Author Archives: Queen Bee Knits

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About Queen Bee Knits

Living in Maine, knitting, baking and loving my family. Please be kind!

Knitting and Miracles

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My daughter wanted a pair of leg warmer for Christmas. Finding a pattern was easy. Finding yarn was easy. And when the sticks and string combined, magic was happening at my fingertips. At least until I realized that I had mis-read the pattern and hadn’t started the decreases early enough and the top of the leg fit me! (She is just a bit smaller than I am!)

So, I photographed them (because I liked the way the pattern was looking – and so did she!), frogged them and started again. The second time’s a charm, in this case.

With filter – Kate’s leg warmers

The pattern is Drops Designs leg warmers/yoga socks. For any of you who’ve knitted these patterns, they are not always easy to read. And this pattern is no exception. It’s important to read the pattern through a couple of times and knit mindfully. I “should” know better but raced into the pattern and realized that I had mis-read it too late! Anyway, iteration 2 went more smoothly and I have finished the first one! Yay!

Getting to the foot means that you’re almost half way done!

The yarn that my daughter chose is lovely colors and it’s wonderful to knit with … Madeline Tosh Sport in two colorways (I’ve posted about these before here). The colors are warm tones and the yarn has a wonderfully soft hand. Anyway – the first is done and the second is on the needles. This one will be copied from the first one – and will hopefully knit up more quickly that the first one (and I hope it’s only knit once!)

Meanwhile, we’ve had a couple of great miracles in the family. My younger brother and his wife welcomed a new little girl to the family on December 8. She’s beautiful. Perfect. A blessing.

Faye

I can hardly wait to kiss her and hold her. Her mom and papa are doing well and they’re bonding as a family. Faye joins four fur siblings. Guess I’ll be heading to California with my pups in the New Year!

With Papa! Happy Birthday!

Gone knitting!

It’s the Most Wonderful (?) Time …

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Over the years, I learned to dislike the Christmas season … yes, I am a Grinch-y Christmas person. I’m not sure when I made the turn but somewhere along the line, the expectation of  making Christmas perfect for everyone got bigger than me. And it grew and it grew like the Grinch’s heart. I keep trying to scale back the expectations and it’s difficult. Even with no kids in the house and even though the pressure really only comes from me. I’m still not in love with Christmas.

So, for this year’s goal for myself, it’s to try to keep it simple. Focusing on what’s important. I’m not going to have all the gifts ready – my daughter’s leg warmers are probably not going to be finished. But she knows they’ll get to her as soon as it’s humanly possible. The rest of the family I’m keeping in my heart with small gifts to acknowledge the day. The hundred and fifty cards may not be sent until after Christmas (Happy New Year!) I want to make cookies because it’s a tradition. I want to have a small something for my family to open on Christmas and know that they’re with me in spirit although we’re separated by many miles. I want to be relaxed and enjoy the season!

I know I’m blessed to have children and family that I’ll miss on Christmas because that means I have people in my life that I love. I want to hold that close and remember how grateful I am for my children, my family and my friends – and you, dear blog readers are in that extended family, too.

Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah, whatever you are celebrating I hope it’s filled with joy, wonder, good health – and maybe a little bit of yarn!

Gone knitting!

Leg Warmers in Process

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My daughter the actor wants a pair of leg warmers for Christmas. I love that she asked me to make them for her! Love it! And so, I got on Ravelry and found several patterns for her to give me an idea of what she had in her mind. This child knows what she wants!

The pattern that she liked is by Drops Designs and can be found here. They’re considered leg warmers or yoga socks. Yoga socks don’t have toes or heels. Leg warmers are over the knee length. So, when I was in New York visiting her (and seeing her show on Broadway) we went to Soho and visited Purl Soho. Oh. My. God! Talk about a little piece of heaven! I didn’t get nearly enough time to browse adequately … and I probably could have spent a couple of hours in the store. The colors, the fibers, the light wood and tea and it was so busy!

The Queen Bee at Purl Soho

I was so enthralled with the shop that I forgot to take photos inside! Sorry!

She picked a Madeline Tosh yarn in two colors and wants me to do the pattern design. (The Drops pattern was in a self-patterning yarn and much more .) The yarn is Madeline Tosh’s Tosh Sport (100% superwash merino wool; 270 yards; 5-6 sts = 1 inch) The colors that she chose are warm mushroom, a lovely neutral that is warm and the color of mushrooms – aptly named. The second color is fig. A deep, rich, reddish-brown that is a lovely contrast with the warm mushroom.

My swatch (yes, I made a swatch for this project!) was perfect! On the money – 26 stitches and 13 rows!

Swatched Stitches!

The yarn is yummy to knit with – and I am moving right along! As I’m knitting and designing at the same time, I am never sure if I’ll love the pattern. But I am pleased with it. The sample shown in the pattern is much more pattern-y so I had to make sure she was liking the direction I was taking. (I texted Kate a picture today for the stamp of approval and she liked it.) This is the picture that I texted to her …

Leg Warmer #1 … is on the needles!

So far, so good! Only about 36 inches left to knit. (Oh, yeah, and did I mention that I still have to knit two Christmas stockings?) Did I tell you before that I love knitting? Well, I do! I just hope that they fit her legs!

Gone Knitting!

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

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I will not tolerate anything less. That’s all there is to it. It doesn’t matter what your excuse. I have worked hard and continue to work hard to treat people the way that I want to be treated. I am cheerful and positive and respectful. I don’t tolerate bullying or disrespect. I choose not to be part of groups who are critical and mean-spirited. I don’t even want to hear my knitting students speak negatively about themselves.

Life can be hard. I’ve lived through some tough times. Life can be wonderful. I’ve lived through some wonderful times. I truly believe that we create the world that we live in – and we can affect (effect?) the future by our present behavior and beliefs. I am choosing to be grateful for the wonderful things in my life. I am grateful for three healthy and productive children, some money in the bank, a job that I love, my little dogs, a bed to sleep in and a roof over my head. I have food in my belly and yarn in my atelier. I am so grateful for my family that is growing again this year. I feel so blessed.

I feel sorry for those who are not able to be grateful and positive. Those who have to criticize or bully because it only means that they’re not as blessed as I am and that they don’t feel gratitude for what they have that is positive in their life. Like the Grinch, my heart swells (grows?) when I think about how lucky I am. And while my life is not perfect – or without it’s challenges – I am thankful and happy and blessed.

Gone knitting!

My 3 B Street Shop is Open for Business

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So, I’ve been knitting my fingers off for a couple of years between custom orders and have a lovely bunch of knitted garments … fingerless mittens, scarves, shawls, hats, socks and the like that I have wanted to photograph and get into my online shop.

Then, a year or so ago, I got a call from Laurie Barron (her mother was my eldest daughter’s junior high school English teacher and we have become friends) who was starting her own version of Etsy but without all the “extra” stuff. And the stores were going to have to apply and be “juried” so-to-speak. It keeps the workmanship levels up and the quality of the items in the shops is really high. Within the last few months, 3 B Street shops were in Beta mode and then went live!

Yesterday, we photographed my entire box of knitted items and I uploaded them to my shop. I hope you’ll agree that it’s a great sampling of knitted items and I am (as always) willing to knit just about anything custom for you, dear reader.

Without further ado, please visit my Queen Bee Knits shop at 3 B Street (dot) com. I hope you like it and always welcome  your feedback!

Gone knitting!

Giving Back & Getting So Much!

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During the school year last year, I started mentoring a little girl who was then in third grade. It seemed like a good idea and the right thing to do for me. A selfish thing to do, actually.

I had no idea that the relationship would become so special. But today it is. For the last year, I have had the privilege of mentoring a most adorable (now) fourth grader and I just wanted to share with you, dear readers, that I was invited to a fourth grade choir concert last week. What fun! And such a special invitation.

Fourth Grade Choir Concert for Veterans Day

 

I have been to fourth grade choir concerts before … my own children were always performing. It was easy to go to see my own children. It was also easy to go to see this little girl who I have grown to care so deeply for – she is adorable, sweet, and smarter than her years. And despite some pretty big challenges in her young life, she is happy and so much fun to be around. And she did a great job in her concert!

Parents were so proud and excited. Siblings were falling off cafeteria benches and itching to be anywhere else. But this mentor was really proud of one little girl who is very special to me!

Gone knitting!

Getting ‘er done!

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I’ve had a lot of projects hanging out there all in many different stages of done-ness. I’m really proud that I am getting them done and happy with the way they’ve turned out.

You thought I’d give something away? These are for Christmas gifts! 🙂

The mystery Christmas gifts are done. More of them than I had hoped for – and they work really well. I have totally tested the product in the last day or so to make sure I didn’t goof it up. I hope that means there will be some happy gift-recipients on my list!

Flat Rocks Yarns “Whirlpool” in the Grateful Thread color way

I just finished a darling top-down sweater (no seaming makes this Queen Bee very happy!) for a customer on the Cape. She saw an earlier sweater that I made this summer in a brightly colored bulky yarn that I bought, quite by happenstance, up on the Massachusetts shore. It took (seemingly) forever for the new batch of yarn to be hand-dyed and delivered to the shop but it was a joy to knit with the second time around. The shop, Coveted Yarns in Gloucester, MA carries this hand-dyed yarn in several weights. This one is called Whirlpool by Flat Rocks Yarns. It’s a 100% superwash Merino (3/3.5 sts. per inch on Us#10/11. The colorway I bought is called “Grateful Thread”. (Appropriate on so many levels!)

I’m nearly finished with the baby blanket that has been plaguing me – and all because I had to use up some old yarn and not waste it! So, I’ve nearly finished the striped blanket (and it’s actually pretty cute). It’s a simple garter stitch pattern that I created as I knitted. It will be backed with fleece and a satin binding and will be in my shop soon.

I’ve started a pair of one-skein Malabrigo fingerless mitts in a really great denim-blue colorway. Unfortunately, I seem to have lost or pitched the yarn’s tag but I am loving the way it feels and it is knitting up in to such a nice warm mitten/glove/thing. These, too, will be in my shop soon as I get the second mitt finished and photographed.

I sent off two hats to day for the victims of hurricane Sandy. One is a simple cap for a small adult/large child. I striped it in grey and red for a male person as that was what was needed. The color-changes were nearly perfect with the jogless join method that I’ve blogged about here. It’s amazing how many years I have knitted without using stripes when knitting in the round … and how simple it is once you try it out! I may stripe everything for awhile! My friend Kelly won a skein of yarn at our yarn tasting and fashion show last weekend and she gave it to me to knit up for donating, too. So, I did. Knitted the little lacy slouch hat for a female (it’s a vivid purple colorway) and I assume a girl would rather wear it.

The last project still on the needles is the “count every stitch” scarf that I am making as a gift for a friend (I think). It’s been quite the project. It’s pretty (but not that pretty!) I’ve made it to the decreases and will be so happy when that is finished (and will file the pattern in the  “not sure I want to make this again” file! 🙂

It’s feeling good getting all these projects wrapped up … and that means I can start new ones, right?

Gone knitting!

Almost Finished & “I don’t sew well!”

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I’ve finished and blocked my mink and cashmere scarf/shawlette and it’s beautiful! I love it. Have also finished a couple of dish cloths and a pair of fingerless mitts.

Still on the needles and almost finished is a baby sweater heading to the Cape (Cod, that is!) as a baby gift for a new great-nephew. I’ve blogged about the yarn I’m using before and I am loving it again so it deserves to be shared again. I am knitting with a bulky yarn hand-dyed in Gloucester, MA. The colorway, is “Grateful Thread” (ha! I just realized that I love the double entendre here. This is a grateful thread – my blog!) is a literal rainbow of color that knits together to be bright but not obnoxious! It has a super soft hand is a superwash merino! The yarn is Flat Rocks Yarns “Whirlpool”. I have a ball of their sock yarn, too (in the tourmaline colorway). I just haven’t had a chance to knit with it yet! Whilpool is available at Coveted Yarns in Gloucester, MA … or on their website!

So, anyway, on the needles is the baby sweater and an unfinished baby blanket which I have intended to finish but needed some more yarn. Now I’ve got it and can finish the blanket! Yay! I still have to finish my cotton tank and figure out what to do with my Maine cardigan – all knitted but the pattern didn’t work well around my shoulders. SO, I’ll take it to my LYS and see what they suggest as a “simple fix”!? Also still on the needles is a gift scarf with some lace and knitted from a lovely angora yarn grown and spun in Maine. There may be others but I have another project in process, too!

AND, I’m not going to share it with you until after Christmas but suffice it to say, I’m excited to be making a gift for all of our kids and our nieces and nephews … it’s something that my kids enjoyed while growing up. And since I am not really a sewing goddess … well, it’s a challenge for me that I am enjoying. I hope that all my family will enjoy them because they are made with love! When my kids were still in high school, they were involved in the theater and I volunteered to help with costumes, sets, fund raising … whatever was needed. Costumes was not my forte … and I was “allowed” to iron and, depending on the situation, cut. But I was not allowed to sew! I still giggle about that day – and my wonderful friends who encouraged me to participate despite my sewing “challenges”!

In all, I’m feeling blessed and so grateful to have so many family members to make gifts for at Christmas time.

Gone sewing! 🙂

 

 

Jogless Joins … say that three times fast!

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So, I’ve been wanting to knit one of the beer can mittens that I have seen a couple of on Facebook. Thinking that they must be a pretty normal mitten that is somehow connected back to the base of the mitten (by the cuff). Today is the day!

I pulled out my trusty Lamb’s Pride Bulky yarn from my stash in two colors: Onyx and Limeade (not sure where to find my purple shade but that’s already off topic!) and cast on 24 stitches on my size 7US DPNs. Ribbing for a few inches and then switched up to my size 10US needles and added four stitches in the first row of stockinette stitch.

After a few rounds, I decided that the black needed to be broken up with a few stripes. But every time I’ve worked in the round with stripes, I have had that awkward “jog” where the stripes don’t quite match up. Which makes sense because knitting in the round is more like knitting a spiral than stacks of rows that line up (as in straight knitting).

So, to fix the jog, all we need to do is pick up a stitch and knit two together … and this is done very easily in the first stitch of the second round. When you’re ready to change colors, just change colors. Knit one round in your new color. At the beginning of the second round, pick up the right leg of the stitch under (in the old color) your first new color stitch and pull it up and slip it onto your left needle. Then you simply knit the two stitches together and knit to the end of your round. Here is a photo of my knitting … I am going to change from green to black …

First … knit one round with the new color (if you’re using a marker to mark the start of a new round, slip the marker) you are now back to the first stitch.

I’ve finished my first row of my new color (black)

Second … Pick up the right leg of the stitch below with your extra needle and slip it onto your left needle.

The stitch (green) right in front of my thumb is the stitch below. The black stitch above it is the first stitch of my first new color row. (Hope that makes sense!)

I’m picking up the right leg of the stitch below (purl-wise)

and slipping the stitch onto my left-hand needle

And now you can just knit the first two stitches together and then knit to the end of your round.

Knitting the two stitches together (one is the stitch from below and the other is the first stitch with the new color.)

That’s all there is to this method. And as you can see, there is no awkward “jog” now on my stripes.

No jog! 🙂

Note that this works for stripes of at least two rounds. I haven’t figured out if there is a way to do this with one row stripes. I saw one video (on my search for the answers) where Euny Jang alternated where the stripes started rather than stacking them up but starting in the exact same place at the start of the row. But that tutorial will come later. For now you’re all set to knit stripes in the round … with two or more rows per stripe!

Have fun!

Gone knitting!

 

 

Knitting on the Bias

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Three Shades Cowl … knitted on the bias and wrapped twice around

I’ve knitted two mohair cowls in the last month. I pondered (ever so briefly) just knitting straight but figured I’d be bored after the first few dozen rows. So, I decided to knit it on the bias which, in the knitting world, simply means you increase a stitch at one side and then decrease a stitch on the other side.

This cowl can be worn hanging long, wrapped twice around your neck, over your head like a hood or even around your shoulders. And despite it’s light weight, it’s quite warm. The fibers from mohair are really “fuzzy” and that creates a fiber that closes over the “holes” in the garment and make it super warm.

Three Shades Cowl in One Shade … once around the neck

This is a super easy pattern and I love making these cowls. God willing, I’ll post a pattern one of these days! For now, though, they’re even too warm to try on and photograph in Florida!

Gone knitting!