Liz Metallic Sand Dollar

I think this may be my favorite color of the Liz Metallic threads, Sand Dollar.

I wish you could see this one in person. It is beautiful! I'm not real fond of this Aerlit bobbin shuttle. I think it needs to be broken in. It's very stiff, and I did not enjoy using it. Does anyone use these on a regular basis? I would love to know the secret to enjoying them. If it moved as smoothly as my LaCossette shuttles, I would use them more often.

I should have taken this picture sooner when there was still some daylight coming in. These are all the Ice Drops I tatted in March, 33 in all. Looks like I made up for the two missing ones in February! ;-)

Liz Metallic Mocha Brown

I am enjoying trying out these new metallic threads. Today's offering is Mocha Brown. I never would have thought of using brown for a metallic thread.

It looks pretty good! Of course I used another pretty shuttle from LaCossette! 😄

I finally warped my new Gilmore Mini Wave Loom. After I finished, I told Mom that I couldn't believe I made such a big deal out of it. Now that I know what I'm doing, the whole process will go much more smoothly next time.

The rest of the day was spent doing laundry and cleaning up a sewing machine I found on eBay. It had quite a bit of sticky tape residue, and I'm still trying to get it all off. There are lots of scratches and nicks in it, but I'm having fun. I haven't tried running it yet. That will happen after I finish cleaning it. I sure hope it works!

Liz Metallic Iridescent

You guessed it... I played with another metallic thread today!

I think this thread is really pretty, but I found it a little more difficult to work with than the other Liz Metallics. It seemed bumpier to me. Maybe my fingers are just sore from working with metallics. I do like the look, and I think it makes a great Ice Drop. As you can see, I used another beautiful shuttle from LaCossette.

While bobbin shuttles are not my go-to shuttles, I do enjoy using them with the metallic threads. My main reason for not using bobbin shuttles is that I feel I can wind so much more thread on a post shuttle. However, since Ice Drops take from 3 - 5 yards of thread on the shuttle, I find the bobbin shuttles to be very convenient!

I finally finished round 8 of Renulek's Wiosna 2018! It did cup a little, but a quick shot of steam from the iron set everything right. On to round 9!

Liz Metallic Gold Dust

Have you guessed that I'm trying out all of my new metallic threads? Since I'm multi-crafting these days, an Ice Drop a day is a great way to keep tatting on my mind!

I'm sticking with the basic Ice Drop pattern for these tests. I do love Gold Dust! The shuttle is another of my beauties from LaCossette. She has a beautiful Red Glass Tiles shuttle in her shop, but I'll have to pay all my bills at the first of the month before ordering another shuttle. I'm trying to be good! 😉

I made pretty good progress on round 8 of Renulek's Wiosna 2018. It's all about setting goals for myself!

I didn't spend as much time on the phone today, and my rounds are getting longer, so it doesn't look like I made much progress on my Granny Square afghan. I'm using Lion Brand Mandala. It's kind of nice to have color changes without having to change yarns!

Today I learned how to use my mini warping reel from The Woolery. It's about time! I've had this for a couple of years. The design of the ones available now are slightly different. I've only used warping pegs before today, and I'm so glad Mom kept encouraging me to try my warping reel. It's so fast!

I've put the warp on the loom, but it's not threaded through the heddles yet. For some reason, I had a terrible time understanding how to use the reel and how to put the warp on the loom. I spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out both, but it took a morning and an afternoon call to Mom to finally put two and two together. I'm afraid of messing up because I'm brain weary from all the thinking I've done today. So, threading the loom will have to wait until morning when I'm sure my brain fog will have cleared!

Liz Metallic Violet

I had a lot that I wanted to accomplish today, so I set little goals for myself. As a result, I accomplished a lot!

First, I wanted to experiment with another color of Liz Metallic.

I love this color! Violet is a beautiful, deep purple. I wish the color and sparkle showed up well on the screen. My tatting was a little off today, so I noticed some uneven stitches as I was adding the ribbon. That's totally my fault, not the fault of the thread.

I used my newest shuttle from La Cossette. I love the bright colors! I've read that other tatters prefer to use a bobbin shuttle when working with metallic threads, so I decided I should give it a try. I can see where winding and unwinding the thread could damage these threads. I'm happy to report that this shuttle was a perfect fit for working with Liz Metallic.

Talking to my daughters, my mom, and a few close friends is part of my daily routine. I don't talk to all of them every day, but I do spend enough time on the phone that it would be easy for me to feel guilty about wasted time. So, I worked on my granny square afghan while chatting. It's an easy way to make progress!

I'm starting to feel like I'm falling behind on Renulek's Wiosna 2018, so I spent a good hour and a half with it today. Just think, I could have been finished with round 9 if I hadn't snipped of round 8. It's okay, though. I'm much happier with the way the round is fitting the second time around.

I made a meat pie for dinner, and while it was baking, I worked on my Park Avenue afghan. I feel like this one's working up quickly!

In addition to all of this, I went to a retiree's lunch today. It's great to get together with people I worked with for so many years. After that, daughter Carol and I went grocery shopping, and then I headed home. I think I may fall asleep in my chair tonight!

Liz Metallic Turquoise Green

My new thread arrived today! I'll start by saying that I'm not a big fan of metallic threads, mainly because they hurt my fingers. This thread is not an exception to the rule as far as that goes. However, it is an incredibly nice metallic thread, and I do plan on tatting many Ice Drops with it!

I decided to start with a basic Ice Drop. I'm not sure if this thread will work well with multiple picots. Time will tell. Yes, I will try tatting one with lots of picots!

I think this thread would be great for those who like to tat earrings. It holds its shape well, and the colors are very rich. I wish I knew how to capture the color with my phone camera!

As I was tatting with Turquoise Green, I kept thinking that it would make a beautiful peacock. 😀

I finished the half of the first panel of my Park Avenue afghan. While working on it, I started thinking about granny squares, and look what happened! Yes, I am multi-tasking again!

Binging on crochet

This weekend Dave has been busy working on our bathroom, a project he started about a year ago. I'm his errand girl, and I figured it would be easier to work on a crochet project than a tatting project. I was right!

This is Virus Meets Granny Shawl from Fiber Spider on YouTube. I really like the way this video tutorial is presented. It's divided into three parts. The first part walks you through the virus pattern. The second part shows you how to transition into the granny portion. The third portion shows how to transition back into the virus pattern. I used one ball of Lion Brand Yarn Mandala in the Gnome colorway. Denise told me that some of the colors are on clearance at our Walmart for $3 a ball... such a deal!

I finally finished the last of the three pink Ice Drops I worked on while subbing Friday. I was so determined to finish the shawl this weekend, I didn't tat at all yesterday. That doesn't happen very often.

More than ten years ago, I stumbled upon a clearance sale of Lion Brand Wool-Ease. I love Wool-Ease! My plan was to crochet afghans for family members. It never happened. Today I decided it was time to start on my afghan project. I need to either use my yarn stash or give it up. It does me no good sitting in bins.

This is my all-time-favorite afghan pattern, Park Avenue. I'll crochet six panels in this color, Wood. I'll then add borders in another color and join the panels.

I purchased this book when it came out in 1996. There is a child's sweater in the book that I made years ago. Otherwise, the only pattern I've ever used is Park Avenue. Maybe I should give some of the others a try!

More pink picots

Today was a sub day, and the easiest thing for me to work on while supervising high school kids is the basic Ice Drop pattern. Playing with picots can be so much fun!

Dave need to go to Menards for some wood pellets, and while we were gone the UPS man delivered a very special package!

This is my new Gilmore Mini Wave Loom, a present from my mom! Mom has had hers for a while now, and she just loves it. When she found out I was interested, she ordered one for me. I think I have the best mom in the world!

It's too dark to warp it now, but there should be plenty of light tomorrow! Mom sent me some pictures showing how she warps her loom to help me get started. I'm ready to weave some bands!

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Another crochet day

I was so close to finishing my Virus Shawl that I decided today would be a crochet day. I still need to wash and block it, but I'm very happy with the way it turned out. I used one ball of Lion Brand Mandala. This is not a full sized shawl, more of a shawlette really. It can also be considered a large scarf. Two balls would have made a nice cozy shawl, but this was a nice size for what I wanted.

Here's the shawl from the other side of the table. From this side it doesn't look like it needs blocking. 😊

No, I did not let crocheting get in the way of tatting an Ice Drop. I really have the itch to tat an edging, so I may look at edging patterns tonight. If I can find my stash of hankies, I may just get started on an edging for one of them. I love having options!

Multiple crafts

I'm sure there are many tatters who indulge in multiple crafts. After all, variety is the spice of life!

I forgot to take pictures, but I finished my last set of curtains for the elementary school cafeteria this morning, and then I delivered them. It feels good to have another item checked off my list!

I'm enjoying tatting Ice Drops with Orange Crush. Today I used my newest Pop-A-Bobbin shuttle in cherry. I like the yellow organza ribbon with the orange. I ran out of cream, which is my usual choice with orange, unless I have orange!

My Virus Shawl is growing! This is a super simple pattern to follow, and it's a great way to show off pretty yarn. This is Lion Brand Mandala, and the color is Pegasus. I do like this 3 ply yarn. I bought my first cake on Amazon for about $10. I knew I could find it at Walmart for just under $5, but at the time I was eager to try the yarn and I knew it would be at least a week before I could get to Walmart. When I did get to Walmart, Denise and I were surprised, because it rang up at just under $4! I love surprises like that!

More shuttles?

Yes!

A little while back, Sally Kerson posted that she had a couple of shuttles available, made by 'im in the garage. I don't use them often, but I do like my Pop-A-Bobbin shuttles! This little beauty arrived today, and I will put it to good use!

There's a remodeling project going on at the high school/middle school library. My friend Kristine took over as librarian when I retired, and I offered to help with anything I could to make the project go more easily. A few weeks ago, I worked removing books from the computer system for Kris. It's a time consuming job, but one that I really don't mind doing. I'm familiar with the system, and I can zip through it pretty quickly.

Kris wanted to thank me for my help, so she ordered a shuttle from Rita Richmond of Shuttle by Design. Isn't it beautiful? Our school colors are green and gold, so green was the perfect background color for this wonderful shuttle.

Of course I had to give it a test drive as soon as I returned home from school today! Thank you, Kris!

Starting the day off right

I started the day by working on Renulek's Wiosna 2018. No, I didn't get far, but I'm happy with the way this round is going. I'm pleased that I made the decision to snip the tight round.

I started another shawl, because I have a ton of yarn to use up! This is The Virus Shawl, which I learned about from my friend Denise. There are several YouTube videos showing how to work this pattern. I just happened to choose this one by Fiber Spider. The tutorial is excellent, and I found that I was able to keep just ahead of the video by the second pattern repeat.

A new little flat shuttle arrived in the mail today. This adorable little hedgehog is by Ayumi Horiai and is available at Tatting Corner. I haven't tatted with it yet, because I'm working with size 20 thread. This little cutie will probably work best with size 80 thread. I have such a weakness for hedgehogs!

Today's Ice Drop is one that I just might keep for myself! The bead is a coin pearl. It's so much prettier in person! The shuttle is one of my favorites from Rita Richmond of Shuttle by Design. The pearl background is perfect for this beautiful lighthouse scene. I have a fascination with lighthouses, and since high school I've had the romantic notion of living in one. I think the stairs would be too much for me these days, but it's fun to dream!

Crochet Sunday

It looked like I was pretty close to the end of my ball of Mandala yarn, so I decided to concentrate on finishing my Middle of the Road Scarf. Mine isn't quite like Susan Pinner's. The yarn she used changes color more frequently and has little flecks of white in it. I may break down and try to get some of that yarn (James C Brett, Northern Lights), but since I have to send to England for it, I was happy to use what was readily available.

I cut off the crocheted button that was at the tip of the triangle. Mine wasn't very clean looking, and because the colors of the Mandala yarn are not flecked like the yarn used in the original pattern, it didn't have the same interest. I will practice making those crocheted buttons, because I think they look really cool.

It's been a while since I've crocheted with yarn, and I wasn't happy with the way my edges looked. So, I single crocheted around the scarf and then finished off with slip stitching through the back loop. I'm not sure that blocking will do much good since this is an acrylic yarn, but I may give it a try anyway.

Of course, I had to tat an Ice Drop today! This one is in size 20 Lizbeth Orange Crush, #183. I love my new Russian doll shuttle!

Easy decision

I woke up this morning and went right in to my sewing room to unpin my doily (Renulek's Wiosna 2018). I knew right away what I was going to do.

Snip! I have absolutely no regrets. The rings were stretched and ugly. Snipping never felt so good!

Tatting an Ice Drop seemed to be the way to get back in to a good tatting space.

Then, I was ready to start back with the doily. I can tell already that the slightly larger picots are going to work much better!

Round 8

I finished round 8 of Renulek's Wiosna 2018. It's pinned out because I needed to steam it to get it to lie flat. I think I need to snip this round off and re-tat it with larger picots for joining the rings. See how they're stretched out? I don't think I like that look. Seeing Jane's with slightly larger picots, I realize that the rounded look is so much better. What do you think? Should I snip or move on?

Since I didn't tat an Ice Drop yesterday, I decided to tat two today. I do love blue!

Movin' along

Today was a sub day, and while students were working diligently, I tatted and kept an eye on them. It's much easier to monitor students while doing handwork than while reading a book or surfing the Internet. It looks like I'll be able to finish this round this week.

I didn't get an Ice Drop tatted today. Maybe I'll have time before I head off to bed!

Fast service

I took one of my sewing machines in to be cleaned yesterday, and I was able to pick it up today. That's what I call fast service!

Quilt shops are dangerous places for me. This wall hanging caught my eye.

This table runner also appealed to me. Of course I bought the fabric to make both!

I had quite an adventure when I got home. I found no house keys in my purse! I called Dave, but he was out making deliveries and was too far away to help me get in. Luckily, daughter Carol had her house key with her, so I headed in to school to get it. Rather than drive all the way home, I went to the hardware store to have a spare key made. After the key was made, I was chatting with Scott (the owner), and when I was ready to leave I reached in to my pocket for my car keys. I felt keys in my pocket, and then realized I had keys on my other hand. I went through all that hoopla, and my house keys were in my pocket all the time! Scott and I got a good laugh out of that!

I still had some tablecloths to finish up left from dinner theater the other night, so I worked on household chores in the afternoon. I'm sure you can guess by now that I worked on an Ice Drop here and there throughout the afternoon... another frilly one for Joanne!