Queen Bee Knits

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

Back to the Drawing Board

Posted on December 10, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

I’m posting a photo from yesterday because this morning we are facing a wall of fog. The air is relatively warm and the ground is cold after several days of unusually cold weather and our first plowable snow. We were in New York City taking care of our granddaughter and missed the snow – it’s not yet shoveled from the driveway and if we actually get rain today as the weathermen suggest, what little we have will be melted away.

We had a wonderful time in New York with the kids and grand. My eldest and her husband took off for Miami for a few days and we stepped in and stepped up to watch the baby and their very senior dog. And we had a wonderful time! Sylvie is engaging and has a great sense of humor. She’s adding new skills daily and communicates with baby sign language (hungry, more, all done). We both adore her and she really loves her Poppy.

While we were there I attached some legs to the Very Hungry Caterpillar that I knitted for her (and she loves). The pattern was simple enough to knit but didn’t have any legs in the pattern. I knitted six legs at home and brought them to NY to attach, a good choice since I didn’t knit more than a couple of rounds the entire six days we were there. I was playing with Sylvie or cleaning up or sleeping. Regardless, the caterpillar now looks more like the illustrations in the books.

If I were to knit this stuffed toy again, I would make the body and head in one piece rather than making them separately and stitching them together. I made the legs with a 4-stitch i-cord and they’re about an inch long. I pulled the yarn through after sewing them on the body and then tightened it up to make the legs “bend”. Because Sylvie is a chewer and everything goes into her mouth, the eyes and nose are sewn on, too. No buttons for this child.

I have designed and knitted her Christmas sweater for 2023. Unfortunately, I need to rework the upper part and, frankly, if I had time, I’d take off the binding at the bottom and extend the brick pattern by one or two repeats. But I don’t have time so I’m going to lengthen the chest/upper body and then block the sweater a little more aggressively than I would normally to widen it a bit and lengthen it, too.

I will be writing up the pattern and hope to find someone to help me grade the sizes. I think it’s super cute. I will be taking the top back to the first few round of raglan decreases and will add several more rounds to make the top a little deeper (and the sleeves a little wider at the shoulder). Overall, the size I made is too small for Sylvie. It would be pretty perfect for a 6-9 month old I think. She’ll wear it for a few photos and then take it off … lessons learned. Knitting is so good at making me feel more humble.

I also finished knitting the i-cord “string” for Sylvie’s second pair of thumbless mittens. These are red (duh!) and are quick to knit. I’m amazed to report that she even leaves them on! Next year we will graduate to larger mittens with thumbs but this year those little fingers spread out and it would be impossible to get a little thumb into a mitten thumb.

The last photo is exactly how much knitting I got done this past week. For someone who prides herself on daily knitting practice, I was SO busy with Sylvie, getting her fed, bathed, and changed, etc. that I just fell into bed at the end of the day. I didn’t read much or knit much at all. The car rides to and fro were different, however!

On my needles Christmas edition (I have more but they’ve been set aside for deadline knitting!)

A hat to match Sylvie’s Christmas sweater … my thought is to make it appear that she’s the Santa popping out of the chimney.
Socks in Paton’s Kroy in blue stripes
I have yet to start and must get going on a golf tam for Kyla in beige
AND I have to frog and reknit the Christmas sweater itself

Life is good. Gone knitting.

With Gratitude for all of our Blessings

Posted on November 28, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

We got home last night from a wonderful Thanksgiving trip to see Ned’s youngest and her fiance and to meet her future in-laws. His oldest daughter and her husband came out, too. It was a wonderful (almost) week with our family!!!

We went for a great walk on their near-by bike trail, spent lots of time eating and chatting, had the most wonderful Thanksgiving feast with Jake’s family, went bowling (and tested Ned’s new hip), ate at a delicious Indian restaurant with Jake’s family and went for a drive to the mountains and had lunch in Golden.

Highlights were seeing a pair of buck moose on the way to a state park photo spot. They were just enjoying their nibbles a bit off the side of the street. We stopped, of course, like foolish tourists and took photos. We supposed that they wouldn’t be able to reach us quickly because there was a six-foot barbed wire fence between us … we also did not try to annoy them closer to us. AND when we got to the scenic overlook of the mountains it was breathtakingly beautiful. Those mountains are incredible. We were treated to witnessing a proposal. We saw a woman “lurking” at the side of the trail and a couple walked hand-in-hand to a little clearing near the trail and before we knew it, they were face to face (at a distance from where we were standing and he got down on one knee. The lurker was a photographer and we were the unintended witnesses. A privilege to witness such a special intimate moment in a couple’s life.

We adore the new family we are adding to ours and are so excited for Amy & Jake’s wedding so we can get back to Denver. I missed being able to visit with my “little mentee” from Florida who has moved to the Denver environs with her little family. She was sick and I couldn’t risk getting sick because I have babysitting duty in NYC this weekend. I also was reminded that an Instagram knitting friend is in Denver but their Thanksgiving was on the day that we had time/opportunity to visit so we’ve postponed both until June. I also didn’t get to visit any yarn shops which will happen in June. But it was an excellent visit and we look forward to more in the future. Guess it’s time to get a Southwest Airlines credit card for the points, right?

My knitting sure took a back seat to visiting with the kids and family. I worked a bit on the blue baby sweater for one of my daughter’s bestie’s new baby boy. I have to finish the button bands and block it and get some buttons on Thursday at work and it’ll be done. I frogged the mistakes in my Nancy’s vest and have begun re-knitting with ten rows between buttonholes. Good grief, I can’t believe I read the pattern so badly the first time. I’ve said before that knitting is a humbling experience and this was once again proof of that. I started a pair of socks with yarn that has been deeply stashed (another one, yes!) in a Maine Lobster colorway. My intent is that they’re for me this time. The last ones I knit for me years ago felted slightly in the wash despite them being superwash wool … and I gifted them to Kate who has smaller feet.

I adore this man and the family that we’ve built together. I hope we get at least another 20 years to watch them all grow together! We are so lucky to have found each other and to have weathered the weirdness that we’ve been through at different times. We are grateful to live in our beautiful home and to have some wonderful friends who make our life richer and we are most thankful for our health and our children, children-in-love, and of course our grandchild.

Life is good. Our hearts are full. Gone knitting.

PS. While we were gone, we started the process of fixing up our little wonky cabin which will be available for rent (hopefully) next summer. We lived in the cabin for seven months when we were building our house. I think it’s especially a great place for writers, artists, contemplation … I know we did a lot of growing together in those seven months (and it was darned cold for the last few weeks!) More on that to follow.

How Today’s Going

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

Today is my last day at home before returning to work after having some cruddy virus-type thing. I’m still coughing and stuffy but I do think I’m on the upswing and am feeling much better. My sweetie not so much. Today’s been one of those days where your plan just keeps falling apart.

I always spend a few minutes at my desk in the morning to have a look at what I need to get done that day, if I have any meetings, etc. Today I got myself ready to start the day and headed downstairs to fold the laundry. When I went into the bathroom I noticed that the toilet seat needed attention so I cleaned it up. The sink also needed attention so I cleaned it and the counter. Finally, it was time to fold the laundry and put it away. Done and dusted. I thought I’d make granola next and walked by my purse in the front hall which reminded me that I had wanted to changing purses so I went into our closet and found that my two vintage Coach purses at the bottom of the bin were moldy so I grabbed the shoe polish and the purses and went out into the kitchen to clean and polish them. My purses look brand new after more than 40 years and I switched my stuff from my “fall” purse into the oldest and smallest Coach purse that I have. I bought it on sale at Lord & Taylor in Manhattan when I lived and worked there. It was my first ever Coach purse. After putting the other purses back in the closet, I got out the makings for granola.

And while the oats, etc. were toasting, I remembered to catch up on my Wovember posts on Instagram.I know that committing myself to these monthly postings is going to be tough but I try it again and again. I was really behind … like 5 or six days behind. I’d thought about the posts and had taken some photos but needed to take a photo of the afghan that my grandmother’s friend Ruth gave to me as a shower or wedding gift the first time I was married. Ruth is my knitting hero. She could knit while drinking coffee, smoking a cigarette and watching TV. The afghan remains one of my favorites despite the acrylic yarn. I noticed it needs some repair – it has a few pulls – and I’ve added that to my mending list. I wrote my post while the liquid part of the granola was melting and then put the granola together and back into the oven.

I had emptied a bottle of fizzy water and hadn’t refilled it so I did that, put away the dry dishes on the drainboard, cleaned up the kitchen and washed the top of the island (I had to scrub a bit of shoe polish off.) Meanwhile, I’d forgotten to eat breakfast so I grabbed the last of the baked oatmeal out of the freezer and popped it into the microwave. See how it’s gone? I’ve made headway into the day but geez, there’s a lot of side trips! Ha! Ha!

Look how happy my houseplants are! I am thrilled to see the show they’re putting on this year. My Thanksgiving Cactus is in full bloom. It’s absolutely covered with flowers. The second one, is blooming too but nowhere near as fully as the red one. Our orchids are STILL blooming. They’ve been incredible and in nearly constant bloom for months. Yes, you read that right, MONTHS! My father would be so proud of me and I know that Helen is smiling.

I really am knitting. I’m endeavoring to design a Christmas sweater for Sylvie. She’s a year old but she’s a peanut so I’m not sure what size to knit but I’ve just begun and am hoping it’ll fit! I’ll write the pattern down when it’s done … maybe … but I think it’ll be cute and different. I’ve got the body done and am knitting the sleeves. Since they’re little, they won’t take a lot of time. The Yoke will be worked pretty simply with raglan decreases and then embellished once the sweater is knitted. I’m not going to share any more photos (the one below was posted to Instagram) until it’s finished but there are hints on my Ravelry project page.

I’ve set aside my pink mittens with some of the embroidery done and some yet to do. I’ll get them finished when I am done with Sylvie’s sweater. They may travel with me for Thanksgiving. We shall see. I’m continuing to work on my Nancy’s Vest slowly but surely and mostly in the evenings when I am too tired for colorwork and design work. I’ve got five of the seven button holes knitted so I’m making progress. I hope it’s going to be long enough … it looks like it could be really short. If that’s the case, I’ll rip it out and start again. I am trying to take my own advice and trust the pattern.

My gray socks are still on the needles. I found a dropped stitch way back and pulled it up as far as I dared. I’ll secure the one stitch when it’s finishing time. I’ve already added a stitch so that my count is correct. They’re for me so it doesn’t really matter if they’re perfect. Well. they’re perfectly imperfect.

My studio and home are a mess and I can’t leave for Thanksgiving before it’s cleaned up a little bit. Guess we’ll be vacuuming and dusting this weekend. Holiday travel is not my cup of tea and I’m trying to get myself into the mindset that what happens happens. We are so fortunate to be able to travel and to be invited for a Thanksgiving visit. Our generator is in good working order should we lose power and we have Tom coming to raise our guest cottage sometime during the long weekend so he’ll check on the water issue (we’re waiting on parts so it can be fixed.) Monk will be happy to see his friends at the kennel. We have everything that’s within our control done. The rest is up to the universe.

Gone knitting.

PS. Two more thoughts. First. I went to the doctor because I wasn’t feeling well on Thursday last week. When we bring our dog to the veterinarian, they call to see how he’s doing after the visit. I’ve heard not one word from my doctor. Second. The weather is really feeling wintery now. We (the royal we) covered the garlic with straw and it’s time to cover the Rhododendrons that we’ve been nursing for years. They’re getting a bit bigger but the weight of the snow (and the workers) may hurt them. Guess it’s time to put the life jackets and oars away, too. The dock’s only been gone a month or so. An extra thought. Be kind. Everyone’s fighting battles these days. Politics is ugly, war is ugly, and it’s difficult to wrap my head around the things people say to each other. What we can all do every day is to be kind. It takes so little effort.

Mid-October WIPs and FOs

Posted on October 15, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

I slept a little bit late this morning and missed the sunrise. It was a rough night. I left my snoring hubby and went up to sleep in the guest room around midnight but woke up all by myself at 3am and couldn’t get back to sleep. But today waits and we had things to do around the house that we’ve been putting off. We vacuumed the house, I assembled our new rolling hamper and we helped our friend get her garage door working. We also hit Helen’s garden in front of our bedroom window. It was full of (what I think is called) strangle vine and it’s getting to the bushes and perennials in the bed. We’re going to have to keep a close eye on that bed in the spring! We can’t use any herbicides because we’re so close to the lake. Best we can do is a strong vinegar mix.

I’ve been busy with meetings and work and events but I’ve also been working in my studio and have a bunch of projects on the needles and a few that are finished. With the craziness in the world with the wars between Israel and Hamas and Ukraine and Russia and all of the heartache that they bring coupled with the chaos in the American government, I’ve been struggling to keep my own sense of peace within me. I don’t like what the Israeli government has done to the Palestinian people but I despise that Hamas has kidnapped women and children and the bombing, murder and mayhem is horrible. I can only imagine how all the mothers and children, in particular, must feel as their homes are destroyed and their loved ones are killed.

I’ve discovered that when I’m feeling out of control and world events are so disturbing that I tend to cast on new projects. I’ve cast on six new projects; all of them are smaller projects than the sweater that I’ve been trying to finish. I have finished two hats and a newborn sweater.

The hats are the same pattern knitted in Cascade’s Baby Alpaca worsted yarn. This was on clearance at my LYS and I couldn’t resist buying a couple skeins for hats for babies. The yarn is so soft! The hat on the left is completed here, the hat on the right has also been washed and blocked and has a pompom, too. The pattern is Garter Ear Flap hat by Purl Soho. They have a bunch of wonderful and free patterns on their website. There used to be a store in New York City but it’s been closed and remains so. Bummer. It was a fun place to visit. We went there once.

The baby sweater pattern is called Newborn Vertebrae and it’s a free pattern on Ravelry. This one is for one of my daughter’s friends who is having a baby boy soon. I love knitting this little sweater for wee ones. It’s really only a back and arm covering because newborns are most often being held against the body. This one is made of an Online Linie fingering weight yarn in a self-striping colorway. I bought one 50g ball and hoped it would be enough … it almost was. Thank goodness I’m a bit of a hoarder (of yarn) and I had a tiny bit of leftover yarn from a pair of socks that was a perfect match and I was able to get the ribbing around the front completed. (I really only needed enough for a row or two.)

My WIPs list is a bit longer than it was but I was reminded that I had a few things to get on the needles that can’t really wait forever. My Norwegian sweater is in time out for a bit. I’ve almost finished the first sleeve and when I got to the place where I should begin the colorwork, I have too many stitches and I’m not sure how to handle it without going back and adjusting my decreases. I know that the traditional Norwegian knitters wouldn’t do that but I can’t seem to figure it out their way.

I’ve cast on a pair of purple socks, plain vanilla, with my Yankee Knitter pattern. I’ve knit so many socks that I’ve worn out more than one paper copy of the pattern. I now own an electronic version and hope that will last for the times when I can’t remember what I need to do next. I have mostly memorized the pattern. The yarn is Cascade Heritage and it was found in a basket when I was searching for blue yarn for the Newborn Vertebrae. I cast on immediately because it’s such a pretty color!

I’m also knitting a white garter stitch hat for my granddaughter. It’s a turkey hat, a replication of one that my daughter sent me a picture of last year. The baby will be a YEAR old on Thursday and I thought I’d knit her a turkey hat for this year. I couldn’t find a pattern to follow so I started out with a cast on of 96 stitches but it looked huge. So I frogged it back and cast on 80 stitches and it looks much more likely to fit our little peanut. I’m trying to get this one finished before we leave for NYC for her birthday party. You can bet we will be FaceTiming on Thursday. My intent with this hat is to embroider eyes and a beak on it and knit a few colorful feathers at the top. Cross your fingers (and toes, please!) Photos of the finished hat will be forthcoming.

The second pair of socks is a skein that I also bought at my LYS when it was on clearance. I’d knitted a pair in a similar colorway for my hubby and loved the yarn so much that I just bought the other hank. It’s been waiting for just this person’s feet. Haha! I am using the Yankee Knitter sock pattern here, too. Did I tell you it’s my favorite sock pattern? All of the details are on my Ravelry project page.

I spent the day on Wednesday last week sewing. I’m making two little pairs of harem pants for Sylvie. I decided to size up so that she can wear them for a little bit, I hope. I bought the pattern and the lawn fabric at Fiddlehead in Belfast, ME earlier in the summer. I bought some double gauze at my LYS which conveniently is also a fabric store. I got the elastic for the waistband there, too. The pants have French seams and I have stitched them both without (knock wood) making any mistakes. I have to insert the elastic in one pair and finish the waistband stitching on the second, insert the elastic and then hem both pairs. They’re so cute! I hope I’ll get those done tomorrow. It’s too late for today. I need to sew when I am fresh since it’s not second nature … thought I am darned proud that I knew how to follow the instructions, trace the pattern piece, etc. I may turn into a sewist yet.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of my mother’s death. I’ve written before about our somewhat difficult relationship and I’ve been working on forgiving and moving on. This year I am feeling some sorrow about her not being here to see her beautiful grandchildren and her great granddaughter although I do believe she’s watching over us. I feel more comfort this year than I have in the past and I’m proud of that progress. I’ll light a candle for her in the morning and let it burn throughout the day in her memory. I know she did her best.

Today I thought again about a poem by Wendell Berry, The Peace of the Wild Things. It’s a favorite of mine and perfect for these times of despair when the world seems so heartless and hopelesss.

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

Gone knitting.

Taking Every Opportunity When it Knocks

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

This morning before the sun came up after a perfect sleeping night interrupted by my snoring partner. I’m grateful that we have a guest room or I’d have been relegated to sleeping on the couch! Fall is a welcome change for me and I’m loving the cooler weather and have pulled out my flannel shirts so they can de-wrinkle without ironing. Ha Ha. I’m putting away my linens and tees because it’s sweater weather!

On Sunday I drove over to Rockland for a workshop with Katherine Ferrier at her Lincoln Street Center Studio at the suggestion of my friend Lori. The workshop was entitled Embracing the Mystery: Quilt Making and Cyanotype Prints. Cyanotypes are a photographic printing process that uses exposure to light to create its distinctive deep dark blue color.

Our task was to design the prints, some just because and some with a prompt, perhaps telling a story and being willing to embrace whatever happened. It was a cloudy but bright day and that alone could make our results different than on a bright sunny day. We enjoyed the print making and getting to know each other so much. This was a remarkable group of creative maker women. I was inspired by their talents and I’ve already purchased some cyanotype fabric. If it arrives quickly, I plan to take it to a friend’s lavender farm this weekend to make some lavender prints!

In the afternoon, we designed out quilts with our prints and some lovely scrap fabrics available from Katherine’s studio. I had originally thought I’d like to use just the cyanotype prints but with a little bit of guidance from Katherine and the beautiful orangey linen scraps, the final plan for my quilt top was made. And I love it!

It’s a long ride home so I took my photos of the quilt top and my fabric, batting, and backing fabric home with me with the promise that I would finish it and with three new friends. For the last couple of days I put the quilt together. I finished sewing together my quilt top on Monday. I made a few rookie mistakes because I’m new to patchwork sewing where not all of the pieces are square or the same size. Nor are they a planned pattern. I guess this is my first original patchwork design.

I am so happy with it. I added a little embroidery detail on the top left corner piece; an outlined blossom and a cluster of french knots in colors similar to the pops of linen. Orange/peach/salmon seem to be a new theme for me.

The center piece, the largest piece we printed was a prompt to make a wish. My wish was about my home, my husband and my family. Inside the circle is a joined pair of blossoms representing my husband and me and outside are pairs of blossoms that represent our five children and their significant others. I will be stitching a little pink blossom to represent our granddaughter. The grasses crossing it all represent flexibility, softness, growth and strength and above it all the “h” is the wish for health, happiness and home. Home to me is not only a place that you live, it’s a sense of belonging, peace, comfort and safety. This piece has a lot of meaning in it for me. I really do love it.

I then pieced the backing fabric. I wanted to incorporate the last print that I made, my self portrait, in the quilt somehow so that I didn’t bring home another piece of fabric without a plan. I also used my little square that Katherine gifted to each of us as my quilt label on the back. I pondered whether I wanted to stitch in the ditch for the quilting or tie the quilt, decided on the former and then decided to put a proper binding on it. I cut 2.5 inch strips for the binding, sewed them together and stitched them onto the quilt. I also stitched in the ditch around the outside of the quilt to attach the second part of the binding.

It’s not perfect. There are a couple of places on the back where I didn’t catch the binding and where the backing wiggled out of the binding but I am pretty sure I’m comfortable leaving it this way because the whole exercise was embracing the mystery, right? I’m consciously embracing the imperfections as part of the process of learning and meeting myself where I am.

Here is the finished quilt on my studio floor. I only need to hang it up somewhere in our house. I’m so grateful to have a house that is a true home with a partner who encourages my creativity even though dinner isn’t always ready. I have found my home here with him.

I’m grateful to my friend Lori who inspired me to take the opportunity and this workshop. I’m also grateful to my new friends who inspired me along the way. I am grateful to Katherine for making the opportunity available for us all together, learn, explore and embrace the mystery!

What a wonderful day it was!

Gone knitting.

Patrick’s Pumpkin

Posted on September 20, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

It’s been a beautiful day at the lake and I am grateful for a day to “do nothing”. We had coffee on the porch this morning and those mornings will end soon enough and we’ll be inside again for our coffee. But today we got to be outside and it was so quiet and quite warm as the sun rose higher in the sky.

I spent the day “catching up” after having taken a couple of days to visit with my family in Marblehead. I drove down yesterday, spent the day with my brothers and sisters-in-love, niece and her husband, great-nephew and nephew. We had an incredible dinner of chicken parmesan cooked by my Marblehead sister-in-love, Annie. I’ve never had a bad meal in that house! It was delicious. The next morning we visited again and then I headed home in the early afternoon. We all hope to get together for a longer time when the Louisiana family is here in December. Maybe they’ll even get up to Maine!

I brought my Nordic pullover with me and didn’t knit a stitch. I am plugging away at the body of the sweater and all that garter stitch when I don’t have family to visit with and my great-nephew to play with. He’s a happy boy and cute as a button. I am determined to getting it finished before the really cold weather settles in.

I’ve been working on a pair of pumpkin hats for my daughter’s friends’ two sons. I made lots of these hats several years back and thought that they might be a fun surprise. I’m making two large hats and hope that they’ll fit the boys. I have made a few minor modifications which may change the sizing just a wee bit. Instead of holding the yarn double for the band of the hat, I am knitting with a single strand and on the increase round, I increased with a M1 increase to have the correct number of stitches for the pumpkin part.

The first hat, the one that is pictured here, is a bit “tight” around so I hope this one will fit the baby. But children’s heads don’t grow too quickly so the second one that I’m making I’m changing up just a bit. I’m still making the large hat but this time, I knitted the last round of green with a double strand and increased per the instructions. The band of the hat is a bit more stretchy so I hope this one will fit the big brother. I’ve gotten an inch or so into the pumpkin part of the second hat so I hope that I can get it finished by the end of next week. I have an extraordinarily busy next few days and I’m unlikely to get a lot of knitting done.

The pattern for the pumpkin hats is called Patrick’s Pumpkin and it’s a Fiber Trends pattern that I have had for decades. Yes, decades. I made them for my children when they were young. I always used Brown Sheep’s Cotton Fleece yarn in the past but I didn’t have any on hand and decided to make these hats with Plymouth Encore yarn. The colors are pretty perfect and I had the yarn on hand because … we knitters, when we get an idea, we want to knit it right now!

I found some daisy buttons for the yoked baby cardigan that I made with donated Plymouth Encore and it’s really cute! I have also washed and blocked the sweater and the hat. They’re ready for new homes. I have several items that I think I will be putting up for sale in the near future so that I can make some room in my studio for some new yarn. Ha! Ha! Like I need new yarn. I hope someone will want to have some mittens, hats and scarves that are knitted by me to give or to keep. What doesn’t sell will be donated to a good cause.

I’ll write more later about selling hand knits. For now I’ll sign off. Gone knitting.

Hurricane Lee Day

Posted on September 17, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

Today’s the day we’ve all been waiting for. Hurricane Lee has been heading toward New England and thankfully, it’s been downgraded to a tropical storm but is still hitting the northern coasts of New England with some pretty powerful wind! We are getting wind here but so far, minimal rain and our power is hanging in. (We are very fortunate to have a generator so that’s not really a concern.)

We arrived home on Tuesday afternoon from a week-long vacation in Rhode Island with my three (adult) children and their significant others and their dogs and our granddaughter. What a wonderful week we had together. I am so grateful that they all want to spend a week with us and that they carve time out of their busy lives to be together. We enjoyed wake-ups with Sylvie in the morning since we’re the earliest risers and we had beach time, photo shoots, a wonderful lobster feast al fresco and a wonderful visit to the Mystic Aquarium. It was a family-full week and we left with full hearts.

I didn’t get a whole lot of knitting time because being together was the priority but I managed to get some time in the car on the way down to finish up a little Plymouth Encore sweater. The yarn was gifted to me by one of my students who doesn’t have any “tiny” ones to knit for. I knitted up a yoked sweater, a Plymouth pattern, 2649 Baby & Toddler Top Down Cardigan. I just need to attach the buttons and give it a good wash. With the leftovers I made a hat designed by Susan B. Anderson from her Itty BItty Hats book. It’s the Inca Hat. It’s a quick knit and I love having ear flaps for little ones.

While we were there, I did get some nap time knitting in on my Norwegian Genser. I added a lifeline so that if it didn’t actually fit me that I could frog back to a place where I could make some adjustments. I use dental floss for lifelines because it’s slippery and it’s fine/thin enough to not make my stitches change their size. I’ve tried other yarns, etc. but dental floss does the trick for me. I don’t buy the mint flavored for obvious reasons but I have to admit to heading to my knitting bag when I get something stuck in my teeth. Haha. You can barely see the lifeline at the place where I split for the sleeves. I tried it on shortly after this and I think the size is going to be just right and even better if I lose my vacation pounds. Again, haha.

I love the purple! I think the design is stunning and I am excited to be able to wear it. The yarn is ASK yarn from Norway and it’s a rustic sport weight wool so the sweater won’t be too warm. I hope. Now I just have inches and inches of stockinette stitch. I will be trying it on again soon – maybe today – just to check the fit once more. Fingers crossed.

I’ve cast on a pumpkin hat and will make two of these to send to my daughter’s friend who has two boys. I never sent anything when the second son was born so I’ve been thinking about it for nearly a year. The pattern is Patrick’s Pumpkin and I’m knitting them in Encore worsted by Plymouth. I’ve made several in Brown Sheep’s Cotton Fleece but I thought that Encore would be an easy care choice for these hats. Life with two young boys isn’t “easy”. I also made a bit of a change in the pattern. Where the band calls for knitting with two strands held double, I’ve chosen, this time, to knit with one strand and when I got to the increase round, I increased with a M1. It seems to be ok and the band isn’t as “inflexible” as I remember it being. I’ll plan to finish the first hat, a large size, today and start a medium size when I finish the first – hope they’ll both fit for fall’s cooler weather.

I pulled out some fingering weight scraps of yarn to bring to the beach but I never touched it. The plan was to knit up a few gnomes. I bought Sarah Schira’s Grimblewoods Collection several months ago and want to make a little gnome family for our house at Christmas time – and maybe it’ll be out all year, too. Anyway, I never touched it. I didn’t get much knitting in while on vacation but I will get one cast on today or tomorrow. I fell in love with the collection because of Gnedward (my hubby’s name is Edward.)

Some unhappy news is that we lost our grand-dog Bessie. She had had a seizure when they were out in California and despite having put her on anti-seizure meds, she’s continued to have seizures. While they were on the Cape visiting the other grandparents after our beach trip, Bessie had five seizures and they couldn’t get them controlled. Bessie was a “foster fail” about eight years ago. I was there the day she was adopted and then returned. My daughter was so protective of Bessie and I knew she was home forever at that time. Somewhere I have a photo of Bessie and Mabel on the couch in their NYC apartment. Mabel looks like she’s praying to be rid of the big dog that Bessie was (they nicknamed her “Bus”). Our family has a 60 pound hole in our hearts and the kids are really suffering her loss. Rest well, sweet Bus. We will all miss you.

Gone knitting.

September Already?!

Posted on September 2, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

This photo was the second one I took this morning. But this one was the one that made me smile the widest! At the left you can see a fisherman zooming into the frame and at the top right, a hummingbird, getting ready to land on the feeder that’s just out of sight. Ha! That almost never happens.

It’s a beautiful Saturday here on the lake and I’ve been trying to wrap up a bunch of stuff so that we can vacation next week with all of my kids and their families. Dogs are included, too, of course. We’ll be eight adults, one baby and six dogs. It’s always a full house and it’s always fun. We are both … dare I say all … looking forward to a few days together.

So, this morning I’ve made a list of Maine State Reps who represent all of our students at Maine Arts Academy. We are having a ribbon cutting and open house celebration in September and we should always invite those who represent our students. And then I wrote the newsletter for tomorrow for the store. I included in tomorrow’s newsletter that I’m not writing one the following week … vacation rules. I have only one meeting to Zoom into while we’re away and I intend to be present for the kids, the dogs and the granddaughter!

This morning I steam blocked my two finished mini Nordic jumpers for our Advent calendar. I have one more to go. ONE!!! My intent is to do that after I’m done writing this post. Here are 22 and 23.

Twenty-three is the one that has two different white yarns. One is Patagonia Organic Merino, a wooly wool. The other is a superwash something that was in my left-overs bins (yes, you read that right, I have bins of left-overs. I can’t throw yarn away!) I am ok with it the way it turned out. Do I wish that I had had just a little bit more of the Patagonia? Yes. Did I let it ruin my life? Not even close. It’ll do. I’ve cast on #24 and I can probably get it done today. Certainly, I can get it done this weekend.

Yesterday I decided to return a skein of cotton that I had bought to make a bib for my granddaughter because I found a skein of the same cotton in a different colorway that will be just fine for a bib. So, while I was teaching class yesterday and for a while after, I got the bib done.

I also knitted an apple for the fall decorations for the store window. We’re decorating the window (and adding the stems to the apples) on Monday morning. I’m going to try to finish another one or two before then. Cross your fingers. And then as I was cleaning out cupboards and bins, I found two skeins of Plymouth Encore yarn that was gifted to me and I remembered a little sweater that I had the pattern for and (duh!) I cast on a little last minute sweater for my granddaughter. AND found myself knitting the wrong size after an hour or so … 18 months won’t fit her for ages so I frogged it and re-started the 12 month size which may or may not fit her right now. We’ll find out on vacation.

This morning I made my “granola” recipe that I’ve been making for decades and forgot to add the honey which makes the granola more like muesli … it’s not chunks at all, it’s more like loose cereal. I’m sure it’ll taste fine and it’s got less sugar. I also made a batch of blueberry muffins. I may make another dozen tomorrow because the family goes through these like crazy and they will stay fresh in the freezer if they don’t eat them right away.

Dear hubby has been to the dump, mowed the lawn and is napping. This is a perfect chance for me to do a little bit of stitching. Have I talked about the special quilt I’m making? More to follow.

Gone stitching (not sure if with knitting or sewing needles).

More FOs … not all knits!

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

We started our day today with coffee on the porch but it was too warm for a bathrobe. We must be heading into a few days of summer heat again. It’s all good. We have thoroughly enjoyed the cooler mornings over the past few weeks.

I’ve finished a few more little things and wanted to share them with you. I’ve been taking classes from Creative Bug – they had a special deal going with 60 days free to try it out – and I’ve taken a couple of Cal Patch’s classes and a couple of Heidi Parkes’ classes and they’re all sewing classes. While I was watching Heidi’s class on making a needle case, I was inspired to actually sew it myself right then. I went to my fabric stash and found two favorite fabrics – a lobster print and a hummingbird print – both from the days when I was making fabric masks for the family. I made a lot of masks. I appliquéd the little hummingbird patch onto the lobster fabric and then bought a piece of felt to sandwich-ish in the fabric to make the little needle case. I’ve learned a lot about needles, stitching, hand-work and sewing from these classes and while my FOs aren’t big, they’re mighty. They mark a stepping off point for me and a new potential passion, too.

My second FO is also a sewing project. I have had this little panel since attending the quilt show in Augusta, ME probably 10 years ago. I bought a few similar panels and remember making one as a gift somewhere along the line, but this one has been sitting in my cupboard for almost (or maybe more than) a decade. It was time!

This is a fabric (much edited) version of the little golden book, The Tawny Scrawny Lion. I wasn’t familiar with the book but I love the idea of little books without words. The reader can make up the story to go along with the illustrations (or the reader can Google the book and tell the same story.) Regardless, this little book will be winging its way to New York City to a very special little girl who is so deeply loved by her Yaya! I know that she’ll love this little book and she won’t rip the pages.

Last but certainly not least, a pair of “peds” as we knew them back in the day … but these aren’t the sedate peds of my past. I decided to knit up some fun, bright, color-blocked shorties and this is the first pair for my daughter, Kate. I decided to make them all crazy and different. The only thing missing from these finished socks are the pompoms that will be attached at the back of the heel. Just like my mom did in my childhood days … and I did, too. I’ve got several more pairs to knit. My thought is to make a pair for all of the “girls” at our family beach gathering in September. Think I can do it? Three more pairs before September 5? Time will tell. This is a free Purl Soho pattern that I used to make the U of F socklets for my favorite graduating (graduated) senior that I cared for when I was a school nurse. The kids used to ask me to knit them socks when they came into my clinic and my answer was always, “no!” (and emphatic no to be sure!) But this kiddo was different and I’ve stayed in touch with her family and when she graduated, I knew just what to send her for a gift (and a gift certificate to the U of F campus store.)

My sweetie and I took a brief road trip to the coast yesterday because I needed to get some sewing supplies. I thought my time at Fiddleheads would be brief but I was looking at the fabric store with new eyes – the eyes of a garment sewer. It was exciting and intimidating. There is so much to learn about garment-worthy fabrics. I’ve learned that quilting cottons are not always a good garment fabric because they don’t have the same drape. But I managed to do some damage and bought a bit of a cotton lawn and a pattern to make some harem pants for my Sylvie. And I also bought some hand-sewing needles and wool felt to make more needle cases. They’re fun and quick. I found a basket of bolt end cuts of fabric and they had two pieces of linen that I had to take home with me, too. One is a 3-yard cut of a khaki colored linen that is enough for a dress, I think. The other was only a bit over a yard of fabric but it’ll make half a shirt or a pieced shirt … time will tell. I feel so fancy talking sewing!

Gone knitting.

Happy Medicare Birthday to Me!

Posted on July 27, 2023 by Queen Bee Knits

These three were the best birthday gift I could have asked for.

After a hellish ride from NYC to Maine on Saturday, we had a wonderful four days together filled with memory-making activities and lots of snuggles and smiles. Good food, blueberry picking and lobster dinner, lots of firsts – first open-handed clapping, first lobster, first trip to Maine, first swim in the lake, first lake water bath in the yard … and so many happy memories made.

I’m so grateful to my kids for coming up and to all the family and friends who called, emailed, messaged me on social media, etc. It was a great day to become 65! (Holy shit, how am I 65?) We were talking over the course of the week about age and it occurred to me that I am older than my father was when he died and I am about as old as my mother was when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. How lucky am I to be as healthy as I am at “my age”! I sure don’t feel so old and that’s perhaps a testament to good genes and a happy, full life.

Aging is denied to so many, I’m grateful to reach these milestone birthday and hope to reach a bunch more! I have a lot to look forward to … first steps, another wedding or two, maybe more grand babies and more daily photos from the porch.

I have maybe knitted 25 stitches (no, I really mean it, 25 stitches!) since they arrived and I’m not sorry at all. My hands will be happy to knit again now … or after the laundry is done.

Gone knitting.