3 AM Enchantments

Looks like 3 AM will be moving back to Missouri pretty soon – stay tuned for further developments!

Quick drive by post – there’s yarn a-cookin’, and I have a second bootie to knit!

Have you checked out Wendy Knits’ Pi Shawl KAL (in celebration of EZ’s 100th birthday)? I am excited to be doing it – my only other round shawl/blanekt has been claimed by Slick since the moment it was finished, so it will be nice to have one of my own!

My version of Wendy's Pi Shawl - can't wait for clue #2!

My brain must have known it was EZ’s birthday – I just finished a BSJ for one of Eric’s friends. Chad and Heather had a baby girl, Kaylee, last week – I think that Twisted’s Minstrel colorway is just the right mix of “cute” and sophisticated for their little girl. I hope they agree!

Baby Surprise Jacket in Twisted Fiber Arts' Minstrel colorway.

Have you ever knit baby booties? Quick little buggers – and you can never have too many of them (or so I have been told). I recommend Christine’s Baby Booties as an excellent pattern!

One down, one to go - ends need to be woven in, and tie cord made.

And finally, an evil (but wonderful .. but evil) friend of mine recommended that I give Darn Pretty Needles a try. I’d about given up on DPNs for socks because they were “bugging” me. There are some patterns that really do cry out for DPNs though (Pomatomus anyone?), and when I mentioned my issues to Ruth, she endorsed Darn Pretty Needles. What can I say? I am totally convinced. Now, if I can just convince DyakCraft that they should have a trade-in program so that I can upgrade, I’ll really be ahead of the game!

My new DPNs, along with the remaining Twisted for the second bootie.

Have a great day everyone – my timer is going off, and there is more yarn to dye!

As promised, the new kits are up for pre-order on Etsy.  I will be listing more throughout the coming weeks – I made a total of 14.  They will ship starting August 10th – I think they are too cute for words.

Limited edition O is for Owl kit - yarn, KIP bag, stitch markers and another surprise!

When Eric and I came up with the idea of doing alphabet theme kits, I struggled with starting at the beginning – I mean, obviously A is for Apple, but I wasn’t really feeling it.  Now that the Owls are done, I am so happy I gave myself permission to start wherever I felt like it!

The kit contains one skein of The One in Hay Ride, an adorable Owl KIP bag, a pair of custom stitch markers from KnitGirlinIdaho, and another little goodie (it’s a surprise!).  This kit was a lot of fun to put together as I was able to enlist the participation of Reni, who makes my favorite type of stitch markers.  Did you know that she is also making the Loopy Groupie ones?  If you haven’t checked out the Loopy Ewe’s frequent buyer program, you really ought to – the loot is pretty sweet!

Aren't the stitch markers too cute? KnitGirlinIdaho always does such great work!

I know a lot of people are curious as to what my yarns look like when knit up – and believe me, I am working really hard to get some projects out there.  When I developed my main dyeing technique, I did swatch quite a bit to see what was going on with the colors.  Swatches are pretty boring though, so I mostly tossed them (it’s really hard to photograph a 3″ tube of stitches!).  I do have a project to show off – these are Wendy Knits’ new Nancy’s Socks – you can read the story on her blog.  I decided to knit a plain foot as I am mostly wearing sneakers now, and lace feet are wasted effort when you pair them with running shoes.

Nancy's Sock in The One - Comfort Zone colorway

Here’s a closeup of the stitch pattern – look ma, no pooling!

Nancy's sock in The One - Comfort Zone colorway

Here’s a list of the colorways currently in the shop that will knit up in a similar manner: Colorburst Caribbean, Colorburst Raspberry, Irish Eyes, Amber Waves, Comfort Zone, That Jumped Out of My Hands, and That I Want.  Did I mention that all yarn in the shop (excepting the kit) is 15-20% off at the moment?  The prices are already adjusted to reflect the sale, so you don’t have to wait for a Paypal refund!  Free shipping applies on US orders of $60+, even with sale items (and international shipping is always discounted).  Just thought I would throw that out there…

Happy knitting everyone!  It’ll be wool sock season again before you know it =)

PS – Tempted @ 3 AM Club hint – can you guess what kind of bags I am working on?

Yeah, I keep a hammer with my sewing kit. Whatcha gonna do about it, sport?

Shortly after my first dyes arrived, I was ready to jump right in, but a bit concerned about (the expense of) the learning curve.  I decided to dip my toes in by overdyeing some “not really my color” yarns that had accumulated in my stash over the few years I’d been knitting.  My first victim was yellow and blue – two great colors, but I wasn’t really feeling the proportions of the colors on this yarn:

So I added a bath of blue, and ended up with this:

Which is now in the process of becoming a beautiful pair of Wendy’s Double Eyelet Rib Socks (free pattern from The Loopy Ewe – scroll to the bottom of the page!):

I was so thrilled with the results that I was inspired to start from scratch and see what I could do with yellow and blue, and blue (and maybe some green).  It’s not going to knit up the same (I used a very different technique for the dyeing – think short bursts of color rather than the spiral pooling you see in my socks), but I think I certainly captured the spirit in my newest colorway, Irish Eyes:

Finally, if you’re in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, stop by Needlework Unlimited to check out 3 AM  yarn and bags in person!  Stay tuned for more information on an upcoming 3 AM/NU event as well!

I should be so lucky.  The mood rarely takes me, but I had a huge bought of homesickness during lunchtime.  Homesickness is even stranger for me than it is for most people, as I grew up on military bases.  If there was one place in the world that I actually would call home, it’d be SHAPE Belgium, and that was where I was pining for today.  We lived there for 5 years, from the time I was in 8th grade until I graduated from high school in 1992.  What caused me to miss the place (which is downwind from a cement factory, built on a swamp in the French-speaking (noticeably poorer) southern part of Belgium)?

Belgian frites. You’ve not experienced french fries until you’ve had frites from a tiny, dingy, 1960’s-era trailer parked by the side of the road.  The thick cut fries are fried twice (with a rest between) in lard, then scooped up and served in a paper cone.  I would have happily killed someone for a serving today, preferably with curry ketchup.  I caught a whiff of something at the grocery store that made me think of frites, and the next thing you know my tummy is completely obsessed!

To get my mind off it, I’m working on 2 projects and some Etsy listings.  First, we have the Tempted @ 3 AM Club shipment – nope, sorry, no spoilers.  Just know that I am working on it.  I really hope you fall in love with the package when you get it!  The other project I am working on is something that Eric and I have been batting around for a while.   One of the brainstorms we came up with for 3 AM was to start offering one-off kits, but we had a hard time coming up with a theme idea.  We’re already doing batiks for this year’s T@3AM, and I didn’t want to duplicate that.  Instead, I came up with the idea of doing the alphabet – you know, A is for Apple, etc.  We’re going to be listing the first set of kits on (or around) August 1st, and they are limited in number.  I am going to try to have a new kit each month, although it may work out to every 6 weeks or so.  Here’s a hint on the first kit:

Finally, as soon as I finish this post, I will be listing several yarns and a couple of bags on Etsy.  Here’s a sneak preview of those:

Here’s a little work in progress, tucked inside one of the bags that will be going up on Etsy (well, its sister will be – this one is mine):

Check the Etsy shop soon for new listings!

Sometimes I feel like I have very little to show for my waking hours, so I force myself to take stock of what I do accomplish on a random day.  Yesterday, I started on a rather large project: handmade Christmas stockings for my sister and her family.  All 7 of them.  Kristy and I discussed this last winter, and she had ordered the materials for me before I moved to Minnesota.  Knowing that my mother is coming to visit over Labor Day weekend, I figured I better get cracking on the project – Kristy and her brood are going to be at the ‘rents for Christmas this year, and by golly, they better have stockings!

Here’s what I have so far:

jelly roll quilt to be cut up for Christmas stockings

Yep, that’s a “lap sized” quilt, all ready to be cut into pieces.  The binding that I have for it is one of the blue prints – in case you are curious, the collection is Sandy Gervais’ Merry and Bright from last year’s Moda Christmas line.  The pattern I am using (from an Etsy seller, no longer available) called for you to piece the outsides of the stockings individually, and just back the pieces with batting, but I decided that it made far more sense to “quilt as you go” the strips as I sewed them together.  It was a bit unwieldy to shove around the sewing machine, but it will give the finished items better body and durability in the long run.  Now the quilt just needs to rest for a few days – somehow, I can’t quite bring myself to cut it into smaller shapes just yet!

In addition to making a whole quilt (albeit a very simple one with no binding), I also packed and shipped several Etsy orders.  We were again featured by the lovely Wendy Knits in her blog post yesterday, and the comments from her readers have been so sweet!  People are very curious about Lucy’s boyfriend, so I am including a picture of Little Slick here for those of you who haven’t been subjected to my cat pictures in the past.  Slick is a 7 year old F4 bengal cat – I have had him since he was 11 weeks old, and he is the light of my life.  I’m sure if he and Lucy ever were to meet they’d have a hiss fit at each other, but their long distance romance is a think of (feline) beauty!

Little Slick with his favorite knit mouse - from a Wendy Knits pattern!

Finally, yesterday I received a lovely package from Reni, aka KnitGirlinIdaho, purveyor of custom stitch markers.  She and I had worked out a yarn for markers trade – I had a lot of fun picking out images and sayings for my stitch markers, and I hope she had just as much fun deciding on what colors she wanted for her yarn!

The lot of stitch markers I received - enough for any conceivable project!

Here are a few close ups of the text markers, which represent sayings heard with alarming frequency around Casa de 3 AM:

Text markers shown on "The One" in "Comfort Zone" colorway.

And a close up of a few of the batik markers:

Closeup of markers printed with scans of batik fabrics.

Finally, I also finished a rather hefty sci-fi tome, A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge.  It was a very interesting book (which it ought to be, given that it won the Hugo in 1991) with well developed characters and interesting scientific concepts.

All this was in addition to the usual things I accomplish during a day: taking care of Slick, running errands, doing laundry, knitting on various sample projects, cooking (although I slacked on dinner last night – hooray for hot deli from Cub!).  Sometimes, it is nice to take stock of the day!

What does tomorrow hold?  Well, I am headed to Needleworks Unlimited with a couple of boxes.  Stay tuned!

Two boxes headed for Needleworks Unlimited in Minneapolis.

If it’s dye-able, believe me – we’ve dyed it. This does not include Slick (the cat), although it has been a close thing. We have been super-duper busy here at Casa de 3 AM, and we’d like to share the fruits of our labors with you!

Sampling of Colors

During the month of July, any 3 AM yarn that you purchase and subsequently knit will earn you a 15% off coupon that can be used between my birthday (October 25th) and Christmas Day, 2010. Here’s the skinny:

• Purchase 3 AM Enchantments hand-dyed yarn by 7/31/10.
• Cast on a project using your 3 AM yarn.
• Post photos of your FO or WIP (please be at least 50% on WIPs) to your Ravelry projects or your personal blog by 10/25/2010.
• Place an order at the 3 AM Enchantments Etsy store between 10/25/10 and 12/25/10. This can be for yarn, bags, whatever your dear heart desires.
• Pay for your order via Paypal.
• Message me (using Etsy) with your order number and a link to the “proof”.
• I will adjust your invoice and refund 15% of the purchase price (shipping not included – the USPS didn’t want to get involved) to you ASAP.

FAQs:
Does yarn I’ve already purchased from you count?
- As an early adopter, we sure appreciate you. It counts. Cast something on and start documenting!!
Will there be more yarn in the shop before the end of July?
- Yes, I can’t say exactly when. Keep your eyes peeled.
I keep missing my favorite colorway, can you post more of it before the end of July?
- Please post here and let me know what you’re looking for. I’ll do my best!

Several things, really, but the one worth mentioning at this moment is today’s Wendy Knits blog post.  More specifically, the comments attached to it.  I might maybe be crying just a little bit.  Or I have something in my eye.  It must be the latter.

Here’s some 3 AM yarnie goodness to tide you over.

There’s still a few “trial” skeins left at the Etsy shop.  I dyed more today “with purpose” – everything came out as I expected it to – there should be another dozen or skeins on Etsy sometime tomorrow.  I’ve got a solid 6 colorways that I feel are ready for primetime now, and 2 different techniques that I feel equally comfortable with.  Look for some real growth in the yarn department soon – for now, it’ll all be listed on Etsy but look for that to change as well

It’s been a little too long since we reached out and gave everyone an update.  All in all there isn’t too much that is new around here.  The big news for us is that we’ve been playing with  yarn, and our first batch of dye tests has some winners!

I highly recommend checking out our etsy shop to see what kind of nifty colorways we’ve come up with.  Hopefully this is just he beginning of what we can come up with!

And in other news, another decent batch of bags made it’s way over to Loopy and was posted last night (stealth update!).  Feel free to swing on over to our corner of the Loopy store and see what’s there!

It was an overcast and rainy morning in Minnesota when the boy and girl set out for the Washington County Fairgrounds in the trusty but aged Mazda Protege.  This was the right car to take, as parking options were limited to muddy field and slightly less muddy field.  What could cause otherwise sane (and rather homebody-ish) people to venture out into a 35 degree windchill on a Saturday morning?

The Shepherd’s Harvest Sheep and Wool Festival, of course!

There was sheep shearing:

A great display of working dogs, most of whom were still training (and not used to working with so many sheep at a time):

And baby cashmere goats that really wanted to come home with me, but Eric deemed that even my little old car shouldn’t be subjected to having a goat in the backseat.  Cute though, huh?

The best part of the festival for me though was getting to meet my good friend Karen B. I know that Eric and I surprised her as I’ve been so busy that I’ve hardly had time to glance at Plurk lately, nevermind keep up with everyone’s activities!  It was really nice to finally meet her, and I know there are more meetups in our future.

Eric and I didn’t stay long enough at the Festival to give a “real” trip report.  Honestly, after 45 minutes of sitting on aluminum benches watching the dogs, we were very motivated to get back in the car and turn the heat on.  We did check out the animal barns and the vendor buildings though – hopefully next year, 3 AM will be there in force!  It was a nice sized festival, and I am glad that we braved the less-than-ideal weather rather than waiting til  Sunday.  I’d rather be cold than crowded!

So why have we been so busy (and so absent online).  Well, it all started with the move and a Loopy order.  A Loopy order that we really wanted to have done prior to the Spring Fling so that the bags would be available to the Flingers.  We managed to get that done and delivered, but I had to fit some Etsy sewing time in as well, and make a set of door prizes for the Fling too.  As soon as the bags went up on Loopy, there was the next Loopy order to start planning and purchasing for.  Oh and don’t forget the Tempted @ 3AM Club bags.  We need a few more things on Etsy too.  And the door prizes went over so well at the Fling, let’s go ahead and make up a set of super cute Petite KIP Cupcake Bags with WeeOnes zipper pulls for Loopy (Don’t worry that they are sold out – they will be restocked fairly soonish – stay tuned to find out when I make them up and send them off!).  Better start sewing for that next Loopy order.  But not all the time – the triple skeiner came, so we need to try that out and start making up some skeins so we can dye soon.

Whose bright idea was it to add dyeing yarn to the chaos that is my life?

Busy is good though – and Eric and I are really having a ball.  Don’t forget to swing by Etsy – we have some really cute bags posted, including Rubber Ducky Petite KIPs with custom zipper pulls from WeeOnes.  I am using one of these bags to hold the Christine’s Stay-On Baby Booties that I’ve been knitting up.  It seems like every female friend Eric has is pregnant at the moment!  Either that or they heard his new roomie is a knitter … hmmm.