Queen Bee Knits

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

Gorgeous Sunrise. Gloomy Gray Day

Posted on March 11, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

I may have missed it but my dear hubby didn’t (although he confessed he took it from his chair) and it was a beautiful sunrise on Messalonskee Lake this morning but the day has turned into gray and dismal. The ice is starting to turn gray which generally means it’s thinning and before you know it, the water will once again be open and boats will return. We’ve seen a lot of Bald Eagles on the lake. It’s breeding time for eagles here in Maine. I keep hoping to see a pair together. The circle of life on our lake is evident in each season and we feel so much closer to the Earth here.

I’ve just counted a train with 75 cars go past. They’ve increased their speed on the tracks a lot since we moved here full-time ten years ago next month. They used to poke up and down the tracks so slowly you could hear the clickety-clack of the tracks and touch the cars as they went by without being hurt. Now, though, the cars speed by at 45 mph and there’s no clickety-clack. A few years ago they replaced the rails. The new quarter-mile-long rails looked like they were being extruded (think play dough extruders) onto the tracks and they bent under their own weight. This is what allows them their greater speed and reports say that they’re planning to speed up even more in the future. What could possibly go wrong on mostly camp (dirt/gravel) roads with few or no RR crossing signs?

I worked Saturday so I recovered Sunday and yesterday and today I’m catching up with stuff around the house and planning for my big Maine Arts Academy board of trustees meetings this week. The second week of the month is usually full of meetings; the board meeting, a Charter Commission meeting, and a committee meeting or two. Some are in person and some are virtual. Today I’ll attend the Charter Commission monthly business meeting virtually and can knit while I listen. Yesterday I took all the plants and stuff off our bedroom window seat that we never use because it houses plants and cleaned the windows, the plant dishes, the giant Lake Tahoe pine cones and then put it all back. The cobwebs were getting out of hand in our room. N and I took his mother’s old “oriental” rug and the rug pad out of the living room to see if it’s any of the reason why my allergies are so horrible in the morning. Time will tell. Meanwhile, it’s out in the boat house chilling. I got our laundry done yesterday and today I’ll wash the guest room sheets and clean that room. I’m going to finally hang one more picture and then move the rest of the unhung to the little hidey-hole in the stairway up to the third floor. We have a lot of windows and not enough wall space for the framed pictures we have. Maybe we’ll sell them, maybe we’ll alternate. Time will tell.

I knitted until past my bedtime last night and I’ve got one finished sleeve on my Cardoon to show for it and another sleeve half-way done. It feels really good to be making progress on this much-delayed sweater. I may be able to wear it once or twice before it’s too warm. I love knitting Isabell Kraemer’s designs. Her patterns are clear and easy to follow. The charts are in a good place in the pattern and their placement makes knitting her designs a comfortable process. These charts and the colorwork happen to be only two colors which are easier, too. The yoke pattern is a bit more complicated than the designs around the wrists and bottom of the sweater but simple enough for an adventurous beginner to follow.

A couple of hints for those who knit colorwork or want to try it:

Read your knitting! What that means is, look down at your knitting and see the pattern as it develops. You’ll know when a stitch is misplaced or doesn’t look right almost immediately.
Use stitch markers on your needles to remind you about pattern repeats. This trick also helps you when your stitch count is off because the pattern doesn’t “fit” between the markers. It is possible to drop stitches even when you’re paying attention. Ask me how I know.
Knit colorwork with a wooly wool. The yarn blooms when you block it and lots of errors and outsized stitches disappear magically. Floats can be a bit longer, too, because the yarn felts to itself with wearing and creates an impenetrable layer or warm.
Relax! This is another technique that seems daunting until you practice. And you really do need to practice. With repetition, we gain what is called “muscle memory” and your hands and brain keep the movements stored in your data bank. You’ll be able to feel the mistakes.
Keep your stitches spread apart when you’re knitting colorwork so the fabric doesn’t pucker. Floats (the yarn that is carried behind your stitches) can look very loose when the knitting is bunched up and they should be able to stretch comfortably when the knitting is spread out.

I’m teaching a colorwork workshop at the Yardgoods Center in Maine on April 12 and 19. We’ll knit a colorowork “swatch” that we’ll turn into a cup cozy by cutting a steek. Two weeks of fun. Maybe you’ll join me? I’ve been preparing for the workshop and need to knit another sample of two – one for the shop, one for each step in the process so I can demonstrate steps along the way. I’m looking forward to teaching a new technique again.

I finished the second tam for my customer and got it washed and blocked yesterday. It’s nearly dry this morning. I’ll bring it to the shop with me on Thursday so she can pick it up at her leisure. This hat pattern is no longer available on Ravelry but it’s a quick knit with larger needles and bulky weight yarn and she loves it. This is her second order this year for a black and navy tam.

Quick Lacy Slouch Hat in Berroco Ultra Wool Chunky

I’ve still got my Bolin Cardigan on the needles but I’ve not pulled it out this week. I’m focusing on the Cardoon pullover instead. BUT Bolin is ready for sleeves and they’ll knit up quickly in the heavier yarn and larger needles. It won’t take long to finish it up.

Yankee Knitter Socks in On the Round yarn. One finished, another cast on

I’ve cast on the second sock in Over the Rainbow yarn. The first sock is finished as of the night before last. I stayed up way past my bedtime that night and paid for it in the inability to get to sleep. I am officially a creature of comfort and schedule. I still have to cast on the second mitt for my daughter’s fingerless mitts and I hope to get that started this week. The first one is done and I’d like to take them with me to give to her at the end of the month when I have babysitting duty. I haven’t taken any photos of Bolin or the fingerless mitts because they haven’t been out of their bags! Soon, soon!

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.

Bang Out a Sweater … and a political rant

Posted on March 5, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

This morning’s photo was taken by my hubby, the real photographer in the family. I took one a bit later but his is exquisite. Mine is ok. We are having a warm-up here today with temps in the low 40s and two days of rain on the way. If it stays warm the road will become mud and yuck. I have to venture out the next three days to work so my car will be dirty again. What’s a girl to do?

Yesterday I had an incredibly productive day and got caught up on a lot of little tasks that needed to be done … watered the plants, did the laundry, descaled the humidifiers and filled them with distilled water (we are finding out if our water is causing the white film on the furniture), grocery shopped (picked up), applied for Social Security (yes, I am that old!), and various other stuff. AND I got up to my atelier around 2 to knit.

I made great progress on my Bolin Cardigan. The fronts and back are complete and I have seamed the shoulders. I know I said it before but I love, love, love the fabric that the combinations of yarn is making. I don’t always love knitting with the two strands. Every once in a while the mohair gets stuck and makes a weird extra loop or doesn’t get knitted and I have to go back to fix it. But this sweater is going to be snuggly and warm and cropped. I tried it on after the shoulders were connected last night and it’s going to be short … I’ll have to wear it with a long tunic/blouse or a dress. At least I think so. I have marked the arm holes as noted in the pattern and with any luck will pick up the stitches for the sleeve(s) today.

Bolin Cardigan by Norah Gaughan in Rowan Felted Tweed and Kid Silk Haze

I also have made a significant dent in the body of my Cardoon pullover. I have reached the eleven inches point and am ready to begin the colorwork that is at the bottom of the body. More on that after it’s done. Once the body is complete, only the sleeves remain … could I finish two sweaters in the month of March? I think I can … I think I can … I think I can!

Quick Lacy Slouch Hat in Berroco Vintage Chunky

I have finished half of my order for a customer for two more berets. The first one is black and done. The next one is navy blue and she likes a true, dark, navy that Vintage Bulky doesn’t seem to have so I will be making this one in Berroco Ultra Wool. I should really cast on and get it done today so I can block it and bring it to work this week but I have a feeling the sweaters will win today. This is an old pattern that I’ve made for this particular customer at least a dozen times over the years. She loves them and is so happy to have them. It’s nice to please a customer and I know exactly what she likes and wants.

When the world is as unsettled and ugly as it is recently, I tend to dig into my knitting even more. It is true that the rhythm of the stitches is therapeutic and it mends my distressed heart. I really dislike the nastiness that is happening in my country; the name calling and hatred being spewed by both sides. I fully support dialogue and haven’t unfriended anybody for having different views. I believe in science and researching to find out what is true and what isn’t. A lot of stuff out in the social media world is untrue. (f you don’t want to read my political rant, stop here.)

I am fully in favor of following the laws as they are set out before us in the Constitution and in the states. If we don’t agree with the laws, we should work to change them. In the US right now, the Republican party controls the White House, Congress and the Senate. They could be changing laws, policy, etc. the “right” way but they’re not. They’re standing back and allowing an unelected billionaire in an unofficial department to rampage through the government firing employees, closing departments, accessing personal information of citizens, etc. In some instances, he’s fired people who are critical to the day-to-day safe operations of such things as airlines traveling in the country and can’t find them to re-hire them. And now, it seems, the Social Security department is in his viewfinder.

We, my husband and I, are going to need our Social Security and Medicare when we fully retire. We built it into our retirement plans. I have just reached the age where I can claim my full Social Security without penalty (literally this month) and I’m hearing that SS is being called a Ponzi scheme. What!? I know what a Ponzi scheme is, I’ve been the victim of one. This is not the same unless the government was purposefully deceiving me all these years. I’ve paid into SS for my whole working life and not because I chose to … it was required, automatically deducted. It was “promised” that it would be a good way for me to save for my retirement and now I’m being threatened by a man who could, if he chose, make the program solvent for generations to come without so much as a how-do-you-do. Instead, he’s threatening to cancel Medicare, Medicaid and now Social Security (because he doesn’t understand how the department has been operating on an antiquated system and what the process was. My government is stealing my peace and threatening my financial security during the last however many years I have left.

I have a friend who is Trans, I have several friends and family members who are LGBTQ+ and they’re all being attacked. If you don’t know anybody who is Trans or gay, how can you possibly judge whether they will harm you or your children? Trans women are not sexually aggressive men in dresses. They are not interested in hurting your daughters in the bathroom. If you don’t know a trans person you don’t understand. Didn’t Jesus ask us to love our neighbors as ourselves?

The SAVE act will prohibit most married women from registering to vote and possibly voting. Did you know that? I almost kept my maiden name when I re-married but at the last minute my husband said he’d love it if I took his name. It was such a sweet request. Now my birth certificate says “Rockwell” and all of my other IDs say “Warner”. Most married women who have taken their husband’s name will be unable to register vote (and some say to vote) in the next election if that passes. Don’t believe me? Research it! Google it!

I believe there is probably waste and lots of it in our government. Let’s start with the lifetime salaries and health benefits that all of our elected officials. Let’s talk about security details. Let’s talk about insider trading. All of these “offenses” take place on both sides of the aisle. Let’s start there. Why is it OK for my elected senators or congressmen to have a better healthcare policy than we the people who they are sworn to represent? Lifetime paid service was never considered by the framers of the Constitution and many of the elected officials work part-time for the people and also are paid to work another job. I’ve read about companies charging our military ridiculous amounts for toilet seats, etc. How is it that nobody has stopped that from happening. Any company that tries to rip off the government should be banned from receiving government contracts in the future. In fact, cancel their contracts when extortion/fraud is found. I’ve strayed away from my point which is the current administration could be passing laws legally rather than by decree. A president hasn’t got the right to unilaterally demand that his will must be followed “or else”! That’s why the United States was begun – to get away from the rule of a king who told them how to pray and how to live.

I have heard that there should be prayer in public schools. Who shall all students pray to? How would you feel if your child was forced to pray to someone else’s god? I’ve worked in public schools in Ohio, Florida and Maine. Children can pray any time they’d like. Silently and without judgement or bullying. Isn’t that more fair to all students? Private religious schools can do whatever they want. We’re talking about public schools here – where there are children of all faiths just trying to learn.

I’ve heard that trans “men” want to play on girls sports teams to exert their superior strength. This is blatantly untrue. There are over 510,000 NCAA athletes. Ten are trans women. This is a ridiculous waste of time and energy. Trans women undergo hormone therapies and what little scientific evidence there is tends toward trans women having no clear biological advantages over cis athletes*. As an aside, Gov. Janet Mills was singled out recently and threatened to have federal education funding pulled if she doesn’t comply to the will of one man and remove all trans students from women’s sports in the state. It is not known how many trans students are playing in sports in Maine. Maine law supports equal opportunities for all students. Mills is charged with upholding Maine law. (Interestingly, other female governors are also being bullied and told what to do … Gov. Hochul of NY, for example, is being told to end the NYC congestion pricing in mid-town despite the fact that they seem to be working.)

I do not support tariffs being levied on our neighbors, Canada and Mexico. This not only hurts our neighboring countries, it is going to hurt all of us. Immediately, I can see the price of gas in Maine increasing significantly (we get our gas from Canada). It’s hovering around $3 a gallon as of yesterday. The stock market is going down fast with the announcement of the tariffs. For those Americans lucky enough to have investments, this will hurt. I hope it’s just a “blip” and the market will rally. Many of my friends in Canada say they and their friends/family will not be vacationing or visiting Maine this year. This is going to hurt Maine’s tourist economy, particularly at the coast. And the lack of migrant workers is going to destroy the Maine wild blueberry harvest, I fear. (Again! It happened the first time DT was in office. Remember?!)

There is so much more and I don’t want to write any longer. I’m going to turn on my TV and knit and watch Netfilx until it’s time to bake my bread. Tonight we’re having a vegetarian curried lentil soup and, I hope, homemade bread. I forgot how long it takes to rise! Hopeful that our extra warm laundry room with heater will cut the time by a few hours at least.

Gone knitting.

https://cces.ca/transgender-women-athletes-and-elite-sport-scientific-review

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.

Another FO for 2025

Posted on February 25, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

The sun was up at the horizon when my alarm went off this morning which means that the days are really getting longer. Not far back, it was still dark at 6:30am. It took me a bit to get going this morning because I was knitting into the wee hours (and by wee hours I mean until almost 11pm) last night and I didn’t want to get up this morning. BUT I had a repeat blood test to get to at 8:30am so up I got.

I have to say, though, I love having an early appointment or meeting because then I can get a good start on the day. I was out of the office at 8:40am, had a phone meeting and then headed to Oakland to the post office and the bank for work-related stuff. By the time I got home, it wasn’t even 9:30 yet and I decided to start a loaf of challah bread. While I’m writing this and doing some desk work, the sponge is getting ready to become bread. I’ve not made challah for decades but it’s one of my favorite breads. I hope it’ll be delicious. I’ll report later.

Meanwhile, what I AM supposed to be chronicling is that I have completely finished my Winter’s Finery shawl by Rosemary Hill. This is a one-skein-wonder that I knitted up with a special skein of hand-dyed yarn that I bought at Knit City Montreal two (or almost three) years ago. The yarn is dyed by Mailles a Part, based in Quebec. It’s a 75% superwash Bluefaced Leicester, 25% nylon yarn in the colorway “Maree”.It’s a dusty blue with specks of gray. I loved it from my first glance. The pattern is another wonderful Romi pattern with clear directions and simple to follow. I keep remembering, though, that I have to LOOK at my knitting and read my stitches because I am apt to make mistakes when I don’t read my knitting. Can you imagine that?! Once the shawl is finished you knit on the ornaments and I chose to do rainbow-colored ornaments to reflect my stance that all people should be accepted as they are. I am so disappointed in my country right now and with the hatred that is being spread based on lack of understanding and familiarity. Without getting political, although knitting is historically political, I know that change is difficult. Sometimes change can be baffling. It can be a struggle to accept change at face value. BUT I firmly believe that if we trust that every person is God’s creation then none of them is wrong or bad, they’re just different and there must be a reason that they’re here in front of us. And if you make an effort to learn about their truth, you’ll grow as a person.

I love my shawl and am wearing it today and will probably wear it to work on Thursday.

Today I’ll continue work on my Cardoon because last night I separated the sleeves and that means lots of stockinette stitching in the round which is great knitting for after work or when I’m teaching classes. I am also going to give my Bolin Cardigan some love today. I’ve gotten to the short rows on the first (left) side of the cardigan and I need to pay attention to these when I’m doing them so that I get it right the first time. I’ll pop in a lifeline before I start just in case. Frogging when mohair is involved is a royal pain in the patoot. This sweater is cropped and knitted on large-ish needles and it’s knitting up pretty quickly. I’m looking forward to the sleeves where there is a nice big cable down the side. It’s not often that I look forward to “sleeve island”!

Got to run down and see if my sponge is ready to have the rest of the ingredients added and the laundry is ready for the dryer. I love being home today in the house with one sleepy dog.

Gone knitting.

A Full Week

Posted on February 23, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

It’s been a busy and full week with some adjustments to our “normal” as my schedule changed a bit to help my co-workers. I started off by working Monday instead of Thursday which made the whole week feel funny. My days were mixed up but we managed to muddle through by checking the calendar each day and checking my phone and watch often. I had my normal teaching day on Friday and it was my Saturday to work (yesterday).

On Tuesday I drove down to Costco to pick up my new glasses. Because they’re so affordable and because I have an annual eyeglass insurance “stipend”, I decided to get a pair of sunglasses and a spare pair. I’m so happy to be able to see and have choices! This is me at 66 and almost 8 months. I already wrote about my adventure in yarn at Grace Robinson here.

Since the boss is away, I’ve been asked to do the banking for the store and went into town on Wednesday to do the first wave of collections. On Thursday I went to the bank to make deposits and ran my errands. I decided to stop at Marden’s to look for fabric for my granddaughter’s quilt for her bed a Yaya and Poppy’s house and, while I bought no fabric, I did find a treasure trove of J. Jill clothes on the racks and bought myself several shirts and slacks. I got the house straightened up, plants taken care of, laundry done, bed changed and sheets and towels washed … and there was, of course, lots of time to knit.

I have jumped headlong into my “Bang Out a Sweater” project after buying my new yarn at Grace Robinson. I’ve split the body and started up the front on one side. The cardigan, Bolin, is cropped (we’ll see how I like that) so it was only 9 inches on the body before it was split and I have another (almost) 9 to go. But I love the fabric and the color. I may not make the end of February deadline but I will not be far behind.

I bound off my Winter’s Finery shawl and stitched on the ornaments at the middle of the week. On Friday I wove in all the ends into the teeny tiny ornaments and today I will give it a good soak and block it. I’m excited to see how it will look when it’s all stretched out. I’ll post photos when I get it blocked.

I’ve got a lot to do today so that I can get to work tomorrow so I’ll end here and move on to the next thing but I also got into the kitchen and made some cinnamon rolls. I love the NY Times Food recipe. No yeast, no proofing time. Delicious! We’ve started to hold off on the frosting until we warm the rolls up … fresh frosting on warm cinnamon rolls is yumm-o!

Gone knitting.

Adventure … Grace Robinson, Freeport, Maine

Posted on February 19, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

Today is brutally cold outside today. I chose to stay inside for my picture of the day and I included my “Love and Light” that’s down there because who doesn’t need more love and light these days?

I had a great adventure yesterday I went to pick up my new eyeglasses and decided to go look at yarn on my way home because I’ve been fretting about knitting the “Bolin Cardigan” which is the MDK Bang Out a Sweater pattern for 2025. I really like the cardigan and I haven’t ever knitted with Rowan Felted Tweed and it just so happens that just off the highway, on Route 1 in Freeport, Maine is one of Rowan’s flagship stores, Grace Robinson. As a flagship store, she carries ALL of the colors and yarns that are made by Rowan.

The building is right on Route 1 and literally a hop skip and jump from I-295 so easy to make a quick stop and worth it! I wish I’d asked to take some photos of the gorgeous samples that Grace knits for the shop. They were incredible. Talk about inspiration! But I digress … I went in specifically to check out the colors of Rowan Felted Tweed and, boy oh boy, was it a difficult choice! The colors are beautiful and there are so many choices. I had my hands on a couple of different grays, a black, a blueish gray and a red and I own a bunch of an orange (it’s a bright orange). AND I ended up going with the neutral beige-y Stone colorway that is the photo in the pattern paired with the Kidsilk haze in the Rose colorway because I liked the more neutral colorway and I don’t have anything that’s beige/camel colored in my hand knits. Decision made, while Grace herself went to get the yarn from her stock room, I wandered the store. It’s a huge space, and perhaps half of it is needlepoint and the other half is hand knitting yarn. Many of the familiar brands are carried there and some that I wasn’t familiar with that are on the higher end. Grace was gracious and warm and I enjoyed chatting with her. She’s just coming off a week plus of having her “right hand” on vacation in Florida and on her way home with a boat on a trailer in all the east coast storms as she comes north. I know Grace will be glad to have her back in the store. The building (and business, I believe) are for sale and I wish I lived closer!

I swatched last night and my stitch gauge is spot on. I’m blocking the swatch now as I type (and the orange swatch too) to see if it changes at all. Mine don’t seem to but there’s a first time for everything. I plan to start knitting today after I reschedule my colorwork workshop.

I am really happy with the color! It’s not too pinky rosey but it’s not a boring neutral and the fabric feels absolutely fabulous! My friend Glenda has already begun knitting and she suggested I swatch to make sure I like the color and I’m so glad I did. I can hardly wait to get started!!!

While I was at Costco getting my glasses I also grabbed another container of forced tulips. I love tulips and the ones I bought last week have started to bloom. A pop of color in the house at this time of year is so welcome and cheering. I look forward to seeing what the new ones look like and they’ll all be planted in the garden as soon as the snow is gone and the ground warms up a bit … or in the fall. Whichever comes first.

I’ve got my pattern queued up in my knit companion app and I’ve got to get my swatches out of their bath …

Gone knitting!

Tuesday Newsday? …

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

Well, this week is going to be dis-ordered mess because my normal routine has been altered right out of the gate. Ha! Ha! I worked yesterday, swapping with a co-worker my Thursday so she could go on a little family trip. I had a very busy day at the store yesterday and today I’m going to head to Scarborough to pick up my new glasses. I am so excited to have a pair of prescription sunglasses again! I can hardly contain myself.

I’ve been working away at trying to finish a few projects and have had limited “head space” because of the horrible news coming out of Washington, DC. I’m emotionally exhausted and am limiting my news intake but sheesh, it’s coming from everywhere and all at once. It’s overwhelming and very concerning. This is an into into what I’ve been knitting and what I am able to knit because some days I simply can’t concentrate on my more complicated knitting projects and I choose to knit simply. Other days I can do some stranded colorwork and some days I can manage BLACK yarn stranded colorwork. Ha! I’m giving it all my best efforts but, whew!

I’ve made some progress over the weekend and the snowy Sunday on two projects in particular. My daughter’s fingerless mitts and the Winter’s Finery Shawl.

One picture of each needle, these are the Rain Shadow Mitts for my daughter. I had to frog several rounds because I had made a mistake on the chart on the front (far right photo) of the mitts and it wasn’t lining up correctly. They’re going to be really pretty but it’s difficult for my “old” eyes to see the black yarn any time other than in the morning and it needs to be sunny and bright. It’s fun to knit, though and I know my daughter will love them. I sure hope they fit as well as her old ones. I’m working these with Brown Sheep yarn’s Nature Spun Fingering yarn. The colors were chosen by my daughter.

My WInter’s Finery shawl is off the needles and now I have to sew in the eighty bazillion little ends on the ornaments along the edge. I got three or four done last night after work before turning to my sock. My brain and body couldn’t handle thinking at the end of the day. I used a special skein of Canadian hand-dyed yarn for the shawl and pulled out a bit of scrap sock yarn for the ornaments so they’d be a brightly-colored contrast. I thinkI I’m going to like this and I can wear it during PRIDE month because it’s a rainbow on the edge! I may choose to block it before I finish weaving all the ends … we’ll see. It’s going to need to be pinned or blocking wires will be used to pull the points out.

I’ve gotten my On The Round socks past the heel turn. On to the gusset and the foot on sock #1. I chose to do a 3×1 rib on the leg and the top of the foot on this pair just for something a little bit different. I think they’ll be great.

I’ve bought yarn to make a couple more hats/tams for my customer. Another navy blue and another black. Then she said she wants a cream colored one. I got the yarn for that, too. I’ll get them all done and she can buy two or three. They don’t take too much time. I’ve also got a sweater’s worth of orange Rowan Felted Tweed that’s driving me crazy! I want to make the Bolin cardigan that’s the MDK Bang out a Sweater project for this month. I’m having so much trouble deciding if I love the orange color so I think I’m going to make an orange vest and buy yarn to make a more neutral-colored Bolin. I’m thinking an oatmeal-y color for a neutral but I think I’ll stop at Freeport today to look at the colorways to decide. I don’t want a pale color but I think I want a neutral. I think a big orange cardigan on me would be too big and bright and pumpkin-y. Choosing colors is no easy feat.

With that, I am leaving. I have to refill my coffee cup and get rolling to pick up my glasses and run my couple of errands before I can sit and knit for the afternoon … and do the laundry. Sometimes it’s the simple things that matter.

Gone knitting.

FO

Posted on February 13, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

SNOW DAY! I was supposed to work today and while the accumulations have not been thrilling to this snow-loving girl, I am enjoying my snow day immensely. We had our coffee in a very leisurely manner not typical of days we both work. I went up to my atelier and wrote the store newsletter for Sunday and now I’m writing this blog post because I realized that I never posted a picture of my finished Hoodola.

Hoodola by Laura Nelkin is one of the 8 FOs that I’ve managed for 2025 so far. I knit my Hoodola in what I thought was going to be boring creamy-white yarn by Berroco that has been discontinued. I was given a couple of hanks of the white and one or two of a dark green. It was DK weight and I decided, why not give it a shot and hoping that I wouldn’t have to play yarn chicken. I am thrilled to report that I didn’t and it’s finished and I really do love it. Laura sent out a minor update to the pattern once I was well on my way and I didn’t choose to put a tie on mine (I’d have had to use another colorway and I didn’t want to do that.)

Here it is …

The long ribbed section at the neck keeps my neck warm without need for a scarf, I can certainly fold it up and cover my nose with it if I want to. AND, I can pull the hood down in the car or when in a shop so my hair doesn’t get too flattened out and then just pull it back up when I head out again. I may have to make the green yarn into another Hoodola because it’s such a great “hat”! (Behind me is the American Flag quilt that I made several years ago. One of my favorite sewing projects of all time. I even quilted it on a friend’s long arm machine!)

The snow is coming down a bit heavier now (yay!) and it looks like the rest of my day will be watching Netflix and knitting. I am hoping to get the lace part of my Winter’s Finery shawl finished and get it bound off so I can finish the edge ornaments and block it. I also want to work on my Bang Out a Sweater … Cardoon. It’d be great to get past the colorwork before all of my classes tomorrow. I’ll bet I could get well into the body of the sweater if I could get to the sleeve division today. So I’m going to sign off.

Gone knitting.

Two Headbands Finished

Posted on February 11, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

It’s Tuesday and it’s really cold here today but the sun is shining and that always makes my attitude better. I’ve got a Maine Charter Schools Commission business meeting to attend via Zoom this afternoon but the rest of the day is my oyster and I’ve chosen to start with a quick post about the two Petite Knits headbands that I’ve completed this weekend-ish.

I knitted the Weekend Headband for one of my “kids” in NYC. I’ve written about it before. I wanted to talk about the pattern itself here today. I found this pattern to be well-written and clear. From the cast on to the bind off, it was a solidly written pattern. I chose to make the small size (which may have been a mistake) and I may make the medium size, too, because I’m afraid the small is going to be too small for Sheldon. It’s way too small for my big fat head. Basically, this is a K1,P1 ribbed tube started with provisional stitches and ended with a graft. I made a mistake at the very beginning by knitting a round which threw off the entire pattern and the grafting at the end. I “fudged” it by knitting one round at the end and grafting the stitches with Kitchener stitch but I don’t love the way it looks bunched up at the join. I know it won’t show at all because this will be stretched out and it will be inside against the head but it’s not “right”. I think I have enough yarn to make the next size.

Next, I knit the Ingeborg headband for my daughter. This pattern wasn’t as well written and didn’t use traditional/accepted terminology for knitting patterns indicating to me that it was “rushed” to publish and perhaps wasn’t tech edited or even reviewed. When knitting Brioche stitch, it’s accepted to use the terms brk1 and this pattern didn’t use that. As a result, I was quite confused at the beginning of the pattern and had trouble with the odd number of stitches and keeping the pattern going. After several attempts (without the mohair yarn), I did figure it out but it took an inordinate amount of time to do so.

I held two strands of yarn together – one strand of worsted weight Berroco Ultra Alpaca, and one strand of Cascade Kid Seta lace weight mohair/silk – and the resulting fabric is super squishy and soft. I hope my daughter loves it. AND I hope it fits. I knitted it until it was just under 19.5″ or 50cm long and then grafted the stitches together. AGAIN, the directions were not clear and I removed the cotton yarn that I used for the provisional cast on before I should have but thankfully the stitches were pretty “stuck” where they were. I found a brilliant video about grafting brioche stitches online to help me remember how … it worked pretty well and I’m happy with the headband overall. And I love brioche knitting.

Today I’m committed to finishing (I hope) my Winter’s Finery shawl. I’ve gotten almost back to where I had to stop and frog back. I’m purposefully going slowly so that I don’t mess up the stitches so the lace looks good. So far, so good. I’m crossing my fingers and toes as I reach the last row of lace on the first chart.

There’s my Tuesday update on my two Petite Knits headbands … the Ingeborg needs a bit more time to be completely dry before I send it on to New York. I may have bought a denim jacket at Costco yesterday for my granddaughter to send as well. Oops! I couldn’t resist. I love shopping at Costco and just wish it was closer to our house. I know it was worth the trip because I got two pairs of glasses for about half of I would have paid at the eye doctor’s office. Worth the annual membership fee for sure

Gone knitting.