Featured Yarn: Borzoi

Today we’re featuring Borzoi, our luxury sock weight yarn. This yarn is 80% Superwash Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) wool, and 20% Bamboo. Although there is a relatively small amount of bamboo in the yarn, the yarn has a specific sheen and color because of it. Bamboo is often used as an eco-friendly substitute for silk as they are both straight, shiny, and strong fibers. Paired with the shiny BFL, the yarn has a very soft and silky feel. When dyed, the colors do not absorb as thoroughly as they would in other fiber combinations, since the bamboo is a plant fiber, and the dyes we use are meant for animal fibers. This creates a beautiful, vintage look for the yarn.

The Quick Brown Fox Jumps Over The Lazy Dog

The yarn is a round 4 ply, which gives it great stitch definition for cable work and textures, as well as being sturdy enough to withstand the abuse of most feet. Borzoi is great for more-special projects that you’ll cherish for years, as well as being strong enough for harder wearing clothes, like baby sweaters or socks.

Click here to check out Borzoi in our online shop!

Don't see the colorway or amount you want to buy? Custom order it and let us know!

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Products and tagged Borzoi.

Fiber Hound Stitch Markers

A small project I've been working on releasing for a few months now is Fiber Hound stitch markers! They are dog themed (of course) and adorable. I've taken some of them out for a test run, and I was surprised that I actually got excited to transfer the marker from one needle to the other. I also found that I was more careful not to lose them, which is another bonus! I'm offering these handmade stitch markers in eight different colors that blend well with Fiber Hound's color scheme.

Each stitch marker in the package has a different charm: a paw print, a bone, a dog, and a dog bowl. They are made out of high-quality pewter.

Each of the eight colors were meticulously chosen to match Fiber Hound's color scheme, and they are vibrant, beautiful beads.

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Products and tagged Stitch Marker.

Buttons for Sale!

I'm happy to announce that Fiber Hound is now selling dog buttons! Right now we have seven varieties available, with more on the way in the future. They're all high quality and ADORABLE. You can check out our new button category here.

First up, we have puppy buttons! These are the buttons I wrote about in my post about the Puppy Button Mitts, and are available in white and brown. They are made of plastic and have a plastic button hole on the back.

Next, we have two varieties of wooden buttons. These buttons appear to have the different colors glued together to form the different shapes. The amazingly adorable Sweatered Scottie has 6 colors in the wood, while the Hound only has two. They both have metal hooks for backs.

Finally, we have a more simple round button with a Scottie on it. For reasons beyond my knowing, there are a lot of buttons featuring Scotties on them. And they are adorable. These plastic buttons come in black, white, and red.

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Products and tagged Buttons.

Borzoi & Mica Tam

While searching for hats to show off a skein of our Borzoi yarn, I came across Laura Nelkin's Mica Tam, a beautiful lace hat that incorporates seed beads into the lace motif. I've been a fan of Laura's designs for years, and I met her (for about two minutes) at TNNA last year. She designs knitted jewelry patterns and sells beautiful kits, and the yarn store I worked at sold some of them. She's been published in many different places, including Knitty, Interweave, Creative Knitting, and various books.

The hat starts off with a nice twisted ribbing around the edge, and transitions into the lace section, which was delightfully easy to memorize. She offers the lace section of the pattern both written out and in chart form, with pretty standard symbols, and clearly notes where the bead placement is. The decrease section also has its own chart/written section and carries no surprises. This pattern was very quick to make, and it was very enjoyable.

One of the things that can scare people away from patterns with beading is that beads look very complicated to add to knitting; delightfully, they're not! Beads are usually added beforehand and incorporated into the knitting, or added during with a crochet hook or floss. This pattern was very mindful of the possibility that readers might not know how to deal with beads, and included a link to an instructional video in Laura’s pattern. And, if you don't enjoy beading, they are entirely optional!

The addition of the seed beads to the Borzoi (colorway: Rolling in the Grass) made the hat sparkle and shine, showing off the luxurious nature of the BFL and bamboo. While the style of the hat doesn't work for my head (I think I have too much hair...), it's adorable and great for spring or fall weather. Click here to purchase the pattern!

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Pattern Review and tagged Borzoi Rolling in the Grass.

Fiber Hound Project Bags

We're happy to announce that we're offering a new product that has Fiber Hound's own face on it: project bags! I've tested these bags with my own knitting projects for a few months now, and I'm very pleased with the lightweight nature and durability they offer. And, they have Dwight's face on them, so that's a bonus! The best part is the price: only 5 dollars!

The bag is made from non-woven polypropylene, which is a type of acrylic fabric, and measures 10" x 9" x 4-1/4". It's a great bag for smaller projects like hats, cowls, or shawls, or the start of larger projects like sweaters!

Posted on May 7, 2014 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Products.