Queen Bee Knits

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

WIP Wednesday

Posted on January 15, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

My amaryllis is in full bloom this morning as it has been for a few days. I’ve been ignoring it despite its beauty and it probably needs water. I’ll get there, I promise. BUT it’s a glorious sunny day today and I don’t have a meeting until 2 so I thought I’d take a few minutes to write about WIPs (Works In Process, Muffin). I have several and a couple of FOs, too.

I’ve finished a couple of projects and one has been sent off already. I finished the pink sparkly blanket for my granddaughter’s baby, Baby. She requested the color and the “spahkly” and what kind of a grandmother would I be if I didn’t knit what she really wants?! Ha! Ha! The blanket should arrive on Friday and I hope I get to see her open it. Thank the heavens for FaceTime!

I have also finished knitting two tams for a long-time customer, Judy. I think I’ve knitted twenty of these tams for Judy over the years. The pattern is no longer available on Ravelry (not sure why, but I had to reach out to the designer for a copy as I’d cleaned out my paper patterns in favor of electronic copies on Ravelry. Thankfully, she was kind enough to email me a copy.) Anywho … the hat is the Quick Lacy Slouch hat knit, this time, in Berroco Vintage Chunky. One black and one a dark navy blue. They’re drying as I write after wet blocking.

The little red square is a sample for the store for our Valentine’s knit kit. We will have a crochet kit, too, but I am not a confident crocheter so one of our other “girls” has made the sample. I’ll put them together this week at work. Tomorrow.

Last, but not least, my daughter sent me a stocking that was made for her ex-husband and I’ve removed his name from the stocking and some evening soon I’ll be adding her dog’s name to the stocking so she can still use it. This was a kit by Accessories Unlimited.

Not really knitting but I also finished a puzzle this week. I was sent this for Christmas and while I don’t get the gaming part of the puzzle, it was a challenge to make and has an extra bonus – when you finish the puzzle you switch the three sections around and there’s an extra section to build. It was fun and I got a sticker that says …

OK, it’s WIP time.

I’ve got a Hoodola on the needles. Using stashed yarn by Berroco, a discontinued yarn, Inca Gold. It’s a DK weight combination of merino and silk so it’s really wear-it-next-to-the-skin soft. I didn’t swatch for it so I hope I have enough to cover my huge noggin. I do have a skein or two of a dark green if I need it for the cowl or the cinch. It’s a very clever design with an applied icord edge and a seamless cast on that starts at the top of the crown of the head, if that makes sense. I missed one of the decreases on one side so I’ll have to remember to add an extra decrease at the end to make the stitch count right.

I still have a pair of Christmas socks on the needles. I’ve finished one sock and have begun the second … working my way down the leg of the sock. This is my go-to project if I am walking on my walking pad or in a meeting because I really don’t have to look at it for the most part.

My other WIP is my New Year’s cast on which is Winter’s Finery by Rosemary Hill (Designs by Romi). I love her shawls and this is a special skein from when I went to Knit City in Montreal and the dyer is a friend of a friend. The colorway is perfect for this shawl. You’ll see!

Other WIPs that I haven’t really done anything with for a while are as follows:

Honestly, the only ones I really should count are the ones I plan to knit and that’s the first two. The pink mittens I bought the kit for the embroidery at Knit City and I’m not enjoying the embroidery … it’s way too fiddly. BUT I’ve gotten too far to go backwards, I think, so I’ll finish the embroidery on this one and will likely NOT embroider the second mitten. I do want to wear these because the color is lovely. (I don’t really NEED a new pair of mittens, but …) Second is the gift bag that I am knitting as a swatch for a class that I took in Shetland colorwork and color choices, in particular for that style of knitting. I loved the class but I haven’t begun to make progress on the project. I really need to pick it up … but the holidays weren’t a time when I had the head space for stitch counting. Now I think I’m ready.

I’m going to frog (rip it, rip it!) the next two. One is the sweater I wanted to knit in a 3T size for my granddaughter for next winter. I’ve adjusted the needle size and the sweater is coming out too small so I will frog it and work on it later in the year. I have the same yarn in pink, too. AND I’m going to frog what little I’ve done on the Three Season Cardigan that I started ages ago. I love the yarn but it’s a bugger to frog. Regardless, it’s been sitting on the needles for too long and I fear for my tension. Frog I must.

In the queue are a couple more (mind you, these are all in project bags around my atelier and they’re starting to bug me. So I have to make some tough decisions. All wound up and ready to start is a Cardoon by Isabell Kraemer in two shades of purple. If I would just cast this on and get through the yoke, it’d be a quick knit. Alas, I haven’t. Next is a new idea, Bang out a Sweater month is February so I found this great orange (ginger colorway?) yarn and I want to bang out a Bolin cardigan by Norah Gaughan which I will cast on on January 31. I will finish it in February. I will! Next up is a pair of fingerless mitts to replace my daughter’s favorite pair, Chivalry Mitts which have a “L heart T” on the gusset. The T is gone now and she needs a new pair for her new life wherever that leads. She’s doing really well and I’m so proud of her. These are a priority. The yarn is currently sitting on my desk. Next, I have yarn for a hat or headband for my daughter’s friend, Sheldon. I made him mitts for his early morning runs for Christmas and he’d like a hat. He’s a very knit-worthy person (and he “stole” the socks I knitted as a wedding gift for his husband when they divorced because Sheldon loves his hand-knit socks.) On my windowsill is yarn I pulled out of my stash to make a gnome. I’ve bought the pattern and it won’t take long but it hasn’t been a priority so it still sits on the windowsill. AND not pictured is Doris. She’s hidden away in my cabinet, mostly finished and just not put together. Poor Doris. One day, Sylvie will love to have her to play with and I think Doris will like being played with. She’s naughty like that. Doris, that is.

Gone knitting.

Snow Machines have quilted the ice-scape – out my atelier window this morning

New Year, New Knits

Posted on January 5, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

I woke up late this morning and knew that I had a phone call to make at 10am. Otherwise, the day was our oyster today. No plans at all. We spent the morning having coffee and I spent some time in my atelier straightening and puttering. Hubby made his weekly trip to the dump with our trash. And then we went to see the new Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown. We loved it!

I’ve got several projects already lined up for 2025. A hat for Sheldon who’s like a son to us. A couple of tams for a long-time customer, a blanket for our granddaughter’s Baby, pink and sparkly.

Hoodola by Laura Nelkin in Berroco Inca Gold

I also decided to join Laura Nelkin’s First Quarter KAL and am knitting her Hoodola pattern. I’ve got some Berroco Inca Gold, 3 hanks, from my stash that I’m using for the project. Today I cast on and got the first four sets of set-up rows done. I had to cast on twice because the first time I had waaaaay too much yarn left over after casting on and since my yarn and the required yardage are so cloes, I didn’t want to take the chance of “wasting” a yard of it. It’s a fun start and I hope it’ll be a “hat” that I will enjoy wearing. I need a hat for the cold days that are coming to Maine, I hope.

Yankee Knitter #29 Classic Socks in West Yorkshire Spinners yarn

But I couldn’t be loyal to only one project so I cast on the second Christmas sock and got a couple of rounds of the cuff completed. I also worked on my Lobster Hat by Mrs. Knitter. As I believe I’ve written before, this is possibly the longest WIP I’ve ever had dating back to 2014 at least. I bought it at the now closed Over the Rainbow Yarn as a kit. I started it in 2014, set it aside for a few years, brought it back out, frogged it and restarted it and then set it aside a second time. This time, I am determined to get it finished! I have six rounds of colorwork left on the chart and then the crown and it’ll be ready to block. It’s really going to need to be blocked. I’ll attempt to steam block it but it may require a wet block and a couple of days wrapped around a plate or a balloon. I’m excited to finish it and it will be my second WIP completed in 2025.

Mrs. Knitter Lobster Hat pattern kit from 2014 (or before)

I’ll be working to finish the hat tomorrow since I’ve written my newsletter for the store tonight. I love a slow Sunday morning!

I have started a New Year’s new shawl, too. I cast on New Year’s Day a one skein pattern by Romi Hill called Winter’s Finery in yarn I bought from Knit City Montreal. I love the colorway and I loved the shawl. It started off with a complicated pinhole cast on which I haven’t done for a minute and that Rosemary does a little bit differently than I had learned. Regardless, after a couple of tries, I got it and am making some progress on the first part of the shawl. Did I say I love the colorway?!

Winter’s Finery by Romi Hill in Mailles a Part yarn from Knit CIty

On the way home tonight from our movie the sky was a beautiful pink and when we got home, I had to head out to the porch and catch a shot of the remainder of the day. Gone Knitting.

New Year, New Cast-on and Goal Setting

Posted on January 1, 2025 by Queen Bee Knits

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Gone knitting.

A Very Merry Christmas – 2024 Wrap Up

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Gone knitting.

A Case of the Mondays on Tuesday

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

I’m having a case of the Mondays. The only problem is that it’s Tuesday! We woke up this morning to rain and since 6am EST the ice that covered the lake has broken up and disappeared. It looks like any spring or summer day here now. It’s amazing how quickly the new ice can disappear. And it’s a little sad if I’m honest. We really should have ice by now.

I’m slowly managing to get all of the Christmas shopping, wrapping, sending, etc. done. I mailed the three packages that I was responsible for yesterday on my way back from the store. I went in to help my colleague cut some netting for a customer and we took the time to restock the netting, too. When we are only one person in the store, it’s unsettling to spend time down in the basement restocking or gathering together an order for a customer because we can’t see or hear if anybody comes into the shop. We were going to get this done on Saturday when there were two of us in the shop but we had a different mess to straighten up (see my last post!)

I made a new batch of granola this morning for the women I work with. I may need to make a second batch this afternoon because I’m not sure this will be enough to fill all of the jars. It’s down to the wire and I hope I have enough oatmeal left in my canister! I really am “off” if my baking cabinet isn’t properly stocked.

We had our Covid-19 booster and flu vaccine on Sunday and yesterday I started out just fine but I crashed in the early afternoon. I couldn’t even knit. This is what happens every time I get the shots. BUT I am glad we’re protected going into the holidays. The rest of the day is “free” which means I have time to vacuum my atelier and to double-check my lists. Tomorrow is going to be my last day for shopping and I don’t think I have enough to fill my dear hubby’s stocking.

#112 Children’s Bulky Top Down Pullover in Cascade 128

I’ve been thinking of ways to use up some of my stash and this was, I thought, an easy one. I have three hanks of Cascade 128 in this pretty almost periwinkle blue and I thought I’d make a larger sweater for my granddaughter. BUT when I knit the pattern according to the instructions, I didn’t like the fabric. It was too open. So I frogged back and started again on a US10 needle (seen here) and while I like the fabric better, the gauge is way off so the size is one that will fit her now – and she doesn’t need any more sweaters right now. SO … back to the drawing board. I am going to do this the right way next time and actually knit a swatch. I don’t often knit with bulky weight yarn so I’m not sure of my gauge and I need to figure out what the largest size I can make – I am aiming for a 3-5 year size – in a fabric that I like. I think I’ll try a US10 1/2 and see how the gauge matches up. On the US10 I got 3 stitches to the inch and the 4-5 size should be 28″ around the chest. Mine is more like 19 1/2 … not even the 26″ that the 2-3 size should be. Doing the math, I don’t think I can get 28″ even if I knit the largest size so I need to try a bigger needle. Good grief!

I also found a bulky hood pattern with a fur edge around the face opening. I can just see my little granddaughter in it so I’d like to make a hood that will match but, again, at a larger size so she can wear it next year or the year after. I’m going to have the same issue, I think.

I’ve not felt like doing any other knitting, and particularly not knitting that takes brain power. The projects that I have in progress are the fair isle bag from the class that I took, and a couple of pairs of socks. I really want to cast on a new project but I “should” knit a couple of sweaters to reduce my stash but I am not feeling motivated to do any of them. What’s a knitter to do?! I would also think about knitting a new shawl or another Musselburgh hat … but I can’t decide on yarn. Ha! Ha! So, I’ve been working on my Jelly Roll blanket and the watermelon shorties … both really simple projects. No pressure, right?

I haven’t shared with you that I had the red bump on my right eyelid removed a week and a half ago. It’s gotten larger over the years and, who knew!? We have an eyelid surgeon in Waterville, Maine. My eye doctor referred me to him and he’s surgically removed it. I think it was larger than he expected and he had to make two sutures. It’s never as simple as they say it’s going to be. So, day 1 and 2 it looked great. Day 3 I started to see red “bruising” around the edge of my eyelid. A week after the surgery black was added to the “pretty colors” and now it’s just a rainbow with some of the color collecting at the outside corner of my eye. BUT the bump is gone and the bruising will go away. It’s been an adventure waking up in the morning to see what color it would be. All kidding aside, I’m so grateful that it’s gone and there was no pain at all, and no infection. I hope you’re not squeamish because I’m going to share photos with you. Today the color is fading and maybe I’ll be back to “normal” for Christmas!

Today I think I may decide to knit a gnome or a little Arne & Carlos mini jumper without a number so it can be used as an ornament for a customer/friend. Eeny, meeny, miny, moe.

Gone knitting.

Making Progress

Posted on December 9, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

We woke to snow and a thin span of ice next to the shore around (at least out part of) the lake. The first sight of ice this year. It’s been really cold lately. But by 9:00am or so, the ice was gone and the snow had stopped. My DH ran the snowblower for the first time and cleaned up so we could get out … later this week it’s supposed to be warming to 50 and rain is in the forecast. It’ll either make the snow all go away again or it’ll turn everything to ice.

I have finished the colorwork on the Arne & Carlos 2024 MKAL. Today I completed the ribbing as well and picked up the stitches so that I can finish the heel. I’m going to rewatch how Arne does the heel decreases before I attempt it. The afterthought heels are not something I’m terribly familiar with as I prefer a heel flap and gusset on my socks … but I”ll do it their way this time and, since it’s a Christmas stocking, it’ll be quick and easy. I hope. I am excited to get the knitting done so I can steam block it and see it in all its splendor. Blocking colorwork, especially when it’s made with 100% wool, is such a miracle. Once the heel is done, I only need to make an icord loop to hang it with.

I’ve been busy ticking items off my ever lengthening list. Between Christmas and knitting this is a busy time of the year. I finished my last two Christmas knits and one is blocked, dry and labeled. The second one is nearly dry and the label is written. This may be the earliest I’ve ever been done knitting for Christmas. OR I’ve forgotten something. Ha! Ha!

I’ve got a pair of shorty socks on the needles for my daughter. They’ll match our granddaughter’s Advent socks. Should be fun for a few laughs at Christmas time. The first sock is finished and the second one is started, I’m about half-way through the heel flap so it won’t take too long to finish. Friday I seamed the shoulders of my pink Lane’s Island and the plan is to pick up stitches around the neck this evening and get the neck done. All I will have left is to sew in the sleeves and seam the sides. I am excited to wear it!

Our Christmas card list gets shorter each year but they’re all addressed and stamped and ready to go to the post office tomorrow. I’ve also done our laundry for the week … and then some and have been washing/re-blocking DH’s hats and fingerless mitts. Whew! They needed it. Changed a bed, bought some holiday-ish plants, and I think I’ve ordered all the Christmas gifts I need. Even my DH’s gift is ordered and I sure hope it arrives before Christmas. I’m crossing my fingers and toes.

We both got into the dermatologist last week after five years. I checked out and he had some pre-cancerous bits removed from his head. Bald heads are prey for the sunshine and my DH’s bald head seldom sees sunblock. He’s been lucky so far. And I’ve had the little red bump removed from my eyelid after decades of living with it. It was large enough to require two tiny sutures and they’ve caused some bruising but it feels good, no pain at all, and I hope the little bit of swelling and the redness will go away soon. The sutures will dissolve. So, we’re good to head into the holidays having done all we can to make sure we remain healthy and praying that the New Year is gentle with us all.

Gone knitting.

Grateful Every Day!

Posted on December 3, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

It started out to be another gray morning here on the lake but then the sun came out! Yay!!! I’ve been struggling with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) which is like depression and it’s been a rough week or two. I’m fighting to get stuff done in advance of the holidays and around the house … falling behind leads to a nightmare and I’m happy that I’ve been mostly keeping up. Anywho … the reason for this post is to share our wonderful Thanksgiving with our family in Massachusetts and that’s what I am going to focus on.

As always, we had a ball with the family. My brothers and their wonderful wives, nieces, nephews, son and his fiancee, and my sister-in-love’s brother and his girlfriend, two of her children and his daughters, too. Add three little kiddos and five dogs and you’ve got our evening! There had to have been 25 of us! And for the second or third year, there was a polar plunge involved. “We” (not me and not my hubby) jumped off the commercial dock in Marblehead and everyone survived. We guessed the water in the harbor was in the 50 degree range, but that’s a guess. It was cold for sure. My brother, two of his sons, my son and his fiancee all jumped in. I’m in awe!

We had a lobster feast for Thanksgiving because it can be cooked outside and the menu was incredible: shrimp cocktail, clam chowder (from the Causeway Restaurant in Gloucester, MA .. the best we have ever had), steamed clams, lobster, and salmon, a salad and grilled ciabatta. John B. brought the traditional Marblehead Thanksgiving desserts – cannoli and ricotta pie from an Italian bakery in Lynn. If anybody didn’t have fun, it’s their fault! I’m so grateful to have an extended family that I love spending time with and my hubby said yesterday, “I had a good time at Thanksgiving!” That says a lot. There’s never enough time when we’re all together and that, too, says a lot. How incredibly lucky we are.

The second night we had a pulled pork taco night. We brought our “insta-pot” down with us and went out to gather ingredients on Black Friday. And then on Saturday we had a traditional turkey dinner with all the fixings. I came home with an extra 5 pounds. LOL.

And what would a beautiful turkey dinner be without some turkey stock cooked right after the clean-up? The kids filled two “handles” with stock to carry back to New York City and I thought the idea to package it in the empty liquor bottles was brilliant and a bit funny.

On the way home, DH and I stopped for lunch with a friend from summer camp way back in the dark ages and then we stopped at Costco … spending time until we could pick up the dog at the kennel at 6pm. It was a nice, easy, no traffic ride home.

AND!!! I’m so happy to report that I finished a pair of socks for my darling sister-in-love in Massachusetts. She’s very knit-worthy and I’ve never made her a pair of socks so I had some Christmassy Raggi sock yarn in my stash that needs to be knitted up and I made her a pair of socks. I loved the way the yarn did its self-striping thing and the socks will keep Annie warm this winter inside her 200+ year-old house.

I also finished Sylvie’s Christmas sweater and sent it and her Advent calendar that I made on to New York City. I love the sparkly buttons and I am really fond of the sweater pattern (although the button plackets were a bit weird!) I hope it’ll fit her.

Snowflake by Tin Can Knits in Berroco Vintage DK

While we were away, I was given two more knitting for Christmas assignments and went in to Marblehead Knits for some yarn. One color had to match ST’s “signature” nail polish color and will be his running mitts. I’ll probably make a headband, too, but it may be after Christmas so I can measure his head. I also am replacing a hat for BS that he (mistakenly) washed with his laundry and felted. One more chance, B! LOL. Both of those projects will be easy to complete before the holidays but today is going to be for seaming my Lane’s Island pullover. I’d love to get it together before Christmas so I can wear it. It’s the perfect weight for being inside with a shirt and light sweater. I’ve got my first Lane’s Island on today, in fact.

I’ve finished a little pair of watermelon socks for Sylvie’s Advent calendar and I’m working on a pair of shortie socks for her mom or me … and the Octopus hat from hell has been sent and is much loved despite its horrible history. I’ve written about it on the last post. And I’ve now felted superwash yarn. And they say it can’t be done. Ha!

On my needles … all stuff that I have to really think about (except for the pair of shortie watermelon socks) so I have made precious little progress. I’ve got to finish the Arne & Carlos MKAL stocking and may get to it this weekend. I’ve got to make a bit of progress on the Fair Isle bag “swatch” for my Fair Isle knitting class, too. I’ve got a few rounds in and then stopped. I did very little knitting while we were away. I’d still like to make a pair of socks for my DH for his Christmas stocking. I have to get him a gift, too. Have I ever mentioned that I don’t love Christmas? It feels like tremendous pressure just thinking about it. We won’t put up a big tree (we have a little pre-lighted fake tree) but I’m going to get my Advent mini-jumpers hung this year. I really want to see them hanging!

I need to get off the computer and get some “work” done so I can knit. I have minutes from a meeting to upload and the laundry needs to be moved from the washer to the dryer but I wanted to reflect on how very grateful I am … even still today … after our Thanksgiving visit with family. We have remarked that we never seem to have enough time together and that, in itself, is such a blessing. I hear so many people who don’t want to have to spend time with their family and we can’t wait to have more time together!

Gone knitting.

What a Week!

Posted on November 25, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

Well, the last one has been a tough week. I seem to be suffering from a bit of a depressive episode, not atypical for me at this time of year, due to the stretch of gray days and less light. I’ve hooked up the light thingy that I have and hope that will help and today it’s actually sunny which will also help. I also lost a dear family friend this week. We met when our kids were little at the beach in Weekapaug, RI. The Shelby family quickly became good friends because my eldest daughter and their youngest daughter bonded immediately. They’re still close all these 30-some years later. Anyway, Linda was a dear friend, always laughing and sarcastically funny, bright, creative and just a great woman. Linda got Alzheimer’s Disease, just like my mother, at an early age. She passed away Thursday at 72 years of age. Way too young. I will miss her and I’m grateful that she’s no longer suffering. That’s also brought up feelings around the loss of my mother at 76 back in 2008. I’m glad it’s Thanksgiving week and I don’t have to be anywhere so I can just be … and work through the feelings as they roll in. Nobody said that life would be easy.

I’ve had a big frustration with a commission that I had, too. I was asked to knit an adult-sized “Have You Seen My Octopus” hat for a high school friend who saw the one I made for our granddaughter. I bought the Malabrigo yarn and after ripping the hat back more than once, finally got the knitting done to my satisfaction. I blocked it – and it GREW! I’ve never had anything grow like this hat. If a hat is too big for my big fat head, it says a lot. So, because there’s no los when the hat is way too big, I wet it again and put it in the dryer alone. Twenty minutes and no change at all. SO I threw it in with a wet load of laundry and let it go … and it felted up to a decent size but it was too fluffy and looked “worn”. I reached out to my customer and told her about it and we decided that I’d send it to her so she can see what it looks like and it’s up to her to keep it or not. I’ve got almost $40 in yarn and about 10 (probably more) hours of work into the hat … ugh.

not really the color but the size is good

Yesterday I took the second part of the Fair Isle knitting class online with Janette Budge. What a generous teacher she is! I started knitting my bag/swatch after the class and ran into a color conundrum … if I continued knitting as planned, I’d have a yellow/gold motif colorway at the middle of the design AND a yellow background color. I didn’t think that would work. So, I emailed Janette and had a thoughtful answer back in a very short while. I am very grateful and can continue knitting now with renewed hope that the colors will work.

This is the gathering of colors that I chose. In the front are the background colors, theoretically a gradual shade change from white to yellow. In the back (at the top of the photo) are the motif colors. Again, they’re supposed to be a fade from dark to light. The bag will start and end with navy and the salmon color will be the “pop” of color in the middle of the motif. As I’d planned it, though, the yellow of the background colors and the third or fourth motif color (the golds) would be at the middle of the motif at the same time with little contrast and too much yellow! I think I’ll just leave out the yellow for the background (and hope I have enough of the beige.)

My Christmas stocking MKAL is ending today and I’ve fallen behind. I’m on day 17 or so and have several days to catch up on before knitting the afterthought heel and finishing. But I’ll get there. I have been enjoying the project … until the darkness got the better of me.

I’ve cast on a new pair of Christmas boot sock for my sister-in-love in Massachusetts. She is very knit worthy and I think she’ll enjoy the warm wool socks. I hope she can remember not to dry them. LOL. I have several skeins of Raggi sock yarn that I bought at my LYS before we couldn’t get it in the USA and this pair of skeins with a Christmas theme will be perfect for her. I haven’t taken any photos yet but the first sock is finished. I love knitting worsted weight socks! They knit up so quickly.

I’ve finished the knitting on my pink version of the “Lanes Island Pullover” and just have to start seaming the shoulders. Maybe I’ll get to that today. I’d love to have it to wear over Thanksgiving weekend. We’ll see how I do – the shoulders are the most difficult part to seam. The rest is a piece of cake … and I will have to knit the collar at the end. Send me good seaming juju, will you please?

I’ve still got to finish the Christmas sweater for our granddaughter, too. Not much to do there, either. I think I just have to knit the button plackets and add the buttons – the ones I got a really fun! Another project that shouldn’t take long to finish but I’ve not had the bandwidth to do anything other than simple simple simple whatever. I hope today will feel a little bit better and that I can conquer at least ONE of these undone projects.

Gone knitting.

You CAN Teach an Old Dog!

Posted on November 18, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

It’s been a challenging last couple of knitting days. I’ll share the challenges with you in a bit but I want to also tell you about an exciting class that I took online yesterday with Janette Budge.

Janette is a knitwear designer in Shetland. Shetland is an island off the coast of Scotland and is known for its nearly treeless landscape, its free-roaming iconic Shetland sheep and its long history of hand-knitting. Janette told our class that her mother used to knit hundreds of colorwork sweater yokes each year onto machine knitted sweater bodies. The majority were knitted in the darker. months when there was less to do on the croft.

The class is to learn about picking colors for Fair Isle and to make a small knitted bag as a good way to swatch with our color choices. The first of this two-part classes was lots of talking about the traditional Shetland color pallets and how to choose colors for the background and the motif. It was fascinating! We have been given a pattern for the small bag that we’ll knit as our “swatch” and we have been encouraged to get a start knitting before our next class on Sunday.

After the class ended I pulled out my collection of Jamieson & Smith yarns to figure out what colors I have that will work on this design. I always like to use “bee” colors but I want it to really work in the Shetland manner. I first spread out all of my J&S yarns and organized them by color group. Since this bag doesn’t require a lot of yarn and, in fact, is perfect for using up bits and bobs of yarn which is typical of most knitters (and Shetland knitters only use Shetland yarns when knitting so they have a lot and they’re practical about using up all the little bits.) I wanted to use the colors that I’ve used previously since this is, technically, a swatch. So …

These are all of my attempts at making a color choice for my bag. I believe the last photo are my final choices using two or three background colors in the traditional white-yellow and then the motif colors in golds and browns with a pop of salmon. The base of the bag will be navy blue. The motif is a traditional star and tree and we were told to use two colors only if we’d never done stranded knitting and up to 9 colors if we had. I’ve got 9 but may use only 8. I will be emailing my choice to Janette for her counsel before I start knitting. I’ll let you know how I’ve done. (Crossing my fingers!)

This is my challenge from yesterday. I was happily knitting right along on the “Have You Seen My Octopus Hat” for a customer/friend and noticed this error. Can you see it? This is supposed to be a tentacle in a spiral and yet it’s got a couple of extra purple stitches that don’t belong. I considered leaving it and duplicate stitching blue over it but that didn’t last long as it’s not for me and I want it to be “right”. So, I frogged back to below the mistake and have been re-knitting since. I am reminded why I love Malabrigo Rios and why I don’t love it in colorwork projects. The stitches simply don’t “blend” in superwash yarns but it’s beautiful anyway. The hat has four repeats of the colorwork motif as you go around the hat and it’s easy enough to memorize what you’re doing in the subsequent sections and I can’t believe I added the two stitches, but there you are! I’m going to look at this project tomorrow in the light of day, early in the day, because I may have inconsistent stitch tension in the first few rounds … and that will mean that I am going to pull it all out once more and re-start. When someone buys a garment from me, they should know that it’s my best work. And I want only my best work to go out of my studio.

I am thoroughly enjoying the Arne & Carlos Christmas 2024 MKAL. We know it’s a Christmas stocking and once I got caught up to the MKAL, it’s been a very manageable 6 (or 12) rounds a day to keep up. I am loving this project in part because I love the yarn I’m using and it’s perfect for colorwork (not superwash and 100% wool). I’m using Juniper Moon Farm Patagonia Organic Merino. This stocking will likely be a decoration and not as a “real” stocking and it will match the 24 Advent Jumpers that I knitted in the last couple of years. I hope to get them hung up this year for the first time!

I’ve got a couple of other little projects on the needles, too. I sewed an advent calendar for my granddaughter and I’m filling the little pockets with treats and tiny toys (not too tiny, I promise!) In one of the pockets is a little hand-knit teddy bear and I’m knitting a pair of little socks in a new-to-me yarn by King Cole. It’s machine washable and dryable which is what my daughter wants to make their laundry a bit simpler. The socks are super cute. I’m using my Yankee Knitter pattern and knitting the child size. (They look HUGE!) I’m also knitting her Christmas sweater which she needs. Mom and Dad and Sylvie went to a Christmas themed restaurant in NYC last night and Sylvie wore last year’s sweater which is decidedly too small (but the Santa hat still fits!) She’s grown up so much in a year’s time!

Today, with any luck I’m going to start the sleeves on the sweater and tomorrow I’ll attack the Octopus hat. My car will be in the shop and I’m going to be stuck at home. Yay! I am always happy to be stuck at home because that means I have “nothing” to do and can spend the whole day in the atelier … or baking in the kitchen … or both.

Gone knitting.

A Wonderful Weekend

Posted on October 6, 2024 by Queen Bee Knits

The photograph from yesterday morning is very similar to what it looked like today. The big difference is that it was cool enough to keep us inside for our coffee. Our “warm” weather is supposed to be gone this week and it’s all good for me and it’s a bit chilly today if I’m honest. I’ve turned on the heat this afternoon. The warmest spot in the house was in the laundry room where the boiler lives and my toes are icy!

I’ve been on a knitting mission this weekend. I spent the morning yesterday catching up on work stuff (entering new emails into our email list for the newsletter, writing the newsletter) and cleaning up my studio and getting the vacuum in to suck up the dog hair. I never knew how much a lab could shed and he doesn’t spend too much time in my studio. BUT I got all caught up which allowed me to take off and “play” (knit) at my friend Janna’s house all afternoon. We spent four hours knitting and I was working on my Christmas stocking because I’m really trying to get it finished up and sent off.

I started at the end of the Santa section with the blue stripe done so I was beginning the tree section and my goal was to get that done. I did it! The most frustrating part was way down near the end, on the last couple of rows, I had to add new yarn. Lots of new yarn.

The whole idea about intarsia knitting is that you have lots of separate lengths of yarn; one length for each color section. So, in the case of the bottom of the Santa section, you have a piece of green, and then piece of red, green, red and another green … so, five long strands of yarn dangling. Most people put them on bobbins to organize the tangle but I find they get even more tangled that way. With long strands I can just pull them through the mess and clean it up a bit.

One of the things I don’t love about intarsia is that the ends … all one bazillion of them … need to be woven in one by one. It’s a test of any knitter’s patience. But this morning I got all the weaving of ends done and started to get the decorations done before I join the stitches in the round to work the heel flap and heel turn and then the gusset and the foot.

The Santas are first to get their embellishment: a few whiskers and a pompom for his cap. Eyes and a nose are duplicate stitched on. He looks pretty cute.

Trees next! I had to go hunting in my sewing table but I found my sequins stash and Christmas green thread and a needle and a couple of stitches on each sequin times three trees and they’re done, too. There’s something so sweet about sequins!

I’ve knitted and turned my heel in white and I’ve picked up the gusset stitches in green and am decreasing the gusset. Once I’m back to the original stitch count, it’ll be a breeze down to the toe. Stitch a bell on the toe, seam up the back and duplicate stitch on a name and I can wet block the stocking and then send it off to its new home. I haven’t worried about this getting done but I knew it wasn’t going to be good vacation knitting so … I’ve worked on a few other projects in the meantime.

Cloud Drift by Gudrun Johnston in Jamieson’s of Shetland Spindrift

I’ve finished my Cloud Drift, a store sample, designed by Gudrun Johnston in Jamieson’s of Shetland Spindrift (100% Shetland wool). The retail cost of the supplies for the cowl is about $65 and I will be making another one of these some day soon. I loved knitting it! It’s softened by the mohair held with the main color and it gets softer, too, as it’s worked. American’s tend to like the superwash wools that are softer next to the skin but I am really leaning to non-superwash wools because they’re better for the planet and they knit up so beautifully! I had a lot of yarn left over from the project and think I will make a pair of fingerless mittens or something with it. Next time I knit the cowl, I’ll likely add another repeat on each side. (You can see how much I had left over on my Ravelry project page.)

I’ve made great progress on my pink Lane’s Island pullover by Lori Versaci. I’m knitting it in Berroco Remix Light which is the same fiber I made my first one in. I have chosen to make the second size so it won’t be quite as boxy as the first one and I hope I like it as much. As of last night I’ve reached the place where I bound off the underarm stitches. I’ll finish the front, knit the sleeves (two at a time) and put it all together so I can wear it. I did realize that I was supposed to do something on the front to knit the pockets which I haven’t done. I’ll be making pockets another way this time. It’s fine. No, really, it’s fine.

There are still several projects that I want to get finished before Christmas – a hat for my son’s fiancee (it’s started and I’m waiting for her to measure her head) and then a sweater or two for my granddaughter; a French Macaroon and a Christmas sweater at the least. Winter is coming … even to New York City!

A busy week ahead! One of my friends needs some help getting to doctor’s appointments, I have my first board meeting as the chair of the board, and I’m working Thursday, teaching Friday and working again on Saturday. I’m going to sign off here and get back to my stocking! I hope I can get the knitting done today and wrap it all up so I can block it by Wednesday … and mail it off as soon as it’s dry!

Gone knitting.