Queen Bee Knits

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

Alpaca & Kids & Finished Objects

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Queen Bee Knits

They’re Here!

It’s a beautiful gray day today and the last of a bunch of fun with my daughter who, with her boyfriend and her new rescued pup, drove from Chicago to visit us. We’ve had some great hot weather and some more typical Maine weather (gray and cool). And we’ve had a lot of low-key fun.

We had lobster twice. I bought some alpaca yarn and knitted an i-cord cover/cozy for her iPhone earbuds. I’ve done a pair before for myself with some scrap yarn. They’re fun & don’t get knotted up in your bag. (Pictures Coming)

Meanwhile, I’ve finished a Friday Knitting Group charity project and I love it!

I bought some new yarn for a charity project …

It’s a one skein project (at least it was for me) that my Friday knitting group is making for one of our members who is legally blind and having some family challenges. We’re each knitting a square and our teacher will put the squares together. I love the way my square turned out – the colors are vivid and cheerful. The pattern, the Lizard Ridge Afghan, is a free pattern from Ravelry. It only took a couple of hours. The yarn is Noro Kureyon and it’s not too horribly pricey but if you were going to make the full size (24 squares), it’s going to cost you a fortune. It might also be nice with a couple of plain blocks or pattern blocks in a solid color. It starts out looking like an egg crate but I’m told it will block out flat … can’t wait to see the finished results! I’m sure it will be appreciated.

Lizard Ridge Afghan … one square with love from the Queen Bee

My grand-dog, Willow, loved her first couple of boat rides. She particularly likes sniffing all the new smells in Maine – and she loves to watch squirrels. She’s a rescue dog and just moved to Chicago two weeks ago from Missouri and has already driven to Maine. One well-traveled girl!

She is very sweet and calmer than our one-year-old chocolate lab puppy … unless her parents are out of the room! 🙂 She has some “hang ups” (she’s afraid of the dark and has some separation anxiety … howls in their apartment … ) having been a stray who lived on the streets of Saint Louis before she was picked up and has lived in a shelter and then a foster home prior to coming to live with my daughter. I think she’s going to be a great dog. She just needs a lot of love and patience. She’s already making progress.

My new Chicago grand-dog, Willow

I love having my kids around more than anything. And this visit has been lots of fun. And I even got some knitting done between cocktail cruises!

Cocktail cruise … daughter “binocularing” and her boyfriend “two fisted drinking” … four dogs, four adults! Lots of laughs!

Gone knitting!

A Wonderful Day in Maine

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Queen Bee Knits

Yesterday we decided to take a drive. It’s an old-fashioned idea, I know. My dad used to take us on a drive on Sundays. We’d all climb into the back seat of his car (sometimes with the top down) and, though there was always some “Mom, he’s over the line” bickering, off we’d go. Once I recall my brother letting go of a cloth diaper when the convertible top was down. Not sure how he survived that one!

Anyway, I’ve wandered from my purpose here.

Yesterday we decided to take a drive. We had a slow, lazy start to the day with coffee on the front porch and then packed up the dogs and headed to Bath.

My plan was to visit Halcyon Yarns. (N had his cameras and can always keep himself busy for a couple of hours while waiting for me to shop for yarn. And it was cool enough for the dogs to come with us rather than be crated in the house.)

Part of why I love to visit Halcyon Yarns is because it’s not just a knitting shop. I can while away hours imagining learning all the crafts that they carry the stuff for – needle felting, spinning, rug hooking, tatting, weaving, and crochet. I’ve probably missed a few. Aisles and aisles of fiber from warp (or is it weft?) to cotton, and wool and alpaca and silk threads and many different weights of each. Some are actually Halcyon yarns and some are from well-known companies like Noro and Cascade. And a room full of pattern books and mugs and yarn bowls and … well, you get my drift.

I carefully paced myself as it can be a dangerous thing, shopping for yarn. But this time I was “good”. I only bought a few things …

Noro Taiyo Sock – Color S17 Lot D
Cotton, Wool, Polyamide & Silk
24-26 sts x 36-38 rows = 4 inches on US 2-3 needles

Two skeins of Noro Taiyo Sock yarn (in Color S17-D) for another (more colorful) Bermuda Shawl. And, yes, the two skeins are the same colorway! I can’t wait to start knitting with this yarn!

Noro Taiyo – Color 35 Lot A
100 grams, 200 meters
Cotton, Silk, Wool & Nylon

One skein of Noro Taiyo (Color 35-A which was on sale) for a knitted lamb from the new Noro (Spring/Summer) Magazine. I also bought the magazine.

Hlacyon Gemstone Soft Twist Silk – Lot 15989 – 240 yards
100% silk, Sport weight
5-7 sts = 1 inch on US 3-5 needles

I bought a hank of Halcyon’s Gemstone Soft Twist Silk in a silver color (not sure what the gemstone is … diamond? I like diamonds!) This is to knit a necklace that I saw online … on Facebook, if my memory serves.

Indulgence Sock Yarn – Color 105 Lot 18411
426 yards, 21 sts x 27 rows = 4 inches on size US 3-6 needles
Merino wool & Polyamide

And last, a ball of Indulgence 6-ply (also on sale) Sock Yarn with which I’ll make socks. I just loved the colors in the yarn (and it’s really soft, too.) The sample that was on the table was a tubular scarf knitted in all of the different colorways … I almost bought one of each. Almost.

Halcyon also has a bunch of wonderful-sounding classes available if you’re looking to take one! And the people who work there are very friendly and helpful … if you don’t mind wandering aimlessly, you can do it for hours at Halcyon Yarn! You’re going to enjoy the ever-changing samples at Halcyon, too! I saw no fewer than three sweaters that I would like to knit. Too bad I brought three projects with me from Florida!

And while you’re visiting Bath, it’s worth your while to visit the Bath Iron Works and the Maine Maritime Museum. For $27 (adults) you’ll get admission to both a 1-hour tour of the place where our US naval warships are being built. Some are so super secret that you’re not allowed to take photographs! Really fascinating! You can also visit Popham Beach (beware, the water in Maine is wicked cold!) and Reid State Park.

Parks, new things to learn and fiber. Just a few of the reasons that I return to the area every year!

Gone knitting.

I win!

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Queen Bee Knits

The first attempt was a flop. But the second attempt at the Gaia Shoulder Hug was a success! I did it! It’s finished! Yay, me!

Gaia Shoulder Hug (FREE Ravelry download)

And I like it … more or less. I’m not totally loving the Noro Kureyon Sock (which is now discontinued in the United States) colorway that I chose, but I think it will be a pretty piece to wear in the winter with a shirt.

I’m pleased that it’s finished and pleased with it – that’s what matters most.

Gone knitting!

Knit twice, Frog twice

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Queen Bee Knits

I. Can’t. Knit.

I seriously can’t knit a stitch. Well, I can knit but I can’t follow a pattern and I can’t count stitches. This is a new disease. I’m sure that someone infected me. Where’s the drug to fix this? Quickly!

I am going to apologize to the people of Japan now and then state that I hate Noro yarn. There, I’ve said it.

Well, at least I hate the skein that I’ve been working with. I’ve worked with angora, fun fur, wool, alpaca, and all sorts of other fibers but this is the stickiest skein of yarn that I’ve ever had the dis-pleasure of untangling. It gets tangled up on itself for no reason at all in the middle of a (maybe) yard of fiber as I pull it out of the skein. I’ve been working with Noro Kureyon Sock Yarn. It’s wool and nylon (70/30) and I can’t figure out why it’s such a demon yarn!

Then there are my needles. I don’t know whose they are, they’re so old that the name is worn off and I admit they’re one of the first sets of circs that I owned and may be 20 years old but they may be the most INFLEXIBLE needles in the world. No, I’ve rethought this, they absolutely ARE the most inflexible needles in the world. Must be replacing them today – and think I’ll buy them at my LYS so I can have some immediate gratification. Shopping therapy almost always works for me when I’m in this mindset.

Third, the pattern. A free Ravelry download … simple lace pattern. I could recite the pattern by heart. But can I count the stitches?! Nope. Not a single one. One side was nine, YES NINE, stitches longer than the other side … and I’d already fixed this problem once! (And frogged and reknit once, to boot!)

Frogged again! Enough already – stop the bleeding! I’m giving up for now; and this Irish lass doesn’t give up easily. I’ll see you later Gaia Shoulder Hug … I’ll sneak up on you from behind one day and tie you around my new needles and make you mine.

So, dear reader (of which there may be one or two), I’m going shopping.

While I’m at the Knitting Patch I may see if the divine Laura can help me with the mess on the needles of project #2 … Cousin Lisa’s cowl. “It should have been done by now.” Thanks, oh, critical one! Self talk doesn’t do us any good … merely raises the level of frustration.

Frustration Point

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Queen Bee Knits

I have hit my frustration point.

Two projects are getting the better of me and (fortunately or unfortunately) I’m so stubborn that I keep frogging and starting again. I bought some Noro sock yarn and got a free pattern up in Maine last summer. The sample shawl that was in the store was so cute! As I got going with the pattern, nothing was right. I didn’t like my needles (old plastic ones) and I didn’t like the yarn (too sticky, but could have been the needles) and didn’t like the pattern (reverse stockinette stitch, you’ve got to be kidding!) I’ve frogged it now twice and have started it the third time with the same needles, yarn and pattern and maybe this time I’ve got it right. We’ll see!

And then I’m having a problem with re-knitting the Senorita Lolita sweater. I started it twice with some beautiful alpaca yarn that I bought at an alpaca farm visit. My Tuesday night knitting group went on a field trip to Southern Oaks Alpacas (Here’s a link to their Web site!) The first iteration was not working the way I wanted it to because I wanted to make a couple of simple changes. So, I frogged it and restarted it and frogged it again. After a couple of days, I decided to use some old pink sock yarn to mess with the pattern changes. So far (despite the fact that I can’t count!) it’s going better and I’ve made it up to the legs part … and we’ll see how the next section knits up! I so love the first iteration of the Senorita Lolita sweater and I really want to be happy with the second one – and I’ll never design another garment without taking copious notes and writing it down!

I’ve decided this frustration must have something to do with the alignment of the moon and the stars … or maybe it’s simply the crummy needles. I guess I have to do some more shopping!

Banner Attempt

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Queen Bee Knits

Since my last post (today’s post) I’ve attempted something new. Do you see my banner? I’ve tried over and over to create a banner for my blog and my Etsy shop … with no luck. Until today.

Now, this one isn’t perfect on this blog but it’s looking good on the Etsy shop! Somehow this one must be smaller or slightly shorter because it cut off a couple of pictures of my former projects, but it’s close. The color is also a tiny bit (ok, a lot) off … give me some time and we’ll see how I do getting them matched! The ultimate goal is to have all the colors (yellow, in particular) the same … Etsy shop, blog, business cards, the whole kit and caboodle.

Today I worked on a couple of “new” (the quotes mean that they’re only new today because they’ve been hiding in the closet in the UFO basket for way too long) projects. I frogged and started over the Senorita Lolita sweater (second or maybe third time) and I’m pretty pleased with the new tack. I re-started the little Noro shawl that I bought the yarn for last summer in Maine. I don’t like the yarn … or maybe it’s the needles. Whatever it is, it’s not going particularly well and I’m not loving the project. Haven’t gone out to look for some buttons for my yummy buttery yellow angora cowl that is nearly finished but am looking forward to having another finished UFO!

I’m also trying to attempt something new in my life and get to know me – and see what I love, like, want … it’s a really new thing for me and I have made some choices that I wouldn’t necessarily make again. Already. The unfortunate thing is that you can’t always undo what you’ve done. Once you make a choice, you have to move ahead having made it – good or bad, right or wrong. Sometimes it’s too late before you’ve made the choice. People are not perfect, people make mistakes. I am a person. I can only say I’m sorry … sometimes only to myself … and move on. What’s done is done. Move on.