Double point work-in-progress tubes.

It's been a knitterly gadgets kind of week here at the Hillsborough Yarn Shop. Along with the Fix-a-Stitch, we also received a shipment of double point work-in-progress tubes, or DP Wip Tubes, for those who like to abbreviate.

Like the Fix-a-Stitch, the DP Wip Tube solves a specific problem simply and well. Say you're knitting a sock on double pointed needles and you want to toss it into your knitting bag. How can you be sure that your live stitches wont accidentally slide off of one of those needles? You could put an individual point protector on each double point, to be sure, or you could carefully fold your sock-in-progress around your needles and hope for the best. The DP Wip Tube offers complete security to your stitches.

Anne is certainly a proponent of the DP Wip Tube, with two in use (and in reach) when our new shipment arrived.

Handy, no? Pick up a set of DP Wip Tubes next time you're at the shop.

Fix-a-Stitch.

New yarns, books, and magazines we expect. New patterns, new colorways, a new brand of needles or hooks every once in a while: sure. It is much more rare, I think, that I come here to announce a new knitterly gadget like this one. Here is the Fix-a-Stitch, a short, two-ended crochet hook for picking up dropped stitches, a particularly handy tool for correcting mistakes in garter stitch without having to turn your work around again and again.

They come as a set of three sizes to accommodate various weights of yarn. Anne and I had never seen anything like it before, and we're pleased to add them to the notions collection at the shop. If you're curious about how such a thing is used, the Fix-a-Stitch website has a few videos to demonstrate. It certainly looks like a tool worth keeping in one's knitting bag. Find the Fix-a-Stitch at the shop!

Goodies.

For whatever reason, we've been flush with Lantern Moon shipments recently. Whether it's a many-pocketed project bag or a splendidly shiny button, Lantern Moon seems to make all of the goodies that knitters and crocheters go for--save for yarn, of course. Our latest box from Lantern Moon brought the usual batch of Meadow Pouches, allowing us to boast all five colors in stock at the same time for the first time. Magenta, purple, blue, green, and orange: pick your favorite or succumb to the urge to collect all five.

On the more elegant side, we also replenished our selection of Lantern Moon knit-out boxes, which keep your yarn from rolling away as you work.

We got a few new goodies, too. These sheep stitch markers were all snatched up within 24 hours of their arrival in the shop! No worries, sheep collectors: we're reordering soon.

Last but not least, we also got beautiful new circular needle cases, at the suggestion of a friend who brought her Lantern Moon circular case in to show us. Anne and I agreed that it was one of the better circular cases we'd seen and ordered some for the shop that day. Take a look, see what you think.

Alright, that's enough temptation for one blog post. Over and out.

Lavishea lotion bars.

In midsummer, with the promise of new fall yarns still months away, the tide of shipments recedes. We're not getting boxes of yarn in the mail every day, as we do in other seasons. Instead, we are preparing for the rush of shipments that is not so far away. We put all of our yarn on sale, to help make room for what's coming. We make the best of what space we have, carving out a cubby here and there for our newest acquisitions.

Occasionally, though, we get a little something new.

This week, it was a little box of Lavishea lotion bars, sweet-smelling and adorable in their round tins. Not your average hand lotions, these bars are rubbed onto the hands as if they were soap--but without adding water. They're made to moisturize without leaving a greasy residue, allowing you to get right back to your crochet or knitting project without mucking up your fiber. A nice little indulgence to tuck into your knitting bag, or a kind gift for a friend. Try one out and see what you think.