New colors in Isager Alpaca 2.

Posted by Julia on March 28, 2014

Isager Alpaca 2 is a favorite yarn around here. This fingering weight blend of merino wool and alpaca is light and lofty, tremendously soft in the hand, and good for all kinds of projects. Many knitters have fallen in love with it while knitting the “Stole,” a simple striped wrap from the popular Wearwithall. Others have used Alpaca 2 for all manner of shawls, scarves, sweaters, and blankets. I’m happy to report that Isager has come out with two new colors in this favorite yarn, which just arrived at the shop this week.

The bright fuschia and heathered chartreuse fit right into the existing Alpaca 2 palette, but brighten it up a bit–perfect for spring knitting or crochet.

Come by the shop to see the full selection of Isager Alpaca 2, and consider it for your next project. If not a “Stole,” then perhaps a “Honeycomb Mesh Scarf,” or a “Barclay Scarf.”

See you there!

Hello, Ewe So Sporty.

Posted by Julia on March 17, 2014

This past week, we welcomed a brand new yarn to the shop: Ewe So Sporty, from Ewe Ewe!

Ewe So Sporty is a sport-weight version of the popular Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted, and both are soft and springy machine-washable merino wools with excellent stitch definition.

Along with this new sport weight yarn came a batch of new patterns written just for Ewe So Sporty. It’s a small but varied collection, showing the breadth of uses for this versatile yarn, from baby things to shawls, socks, and other accessories.

Come by the shop to see Ewe So Sporty for yourself!

Even more Malabrigo.

Posted by Julia on March 4, 2014

A few weeks ago, Anne and I were thrilled to unpack two giant boxes from Malabrigo, stuffed with Rios and Mecha, two super-soft superwash merino wool yarns in worsted and bulky weight, respectively. We had written to Malabrigo some months ago with a dream list of all the colors we’d love to have in each yarn, knowing that they wouldn’t all be available at once. These are well-loved yarns, and as such, we often have to wait a while for our orders to be fulfilled. Imagine our surprise and delight when a second mammoth Malabrigo order was shipped our way last week!

We have better stock in Rios and Mecha right now than we have ever had to my memory, so if these are yarns you love, come by the shop and enjoy the full cubbies. They’re already going fast, though, due to that particular Malabrigo combination of beauty, softness, easy-care, and good value. If you’re hoping to put your hands on specific colorways, feel free to call ahead and check that we still have them in your desired quantity.

For pattern ideas, check out the “Inspiring Stitches” board on our Pinterest page, where you’ll find patterns for all kinds of HYS yarns, including Malabrigo Rios and Mecha. See you at the shop!

Back in stock: Selku.

Posted by Julia on February 16, 2014

Most yarns from Maine hand-dyers String Theory are dyed to order, so it was with a couple months of anticipation that we excitedly unpacked a big box full of Selku this past week.

Selku is a sport weight, 3-ply blend of 50% silk and 50% merino wool. The silk content makes it slinky and shiny, while the wool brings elasticity. Together, they make a gently draping fabric with excellent stitch definition that is well suited to accessories, scarves, shawls, and sweaters. It particularly shines in lacy openwork patterns–perhaps you’ve seen the sample slouchy hat in Selku at the shop, or glimpsed Rosi’s “Sampler Tabard” on the blog.

We’ve also seen Selku knit up into a “Vitamin D” sweater and a “Sonetto” shawl, among other projects. There’s one other shawl pattern we’ve had our eye on for some time that calls for String Theory Selku: “Sundry,” by Jennifer Dassau. “Sundry” is a garter- and slip-stitch shawl that calls for one skein each in two colors–an excellent opportunity to play the color-combining game.

Above are “Pewter” and “Alexandrite,” the colors shown in the pattern sample. I couldn’t stop there, of course. Here are several more combinations that appealed to my eye–I can’t wait to see what other knitters come up with, too!

Come by the shop to bask in Selku’s glow, and pick a pair of colors for your own “Sundry” shawl. See you there!

New colors in Meadow.

Posted by Julia on February 14, 2014

Fibre Company’s newest yarn, Meadow, has been catching the attention of knitters and crocheters at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop since we unpacked our first box of the stuff. We admired finished garments made in Meadow at the Allium Collection trunk show, and sampled Meadow ourselves at the Fibre Company yarn tasting, planning projects for this unique lace weight yarn all the while. I’m happy to report that the Fibre Company has created three new colors of Meadow: a bright teal, a dark brown, and a pale, greyish lavender.

Meadow is an unusual yarn, somewhere in between a lace weight and a light fingering weight, a soft and tweedy blend of 40% merino wool, 25% baby llama, 20% silk, and 15% linen. It knits up comfortably on a wide range of needle sizes, as well-suited to lightweight sweaters as it is to lace shawls. These three new shades fit right into the existing Meadow color palette, its moody, muted shades punctuated by a few sunny brights.

Look for Meadow in a basket near the lace and fingering weight yarns, and consider it for your next project. Come by and see our other Fibre Company yarns, too: Savannah, Acadia, and Canopy Worsted. See you at the shop!

Weekenders.

Posted by Julia on February 12, 2014

The Fibre Company have just published a new collection of 5 accessory patterns, each of which calls for just one skein of the luxurious Canopy Worsted. Say hello to Weekenders.

Canopy Worsted is a soft and slightly shimmering blend of 50% alpaca, 30% merino wool, and 20% bamboo, with 200 yards to each 100 gram skein.

The bamboo gives it a gentle drape, and the alpaca gives it a soft halo, but it maintains a crisp stitch definition that does well in cables and texture patterns.

The hats and cowls of Weekenders make good use of Canopy Worsted’s many positive qualities.

Anne and I can both attest that Canopy Worsted is delightful in the hands and on the needles–I treated myself to a sweater’s worth last Fall, and Anne can’t seem to take off her “Cumberland” cowl. In fact, she recently started making one for her mother. It’s a special skein of yarn, Canopy Worsted, and each of these patterns makes the most of just one skein.

Come by the shop to pick up a copy of Weekenders and a skein or two of Canopy Worsted! See you there.

Back in stock: Malabrigo Rios and Mecha.

Posted by Julia on February 5, 2014

Malabrigo is a small yarn company out of Uruguay that is well known for its soft merino yarns, and their vivid, hand-dyed colorways. Many designers publish patterns with Malabrigo yarns, and a quick Ravelry search reveals that many thousands of knitters and crocheters have made projects with these yarns at one time or another. We know plenty who return to Malabrigo again and again, not only because of their good quality but also their good value. The combination of “small company” and “big exposure” means that we sometimes have to wait a while for our orders to be fulfilled, but it’s always worth the wait. Behold: a new Malabrigo shipment, bursting with tempting bags of Rios and Mecha!

Rios is Malabrigo’s worsted weight superwash merino, a yarn that’s hard to keep in stock because it does so well in so many kinds of projects.

Baby blankets, mittens and scarves, slipper socks, hats and headbands, garments for children, crocheted shawls and cabled sweaters–I’ve seen Rios put to good use in all those projects and more.

Mecha is Malabrigo’s newest yarn, a single-ply, bulky weight, superwash merino. Since we first received it in September, it’s become a popular choice for cozy and quick-knitting accessories, cowls in particular.

Maybe it’s the incredible softness of the yarn that makes people want to wear it right around their necks. Consider the following free patterns if you, too, are itching to make a cowl in Mecha: “GAP-tastic Cowl,” “Bandana Cowl,” and “Drop Stitch Cowl.” Suppose you’d rather knit a shawl, or a hat: try “Distinction,” “Thorpe,” or the “Ardelle Hat,” also free downloads from Ravelry. Visit and follow us on Pinterest for even more inspiring ways to make use of all the yarns you’ll find at HYS.

Come by the shop to see our selection of Malabrigo yarns, and come soon if you’re after some color or kind in particular–Rios and Mecha do tend to sell out quickly!

Back in stock: Ewe Ewe.

Posted by Julia on January 7, 2014

Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted has become a staple here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop, admired for its softness, easy-care, and steadily growing selection of solid colors. Ewe Ewe’s pattern support covers a range of projects, from baby blankets to small accessories to adult sweaters, a variety of garments that show the versatility of this plush yarn. Last week, we received a large box from Ewe Ewe, nearly doubling our inventory of the stuff, and bringing every missing color back to this basket.

Anne and I have used Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted for two shop samples. Anne made two “Boston Whaler” hats with just two skeins of Wooly Worsted, inverting the colorway for the second hat. The pink-on-indigo version stayed here at the shop, while the indigo-on-pink hat went to her granddaughter, of course.

Now that Ewe Ewe comes in 20 colors, there are plenty more color combinations to play with, which of course is what I found myself doing as Rosi and I unpacked the yarn.

Ewe Ewe has lots of other patterns that call for two colors or more, including the “Easy as ABC Top-Down Raglan Baby Sweater,” the “Layer Cake Cowl,” and the newly released “Fireside Wristlets,” a free pattern for simple ribbed mitts. If you’re not in the market for a baby hat, but you still want to play the Ewe Ewe color-combining game, consider these!

Our second Ewe Ewe Wooly Worsted sample is the “Wearever Wrap,” a colorful triangular shawl that I crocheted in just a few afternoons at the shop. When I saw the sample “Wearever Wrap” at market in June, I knew I’d like to make one for the shop, and selecting six colors was half the fun.

I used an H hook (5 mm), which was smaller than recommended in the pattern, and still it blocked out to a nice, generous size.

Come by the shop to flip through the Ewe Ewe pattern binder, admire Wooly Worsted in all 20 shades, and plan your next project!

New colors in String Theory sock yarns.

Posted by Julia on December 24, 2013

Anne and I always keep a close eye on our cubby of String Theory Caper Sock and Bluestocking, sure to point it out to those seeking special sock yarns. We also pay close attention to our supply of these yarns because it’s such a pleasure to have a chance to place an order with Karen and Tanis, who dye these vibrant yarns in Blue Hill, Maine. When it’s time to reorder, we gaze giddily at the String Theory website, picking out some new colors and some old favorites. I’m happy to report that our most recent String Theory order is here, and it brought four colors each in Caper Sock and Bluestocking.

Caper Sock is a plump and springy sock yarn, composed of 80% superwash merino wool, 10% cashmere, and 10% nylon. The tight twist and the nylon content ensures that Caper Sock is sturdy enough to withstand the kind of wear that socks put up with, but it’s great for other garments, as well. I’ve used Caper Sock to make a scarf, my North Arrow, because it’s so soft, I wanted it wrapped around my neck all winter. That said, I’m just finishing up a pair of socks with this stuff, which I absolutely can’t wait to slide my feet into.

Bluestocking is a lustrous sock yarn, composed of 80% superwash Bluefaced Leicester wool and 20% nylon, for durability. Like Caper Sock, Bluestocking makes a great pair of socks, but it is equally at home in a scarf or shawl, at a slightly larger gauge.

Come by the shop to get yourself a special skein of String Theory yarn, and to plan your next project!

Hello, Mountain Fusion Teton.

Posted by Julia on December 11, 2013

Just in time for last-minute holiday gift-making, we received 6 new colors in Mountain Fusion Teton, a bulky weight merino wool.

Mountain Fusion Teton is the result of a collaboration between two small US yarn companies: Mountain Meadow Wool, of Buffalo, Wyoming, and Mountain Colors, of Corvallis, Montana. This springy, colorful yarn is 2 ply, where one ply is thick and the other is thin.

This gives a pretty consistent texture with plenty of color interest, not to mention enough yarn in one skein to create a hat or cowl in an afternoon. The pattern for this simple hat is printed on the Mountain Fusion Teton yarn label; also consider “Thorpe,” or the “Drop Stitch Cowl,” both of which are available as free downloads from Ravelry.

Come by the shop to pick up a skein or two of Mountain Fusion Teton, and you’ll have cozy winter accessories in no time, whether for yourself or for someone yarn-worthy. See you at the shop!