What a couple of weeks!

This was meant to be posted earlier this week. Sheesh I've been busy!


It has been a while since I wrote, but fear not, fellow tatters, it has not been time wasted. My daughter was in summer camp for the last two weeks, one here and then one by my parents. During the first one, I was able to meet with some quilters at the Irish American Heritage Center here in Chicago. Such a sweet group of ladies. They are the Nimble Thimble club that meets twice a week to work on a raffle quilt. They also do other fiber arts in addition to the quilting and I may be contributing some lace to them. They make little outfits that fit American Girl dolls and have some lovely examples of Irish crochet and other laces in the museum. I might work up some trim and a few other pieces for them. I already have some patterns in mind!

In between the camp weeks, I was able to spend some time up in Wisconsin near Waupaca, resting and relaxing with friends. The wife is pregnant so I started working on Merry Higby's NIN lace bonnet.

Merry has since informed me that this particular pattern is for a preemie so when I make the one for my girlfriend, I will have to enlarge it. I may be calling on you all for advice on doing that (although I will stubbornly try to figure it out myself first).  This first one will be sent to Newborns in Need as requested by Merry. In looking at their website, I was particularly struck by the idea of a bereavement package. We had received something similar upon the death of my grandmother at age 98 and every time I see it at my mom's house, I think of her. I realize how comforting these packages can be and the thought that my work might bring comfort to someone else makes me happy. It's quite selfish really. So, with it's purpose in mind, I tat in loving and peaceful thoughts.

I was able to get a bit of it done last week at my parents' house. I was one of two women watching five energetic children between the ages of three and a half and nine. One afternoon (while they were at camp) I took myself out to visit some antique stores in search of shuttles and peace and quiet. The time flew by and at the last place I visited, she produced a loaded Tatsy and three Workbasket issues from the 70s. She promised that she had more at home and would bring them back the next day. As we talked, thread came up and she mentioned that she had some balls of thread at home that sounded like what I was describing. With a promise to return the following day, I rushed to get the kids, thrilled to have found a new shuttle and patterns.

Upon my return, she greeted me with a big grin and said she had found everything! She produced an unmarked empty bobbin shuttle, the aforementioned Tatsy, five Workbasket issues, a Lael Morgan shuttle with three snowflake pattern instructions, and ten balls of size 70 Coats tatting thread in various colors!

We discussed the price of the Tatsy (she had asked for $5 the day before) and the fact that it was full of size 5 (maybe?). She admitted she had done some homework the night before. I did a little quick math and settled on what I was willing to pay. I asked her to name a price. She smiled, knowing where things were headed, and I grinned when she came out with exactly what I was willing to pay. Now, I can haggle with the best of them. but I was just so happy.  We settled quickly and I took a stroll around her place as she bagged everything.

As stressed as I was by the end of Friday, I was content in the knowledge that I had increased my thread stash, shuttle collection, and pattern collection in one swell foop. By the time the other parents arrived to oversee their children, I was pretty done in and my sister could see it. God bless her! She took my child in hand when necessary and gave me a rest.  I sat with a glass of wine and tatted amid the chaos.

Tatting toward sanity in these three days before the next round of chaos!