Queen Bee Knits

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

FOs and WIPs

Posted on April 30, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

Today is the antithesis of yesterday. It’s damp and dreary and there was no coffee on the porch this morning. Maybe I’ll take the time to get caught up with house cleaning or agendas for the meetings I am running this week or maybe I’ll bake something. And maybe I’ll stay up in my studio and knit. Yesterday I wore my Emsworth Vest over a blouse and summer shoes. Today I’m back to socks and slippers and a turtleneck under a fleece sweatshirt. Ah, spring in Maine.

I have finished a couple of projects and I’m really pleased with them. Let me tell you about them …

This is the Little Coffee Bean Cardigan by Elizabeth Smith, a Maine designer. The sweater was designed to be two (or more) colors in stripes. I used the pattern to knit a plain cotton sweater and then I added “daisies” in embroidery. The embroidered design was inspired by a sweater that I saw online.

All of the yarn I used were stashed yarns. I only bought the buttons. The photos that I took are a perfect example of why you should take photos during the day in natural light. Ha! Ha! The last photo of the completed sweater are much more real colors.

This little Coffee Bean cardigan knits up super quickly and is very simple. I used some stashed 100% cotton yarn that was a gift to me when I was a school “nurse” (clinic assistant was my title) from a wonderful family. I love the color and it’ll be adorable later this summer or early this fall on my granddaughter.

Second, this is the Jasmine Romper by Maria Atencia. As I’ve written here before, the inspiration for this knit was from one of my customer/friends who has knitted three (THREE) to my one. But this was a really fun project to knit. The simple lace on the front of the romper held my attention and interest and the simple (let’s call it plain) stockinette on the back gave me the TV knitting finish that I needed after all the lace. I chose to knit this one in white Bamboo Pop yarn by Universal Yarns. Bamboo Pop is a really nice yarn to work with. It didn’t split like a lot of natural plant fibers tend to do and it didn’t hurt my hands. It’s also soft and will feel good against a babies skin.

Spoiler Alert! If you don’t want to see what clue #1 looks like, don’t read further.

I have cast on a new project, laying aside my Three Season Cardigan for a wee bit. I have always wanted to knit a shawl by Romi and I jumped at the opportunity this week when I saw that Romi is doing a mystery shawl KAL named, Falderal. The name attracted me, too. Do you remember “Falderal and fiddle-dee-dee” in the song, Impossible, from the Rogers and Hammerstein movie Cinderella? I’m talking the 1967 version with Lesley Ann Warren and Celeste Holme (click on the link for the way I remember the song). I’m dating myself but I loved that movie!

Anyway, the first clue was with color 1 and consisted of simple lace knitting. I thoroughly enjoyed knitting the lace and only had to frog back a couple of times and only a few stitches each time. I use lots of stitch markers to help me with lace repeats so that I know if I’ve missed a yarn over. Yarn overs are the most often missed thing in lace knitting. I finished the first clue before the delivery of the second clue today. I’ll get working on it today, too. (But I have an agenda for a meeting tomorrow that I have to write before I am allowed to knit!)

Both of the yarns I am using are Emma’s Yarn Practically Perfect Sock in (purple) February ’23 and After Dark colorways. The After Dark (gray) was in my stash. I think I had planned to make a shawl with a dappled gold yarn from String Theory Yarns, a Maine yarn dyer. I have quite a few shawls with gold in them and I’ll let that hank hang in the stash while I use this gray in my Romi shawl.

I still have a line-up of WIPs on my shelf in my atelier: a pair of mittens, my genser, and the Jane “pants” for my granddaughter. These don’t include the projects that are in the cupboard and out of my sight. So … there you go!

“Impossible things are happening every day!”

Gone knitting.

Home and Recovery

Posted on April 10, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

On Thursday morning I tested negative for Covid. Yay! My kids said that ideally I’d test twice 24 hours apart but when your husband has had a hip replacement surgery and you weren’t able to be there with him, you really want to get home as quickly as possible. So I took an extra test with me on the road and agreed to test again before I went into the house.

Uber to Metro North train to car to Maine. I really need to find a more passive way for me to get to the city and back because the drive is quite long when you’re doing it yourself and only staying for a couple of days. And since I stay with the kids in their apartments, it can only be a couple of days because we’re all tripping over each other. It’s great for a couple of days but then it’s time for them to return to their normal lives.

Anyway, I got home Thursday night and was thrilled to see that my hubby had survived his surgery handily (hippily? LOL) The procedure went “perfectly” according to his surgeon and his recovery is going well. This seems to be the joint that you want to need to replace. It’s so good to be home.

I’ve been knitting a little bit while I was in NY. I took two projects: my brother’s birthday socks and some cotton to make a sweater for Sylvie.

My brother’s socks are big. He has big feet. He’s a tall man! I’ve finished the first sock and have passed the heel of the second one. I love knitting with Emma’s Practically Perfect Sock yarn. It’s a delight to work with and this is a perfect color for my brother who loves green! I’ll be wrapping them up once their done because my “baby brother” is turning the big 6-0 this year and when we were there last he mentioned that he couldn’t find one of the other “fancy socks” that I made him a while back.

I saw this adorable little cardigan on Instagram and sent it to my daughter thinking it’d be adorable for Sylvie this summer/fall. Since they live in NY, their apartments are warm but when you go outside you sometimes need a little sweater. She loved it and I have several hanks of a “robin’s egg” blue cotton that I thought I’d knit it in. I’ll have to look through my stash to see what I have in white and yellow/gold for the daisies which I’ll embroider on after the cardi is finished. My granddaughter has grown so much but she’s still fairly petite and in smaller-than-her-age clothing. So, I’m knitting the 6 month size and we’ll see how it goes. I have five hanks of the yarn so I can knit two or three sweaters from this yarn for a little one.

The pattern is Elizabeth Smith’s Little Coffee Bean Cardigan, a free pattern on Ravelry. I’m knitting it with Universal Yarn Cotton Supreme in the Aqua colorway.

I’ve got other projects started, of course, but they were left behind when I went to NY. Heck, I was only going to be gone for a couple of days … and it turned into a week. The best laid plans, right?

Gone knitting.

A Good Week

Posted on May 16, 2021 by Queen Bee Knits

Every once in a while my husband who is a “real” photographer takes a morning photo for me to post on Facebook. The daily photos have become a much appreciated habit and a welcome gift for my friends and family – particularly during the covid shutdown. We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place and I feel driven to share it with the world. We were, for the most part, pretty happy to be locked up here.

This week the CDC announced that all vaccinated people can go out in public without masks. It’s what we’ve all been waiting for, right? Returning to normal. Yeah, well, I’m not sure how I feel about this seemingly quick change. I think it’s great to be able to spend time with other vaccinated people in small groups of friends without masks but I’m not sure I trust the rest of the population to do the right thing if they’re not vaccinated. I’ll likely be wearing a mask at work for the near future. I’ll feel better that way.

I’ve also spent a few hours outside on the porch and in the gardens. We were talking one day recently wondering how people take care of their yards and homes as they get older. It’s a big job around here! I am grateful that we can do it now but what happens when we get older? It may just all got to hell. Meanwhile, our goal is to make everything easier to care for. Native plants that are good for the birds and bees, ground covers that aren’t invasive so that weeds aren’t as prevalent, etc. Another work in progress …

Meanwhile, I’ve been finishing up a few projects and I’ve been starting a few, too. Ha! Ha! I’ve finished over 33 items so far this calendar year. Most recently I finished slippers for my big brother (his beautiful bride will be felting them so they’ll fit him perfectly), Socks for a new baby boy and his big brother, and I’ve completely finished (well, I haven’t found perfect buttons yet) my Daytripper Cardigan. I’ve also been baking a bit. Apple Pie Scones are among our new favorites (and used the old apples in the refrigerator before they were rotten, banana nut muffins with blueberries use the old bananas. Waste not want not.

I have a new shawl, Gallbladder by Becky Sorensen, on the needles at the request of my younger daughter. I’m making the shawl in Emma’s Yarn Practically Perfect Sock in two colorways. A silvery gray called “Jackie O” and a darker gray speckle called “Stolen Dances”. This shawl is designed by a college friend and she said she’d love it for her birthday. I’m thrilled to make it for her.

Also new to the needles are socks for my husband’s birthday. I almost used this Manos Allegria yarn for my son’s birthday socks but I changed my mind. So, this week I cast on sock for my husband. This is my sixth pair of socks so far this year. I’m once again participating in the annual Sock Challenge and these are my June socks. Allegria is so soft on my hands. I’m sure they’ll be wonderful to wear! My new socks in progress are first below … the rest are after that.

Working on my sixth pair of socks so far this year. (Seventh if you count the two little ones separately.)

I took two classes this weekend and I’m so happy that I did. Yesterday I took a mending class with Bristol Ivy and today I took a finishing class with Deborah Newton. Both were wonderful and I always learn something new and useful. This has been a blessing in the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. To be able to take classes for a reasonable price with internationally known teachers is marvelous! I’m grateful to have been able to “indulge” in several classes over the past year. I’m grateful to still be learning.

My classes on Friday at Yardgoods Center in Waterville, Maine have started up in person again as of May. It’s so wonderful to gather together again. Zoom is a good situation when you absolutely can’t safely gather but it’s far better to be together in person. Friday is, again, my favorite day!

Gone knitting.

A Wonderful Mother’s Day

Posted on May 11, 2021 by Queen Bee Knits

This year Mother’s Day was a happier experience for me. I’m not sure how or why it changes from year to year but this year it was a good day! We woke to a beautiful sunny morning (a bit early with a little white senior citizen 4-legged “child” who piddled on the bedroom floor) but it turned out to be ok because we were able to spend some time on the porch with our coffee and some apple pie scones that I had made the day before.

I put aside my WIPs and picked up some new yarn and a new pattern that I wanted to knit on Mother’s Day. I purchased four skeins of fingering weight yarn from Emma’s Yarn for a shawl for my daughter, Libet, at her request. I’ll be knitting her a Gallbladder Shawl by her friend Becky Sorensen in two shades of gray – a light silvery gray and a darker gray with speckles. I really like working with Emma’s Yarn and this is a big shawl. So far, I like the i-cord edge and I LOVE stripes! (These are the best kind of knitted stripes because I don’t have a hundredty-million ends to weave in later!

Galbladder by Becky Sorensen in Emma’s Yarn Practically Perfect Sock

My sweet husband prepared a special brunch for me. He knows mother’s day is a mixed blessing and he really stepped up to make mine special this year. He bought a gorgeous lilac bush for our yard, too. I hope we will see it live and grow (our record in the yard is about 50% chance of success) … the tag says it’ll get to be up to ten feet tall and almost as wide. Imagine the scent! I love the smell of lilacs! Anyway, the eggs benedict were especially good and the hollandaise completely from scratch!

We spent a good chunk of the day relaxing. I needed to get some laundry done and we needed to spend some time in our yard. We have a plethora of weeds that required a dose of weed killer – we use a combination of extra strength white vinegar, dawn dish detergent and epsom salts as was suggested by the man who designed and planted our gardens. Since we live in a shoreline zone, we don’t want to put anything chemical on our yard. Ever. But this works! We also dug up a bunch of errant daylilies and hostas that have spread into the center of the garden that we call “Helen’s Garden”. This is the garden in front of our bedroom window and it used to be just daylilies and weeds, a groundcover and a few lilies of the valley. After we built the house and before our wedding we hired someone who knew what they were doing to design a few gardens that were bird and bee friendly. Now we have to maintain them and it can be back breaking work but we got it done. Four of our five kids called which was wonderful. We are so grateful that they’re well and healthy. And to top if off, we spent time sitting in the afternoon sunshine watching the birds and had our first visit with Mr. Oriole. What a gorgeous bird he is! I even got a little bit of sun on my face!

It was a good day. Now onward through the week!

Gone knitting.