Refreshed!

It felt good to take a week off from blogging, tatting, and other crafting. Now my creative juices are refreshed!

It's been a fabulous week! All four of my daughters, their significant others, and their children were all together for Christmas and a trip to Alabama to visit my mom. As an additional surprise, my mom's youngest brother arrived in Alabama on Christmas Eve and chose to stay and visit with us. I did consider getting together with tatting friends in the Mobile area, but Mom doesn't like to stray far from home, and we chose to spend time visiting in her apartment while the rest of the family explored the area.

When we arrive Tuesday night, we all took Mom out to dinner. The staff at Ruby Tuesday was fantastic and handled our group of 17 wonderfully!

It was impossible to get a good picture of everyone.

We were all having too much fun!

Luckily, there weren't many other patrons that night!

For me, the highlight of the trip was visiting with Mom's friend Sezer, and seeing many of her fabulous Oya pieces as well as other lace.

I didn't take pictures of everything.

Some of the pieces were made by Sezer.

Some of them were made by Sezer's mother.

Some were gifts.

Sezer explained how her mother used store bought pieces to enhance some of her fabric.

She also explained how some of the pieces were made.

I was in total awe!

Sezer doesn't do much Oya any longer.

She gave me a spool of beautiful silk thread, as well as some silk needles. So, you know what I'm going to try out in the new year!

We were only in Alabama three days, but it was wonderful!

Yes, I did watch YouTube videos this morning, and I pulled out my two books on Mediterranean knotted lace. I have a long way to go, but I am glad to finally have the inspiration I need to learn something new!

No, I haven't given up on Ice Drops. In fact, I came up with the idea for this one in the car. It needs some tweaking. I have to figure out some stitch changes, and I want to figure out a sequence of switching shuttles and reversing work to enhance the pattern. I think this one will take me a few days to figure out, but I'm having fun and I think that's what it's all about!

Merry Christmas!

I did it!

I had to stay off my computer, ignore the housework and dishes (luckily, Dave pitched in and did more than his fair share!), stay up late, and get up early, but I finished my sister-in-law's mantle runner!

She was thrilled with it! Will I tat another large project again? Of course! At times a large project seems like it will never be finished, but when it is... what a feeling of accomplishment!

All of my daughters and their families will be here today, and I am really excited to have them! I'm planning on lots of snuggles, playing, and laughter, and I think I will give my wrists a break and set down the tatting while they're here.

Merry Christmas, dear friends! I'll see you in the new year!

A gift from the North Pole!

As I posted before, this week is incredibly busy, so I'm sure you can imagine how excited I get from packages in the mail!

I love these little boxes that look like books...

but even more exciting is what can be found inside! Isn't this shuttle gorgeous? I don't think it shows well in the picture, but the background is mother of pearl. I love anything related to the sea, and lighthouses are among my favorite designs. Thank you for another beautiful shuttle, Rita!

Yes, I did receive a tree shuttle last week. That one was one of Rita Richmond's shuttles. This one is a Moonlit shuttle that she decorated. The Moonlit shuttles are great for traveling... I don't have to worry about dropping my crochet hook!

My friend Denise ordered a reindeer shuttle for herself. When she showed it to me, I just had to order another. Yes, I said another. Last year I ordered a blue one and a red one. They're just so cute, I couldn't resist! I also ordered one of Rita's new chocolate shuttles... yum! This looks good enough to eat!

Last week, Denise and I exchanged Christmas presents. Denise is so clever in coming up with themes, and this year she focused on books. As I said, I love these book boxes!

There were lots of goodies inside!

Denise loves making thread pickers, and I love using them! Well, I don't like picking out double stitches, but I do enjoy having pretty pickers to use!

Denise also has made several of these beautiful Ice Drops designed by Nicola Bowersox, based on Wally Sosa's 2015 Birthday Motif. This one is definitely on my to-do list!

My biggest surprise was one of Rita's shuttles that Denise special ordered. Denise loves pink, and I love blue. So, Denise commissioned Rita to design "Friends" shuttles for us. Yes, Denise did receive Rita shuttles from me, but not ones inspired by my ideas. Luckily, Denise loved the shuttles I gave her!

I finished the Christmas stockings about an hour ago. Now I really need to concentrate on my sister-in-law's mantle runner. I'm not sure I can finish in time, but I'm sure going to try! 

Makin' a list and checkin' it twice!

I'm taking a breather. It's been a busy weekend, and I'm gearing up for a busy week. A lot has been accomplished, but there's still so much to do! I decided I need a checklist...

☑ finish decorating (I finally added my favorite Ice Drops to my tree!)
☑ ravioli made
☑ Christmas shopping done
🗹  presents wrapped (I'm getting there)
🗹  grocery shopping
🗹  banking
🗹  Christmas stockings made
🗹  mantle runner finished
🗹  catch up on reading blog posts (may never happen)

Although we've been busy, it's been a fun busy. I enjoy getting ready for family get-togethers, but I pace myself. I don't worry about everything being perfect. I just want my guests to feel comfortable, and I want to be able to enjoy the festivities!

My shuttle collecting continues! I love my new shuttles from Rita Richmond. Have you tried the shuttles that she makes? The have a wonderful feel and hold so much thread. I also like the Moonlit shuttles that she decorates. The hooks come in handy when I'm traveling.

I also ordered the newest design from Emiko Suenaga. The detail that these two ladies put in to their shuttles amazes me!

Can you tell that I love sapphire blue?
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Falling behind

Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. I said that to a student just yesterday. I guess I should heed my own advice.

I've been so caught up with tatting Ice Drops this past year, that I haven't taken much time to work on anything else, and now the Christmas crunch is on!

I was planning on making stockings for my grandchildren this week, finishing up the little bit of Christmas shopping I need to do, and enjoying the Christmas season.

However, as Robert Burns said, "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft a-gley." I've been called in to sub five times in the past week. Dave "forced" me to clean the upstairs with him (a task that I had been dreading, and I'm very happy to have it done!). I spent a good part of the day with my friends Denise and Mary Lou, something we hadn't done in years.

Little has been accomplished! I did manage to cut out one Christmas stocking before heading in to school yesterday... only three to go! Yesterday, I was able to tat while subbing.

I am making progress on my sister-in-law's runner. I believe I need eleven more rows of three to finish it. At a rate of four hours per row, I really have my work cut out for me.

So, you might not be reading much here in the next week. I've been glancing at blogs, but haven't really taken much time to read or comment. Yes, the Christmas crunch is on, and I am determined to achieve my goals!

Ooh!

What a day!

I picked up my mail at the post office today, and there was a packet of beautiful vintage shuttles that I had purchased from England! They're in wonderful condition, and I can hardly wait to try them out!

I was surprised that I had some time to tat today. My sub assignment was changed last minute, and it just happened to work out in my favor... I was able to tat while listening to high school students sing!

I had been carrying this Bloomin' Ice Drop with me for several days. I managed to finish it when I got home.

My pointer finger has been sore at times, and I saw a lady online with a tension ring. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm hoping this little copper ring from ItsVera will help when my finger gets sore.

Not sure which style would work better for me, I ordered two! I think I like the stability of the wider band, but I'll try them both and let you know how they work for me.

Tomorrow is another sub day, and I know that it will be jam packed. I do love working with kids!

Too busy to tat!

December is starting out way busier than I ever would have thought!

Once again, I am suffering from Ice Drop withdrawal. Although I took tatting with me to Christmas in the Village, there really wasn't any time to tat, and when I arrived home I was too tired. Yesterday, Dave decided we needed to organize and clean upstairs. Yes, it needed to be done... I had craft supplies everywhere! It truly looked like a craft store had exploded. You can ask my grandchildren. I'm sure they will confirm my description of the place.

We started at 8 and finished close to 1, with only one cookie and coffee break to show for it. Yes, ladies and gents, it was that bad. Now everything is stashed neatly away in bins and boxes, hidden in closets and under beds. My goal for the new year will be to bring down one container at a time and sort through it. There's no way everything will fit in my sewing room, but I will need to be ruthless if I don't want to crawl under a bed to find a tatting supply. I believe I do have too much stuff!

There won't be much, if any, tatting today or tomorrow. I'm subbing at the elementary school, and I already know the days will be full. So, no pictures, no tatting... but I will have a fun filled two days with kids!

First snow

We had our first snow this morning! I know it's not much, but I love snow no matter how little there is. It was the perfect way to start Christmas in the Village!

It was not a terrific sales day.

However, I did meet some very nice people, and I had the opportunity to discuss tatting!

I even gave my contact information to another vendor who is interested in learning to tat!

No, I did not sell much, but I had a wonderful day, and...

I have five Ice Drop laden trees decorating my home! The branches aren't full, so I think I'll tat some more!

Another Minty Fudge

Yay! I managed to tat an Ice Drop today!

The morning was filled with errands, and this afternoon Denise stopped by. We had a nice visit and caught up on what each of us has been doing for the past week. We were very decadent and drank coffee topped with whipped cream!

Dave arrived home shortly after Denise left, and we did some more Christmas decorating. Our house is looking very bright and gaudy. I'm sure the grandchildren will love it!

The count

Once again, the day seemed to get away from me. I was off running errands before 8, and I managed to get home by about 10:30. I have more errands to run tomorrow. How did I manage all this when I was working full time?

After running errands, I organized all of my goodies for Christmas in the Village. After pulling out the Ice Drops I just couldn't bear to part with, I have a total of 200 to offer shoppers!

Despite my morning activities, I managed to tat two Ice Drops.

They're slightly different, just a change in the number of picots. It felt good to get my daily dose of Ice Drops!

Home again, home again, jiggity jig!

That was one fun weekend we just had! Dave and I left for Minnesota on Friday to stay with our granddaughters Lily and Ella. As you may have read in my previous post, we were able to attend a craft fair and meet up with some of my tatting friends.

On Sunday, we went to daughter Joanne's to watch the Vikings/Falcons football game. We were hoping to get a glimpse of Andrea and Jake on t.v., but that didn't happen. The cousins had great fun playing together, and we had lots of yummy food to munch on!

There was quite a bit of wriggling around from the little ones, but we finally managed to get a picture of our Minnesota grandchildren!

After getting the girls off to school this morning, Dave and I headed home. It was a long drive, and I did manage to do some tatting on my sister-in-law's runner on the way up and back. I still have a long way to go on it, so I'm not going to bother posting a picture until I've made some headway.

Christmas in the Village is this coming Saturday! I need to organize all my goodies, press my tablecloths, and make sure I have everything I need. I think this is going to be fun!