Happy Tatting and Belated Happy Thanksgiving! (motif 1)

Once again, I have been busy with other endeavors and unable to post. And, once again, I have actually been tatting. I am so proud that I am starting my third (can you believe it?) round of 25 motif challenge.

I have been working on a bonnet for my friend's baby, but it is nowhere near finished. I will try to post a picture when it is.

I also made two crosses from Lindsay Rogers' Tatting Collage, both in Aunt Lydia size 10 white. One was put on the outside of the baptism card and the other was blessed by the priest and given as a gift to the baby. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures...

My Nimble Thimble group had their bazaar so I tatted up another Small Star for them to sell. Actually, I tatted two of them. One is a repeat of the green and white I have done in the past and the other is in all white, size 10.  Of course, I have no pictures to share. Drat! I plan on making more of them to give to family and friends for Christmas.  They did sell pretty quickly though.

Looking at my daughter in her cute little dress on Thanksgiving, I decided to make some hair pins to match in orange and brown, size 10. The large flower is from Lindsay Rogers' Tatting Collage, the smaller cupped center is something I came up with accidentally one day and really like.  She loved them and we even made it back home with one of them! (The other went AWOL in her cousin's room during preparations for a fashion show.)

 

I went on Amazon today and picked out some tatting books. My husband had been wondering what to get me for Christmas. I told him about my wishlist on Amazon and he told me later I can be expecting a couple of shipments in the next few days! The fact that he would buy these for me means so much to me. It means he understands that it is a big deal for me, not just a way for me to waste time. I'm so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!

Never, Ever Sneeze!

A friend in my Nimble Thimble group brought in an old hankie with tatted edging to show me. I was very impressed with the work as it had a great deal of bare thread space and I rarely see that in modern patterns. I told her it was very special and made her promise she would never sneeze into it. She giggled and offered to let me keep it for a while. I politely declined and took a photo instead because I want to show it off to all of you, but don't want to be held responsible should anything untoward happen to it.

So, here it is, I think it's pretty cool:

Another woman in the group blessed me with a bag of thread she found in her stash. Mostly DMC 5 and 8 from what I can tell. Wheee!

The Lost Art and My Gratitude

I participated in my first market on Friday.

Most commonly heard remarks at market were:

"My grandmother/grandfather/mother/aunt (or insert other deceased relative here) used to tat."

"That is a lost art."

I had a really great time at the market. Not so much for the selling, because there was precious little of that, but for the conversations I had with people. Most just wanted to share their experience, reminisce about family. One said he fell asleep while his mother sat in his room tatting each night. Some expressed regret that they didn't learn, others said they had tried and failed. A few said that they had learned but let it go. A few more said they would like to learn.

For the better part of the six hours, I was sitting at my table tatting one thing or another. I would spy someone across the aisle, whispering to a friend, "That's tatting." I always did my best to catch their eye and grin at them. I let them know that I appreciated the fact that they recognized what I was doing. It usually started a nice conversation.

Quite a few people stopped and stared. I grinned at them as well. I invited them to watch, really, I don't mind. I made silly faces when a stitch failed to flip, I grimaced dramatically as I struggled with knots. I told one group that my friends (that would be you, gentle readers) and I were intent on dragging tatting kicking and screaming into the twenty-first century. I tried to make it accessible, not quite so mysterious. People seemed to take to it.

In all, I will take it as a success. My name and work are out there. I have already signed up for the next market in March. One positive note is that since things didn't sell, I have stock on hand. I also have the ability to plan better for my next outing.

I continue to be thankful for my friends and family and their support of my hobby gone crazy. They have been so encouraging about something they don't always understand.

I am also very thankful, to you, gentle readers, for your support. You understand what goes into it and your comments carry more weight because of it.

Busy fingers, 25 Tatted!

I have been doing quite a bit of tatting ahead of Friday's market. I've gotten most of my pieces tatted and only need findings for them to be complete. Somewhere along the line I stopped using a picot gauge, so if things look a little rough around the edges...well, practice, practice, practice...

In no particular order, for your consideration, I give you:

An assortment of variations on Dianna Stevens' Simple Bookmark in size 10 ecru, pink, white, and size 20 cream.


This one I messed up the chains (uniformly throughout); it looks a bit different from its companions. Size 10 white.

Another Janette Baker bookmark in size 10 white.

A bunch of flowers (there are actually about 30 of them) ready to be made into hair pins. Some are Leila's pattern, others are from Lindsay Rogers' book Tatting Collages. All tatted in size 10. I intend to layer them.

 

A few variations on the Kersti's Stumpy Bookmark in size 10 pink and white.

 



And lastly the heart I made for Aunt Maryann. It is Birgit's Celtic Heart in Southmaid variegated pink and Coats ecru, both size 10. (I messed up on the chain at the top, but I think I'll just stick with it.)

If I don't count the flowers, this puts me at 25 again!!!!

Oops Turned into Ooooh!

I was happily tatting away at my local while nursing a glass of strawberry lambic and finished this:

Kersti's Stumpy bookmark (sans tail) in Southmaid, a variegated pink, size 10.

I loaded my shuttles with Aunt Lydia's size 10 in white and was a quarter of the way through another when I realized I had added a picot that shouldn't have been. Since I didn't want to untat and it was my second project of the night, I decided to hang it up, enjoy my drink and a snack and go home.

I worked on it again today and decided to make the same mistake throughout for uniformity. As I got around the other side of the piece, I realized that I had also added an extra 5 ds to the ring with the extra picot. Now that throws the whole thing off! I thought I might cut and run, but I didn't like leaving a piece that was so close to done.

Time to get creative... I started tatting chains and joining stuff and put in a small ring and came up with something else.

It's working title is Dadratted Heart (or Criminy!).

Expanding The Empire continues

A handful of posts ago, I mentioned meeting an antiques dealer who was interested in my work. We have been in contact over the last few weeks and I have decided to take part in her pop-up market. This will be my first booth, first sale, first a lot of things as far as lace is concerned. I am incredibly nervous.

As a result of this decision, I have begun tatting away at a brisk pace (roughly completing a piece every two days). So far I am enjoying the challenge of the project. I do not know where it will lead, but I feel good about it (despite the nerves). My focus right now is to get the tatting portions made and then team with my sister to complete the pieces. She has a great eye and I trust her taste in all things.

I have no illusions as to this marketing becoming more than an occasional thing. It was the persistence of this dealer, and perhaps a touch of my own vanity, that brought me to this point.  I have no plans involving Etsy or anything like that at this time. I intend to leave that to the pros until I have something to show for myself.

So, here's to a hectic couple of weeks! All prayers, good vibes, advice, and assorted happy thoughts appreciated.

Busy, Busy, Busy (and motifs 10-14)

My apologies for what has seemed to me like an interminable silence. I have been concentrating on things other than blogging. Nonetheless, I have been tatting; no idle hands here.

I had neglected my TIAS in an effort to complete a few other projects but have gotten caught up and finished it.  In need of a serious blocking, here is my completed Piccadilly Express:

As I predicted early on, I have had to learn a few new skills. First came split rings, then in one swell foop came the floating ring and onion ring, followed closely by the shoelace trick. I was able to tat the onion rings on my first try (very happy about that). I'm not saying I made this without any mistakes, for that would be a major fib; I am saying that I made much fewer that I had expected. I believe I missed a switch shuttles at least once and I'm not sure if one of my chains is going in the right direction. However, since it resembles the completed sample posted by the designer, I'm going to take this as a victory.

I have completed my first Tat It And See and learned something new along the way. I acknowledge that I have a lot more to learn and this has given me the confidence to pursue it.

In the meantime, I have completed the tatted portions of some bracelets, a snowflake, and another heart.

The bracelets are based off the bookmark pattern in Jeanette Baker's Learn To Tat done in Lizbeth size 20 black and size 20 Jellybean.

The heart is 'Tattered' Heart from Lindsay Rogers' book Tatting Collage made in Aunt Lydia's size 10 victory red. It will go to our departed uncle's longtime love.

I am working on a heart for his sister as well. It is a two-part pattern so I will abstain from posting it until it is finished (hopefully in the next few days).

This is Birgit's Small Star tatted in DMC size 5 white and ecru. I really like the sheen and the color combination more than I thought I would, although it does not show well in this photo. I hope to make a few of this combination in size 10.

I also starched the cross for pastor using cornstarch. That was fun. It is fairly stiff now and only in want of a thread to suspend it. I found that the cornstarch was rather thick and gooey. Did I overcook it? I had read where it may be kept in the refrigerator for a while. How do you then make it liquid enough to use again without significantly diluting it? Any advice would be appreciated.