instock clearance happening this week!

Getting started with a little instock clearance today. More to come tomorrow!

Check it out here.

our new studio!

It doesn't look like much yet. But bear with me, and it will.

If you follow this blog at all, you know that we've outgrown the space we're currently in. And also, we live next door to a kettle bell gym that sounds like they're setting off explosions 80 times a day, and below a super lame nightclub, neither of which were here when I moved in.

I have good news and bad news about this move.

The good news is that WE FOUND AN AWESOME NEW SPACE IN A FREESTANDING BUILDING!

The bad news is that we don't have much time before we have to be out of our current studio (35 days, to be exact).

The good news is that we will probably never need to move again!

The bad news is that there is a lot of work to accomplish in 35 days.

The good news is that we are hard-working, motivated, and handy. We can get it done!

The bad news is that it will be very expensive to pick up and move our entire operation to a new facility. That's a lot for a small business like this to absorb, and we have to operate under the assumption that we won't be able to recoup any of the cost from our current landlord.

The good news is that our new building has AIR CONDITIONING AND PARKING!!!! (There are not enough exclamation points to show my feelings about this.)

Despite the cost and hassle, I am excited to get in there, roll up my sleeves, and make it into the awesome place I know it can be.

This is going to be the new dyeing room. We'll have all our work tables, sinks, and washing machines in here.

Another view of the same room from the back.

This building was built at the turn of the century, and I am giddy about the fact that no one can build anything adjacent to or on top of it, because we will have all three levels of this place.

This is going to be our new packing area. Tons of workspace and natural light! I love this part of the studio.

This is going to be the break area. The little black square in the middle of the picture? Those are the stairs to the basement.

The basement is also huge, with 12 foot ceilings and stone walls. You can see the one lonely hot water heater down here -- that's for the bathroom. Soon there will be five more, and we will never run out of hot water again! (We actually run out of hot water fairly regularly in our current space.)

My mom suggested installing an employee bowling alley down here. I think that will be phase "ZZZZZZ" of this project.

This is going to be a spacious new bathroom.

Hello, office! New floors are needed in here.

The third floor is going to be where all of our yarn dries and where all of our ballroom dancing will occur.

You can see that the building needs some repair work. It has a new roof, but there was previous water damage to the plaster.

I can't tell you how much we're all looking forward to this move. Last week I opened the studio door to go home and there was a large crowd of fighting people immediately outside. They were screaming obscenities, on the verge of swinging their fists (or who knows what else), and I didn't feel safe just saying, "Pardon me, excuse me, can I just exit my studio and lock my door?" But I also didn't feel safe leaving out the back into a dark alley and walking around the block to my car, which was parked right in front of the fight. The week before last, my departure from the studio was delayed an hour because my car was completely boxed in with police cars responding to a call from the nightclub. When they finished their arrests, they moved and let me leave.

It hit me on my way home: I missed dinner because they were arresting people next to my car.

Not only will we be leaving the noise, crime, and inconvenience of our current space, we're moving into a bigger, better space that will function far more efficiently for us, which can only mean good things for you, our awesome customers.

But there is a significant cost involved in relocating. There are no abandoned yarn studios looking for new tenants. We have to have all of our plumbing and electrical work installed custom.

Which brings me to this: we could use a little help from you. We have to be out of our current studio in 35 days, which means that we need to begin work on our new studio immediately. Outfitting a new studio is not just a lot of work, it's a lot of money that needs to be paid in the very near future.

Could you possibly make a donation to help us? If you can, I have some pretty sweet incentives for you.

If you can donate $10: we'll read your name at our morning meeting and clap and cheer for you. (No really, we will. Enthusiastically, too.)

If you can donate $20: we'll read your name at our morning meeting, clap and cheer for you, and send you any three of our dozens of knitting patterns that you'd like.

If you can donate $50, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus a care package with a one-of-a-kind colorway and a handwritten thank you card.

If you can donate $100, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus a super awesome Three Irish Girls logo T-shirt in the size of your choice.

If you can donate $250, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus a nifty Three Irish Girls tote bag.

If you can donate $500, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus Sharon will make you five skeins of ANY COLORWAY(S) YOU WANT on any yarn you want. Previous limited editions? Done. A special custom just for you? ANY COLORWAY.

If you can donate $1,000, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus Sharon will personally knit you a scarf in the yarn and colorway of your choice. You can pick the pattern, too.

If you can donate $2,000, you'll get all of the previous incentives, plus Sharon will personally bake you a large care package full of dozens of goodies. She specializes in fudgy brownies, homemade toffee, and to-die-for pumpkin bread. We'll give you lots of options, and then we'll overnight them to you so they'll arrive fresh and yummy. (We'll even try to see if this is feasible for international shipments! If it's not, we'll work out something just as awesome.)

You can use the link below to donate. It's totally secure, and you can use your Paypal account or credit card.

We truly appreciate your generosity. I promise we'll pay it forward.

Help us get a safe new home here!

as promised... name that colorway contest winners!

Long ago, and not so far away, I had a contest.

A contest to name our new colorway collection.

Now that the colorways are out, I can announce the winners who have waited patiently for their prizes.

Kelly, you win a skein of Amazonia!

Amy, you win Appalachian Trail!

Barb, you get Blue Hawaii!

Carrie, Cottage Garden is yours!

Guinness is going to live with Kathy!

Spinnergirl, High Seas is going to come live with you!

Carol thinks Kale is yummy! (At least I hope so...)

Susan K better like Marmalade!

Ellen, Mediterranean is heading your way.

Becca, Orange You Glad I didn't say bananas? (Remember that joke?)

And Steph, Summer Magic is your new baby!

The winners will have a choice of their colorway in Springvale Worsted or Adorn Sock. If you won, please send us an email at threeirishgirls AT gmail DOT com to claim your prize.

the many faces of baby shamrock

Shamrock just won the coveted Best Actress award for her work playing a three month old in a yarn studio.

She knows how to look worried that a colorway will not turn out.

She can be wary.

Tickled pink.

Talkative.

A carefree girl out on the town.

She knows how to look into your soul.

And also happens to be charmingly beautiful.

Her lopsided grin makes one blue eye crinkle more than the other. The new hair she's growing on top of her head is strawberry blonde, and she's activated her drooling and fist chewing mode. It's all rather adorable.

I haven't made up my mind for sure yet, but I'm leaning towards keeping her.

P.S. I wanted to mention something to you about Facebook. Facebook has decided that it -- not you -- will determine which items will appear in your newsfeed. Even if you've "liked" a page like ours, it will only sometimes put updates into your newsfeeds. This is a recent change, and lots of businesses have noticed a 40-80% drop in the number of people who see their posts. In order to get our updates (about things like one of a kind colorways being posted) regularly, you need to take the following steps:

Go to our page (or the page of any business you want to follow). Click on this little settings box on the right.

From the dropdown menu, select "Add to Interest Lists". This tells Facebook to show our updates in your newsfeed.

This option is only available from the web version of Facebook, not the mobile version. You might be surprised at how much you've been missing from the pages you've liked!

...and that's why the good lord made mirrors.

Said no one in this family.

Oh, a belted, buttoned vest to wear over my shirt and tie? It's perfect for a wee jaunt in the garden, love!

I would be morose too.

People. This is commercially made. 

Indeed.

Halloween is coming. Knit this sweater in lieu of an elaborately constructed haunted house. It's far scarier.

The holy grail has been located, girls. A sweater that adds 40 pounds.

You heard it here first!

You're welcome.

No one. Any age. Ever.

When you consider how many steps were taken before this hat was knit, it makes you want to leap off the nearest building.

1. Conceptualize Cookie Monster at a New Year's Eve party yarn.

2. Locate Chinese factory to make it for you.

3. Run thousands of pounds of said Cookie Monster at a New Year's Eve Party yarn.

4. Put it on a boat and sail it across the ocean.

5. Yarn store managers order it, pay for it, and make room for it on their shelves.

6. Knitter sees yarn and purchases it.

Let's stop at number six for a moment.

Knitter sees yarn and purchases it.

Let that sink in.

It happened.

7. Knitter thinks to themselves, "I shall make myself the hat of all hats! It shall look thusly!"

8. Knitter swatches and tests said yarn into the hat of all hats.

9. Knitter writes pattern for hat and pattern is edited.

You know what? I can't even go on. At least 100 people could have stopped this from happening and didn't.

Where am I, and where is this handbasket going?

I guess that answers that question.