Queen Bee Knits

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

California Here I Come … and here I go!

Posted on April 30, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

I’m home again after a wonderful whirlwind trip to SanDiego to help my daughter out with the kiddo while she and her husband and partner are working around the world! Far from NYC they all are. I traveled by car, bus, plane and Lyft to SanDiego on Friday and did the reverse yesterday. But I’d do it again today if asked. What fun we had! Three days jam-packed with action and laughs.

Highlights were visiting with my middle child because she was on babysitting duty the week before I arrived and we got to overlap for an evening. The Farmers Market in SanDiego on Sunday was absolutely amazing. So much beautiful food for blocks! AND our trip to Disney Land in Anaheim on Monday was so much fun. My granddaughter didn’t know where we were going and we planned the day to her liking with breaks for her to run around and a long wait for the Dumbo ride (her request) and several waits for visits with different princesses. We managed to walk into two parades where she saw Mickey and Minnie and several other characters that she knows and the piece de resistance was a visit with one of her favorites from Encanto, Mirabel! (I wish I could show you the pictures of her face when she saw her! She got her little dress all bunched up in a knot in her hands with anticipation of her turn to talk to her! Kate and I were in tears! What a moment.)

I loved SanDiego! The flora and fauna are so different from the east coast. We went on a flower hunt in the neighborhood, painted on the deck, read lots of books, had some naps, watched some movies and had a wonderful time at Sylvie’s “California house”. LOL. She’s coming back to New York with daddy this weekend and mama will come back the following week because her show, Regency Girls (at the Old Globe) was extended and, we hope, bound for Broadway!

I did finish two pairs of little socks for Sylvie before I got to California. One green pair and one purple pair and she was happy with them. The yarn is King Cole Footsie which is washable and dryable but I’m going to have to make more, bigger socks. Her little footsies are growing so fast!

I also started a cardigan for Sylvie for fall. I had real troubles figuring out what to bring for travel knitting but I knew I wanted to finish her socks. So that part was easy. I don’t think I took any finished photos. oops.

Knitting Pure and Simple #1607 Child’s Skirt and Cardigan Set in King Cole Simply Denim

I’m knitting the second size, a size 4 with a 24 inch chest measurement. I hope it’ll be big enough for fall and winter! BUT as you can see in the last photo of the group above, she has a new Disney princess sweatshirt that she wanted to wear in the car on the way home AND immediately upon waking up the next morning. So, the cardigan has some stiff competition! I brought three sets of buttons with me and she picked the ones she wants which I will reveal when it’s time for buttons. The kid knows what she wants! You’ve got to love that.

Yesterday I made my way back home with the reverse order, Lyft to plane to bus to car. My sweet hubby was waiting for me at the Portland, ME bus station and I was so happy to see him! It was a great trip and it’s always great to be home. Even if it’s only for 48 hours.

Adventure awaits! Gone knitting.

Monday, Monday

Posted on April 14, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

And here we are at Monday again. It was a short weekend after a very busy week and I’m not sure that one day is enough time for me to recover from busy weeks any longer. I need more down time! Luckily, I have today and then I’m working extra days again this week because the boss is out of town (and will be for almost a month).

On Saturday I taught my first workshop in a couple of years. I think the last one that Glenda and I co-taught was in 2021? The last one was all about Intarsia and this one was all about Stranded Colorwork. I had a large group but it went well and, as usual, there were some who were better prepared skill-wise than others but that is to be expected. It’s good to stretch ourselves and learn new skills – and we have to always remind ourselves that perfection is not the goal. In essence, the workshop has you knit a swatch … there is a charted pattern which was new for some, and there are five colors to use. It was a great class in that they all worked so hard that at 11:55am, I was shocked to see that the class was almost over … and so were they! They were in the zone! I consider that a success. We meet again next week to learn a steek – reinforce the knitted swatch with crochet stitches and then cut the knitting and add button bands (to make a coffee cozy.)

There was one woman in the class who shared the same name (as I recalled) with a woman I went to high school with. She was a grade ahead of me. Turns out they were one and the same. What fun to meet again after all these years. I hope that we can get a group photo next week and I’ll try to take photos of their progress, too.

I thought long and hard about what I would knit next and I’ve cast on a little pair of green socks for my granddaughter. She loves putting on her own socks and she even likes them mismatched. These, I hope will work for her mom who likes to wash and dry … the idea I have may not be conducive to a dryer but we’ll give it a try and see how it goes. I’m not going to share (yet) what my plan is to make these uniquely Sylvie. If it works, I’ll share. For now they’re just little green socks in King Cole Footsie yarn. I use my good old Knittter’s Pride (KnitPro) DPNs in US 1.5 and the Yankee Knitter Sock pattern vanilla sock.

I have also cast on a baby blanket that I hope will be an heirloom for my bonus daughter. I was reminded when I was in NY that I had two more sets of yarn to make the same Little Tern blanket that I made for my first grandchild before Sylvie was even a twinkle. I loved knitting the pattern and I loved the yarn so much that I ordered extra yarn to make two more. (I was taking a series of classes called A Year of Techniques and they came with yarn collections from the UK. Two of the projects called for the same brand of yarn and I chose not to make them but got more yarn for the blankets instead.) Anyway, I cast on a green blanket for the Nugget on Friday and have been happily knitting along … enjoying it just as much as the first one and I’m pretty sure I used the written instructions last time and am using the chart this time!

Little Tern Blanket in Fyberspates Vivacious DK

I have swatched for a Patty tank in Berroco Chai. The swatch gauge is a bit off so I will knit one size up and hope for the best. I think it will be a good summer top and the red color I chose is really pretty – it’ll go so well with my white jeans! I have quite a bit of the Lang Bebe 200 yarn that I made the Newborn Vertebrae with and I think I need to make a pair of infant thumbless mittens and a hat to match for the Nugget and use it up. I have no end to the potential projects that I can cast on and several sewing projects as well. I have to finish the quilt for Sylvie’s bedroom at Yaya and Poppy’s house before they come for a visit this summer (and I have to find or piece the backing). I have a hole in my favorite jeans so I have promised myself that I would patch them up. I found the patch and I think I’ll try sashiko stitching the patch. AND I have a pair of my husband’s boot socks that are wearing thin. I think I’ll repair them before they have holes. I just need to get all of this done!

Fortunately this is not a busy meetings week but I am working Tuesday and Saturday after my second workshop ends in addition to my regular days on Thursday and Friday so my free time is even more precious … and with that, I’m signing off.

Gone knitting.

A Week of Memories

Posted on April 5, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

The sunrise this morning was unremarkable because of the clouds. Lots of gray today but yesterday when we arrived home after a week in New York City babysitting for our granddaughter, it was a glorious sunny day. I always go through a bit of a depressive episode when we leave the kids in New York. It takes me a couple of days to recalibrate myself to being just me, just us, in Maine, away from the hustle and bustle and constant business of the city. Today is a little bit difficult but the last week was truly wonderful fun.

My eldest daughter, mom to our grand, is in San Diego opening a new play called Regency Girls and her husband had to be in Las Vegas for a work event so we were called to spend a week with our granddaughter. We have learned we walk more and move way more when we’re in New York with a two-year-old. Ha! Ha! And we did. We went to the playground, played in their courtyard, made lots of lego buildings and stacked blocks (and knocked them down). Read books, colored with Dot markers (they are very satisfying) and generally had a blast. We made challah one day and Sylvie was a big helper, mixing, punching down, helping to roll and braid the dough, and brushing on the egg wash

She may be only two but she’s talking a blue streak, sings all the songs, has some crazy one-liners and is fiercely independent. Yesterday she went off to school in black and white plaid pants and a rainbow dress with two differently colored socks but she got dressed mostly by herself … and the curls!!!

Hubby and I are getting used to living in the city and have found the grocery store, a mailbox, the local bodega for newspapers and quick purchases, and we even found Target this time (to buy some cards.) We are becoming accustomed to having noise outside the windows 24-7 and sleep through it anyway. We loved being able to drop the trash in the chute in the hallway and compost and recycling are an easy elevator ride to the basement. (B is for basement we were told!) There are three great playgrounds within a few minutes walk and we didn’t even stroll around the park!

I got a bit of knitting done and realized that a linen tank that I want to knit is going to need to be re-sized because my gauge is way (way!) off. I think I can knit it a couple of sizes larger on a much smaller gauge and it will work. I’m crossing my fingers. I have 8 balls of Chai by Berroco in a pretty red colorway that I’d like to make a summer top in. I saw the Patti tank and thought that would be great but I don’t want it see-through. I’m way beyond that age! As is my habit, I started the tank with the suggested needles and then measured my gauge after a couple of inches and it was nowhere near the gauge for the pattern – 4 or five stitches per inch – it was closer to 6 1/2 stitches per inch which would cut the finished measurement by almost 4 inches in total. Not ok. SO …. I frogged it and went back to Bristol Ivy’s way of swatching to see which fabric I like after I knit and block it. I’ve tried the US6 and US7 needles on 35 stitches. I’ve got to knit a bit more on the larger needles and then I’ll bind off and block it to see if the gauge changes. That will determine my preferred fabric and then I can figure out how many stitches I need to cast on to make the tank fit the way I want it to. More on that in a later post.

Meanwhile, I have finished a little sweater for my new great-nephew. I used a Knitting Plain and Simple pattern (#214 Baby Pullover) and a Sirdar Snuggly Aran yarn. The yarn is super soft and easy care for the new mom who also has a two-year-old. It’s adorable and just needs a little wash and block to be ready to send to Massachusetts.

I don’t want to show the finished version just yet … Baby Pullover #214

I also finished the knitting on my Bolin cardigan before we left and, despite the fact that I wanted to wear it, I didn’t have time to sew on the buttons and it wasn’t quite dry before we left for New York. It is now, though. I’m planning the button sewing today so I can wear it this week. I love the fabric, it’s so soft. We’ll see how I feel about a cropped cardigan when I get dressed one day soon. I hope that it’ll be ok with a long tunic and jeans or leggings. Pictures soon.

Socks- On the Round yarn, Yankee Knitter pattern

I finished the On the Round socks while in New York and left them there for Sheldon, one of the “kids” in our extended family in the city. He’s definitely knit worthy! I loved the yarn and hoped they’d be for me but I made them a little bit too long and they’d have fit my hubby but he didn’t love them. Sheldon’s feet are the same size as my hubby so he was the winner!

I cast on a little sweater for our newest grandchild (arrival late August.) We don’t know if they will be a boy or a girl and won’t know so I let Poppy choose the colorway and it’s gray with specks of color. A little Vertebrae cardigan for newborns. This baby will be living in the Denver, CO area and will be born in A/C season and will likely spend lots of time outdoors. We can’t wait to meet him/her!

I have made some progress with this cardigan and have finished one sleeve and am nearing the end of the second sleeve. I’m going to be playing yarn chicken with the edging around the fronts. OR I’ll have to buy another ball for the last little bit which means there will be a matching hat and maybe mittens for the first cold snap. This yarn is so soft and quite wonderful to work with. The pattern is one of my favorites for new babies because they spend so much time against a human body, they only really need a sweater on their little backs. This one is perfect. And the yarn is machine washable. (The green and blue cords are “knitting barber” cords like these. I have several sets for holding stitches. They’re great knitting tools!)

I didn’t have a chance for my daughter to try on the fingerless mitts that I’m making for her. I have a wee bit of concern that they’re going to be too big and I’ll have to start them over again so I’m not knitting any further until she tries them on. The next chance I’ll get will be late this summer or early fall when we’re at the beach. I’m just going to put them in time out until then. Meanwhile, I’ll finish the embroidery on the pink mittens I started forever ago and get those done.

In a week I will be teaching the first of two parts of a workshop on colorwork knitting. I’ve got to get a couple of examples together and knit a few swatches so I can demonstrate at different times in the workshop. I have a big group signed up and I’m excited about the interest. Our knitting project will be a coffee cup cozy knitted in the round and then we’ll cut a steek to finish it off. But it’s a great, worsted weight “swatch” to learn the techniques and to get knitters ready to knit a colorwork project with more confidence.

The ice on our lake is thinning rapidly. We’ve had a typical mix of Maine spring weather while we were away and with a couple of warm days, the ice wlll be gone from the middle of the lake. We will be watching for “ice out’ (when a boat can navigate from one end of the lake to the other) this week. I’ve not looked at the weather report but we’ve had a report of the first loon sighted at the north end of the lake … they always seem to know when they can come back to the lake. Before we know it the hummingbirds will be back, too.

Gone knitting.

Tuesday Afternoon

Posted on March 18, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

What a morning! No fog today and we saw the sun come up this morning after a couple of days of fog and gray, rainy weather. It’s been downright dreary but today feels so much better. I’ve been busy tearing apart and putting back all the stuff in the sewing side of my atelier. I’m making room for my granddaughter to have a space of her own for when she comes to visit this summer. I have a few more things to do until it’s finished but step by step we are building a little nook for our little monkey.

It’s also been a good opportunity to go through and clean out a little bit more (again) and clean it all up. Spring cleaning? It feels good. Today I got a thing to hang up my ironing board and put away the iron … I had to assemble it and when I put it where I thought I wanted it, there wasn’t enough room between the wall and door to work so I moved it to another door but not before the iron fell out of the little shelf and hit my arm on its way to the floor (and it dented my floor). Oops!

I’ve been really working on my Bolin cardigan this week. I’ve mostly finished the first sleeve and I’m working my way down the second one. When they’re both at the same place (just before the ribbing) I’ll try it on and see how much more length I need to make it “just right” and then keep going. I’m getting close!

I really like the color of the fabric, too. The base is a camel color with the rosey mohair it has a haze of mauvy rosy neutral It’s different from other sweaters that I have and I think it’ll be good to wear with jeans or dresses. Time will tell.

AND I have finished my Cardoon! I wore it yesterday (without having cut all the bits left after weaving in all the ends. I’ve done that now and will probably wear it to work on Thursday. I like it a lot. I’m still not 100% sure of the way the collar/neck works but I like it.

I’ve mentioned before that I love the yarn. It was in the clearance at the LYS where I work and I brought it home a couple of years ago. It’s been sitting in my stash waiting for me to knit it up – I een knew it was going to be a Cardoon. The yarn is Fibra Natura Kingston Tweed, a DK weight wool, alpaca and rayon blend. When I wore it yesterday, it was really light but also quite warm. It’s the perfect weight sweater. Of course the yoke is doubled because it’s stranded so it keeps my shoulders warm and toasty.

I’m teaching a workshop in April and I’ve begun planning the sessions and knitting the samples and doing some research on how to teach colorwork to a continental knitter. I can knit continental but I’m naturally a thrower so I’ve got to figure out how it works so I can teach it. I know I’ll have at least one continental knitter. I have to pull together some samples of colorwork knitting from my “collection” too. I have plenty!

I’ve just finished a book I loved. The Blueberry Pickers is a Maine story about indigenous people who picked blueberries and who lost a young child. The child disappears from the field one day and her brother Joe is the last one to see her. In a parallel story Norma is an only child of a wealthy Maine family that’s dysfunctional and she searches to uncover the family secrets and the reason why. I highly recommend it. AND I’ve been baking again which tells me that my soul is either in a good place or troubled or both. I made our favorite oatmeal scones this week and a pineapple angel food cake. We’ve finished the bread I baked last week and there are a couple of banana muffins in the freezer. In the last couple of weeks I’ve made s curried red lentil stew that was sent to me in Ann Budd’s newsletter. It was delicious! I also made my “dump, dump, stir, stir” soup recipe, too. Also delicious. So, while the country is going down in flames, I’m making soup and baking and I’m so grateful that I am not in danger of losing my job and I hope and pray that some sanity and balance is found soon.

Gone knitting!

Beware the Ides of March

Posted on March 15, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

My heart is feeling very tender today. I woke up thinking about my father and how long it’s been since he’s been gone. It’s 40 years today. My Katie wasn’t even a year old when he died. The kids never got to know him or he them. I’ve forgotten the sound of his voice and how he smelled of pipe tobacco. And for today, I’m feeling so sad about all the years he’s missed. But I do take comfort in believing that he’s watching over us all. I think he’d be pleased that we are living in Maine. He loved Maine (my mother did not) just as we do. I think of him with a smile when I see the wild birds here, when my husband is snow blowing and covered in snow, when I’m working in the gardens pulling up weeds and pitching little rocks. He died when I was 26 years old, just shy of 27, in his car, in his garage, under strange circumstances. We will never have the answers but I have to believe that he suffered a heart attack. I’ve grown up, raised a family, got divorced, started a new life at 50, lost my mother, found my big brother, got remarried, and moved three times since he died. A lot of life happened. I have to believe that he’d be proud of me and of my kids because we’ve all had a strong work ethic and have built good lives. I’m now older than he was when he died by a good margin. It’s funny how some years this day barely hits my consciousness and others it hits me (like this year) right in the solar plexus!

Today I’m putting my body to work and figuring out how to add a little spot in my atelier for a sleeping nook for our granddaughter when she comes to visit this summer. She’s still too little to send up to sleep on the third floor and yet she’s too big for the pack and play crib she’s slept in when she was here last year. We have lots of stairs in our house and in the dark, they’re a danger to little people so we’re making it safe for her so we all sleep better and I hope she’ll love it. My plan is to make her a quilt for her bed (she wants purple) and create a “nook” where she can sleep in a “big girl” bed without a crib to contain her. It’ll be interesting. Right now I’ve taken all of the bins and books out of my big IKEA shelf and we’ll move it to a different position creating a “wall” for her space. I’d like to make a sleeping platform that my walking pad and ironing boards can store away under. And one or two of the boxes in the IKEA “wall” will hold her books and stuffed friends. I’ll knit a heart for her wall just like she has at home and maybe we can paint the back of the shelf (it’ll need some plywood to make it safe) purple for her. It’ll be a project but it’ll be her space for now.

This week was a good and busy week. I had a board meeting on Wednesday, worked on Thursday and yesterday I taught. I’ve been working on deep cleaning/spring cleaning the ceiling fans and cobwebs and windows and rugs and I can’t wait to be able to open some windows and get fresh air into the house. I’m starting to feel stifled by stale air! It’s supposed to be warm-er today so I may risk opening my atelier windows … and maybe I’ll hit them with a bit of windex and elbow grease. (So much for my manicure!)

I’ve finished my Cardoon pullover. I have blocked it and only need to trim all the ends that I wove in and add a label and try it on one last time. I hope the fit will have improved post-blocking. I was chatting with a friend the other day and was trying to remember if I’d done a gauge swatch for this sweater and I couldn’t remember and didn’t make notes on my Ravelry project page. So, I’m going to assume that I started knitting the yoke and measured my gauge there. Not the best way to do it but I’m generally pretty close to gauge. I did have to block the sweater pretty aggressively to get it to the proper measurements on the schematic but I hope it’s going to be a good fit and wearable this coming week. I’ll post a photo when I have my shower and try it on.

I loved the yarn and the pattern, as all of Isabell’s patterns, was well-written and easy to follow. It really was a pleasure to knit … too bad I waited so long to knit it! LOL

Yesterday at work I started the sleeves for my Bolin Cardigan. The cardigan is cropped which may or may not suit me but I’m knitting on. I love the big 6×6 cables running down the sleeve and I’m eager to see how it all comes together. I’m hoping it will be something I can wear with a tunic and jeans or dress. I got about four inches of sleeve done … one twenty round repeat and a second cable twist … I’ll work on it again tonight.

Gone knitting!

Hugging my Way Through the Week

Posted on March 9, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

This was my weekend to work and so I trotted off to work yesterday (and forgot to take a picture of the lake before I did. So I posted a shot from the winding table at the store and said that I’d be there all day. And lo and behold, I had two special friends appear at the store for a visit. First Bristol Ivy and her husband, Will, and then Ellen N. who used to come to knitting class on Friday but she’s been busy being a grandmother and has even taken a new part-time job which requires her to be there on knitting class day.

And on Friday another dear knitting friend, Katie, came in for a visit! Each of them gave and collected a big hug from me and it brightened my whole week seeing them. This is why I love working in a LYS! It’s all about the people, the community that is built in these small businesses, mostly women-owned, safe spaces for everyone. At least I can speak for my LYS.

At my last class on Friday I also “birthed” two new knitters! Anne and Liz are a mother and daughter duo who came in to learn to knit or get a refresher after a really long time. They caught on quickly and I am eager to help them get to where they want to be with knitting. So, all in all, it was a really good week.

My two sweaters are getting banged out even though it’s now March. I’ve been working on the Cardoon this week for the most part and an officially on sleeve island. One sleeve has been started. I’m also ready to pick up stitches on my Bolin Cardigan but, to be honest, I haven’t picked it up since I finished the shoulder seaming. It’s next for sure. Maybe I’ll get one sleeve started today.

I started another hat for my customer Judy. She picked up the black tam and I’ve cast on the (final for now) navy one. I ran to the shop this morning to pick up my check so it won’t get forgotten. I also got the car washed and picked up some sour cream for our beef stew dinner tonight. I haven’t got any new photos of anything I’ve been working on so you’ll just have to trust me. Maybe I’ll have some real progress shots for later this week.

For now, I’m going to put my feet up and knit and watch some “stupid tv”. It’s Sunday!

Gone knitting.

Is Everybody Sick? Not me

Posted on March 3, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

We got home from a fun weekend in Marblehead with my brother and sister-in-law and their family. We were to have seen our other brother and his wife who were in Salem visiting their daughter, our niece, who is about to deliver her second child. BUT the airport made them both sick and they were quaratine-ing (is that a word?) so the mom- and dad- and big brother-to-be stayed healthy. Sad to have missed them but we’ll have to go down again before they leave.

Meanwhile, we hung out in a bar, ate dinner out, had a wonderful family Sunday dinner and got caught up with my nephew(s) and my brother and sister-in-law. I needed it.

And then when we got home this afternoon and parked the car in the driveway, I was so grateful to be home. We love being home. It’s cold today but the sun is out and I’ve jumped right back into my busy life.

I took three projects with me this weekend and worked primarily on my Cardoon. I had separated the sleeves so I was merrily stockinette stitching around and around and around. It was great knitting-while-chatting knitting. I’m almost to the spot where I begin the colorwork bit just before the hem!

I’ve also made some good progress on my Bang Out a Sweater, Bolin Cardigan. The fabric is so soft and it’s going to be a lovely sweater; soft and really warm! I’m knitting it with a strand of Rowan Felted Tweed and a strand of Rowan Kid Silk Haze held together. One yarn is camel colored and the other is a fuzzy rosey mauve. Together it looks wonderful! I’ve got one front and the back up to the shoulders and have started the second front. Soon I will be seaming shoulders and knitting sleeves with gorgeous big cables down the side. This is my first design by Norah Gaughan and the body has been simple enough but I’ve been waiting to knit the sleeves!!!

Bolin Cardigan in Rowan Felted Tweed and Kid Silk Haze held together

AND, this morning after my zoom meeting (on my phone, in the car) I worked on my On the Round socks. With a nearly vintage On the Round sock yarn, I’m knitting the Yankee Knitter #29 Sock pattern with a 3×1 rib on the leg and top of the foot. I’m almost at the toe of the first sock.

Yankee Knitter Socks in On the Round yarn

I have one half of an almost FO, too! I’ve finished, well almost finished the first of the mitts for my daughter. Whew! Knitting with black yarn is a challenge and the result is incredible. I really love the colors she chose and the mitts are going to be stunning. And they’ll be warm, too. I’m going to knit the second mitt next and then finish both thumbs.

Rain Shadow Mitts in Brown Sheep Nature Spun Fingering

The colors aren’t really accurate. They’re a true black and a denim blue. But they’re going to be really pretty!

Tomorrow I’ll be grocery shopping, doing the laundry and writing the newsletter for the store in preparation for working the last three days of the week. Including Saturday. It’s my weekend this weekend! Ha! Ha! And tonight we’ll be sleeping in our own bed.

Gone knittng.

Grandmothering

Posted on January 29, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

This was my morning view yesterday morning. I was heading from my son’s to my daughter’s apartment before heading home. New York City is so different from home but several parts of my heart live there and l am so grateful to have the flexibility to travel to the city when I am able. I went to help my daughter with childcare so that she could teach a master class in Long Island while her husband was away on business. An extra pair of hands is sometimes helpful. So, I drove down on Sunday morning and came home yesterday … I wasn’t sure I’d make it because of the forecasted snow but I got lucky! No snow until I got to just south of Augusta.

I arrived home to a beautiful post-snowstorm lake. It was sunny and cold and I was so glad to be home. I’ll miss the kids and granddaughter but I brought a bit of New York City home with me – a cold. This morning was pretty rough and I called in the back-up at work so that I didn’t have to work the whole day and can hunker down and relax and get better. I’m drinking tea, staying warm and preparing to go to bed early. It seems like my decongestant and cough medicine has really helped.

While I was away (as usual) I didn’t do a lot of knitting except at nap time. I have been working on a sample for the store – a hair bow. We had a customer in the store last week who was knitting a mohair bow for her mother and we really thought it’d be good to knit a sample for the store. She was younger and we need some youth in the store. I had some left-over mohair in my stash and am using it. The pattern calls for using one or holding two strands of mohair together. It’s a quick knit unless you’re using dark yarn and dark lace weight mohair. LOL.

I have reached the decreases on the second “wing” of the bow. I’m going to switch to light-colored needles and knit on. Hopefully I’ll get it finished and into the store tomorrow or early next week. The pattern is Dahlia Hair Tie Bow. All the details are on my Ravelry page.

This is the delight that kept me on my toes for three days … she is two years old and very independent except when she gets stuck hanging on the bathroom sink and can’t get her feet back onto the toilet. “I need help!” She’s amazing. This grandmother is in love … she knows her numbers and letters, she sings lots of songs and has some very strong opinions. She loves to play in her room and depending on the day, she’s a good eater. Her vocabulary is expanding exponentially and I think her daycare is responsible for that in part. The adults in her life also talk to her all the time and take time to play with her. I love spending time with my family and watching them all supporting each other and loving this little girl. Her face isn’t allowed on the internet so I share these three pictures of our time … coloring, watching movies and insisting on putting her own headband in.

Today I’ve been knitting my Jelly Roll blanket. I’ve finished the fifth and started the sixth strip. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m following the Crazy Sock Lady’s changes to the pattern which makes it simpler to pick up the connecting stitches as you knit the strips together. I started this project thinking of using up all my left-over sock yarn scraps of which I have quite a few. I also had some white fingering weight yarn that I hadn’t used and started holding two strands together … one white strand and one scrappy strand. I’ve decided that after five strips I’m not using up enough of the scraps so I’m altering the “plan” and am using two strands of scraps for a while so they really get used up! It’s super scrappy! I have a feeling that it’ll be super cozy to sit under.

I have one stitch to finish before my Christmas socks are finished. I had dropped a stitch and could only pull it up so far before it would have made it really wonky. I will pull it through to the back/inside of the sock and using a length of yarn, I’ll weave it in and that’ll be good. And I hope to finish the hair bow tonight.

Tomorrow I will be casting on my Bang Out A Sweater project. MDK is hosting the event and the goal is to complete a sweater during the month of February. I love the cardigan they’re knitting but I think I’ll knit a colorwork pullover sweater that I have the yarn for in my stash. It’s been sitting in a cupboard for too long … and then maybe I’ll buy myself the yarn to make the cardigan. Or maybe I’ll make the Stockholm Slipover with the orange yarn. I don’t know … decisions are difficult. Regardless, I’m casting on Cardoon by Isabel Kraemer in Kingston Tweed by Fibra Natura. I have two shades of purple, one light and one dark, the contrast is minimal so it’ll be interesting to see the yoke when I get there.

I brought some crud back from New York so I’m staying home today and worked only part of the day yesterday. I don’t want to share germs with my Friday knitters but I’m really bummed because Friday is always my favorite day.

Gone knitting.

New Year, New Cast-on and Goal Setting

Posted on January 1, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

Well, here we are. To me the New Year means a clean slate to create a year that I want to see; to be proud of, to enjoy, to bring people together, to celebrate, to strengthen relationships. All in a span of 365 days. There’s a lot of the unknown this year and a lot to be grateful for as our family grows again and hoping for health for all of us, too.

I’ve spent the last 24 hours cleaning up my studio/atelier and getting my new journal/planner ready to go. Today I get to start a fresh book, too. The old orange book will take it’s place on the shelf and the clean, fresh turquoise book will start traveling with me. It’s my “bible” that I count on to keep me all together. Calendar, record of business, keeper of notes and birthdays and more. I’ve been using a bullet journal for several years and while mine aren’t very creative, they are a bit of peaceful time each week where I can set myself up for success.

I also decided to cast on a new project today. I saw Romi’s Winter’s Finery yesterday. It’s a one-skein small shawl with a fun edging. I chose my yarn this morning and am using a skein I bought a couple of years ago at Knit City Montreal – Mailles a Part in the Maree colorway. It was hand dyed by a friend of a friend and is a special skein that is perfect for this project. I’ve wound the yarn and will pull out my needles when I finish this post.

I’ve made myself a cup of tea, set up my day for success and now, I can relax for a bit and enjoy some knitting.

And speaking of knitting, I want to report that I completed 63 projects in 2024. 11 pairs of socks, four Emotional Support Chickens, four Christmas stockings, two sweaters and a vest for me, a bunch of hats and mittens and lots of baby/toddler sweaters, mittens and hats and one toddler dress. Colorwork was very prominent this year. I also had a few commissions. It was a very good year.

On my needles (see details on my Ravelry page):

Jelly Roll Blanket: being knitted with scraps from sock yarns that I’ve been carrying around for decades! It’s maybe 1/3 done? This will be a long-term project. I work on it during zoom meetings and watching youtube podcasts.

Pink Embroidered Mittens: I’m challenged by the embroidery on knitted fabric but I really have to pull them out again and get them finished. Even if I don’t embroider both mitts. The color is so pretty and they’d be great driving to work mittens!

Fair Isle Gift Bag: started it after taking a class with Jeanette Budge on Fair Isle knitting and choosing colors for Fair Isle projects. I loved the class, got feedback on the colors from Jeanette and just haven’t prioritized the project.

Lobster Hat: Another old project that I just need to keep working on and get it done. This is a Mrs. Knitter pattern that I bought as a kit from Over the Rainbow Yarns a “million” years ago. It’s been closed for a long time. Thought this would be a gift for the lobster-loving daughter but I don’t think she wants it … I’ll give her first dibs.

Neds Christmas Socks & Christmas socks: two pairs. One for Ned, obviously. Worsted weight boot socks. I have one foot and toe to complete to finish them. The other pair is progressing down the first sock’s foot. One more to go. I’d like to make at least a pair of socks a month this year.

I have a sweater in time out for Sylvie. I want to make another Love and Light for my bonus daughter and her hubby. I have the lights. I have at least three sweater’s worth of yarn to knit for me and a couple for Ned. AND we have a new great-nephew arriving and a new grandchild, too. SO, lots of inspiration and good reasons to knit in 2025. (There ma be more that I’m forgetting about.)

I’ve promised myself that I will sew more in 2025. I have several projects started that I’d like to finish and I have bought a tunic pattern & fabric, two kits to make totes, and a pattern and fabric to make an apron for me and a pattern for pants for Sylvie. I know I have a paper-pieced quilt top started and there are likely more in the cabinet. Do you think I can commit one day a week to sew? I’m going to start there and see how I do. My friend Carol said that she’ll come over and help with the totes because they’re overwhelming to me … that will happen in February or in the spring.

I’m planning to teach a workshop at Yardgoods in January or February. I just have to find a date. It will be a colorwork class and they’ll steek their project (a cup cozy) at the end. My teaching is a really happy part of my life and I want to keep it going. I’m working to build the 3-5pm class on Friday but I may mix them in with my other classes and call it good.

Mostly, I want 2025 to include lots of family time. We’re planning a visit to my hubby’s girls in the spring and summer and I’ll try to get to see Sylvie in NYC at least every six weeks. Time in person is so important to building on the relationship we have already which is amazing!!! I adore that child. I’d like to get to Reno to visit my aunt and uncle and cousins there. They’re not able to travel east any longer so it’s up to me to get out there. I’ve also never been to my “new” sister’s house in AZ. If not in 2025 then for sure in 2026. Reminds me I need to get the new license so I don’t have trouble traveling. OK, I need to go sit and knit … this is getting overwhelming.

Happiest next 365. Wishing you health and cheers to filling the blank slate as we each see fit.

Gone knitting.

A Very Merry Christmas – 2024 Wrap Up

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

We got home from our Christmas trip yesterday afternoon and it was dark before I could sneak outside to take a photo of our homecoming. BUT suffice it to say that despite the unseasonably warm temps yesterday, the lake remains frozen. (It was not frozen when we left.) As with any time away, the laundry is up to the rafters, the mailbox was full, and there is a lot to “catch up” on. And then there is the end-of-year wrap up, bills to pay, projects to finish (or add to the list to transfer to the New Year), etc. It would be overwhelming if I allowed it to be. I’m not allowing it. I will take it bite by bite and not let the stuff get the better of me.

We made a trip before Christmas to Costco in Manhattan (it was packed!) to buy supplies for dinner on Christmas Eve and a few other things. We cooked a marvelous Christmas eve meal at my son and his fiancee’s house, we had a lot of fun on Christmas day at my daughter and her husband’s house and another great meal. We went to SOHO to get a bracelet at Catbird (mine was a gift from my daughter for Christmas). We visited Knit City on the upper west side and I bought a skein of yarn to make a Musselburgh hat.

We went to see my son’s Broadway debut. He’s a lighting designer/electrician and has worked hard (even with the pandemic) to become a member of the electrician’s union in the city. It’s quite a feat as you can imagine but he did it! He is operating the light board at the Manhattan Theater Club’s Friedman Theater in Eureka Day. We loved the show and the lighting, of course, was masterful!

We played with toys: dog toys and Sylvie toys. We gave her one of her big “wants” this year, a doll stroller for her baby (she’d been trying to “steal” them from other kids at the playground when we were in the city in October.) Her expression both verbal and visual was delicious and delighted this Yaya! I may have cried a little. We ate and drank and chatted into the wee hours.

We went to the art exhibit at the performance space where my younger daughter works: The Shed. The Luna Luna exhibit was also masterfully produced and we thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s re-constructed pieces of a circus that was created by famous artists that had been hidden away in storage for decades, recently discovered and brought back to life, so to speak at the Shed NYC in Hudson Yards. We spent over an hour walking through the interactive art piece. It was colorful and creative and fun for all ages. Bravo!

I did a little bit of knitting on the drive to NYC and after Christmas. I gave my husband an unfinished pair of wool boot socks. I’m nearly finished with them now … they’ll be my first FO of 2025. And I started a pair of Christmas socks to give me something that I didn’t have to think about to knit. I have a few WIPs that will be carried into the New Year again (and a few that I carried into 2024 that still have to be finished.) But I spent my energy over the week in NYC having fun with my kids and their families. We even got a chance to see my hubby’s eldest daughter and her husband who came up from the Washington, DC area for a couple of nights.

Subways, brunches, Lyfts, lots of walking, SOHO, Washington Heights, dog walks, Hudson Yards, coffee shops, lots of walking and stair climbing, all in a week in New York. We’re making memories!

Tonight we’re going to a neighbor’s house for a bit to celebrate the arrival of 2025. 2024 was a difficult year in many ways and a wonderful year in many ways. We are so grateful to be healthy and strong so we can babysit and travel and continue to work at jobs we like. I am grateful to the community that I’m building here in Maine and here online. Thanks to those who are following my antics here at Queen Bee Knits. I hope it’s entertaining and that you may have learned something about knitting or just about life and had a little fun with me along the way.

Wishing you and yours a healthy, creative, peaceful, love-filled 2025.

Gone knitting.