Queen Bee Knits

Knitting, Living, Loving, Baking, Tips, Tools and Idle Chatter

WIP Wednesday

Posted on April 17, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

As Mister Rogers would say, “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood!” We woke up to lots of sunshine and even got to have coffee on the porch until the breeze picked up – the breeze off the water is still pretty cold.

I thought I would update you on my knits, my WIP Wednesday post, so to speak. As I type, my Braided Cable Handle Tote is in its second very hot wash cycle. The first cycle was pretty close to felted but I could still see stitch definition so I’ve put it back in for round two. I didn’t think I’d want to have a pink purse but the yarn was a gift and the pattern was free so … off I went on Eclipse Day 2024 with a new project to cast on. It’s a simple enough pattern to knit and the cables add some interest to the stockinette stitch in the round. If I had the ability to be regimented and to keep track of my hours knitting, I’d know how long it took me to knit. BUT I don’t have that gene so I’m going to guess it took about 8-10 hours to knit? That would mean if I was going to even think about selling these and paying myself a “fair” wage (Maine minimum wage is close to $15/hour) I’d have to charge, for my time, $120-150 for this bag. Because this was gifted to me, the cost of materials is 0 but normally, two balls of 100% wool yarn would be somewhere in the area of $20-25. So, when I add the cost of materials to my time the bag now becomes $140-175. AND if I wanted to line it with fabric, that cost goes up again. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I’d be willing to pay that for a felted bag … I’d love to hear what you think. But my feeling is that I won’t be knitting a bunch of these for a craft show any time soon.

I’ve also been working toward completion of my Oorik Tank Top. Last night I completed the first of the two arm hole ribbing. It was a tight circle to knit with my 5″ needle tips but I did it and began to weave in all the ends on the inside of the vest. I am totally patting myself on the back for the knitting on this vest. It looks pretty stinking great! Today I haven’t decided which project will get my attention first but this Oorik tank is one possibility. It’s so close!

I worked a bit on my raspberry-colored socks, too, yesterday. I’ve gotten to the end of the second sock and have a few more rounds before I can graft the toe and say that these are done. I really love the color of the socks and I really hope the person that I made them for loves them and wears them. Often when you gift someone something they don’t wear them OR they don’t care for them. I’m giving up that bit of “control” and hope that they’ll be cared for and worn … that’s the best I can do. Next on the needles for socks will be some self-patterning yarn that I’ve been hauling around with me forever. I think I may make one of the Crazy Sock Lady’s patterns. The yarn is a cotton blend and pink and white … I’m noticing a pattern here. Haha.

I have begun the first thumb on my Fiddlehead Mittens but they’ve not been touched for a while. This should only take me a few hours to finish and then the mittens need a knitted lining … I haven’t knitted a lot of mitten linings but the ones that I have knit are not perfect and I hope that my “practice” on the last couple of linings will make this lining the best one yet. I still haven’t decided what yarn I will use to line the Fiddlehead Mittens but I will use yarn from my stash. And I am reminded that the Maine Yarn Cruise will happen again this year with some big changes, apparently. There will be an online component (I think the passport will be virtual or print-your-own) and I know my LYS, Yardgoods Center, will be participating. It runs from July 1 through Indigenous Peoples Day in October. There’s a website!

I pulled out the bottom ribbing and a couple of inches of my Sunset Highway sweater at least a couple of weeks ago and it’s been sitting on my ottoman for all that time on a stitch holder. I have to try it on to see if I’ve frogged it back enough (and I haven’t tried it on yet) and then re-knit the ribbing. I’ve also got to work the kinks out of the leftover yarn so that I can reuse it which means spraying it with water and stretching it on my swift or washing it and letting it dry on my swift. Update: I just tried it on and I think it needs to be frogged back another couple of inches so that it will be about this length when I reknit the ribbing. Or a little bit shorter. I have to check out the pattern since I finished this sweater so long ago to see how many inches of ribbing it asks for (and see if I agree.) Once the body is finished, I may have to do something with the sleeves, too. I’m not sure I like the heaviness of the dark red at the “cuff”. Hey, a pattern is only a guideline, right?

I still have a few things that are still on my list of things that need to be finished and I’ve had an “order” for another Emotional Support Chicken and for another Ruby the Mega Ray. I had an interesting experience shopping online with Michaels … I ordered safety eyes for the chickens and yarn for three rays … I was sent one set of eyes and got an email that part of my order was being sent (another set of eyes and half of the yarn.) I also got an email that my order was cancelled because the yarn was out of stock … but it’s still listed for sale on the website. So … when I called Michaels to ask if I had more stuff coming, the customer service rep was nice enough with a little snark and I may have to return all the yarn because I have nothing for the underside of the rays … unless I want to start over again and try to order a different belly color. AND then I have to wait again to see if I get any of the yarn I order … to be determined.

I had begun another sweater wayyyyy back when and then it has sat idly by while I did other things. I do want to make this sweater if I can figure out where I left off and can pick it up again and my stitches are consistent after all this time. I may begin again … the sweater is the Tree Seasons Cardigan and I absolutely fell in love with the yarn used in the pattern and I was able to buy ten balls which is exactly what I need to complete the sweater. I hope I can lengthen it a bit but I don’t want to run out of yarn either. I have a long way to go until I figure that out. This is a heavily cabled cardigan and it will be my project that requires me to sit by myself in a quite room project. At least initially while I learn the pattern. I want to get it done so I can wear it in the fall which means that I’m going to have to pull it out soon.

I want to start Susan B. Anderson’s bunny rabbit with a sweater pattern. Yarn is in a project bag in my studio waiting for me to finish just a few of my WIPs so that I don’t feel too guilty starting something new. Ha!

Gone knitting.

What I Know for Sure …

Posted on April 16, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

This morning the sun was shining when I woke up and I woke up early. We have train tracks behind our house and the train came by at 6am honking its horn all the way up the tracks. When I opened my eyes, it was fully morning; the sun was up and wayyy over to the left again as it should be in the spring.

I got home last night from a reunion (and a short family visit, too) with an au pair who was in my cluster in Cincinnati, Ohio way back when. I’m not sure I’ve spoken about those years here yet. I worked for InterExchange/AuPair USA based in New York City when my children were young. One of my neighborhood friends had started an au pair group that was getting too big for her to manage alone so I started a group, too. We managed an international group of young adults that grew to be about 50 at its largest. What I loved most about it was learning about all the cultures around the world. At that time, I had a world map and knew where all the different countries were. I had au pairs whose countries were at war, I had parents of au pairs calling me when Cincinnati’s race riots were exploding, I had au pairs with health scares and au pairs who disappeared at the end of their year. I had au pairs who stayed in the US and worked and married. It was a wonderful experience.

Janine contacted me a few months ago as they made plans to come to the states on holiday. They visited Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York City and Boston. I managed to get away to Massachusetts on Sunday to meet up with her (and her husband and daughter) in Marblehead. It was a cup-filler for sure!

I am so blessed to have had these women and men in my life. Janine is one of the special ones. And there were many. It had been 27 years since we had seen each other and it was as if all the years between were erased and we picked up again from the day we said farewell. EXCEPT that I have gray hair and she has two grown daughters, one of whom was with her, and a husband. We had lunch and a stroll around Fort Sewell in Marblehead and then it was time to part again, hopeful that it won’t be another 27 years before the next reunion.

Au Pair agencies still exist out there and welcoming an international “student” (the men and women come to the US on a student visa and there is an education part to the program) is a rewarding and often times life changing experience. Au Pairs provide childcare for a minimal stipend and an opportunity to live with an American family to learn English and gain experience. A good local coordinator is essential and families need to be willing to welcome this young person as a member of their family; take them on family vacations, out for meals and family activities, etc. Done well, your family grows by one with each au pair you host. While I didn’t have an au pair myself, my family grew by many over the years and I value the contact and communication that I’ve had as I watch these “kids” get married and have families of their own. Getting to meet Janine’s family was the cherry on top!

I spent the night with my Marblehead and Salem family and when I got home yesterday afternoon I find this … yup, I’m a lucky woman! Gone knitting.

Eclipse Day – Maine Edition

Posted on April 9, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

Tuesday, April 9, 2024 – The Morning After

I have about eight minutes until the muffins are ready to be taken out of the oven and here I am trying to put into words how incredible our day was yesterday, Eclipse Day 2024. Maine was in the path of totality and my husband took the lead in finding a good spot from which we could see the full solar eclipse, better known as totality. Initially, he and a bunch of friends were going to go to Arkansas, rent a couple of houses and watch the eclipse but the plans fell through. And then we learned that we were in the path of totality! Right in our own back yard!

We set out early to get to the spot that he and his boss, Tom, found in The Forks, Maine. We headed for the spot which turned out to be a boat launch ramp on the Kennebec River and was not marked by a street sign. When we arrived, after stopping at the Bingham Hannaford store for provisions and use of their toilet, there were only 3 or 4 cars. During the day, though, the cars trickled in and we were probably around 20 cars by the time the eclipse started.

Eagle’s Nest in the tallest tree across the river

Of course, I brought my knitting! I should have been working to finish up either my Fiddlehead Mittens or the socks I’m knitting BUT instead, on such an auspicious day, I cast on a project that I’ve been thinking about for ages. The Braided Cable Handle Tote by Amanda Silviera. This is a free pattern on Ravelry. It’s knitted in worsted weight wool and then felted … no gauge measuring! I had been gifted some fuchsia colored Galway worsted wool from my student, Donna, before she moved to Nevada and it seemed that this bag needed to be made in that generously gifted yarn on a special day.

The eclipse experience was incredible. We donned our glasses at the start of the eclipse and sat back to watch what happens. We doubted that it would get dark enough for us to really notice. We were wrong. The temperature dropped, the birds quieted and it got dark – too dark to read but you could still see what was around you. I don’t use the word “awesome” often but I would for this experience.

Above are photos of Ned relaxing to watch the eclipse and Ned and Tom with a beer to celebrate the eclipse as it began. You can see how much darker it got during totality. For three minutes we all, all of us gathered in that little spot in The Forks, cheered and stared in awe at the miracle of nature and wondered what it would have been like for the first people to experience a full solar eclipse. In fact, a solar eclipse ended a war in the sixth century. Thanks to Tom for the tidbit!

The Battle of the Eclipse^[1] (or Battle of Halys^[2]) was fought in the early 6th century BC in Anatolia (present-day Turkey) between the Medes and the Lydians. According to ancient Greek historian Herodotus, the battle was interrupted by “day turning into night” – presumably a solar eclipse – and the result was a draw which led to both parties negotiating a peace treaty and ending a six-year war.
Wikipedia

All in all, it was such a wonderful day. Even the bumper-to-bumper traffic, at a stand-still for at least 20 minutes, was worth it. The ride up was about 90 minutes. The ride home was 3 1/2 hours. It’s maybe 60 miles total. We turned the car off at one point. But people were patient and respectful and, I think, happy to have been able to witness such an incredible sight. I don’t remember where I was seven years ago when we had another solar eclipse but this one I will never forget.

This is the photo of my knitting when I put it down last night to go to bed. I did pretty well in a day. I’m excited about this tote. One of my wonderful Friday knitters has this bag and it’s gorgeous. I’ve admired it for (probably) ten years or more. It’s time that I got around to knitting it. I have promised myself that I will work on the Fiddlehead Mittens or the Oorik Tank Top today and get one of them finished. I hope I can keep my own promise!

Gone knitting.

Emotional Support Chicken

Posted on April 8, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

Thursday is my day to work at the store. Typically, I work alone on Thursday and I like it that way although when one of my coworker friends does come to work with me, I love that too. Anyway, last week we had a surprise Nor’Easter and the store remained closed for the day so I had a snow day!!!

AND since a snow day meant bonus time for me, I decided to do some frivolous knitting and cast on a new project … an Emotional Support Chicken. The pattern is by Annette Corsino and is wildly popular right now. In fact, there are over 2400 projects recorded on Ravlery. That’s a lot for a pattern that’s not quite a year old. So, I went over to my worsted weight wool leftovers bin and chose three different colorways of Ella Rae wool and got to work. By the end of the day Thursday I had completed most of the body of the chicken. People tell me I knit fast but I’m not sure about that. Regardless, these are the first two photos of her. The knitting is very simple and starts at the tail feathers. Everything is knitted in garter stitch and once you knit the tail, you pick up stitches and start your way up the body to the head.

By Friday afternoon at my knitting class I had gotten this far…

I was all ready to stuff her. So, after work I went to our local JoAnne’s to pick up some fiberfill for her stuffing and today I finally got around to filling her up and seaming in the belly and took her outside for her first photo shoot.

I love her! Ha! Ha! When can I make another?

Gone knitting.

Steek! Cutting my Oorik Tank Top

Posted on April 4, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

What a difference a day makes! We are currently experiencing a surprise Nor’easter here in Belgrade, Maine. It started snowing overnight and has already dropped a couple of inches of the white stuff in our dooryard. We woke up to near-white out conditions and it’s still snowing. Our brave and hearty neighbor is already out snow blowing. My dear hubby is not inclined to snow blow more than once and we don’t think it’s over quite yet.

Yesterday was another mostly sunny and quite pretty day for the most part. I got out early in the morning to fill up my gas tank and pick up some groceries and then my friend and colleague, Glenda, came over for a steek party. We gathered at my dining room table (note to self: we really need a chandelier!) with out Oorik Tank Tops and said a not-so-silent prayer to the almighty knitting goddess Mary Jane Mucklestone and set to work.

As a preface to steeking, we had knitted the Oorik tank in Jamieson & Smith 2-ply jumper weight yarn which is a rustic wool, perfect for colorwork. It blooms when it’s blocked and the fibers naturally “stick” to each other and the stitches, even when cut, don’t come apart. The vest looks a bit like an awkward burrito before you make the cuts. The arm holes and neck and back have been knitted circularly with a collection of, in this case, six stitches added with the plan of being cut to make an opening.

The first picture is of the Oorik with all the knitting done. If you zoom in, you can see the steek stitches added at each arm hole and at the neck. This is planned by the designer so that you can cut up the middle to open the burrito. The second photo is the center of the front, the neck, a closeup of the steek stitches. You can see there are six stitches, in a specific pattern, from the orange marker at the bottom to the top where the stitches are bound off.

The third photo is even closer up. I’m identifying the center of the steek stitches as I am starting the process. The first step is to identify the middle two stitches and then to reinforce those stitches in preparation of cutting them right up the middle.

And now, the reinforcement. As a leftie, it’s always my inclination to crochet with my left hand. BUT with my crochet hook (US D) and some leftover yarn from my project, I am crocheting a slip stitch around the leftmost leg of the center-left stitch and the right leg of the stitch next to it. You can see this best in the middle photo. The idea is to crochet a chain up from the bottom to the top creating a tight hug of these legs so that everything to their right stays put. You then turn the vest 180 degrees and crochet a chain down the other side, hugging the same two stitches (but on the other side now that you’ve turned the garment). Ultimately, you have two crochet chains on either side of what now looks like one single stitch …

Two columns of crochet chain and ONE stitch in between

Can you see the two legs of the stitch between the yellow crochet columns? The single stitch looks like a stack of Vs. The easiest ones to see are the wheat/natural colored stitches in the center of the photograph. I am going to CUT my stitches right up the center of the two legs of the stitch stack … with small, sharp scissors!

And, ta! da! The photograph on the left is what it looks like after it’s cut. The arm holes were exactly the same and there was also a little “flap” at the back of the neck that opens that area up, too. Now all the parts that are needed to put a little vest on a little person are cut and it looks like a real vest. Now it’s time to pick up the stitches around those openings and stitch the ribbing.

I got the neck ribbing done last night and today I’ll (perhaps) do the sleeves. I’m tempted, though, to cast on something new and fun since this is a snow day and I have the day off from work – it’s a bonus day of knitting!

It’s windy and snowy outside so I think I’ll crank up the heat, throw on a sweatshirt and make myself a cup of tea and spend the day in my atelier knitting and catch up on TV and podcasts.

Gone knitting.

PS – There’s a great podcast that I listen to called “I Thought I Knew How”. Anne Frost is based in Connecticut, USA and in this particular episode, #113, she goes down a rabbit hole on .. wait for it .. the etymology of the word STEEK! Check it out!

Jelly Roll Blanket

Posted on April 2, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

It was another beautiful clear day this morning and I enjoyed a bit of time with my coffee on the porch watching the lake. I am so looking forward to spending more time there this spring and summer … but it sounds like we are going to have to wait for a bit longer because we are going to have a Nor’Easter later this week. Ugh!

Just when I was getting used to the sunnier and warmer weather and was ready to move on from the winter … SO … this morning I was on a mission to get some food into our house, run my errands: drop off my car insurance payment, return a blouse to Old Navy, mail a photo to my brother in Massachusetts, deliver a form to move to another doctor’s practice, and pick up some bagels, etc. It was a productive morning and I’ll finish them off tomorrow morning when I go to pick UP the groceries.

I’ve been working on my Jelly Roll Blanket this afternoon. I am having some fun with this pattern. Partly because I’m finding little gems in my leftovers basket and partly because it feels good using up the bits and bobs and a little bit because it’s such a simple pattern. It’s a great one to work on while the TV is on.

I’ve been collecting bits and bobs of fingering weight (and other weights, too) yarn since I started knitting. I “can’t” throw away yarn that may be useful down the road. A few yards of yarn can be used to hold stitches for a sleeve or for a provisional cast on or … well, you get the idea. As a result, I had a large tote bag full of yarns and a basket, too. I’ve pulled most of the scraps/leftovers and tossed them into my basket for this blanket. I’m also using a bag of fingering weight yarn that I bought when I thought I was going to dye yarn so I’m holding the scraps double with the white to “unify” the blanket. It’s still going to be very scrappy.

Today I started the third strip which means that I’ve completed two. I’m enjoying pulling balls of leftovers out of the basket randomly and adding them into the blanket. I can remember some of them; what they made, who I made something for. And some of them might as well have been pulled out of the stratosphere! I have no clue where they came from. Ha! Ha! But regardless, I’m making progress of making *ahem* 20 30 40 years of leftovers disappear. AND I’m making something that will keep me warm and make me smile.

This is a long-term project, however. I don’t have any intention of finishing it this month or even in the next couple of months. I have made a few minor changes to the blanket pattern because I found The Crazy Sock Lady who is making two of these blankets. Here is what she says about her changes (I’m following these steps):

CHANGES I made for a more crisp/neater join

First Strip: on EACH row
K 1st st through the back loop. Slip last st purlwise with the yarn in front.

All other strips when joining…
On right side:
K 1st st through the back loop.
To Join…K to last st. Leave last st on the left hand needle. With the right needle pick up both strands of the V on the strip to the left and place then on the left needle. K the last st that was left on the left needle together with the 2 strands of the V that were picked up.

On wrong side:
Slip 1st st with yarn in front, K to last st. Slip with yarn in front.

This is a fun, simple project for those times when I don’t want to think about what I’m knitting. Today I worked on it for nearly an hour while I read some emails and watched TV. I’m completely enjoying knitting this blanket and look forward to sitting under it in the fall and winter when it’s a bit larger.

Gone Knitting.

Sunny Day!!! … so appreciated after all the rain

Posted on March 31, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

It was a glorious morning this morning and I got to spend an hour or more on the porch with my knitting and coffee. I really (really!) needed that. We had a wonderful visit with my son and his fiancee this week and then three days of work and I was really tired when I got home from work last night. This morning I was hoping to see the sun and I did.

I’ve been working toward completing the Fiddlehead Mittens that have been on my needles. Rather than put them away and wait until fall when I will need them again, I am going to finish them, knit their lining and block them and THEN put them away. I am really enjoying this pattern. The chart isn’t too difficult and the yarns that I am using are working up really well together.

Fiddlehead Mittens – ready for the thumbs!

I’m knitting with Patagonia Organic Merino for the main color. This is a ball of yarn that I had left over from another project. It’s an oatmeal-y colorway and it’s a perfect background color for fiddlehead ferns. The foreground color or contrasting color is a handspun yarn that my daughter gifted to me from Ithaca, New York (if memory serves). It’s a really great collections of colors that reflect nature to me. Greens, yellows, blues and reds. Although they’re a bit more fall than spring when the fiddleheads are found here in Maine. Regardless, the colors work up beautifully together and they’re making me really happy.

I’m wearing my Norwegian sweater today. I had been so concerned that it wouldn’t fit me when I started the project. Fortunately, I love the fit and love the sweater. In fact, I love the fit so much that I am considering another less boxy sweater in the future. I bought some pink Remix Light by Berroco to knit another Lane’s Island Pullover. I love the way this yarn feels and wears and I think I’ll make this one a size smaller than the white one I made a while back.

I have finished my daughter’s Christmas socks and cast on another pair for my bonus daughter. I am trying to get handknit socks on everyone’s feet in our family. AND I have a ton of sock yarn to knit with so why not share the wealth? Gone are the days when I buy a lone skein of fingering/sock weight yarn when I travel to a yarn shop. I still have a bunch to knit up but I am working my way through the stash one pair of socks at a time. I also made my daughter, a while back, a pair of fingerless mittens that are convertible to mittens that cover your fingertips. I may make some more of these, too.

With the grace of Mother Nature this week, my friend and co-worker, Glenda, hope to get together to reinforce and steek our little Oorik Tank Tops. Once we get together it won’t take long or be difficult but we’ve agreed to do it together and we hear that we’re getting a nor’easter this week. Time will tell. But I have to admit that even I am ready to move on toward spring and leave this horrible excuse for a winter in Maine behind. Sitting on the porch this morning just cemented that sentiment.

Gone knitting.

Snow Day!

Posted on March 24, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

It finally happened! We got a good snowstorm yesterday and it closed a lot of businesses and kept a lot of people home. We were happy to be home for the day and took the day to relax and rejuvenate. I spent the best part of the day in my atelier knitting and making some sense of the messiness (again)!

The snow yesterday was blowing a drifting but we were nice and warm in our house. I finished my daughter’s Christmas socks (they’re not FOR Christmas, but she wanted a pair to wear at Christmas time). These are made with the Urth yarn sock kit “Christmas”. I’m sad to sat that I didn’t love knitting with this yarn. It was split-y and a little bit sticky on my needles. The socks LOOK wonderfu, though. I love the colorway and the kit was wonderful because it made is so easy to have a perfectly matched pair. She’ll be very happy with these, I think.

I spent a good while working on my Fiddlehead Mittens and have gotten quite a way up the second mitten. I am still wondering what to use to line these mittens because the pattern calls for a lining and I want it to be soft but wear really well, too. There are almost 4,000 of these mittens made and some of the other colorways are so pretty … betcha can’t knit just one comes to mind. I may have to knit more of these just for fun. *AFTER I finish some more WIPs and work down some more stash!

I was watching the new season of Call the Midwife and the gorgeous orange Norwegian (?) sweater came on the TV. It’s a beauty for sure. I loved the colors and it reminded me of some of Jenn Steingass’ designs. I’ve never knitted one of her garments but I can feel a Jenn Steingass coming on! I loved her little kid’s rainbow sweater. Perhaps Sylvie will want one in the future.

The last photo above was my photo of the day this morning. It’s Maine Maple Sunday today and the water is thickening again. Poor lake must be confused – and the poor ducks and Mergansers and other water birds must be completely confused. I scared a pair of ducks out of our boat house this morning. Our boat’s not in so I am happy that they can find refuge in there just as long as they don’t move in! The boat will be coming soon and this year we may even use it! But until then, I’ll enjoy my snowy day!

Gone knitting.

Knitting Progress and a Bee-Utiful Sunrise

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

While I was sleeping this morning my dear husband took this beautiful photograph of the sunrise. I, obviously, missed it but can still share it with you. A week ago we had ice from shore to shore. We are watching the water birds return to the lake. I’ve been told that the loons are already here, too. I’ve not heard nor seen them but I am watching for them.

Tomorrow I am heading to the store for work, our long winter yarn sale is over and I’m back to working by myself. Today I’ve been busy vacuuming my studio and cleaning up, washing our bedroom sheets and towels, cleaning up the kitchen and I baked bread.

I’ve been busy knitting, too!

I finished my Sunset Highway sweater by Caitlin Hunter back in 2019 but I’ve only worn it a couple of times. When I put it on to help me decide what to do with it, I saw the problem (I think) … it’s too long. So, I’ve spent the last couple of days unknitting the bottom of the sweater and stopping 13 inches from the underarm. I’ve got it on a cord now and I will try it on when I get undressed tonight and then I’ll decide if 13″ is the best length or if it needs to be a little longer or shorter. I will complete the ribbing again and then I hope I will wear it.

I’m also reassessing the sleeves which I feel look heavy compared to the rest of the sweater. I now have a bunch of the body yarn and I may change the burgundy out for the white speckled. Time will tell.

I did a crochet thing! My daughter, as I mentioned before, sent me a photograph of this ray with some little fishies on it’s back … a big hint. Ha! Ha! BUT it looked simple enough and I have been saying that I have to do more crochet to get better at it so I went off to Michael’s to get the jumbo chenille yarn and the size L crochet hook. During a long meeting last week I crocheted the blue back piece and earlier this week the white belly. Yesterday I got some 25mm eyes (they’re HUGE!) and finished it up. It’s very cute. I’m not sure how it’ll hold up to the abuse of an 18 month old but time will tell. My son and his fiancee are coming for a visit this weekend and I’ll send the ray back for Sylvie for Easter.

I’ve been working on my second Fiddlehead mitten and Jelly Roll blanket. AND the Christmas socks for my daughter. All three are coming along. I love the Jelly Roll blanket a lot – it’s so potato chippy – I have trouble putting it down. The socks are down to the foot so they should be finished soon. Maybe by Friday. I am itching to cast on Susan B. Anderson’s Christopher Bunny but I’m “making” myself finish up a couple of projects first.

On Saturday my friend and co-worker, Glenda, is coming over and we are going to reinforce and steek our Oorick vests. We both participated in the Year of Techniques ages ago, before we really knew each other well, before we worked together. But we’ve both finished the little vest (wee slipover?) and we’re ready for next steps. It’ll be fun. Just a bit of ribbing after that and one more project will be completed.

What would we do without yarn? Gone knititng.

WIPs and Ice Out

Posted on March 17, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

This morning we had ice from shore to shore except for a bit of water around the edges. It was raining again and the wind was blowing. I knew things were about to change, I just didn’t know how quickly they were going to change. it’s now 12:22pm and the ice is all gone from the lake but for a few “cubes” around the edge. It’s really amazing how the process of ice out happens. Today’s was the fastest change-over that we’ve experienced in our eight years here. Not long ago there were two big Bald Eagles out on the ice near our “sunken island” and then down across from the music camp. Now they’ve got nowhere to land.

While all this excitement has been happening outside, I’ve got a lot of WIPs inside. AND i may have added one more this week.

Oorik Tank Top by MaryJane Mucklestone in Jamieson & Smith 2-ply jumper weight

My Oorik vest is ready for steeking. Steeking (Muffin) is when you cut the knitted fabric to create an opening and in this case, the steek will open the arm holes and the v-neck. I’ve not ever steeked a garment before so I am really excited to do it. My friend and co-worker, Glenda, has knitted the same garment so we are going to get together and reinforce the steek before we cut it and then cut it. After that we will finish the ribbing on the arms and around the neck and they’ll be finished. Yippee! I got this yarn and pattern in 2017 before I had a child to knit for … some things take awhile but are so well timed! Stay tuned for pictures of the process.

Ruby Ray the Mega Ray in Loops & Thread Sweet Snuggles

I have finished the main part of the top of the mega ray that was requested by my daughter. It will be a very soft toy for Sylvie if this YaYa can get it finished. I am going to aim for that today but I also have a few things that I need to bake for the week so we’ll see how far I get. Next up is the head of the ray in the blue yarn and then the belly will be next with the cream colored yarn. I also have to find some safety eyes.

The other WIPs that I’ve been working on are as follows:

Fiddlehead Fern mittens: I’ve finished the first mitten and have cast on the second but haven’t gotten very far on the colorwork. This is a pattern that I have to think about (or I am apt to make mistakes) although once I get started, it’s likely to go very quickly. I love the way that the handspun yarn that my daughter gifted to me is working in this pattern. The solid color is some left-over Patagonia from another project. It’s truly a pleasure to work with these yarns and these mittens are so pretty. Now that it’s spring, I’ll probably not get a chance to wear them until next year … unless I gift them or sell them before that.

My daughter’s Christmas socks: I’ve put these aside several times because Christmas. I have some time, right? But socks are almost always on my needles and before I started the next WIP I’m going to talk about, I was thinking that I’d try to do another year of 12 pairs of socks in a year. I have a friend who’s doing 24 pairs of socks in 2024 … not sure I could or that I want to do that. Anyway, the pattern for the Christmas socks is Yankee Knitter #29 Classic Socks with a modified heel. I’m using the Crazy Sock Lady’s heel from the Hermione’s Everyday Socks pattern. The heel is sooooo pretty! I’ve completed the first sock and have cast on and started the 1×1 ribbing at the leg.

Last active WIP is the one I cast on on Friday (or was is Thursday night?) and that’s the Jelly Roll Blanket. I’m knitting this pattern with the modifications that the Crazy Sock Lady made, using 2 strands of fingering weight yarn held together for a DK weight yarn. I’m knitting on a US6 needle and I’m having trouble putting this one down. I started the second strip last night. I am using all odds and ends of fingering weight yarn that I’ve used in projects over the last 40 years and I’m (sort of) randomly pulling little balls out and either knitting until they’re gone OR for about eight inches. One of the strands will be the white/natural yarn that I bought when I thought I was going to try to dye yarn. Ha! Ha! That ship has sailed. This seemed like a way to unify all the bits and bobs AND use up some yarn that has no real purpose in my stash. This one may take years to complete or may be the only thing I work on over the next few weeks/months. Once the blanket is finished I think I’ll have enough yarn left to make a Sea Glass tee, too.

Not shown here are a couple of other projects that are in time out. I have a pair of pink mittens that need to be embroidered before they can be finished. I found the embroidery hard on my hands – the stabilizer with the pattern printed on it was tough to get the needle through – so it was set aside. I still want to make the mittens so I have to get the embroidery done. They’ll be beautiful.

I’ve also got a sweater that was begun and soon set aside. The pattern is the Three Seasons Cardigan. It’s an all over cabled cropped sweater. I may be lengthening it a bit … or not. I bought the yarn that was suggested because I loved the sample. I am making size 5 I believe and I know that I’ll love this sweater. I just have to commit to knitting it and I will. Soon.

I have a few other WIPS, too. Yes, I know there are a lot. I’m reminding myself here how many things I have going on at this point in time as much as anything. And for now, I’m going to head to my orange knitting chair and get started working on knocking the WIPs list down by one.

Gone knitting.