifically with pooling in mind, and create a unique spiral stripe throughout socks, mitts, or other small circumference knits.

The Weird Sisters’ color names are as colorful as the skeins, inspired by the witches from Shakespeare’s Macbeth. For more information about how to manipulate the colors in these unique skeins, along with a free sock pattern, head to the MJ Yarns website. I also spotted the “Weird Sisters Hat” on Ravelry, a simple stockinette number designed to show off these very colorways.

Look for Opulent Fingering in the fingering weight section here at the shop, and keep your eye on the blog to see what else was in our box from MJ Yarns! See you at the shop.

Hello, Swans Island Firefly.

Posted by Julia on December 21, 2016

A special new yarn arrived at the shop a few weeks ago: meet Firefly, from the Swans Island Ikat Collection.

These unique skeins are hand-dyed using an Indonesian dyeing technique called Ikat. Hanks of undyed merino wool are tied tightly in a few places with cord, and the portions of the skeins that are wrapped resist the dye, creating little white flecks on a semi-solid background.

The yarn looks quite different in knitted fabric than it does in the skein; a wound ball of Firefly offers a little preview of how the color plays out.

Each 100 gram skein of this yarn boasts 525 yards, plenty for a pair of mitts, a hat, cowl, or shawl. Stacy McCrea Warner designed “Aurora,” a set of mitts, hat, and cowl for Firefly using a trio of colors.

Patterns with simple stitch patterns will allow this speckled yarn to shine; think “Hitchhiker,” “Stonington Hat,” or “Still Waters Cowl.” Look for Firefly in the fingering weight section here at the shop – see you there!

CoopKnits Socks Yeah! Volume One.

Posted by Julia on December 11, 2016

Rachel Coopey’s newest book has been out a few weeks now, and selling quickly here at the shop. We’ve got a stack of copies on the teacart again, so I figured it’s time to give it a proper introduction here on the blog. Let’s take a peek inside CoopKnits Socks Yeah! Volume One.

Coopey is a prolific designer, seeming never to run out of fresh ideas for sock patterns in particular. This collection features patterns for Coopey’s own yarn, CoopKnits Socks Yeah!, and is sure to keep any sock-knitter interested, with techniques from lace and cables to colorwork and stripes.

Coopey combines colors playfully, bringing unexpected colors together to great effect, no doubt enjoying the newly expanded palette of colors in Socks Yeah! – also freshly stocked here at the shop.

Come by the shop to page through this fun new book, and pick up a few skeins of Socks Yeah! for your next pair. Also check out Marsha’s upcoming class on “Coraline,” one of the cutest patterns of the bunch! Head to our Classes page to sign up.

See you at the shop!

New colors in Canopy Fingering.

Posted by Julia on November 7, 2016

Back in June, we selected new shades in Fibre Company Canopy Fingering, a luxurious fingering weight blend of alpaca, merino, and bamboo. One or two of those colors arrived shortly thereafter, but the rest were on backorder, so our small basket of Canopy Fingering remained nearly-empty. Then just last week, a box arrived from Kelbourne Woolens, packed up tight with our Canopy Fingering order, and this small basket looks so much happier!

Earlier this year, I knit a “3 Color Cashmere Cowl” with Canopy Fingering, and though it contains no cashmere, it’s perfectly suited to the pattern due to its drapey nature and soft hand.

My first impulse upon unpacking these new shades of Canopy Fingering was to make trios with this cowl in mind. Here’s a combination very close to what I used for the cowl above, brightened with a pop of blue: Macaw, Manatee, and Chiclet Tree.

Below are Obsidian, Crocus, and Purple Passion, for those who love purple.

For the next trio, I kept Obsidion for contrast but swapped out the purples for warmer, brighter shades, Red Ginger and Mango.

What colors would you pull from this candy-colored basket? Come by the shop to play the color game as you plan your next project!

New colors in Baa Ram Ewe Titus.

Posted by Julia on November 2, 2016

Yes, those four new shades in Dovestone DK also came in Titus, Baa Ram Ewe’s signature yarn.

Titus is a fingering weight blend of alpaca, wensleydale, and bluefaced leicester wools, sourced and spun entirely in the UK. We’re proud to have been the first US stockist of the stuff, back in 2012 when it came in just one color. Since then, Titus has been warmly embraced by knitters, crocheters, and weavers all over the world, and the palette has expanded considerably. Here’s just a sliver.

Beyond this group of colors, there are a range of blues, neutrals, pastels, and others. This growing collection of shades makes me think colorwork, my favorite knitting technique. To that end, I’m happy to report that we recently got two new colorwork sweater patterns designed for Titus by Marie Wallin.

Look for even more Titus inspiration on our “Fingering weight” Pinterest board. Come by the shop to see the full selection of Titus, and three shop samples knit with this special stuff to give you a tangible sense of the possibilities!

New colors in CoopKnits Socks Yeah!

Posted by Julia on September 27, 2016

Anne and I recently started a Hillsborough Yarn Shop account on Instagram, which means you have another way to keep up with us online if you like. For us, it means we have a new place to browse pretty pictures and find more yarn to order for the shop. It was on Instagram where we first learned that there were new colors to be had in CoopKnits Socks Yeah! We placed an order right away, and I’m happy to report that those pretty new shades have arrived here at the shop!

Developed by avid sock-designer Rachel Coopey, CoopKnits Socks Yeah! is a hard-wearing, machine-washable blend of superwash merino wool and nylon, and it’s put up in 50 gram, 231 yard hanks.

These vibrant new shades are so welcome in the Socks Yeah! palette, which was hungry for higher-contrast combinations. These six shades bring so much to the table: a couple of new dark shades, some bright jewel tones and an unusual pastel.

This newly updated color palette gives us many more options for Coopey’s “Alfrick” socks, a colorwork pattern with a bit of texture on the foot, designed to make a fraternal pair, rather than identical socks. Here are a few ideas!

Remember CoopKnits Socks Yeah! when your fingering weight project requires sharp stitch definition and durability. You’ll find it in the Fingering Weight section here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, in a little treasure box bursting with color. See you there!

New colors from the Fibre Company.

Posted by Julia on September 21, 2016

Unpacking shipments is an exciting part of my work at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. Even if it’s not a new product I’m aching to take home myself, it’s always fun to see what’s in the box, and admire and sort colorful bags of yarn. That said, when the box holds something I do plan to take home, the unpacking is that much more exciting. It was with that extra excitement that I cracked open a big box of yarn from the Fibre Company last week.

This box was packed with new shades in Fibre Company Acadia and Cumbria Fingering, the latter of which was the object of my desire, and the makings of my next sweater.

Cumbria Fingering is a tightly-plied blend of 60% merino wool, 30% masham wool, and 10% mohair. For a yarn so sturdy, it’s awfully soft, and though the mohair makes it slightly fuzzy, it still has fantastic stitch definition.

We’ve seen that nice definition in two new shop samples, mittens from the Kelbourne Woolens Year of Mittens Knit-Along. Marsha knit the “August Mitten” (above) and Amy knit the “September Mitten” (below), which is the subject of an upcoming class. Read more about it and sign up on our Classes page!

The new shades of Acadia are particularly vibrant this season, a saturated little rainbow of six that fits beautifully into our existing selection.

Acadia’s silk slubs give it color and texture interest, so it doesn’t take fancy stitching to make this yarn shine; any one of these shades would make a lovely “Easy Folded Poncho” or pair of “Welted Fingerless Gloves,” simple knits that let the yarn take center stage. Look at Kelbourne Woolens’ Acadia Collection for more ideas.

I’m unpacking an awful lot of boxes these days, as fall is fast approaching and new yarns are arriving daily. Come by the shop to see what’s new from the Fibre Company and all our other favorites!

Hello, Isager Merilin.

Posted by Julia on September 9, 2016

I’m delighted to introduce the newest yarn from Isager. Meet Merilin!

Merilin is a fingering weight blend of 80% merino wool and 20% linen. Those two fibers take the dye differently, giving the yarn a heathered quality which is more pronounced in the darker shades.

The Isager color palette is one of the more distinctive across all the yarn companies we work with. Pastels, neutrals, and muted jewel tones are at the forefront in every Isager yarn, but especially Merilin; the upside to a limited, curated color selection like this is that they all go well together.

For pattern ideas, consider Suvi Simola’s “Frosty Acorn” and “Qipican” pullovers, as well as her “Leap Year Cardigan.” All those sweaters were designed for Isager Merilin, though it would do just as well in any other fingering weight pattern–Joji Locatelli’s “Boxy” and “3 Color Cashmere Cowl and Shawl” come to mind, as does Theresa Gaffey’s now-classic “Stole.” Visit our “Fingering weight” Pinterest board for more ideas, and explore your own Ravelry favorites for that gauge.

Look for Merilin in the fingering weight section here at the shop, where you may well find your next project. See you there!

Back in stock: Shibui Staccato.

Posted by Julia on August 21, 2016

Our stash of Shibui Staccato had dwindled to a dangerously low number of skeins when – thank goodness! – our order arrived last week.

Staccato is a lustrous blend of 70% superwash merino and 30% silk in a fingering weight. Like Cima, it has a nice high twist, giving it the look of a string of pearls.

Each 50 gram skein has 191 yards, enough for a hat or a pair of mitts; two skeins would make a special pair of socks, and three skeins makes a stunning “3 Color Cashmere Cowl.” Staccato looks to be a stellar shawl or sweater yarn, as well; check out the “Fingering weight” board on our Pinterest page for pattern ideas!

Look for Shibui Staccato in the fingering weight section here at the shop, and peruse our full Shibui selection while you’re here. We keep Silk Cloud, Pebble, Cima, Linen, Twig, Rain, Dune, and Maai in stock, along with two big binders of Shibui patterns!