Progress

Today's Doodle Ice Drop has a beautiful gold center. I love the way the gold shows through Karey Solomon's beautiful hand-dyed thread!

I feel like I'm making real progress on my Eightsome Reel doily. Six out of nine motifs are finished!

Marigold motif

I've been thinking about tatting some pieces from New Tatting by Tomato Morimoto for a while now, and this morning I decided it was time to get started! This is Marigold motif. I suppose I should have used a nice bright yellow, but this beautiful blue was a great match for my new Dreamlit shuttle.

I didn't really look at the directions. I just got to work on the center motif. It didn't take me long to realize that I should have looked at the directions and started with the outer round first. Designers have their reasons for doing what they do!

This was my first time using a Dreamlit shuttle. It was a breeze to wind the thread, and since I already like Moonlit shuttles, the transition was easy. The only thing I don't like about the Dreamlit is that the bobbin doesn't have a hole to run the thread through and knot it. I'll have to remember to wind extra thread so that I don't run into the problem of having the thread slip when I get close to the end of the bobbin.

I stuck with my Doodle Ice Drop pattern and Karey Solomon's hand-dyed thread for my travel project today. The center is a glow-in-the-dark gem from Hobby Lobby.

I was determined to finish another motif for my Eightsome Reel doily. I do love this Mary Konior pattern, and I think it looks great in Marilee Rockley's Lantana Citrus!

Early evening

Dave needed to mow grass, so that meant an early evening in for me... no branches to move today!

At lunchtime yesterday, one of the high school boys asked if I made bookmarks. He was referring to the ones my mom made for the seniors last year. I told him that my mom had made them, but that I also made bookmarks. He told me that he's set a goal of reading all the Harry Potter books this year, and that he would like to have a nice bookmark. How could I resist?

I didn't have time to warp a loom or look for the exact colors, but I did find some red and yellow in my stash. I neglected everything I needed to do this morning and crocheted a bookmark for Luke. He loved it!

My on-the-go tatting today was a Doodle Ice Drop in one of Karey Solomon's hand-dyed threads. I've lost the tag, so I don't remember the name of it, but I do like the color! I love Veronica's large hand-made shuttles. They're perfect for holding a full skein of hand-dyed thread!

I managed to crochet a few more rows on my Mud Cloth Inspired Throw. I think I'm done for the night. I've just run out of steam!

Bit by bit

It seems like I'm doing everything in bits lately, and I'm okay with that. I like the variety that makes up my life right now.

My Mud Cloth Inspired Throw is growing. I seem to get so much more accomplished when I have a goal in mind, and my goal is to finish this by the end of September.

I did much better with my take-along tatting today. I actually finished this in one day!

Cleanup day

We still have lots of cleanup work to do after the storm last week. Today Dave harvested the onions. The plants were pretty much destroyed by hail, and he didn't want to lose the entire crop. This looks like a good amount of onions, but it's far less than we had last year.

We have two brush piles going, with a lot more left to clear out. Once all the branches are out of the way, Dave will be able to cut up the larger branches and tree trunks for firewood. I have a feeling we're going to be doing this for a while. I may even develop muscles!

I didn't take time out for crafting until after dinner. I think I'm making pretty good progress on my Mud Cloth Inspired Throw!

Two more down

Dave was out bright and early this morning, and he was able to take down the two trees he was most concerned about. Now that they're down on the ground, he's off to take care of other projects that need attention... finishing the second chicken coop, harvesting onions and potatoes, and fencing in another area for the chickens. The projects are never-ending!

I did fry up his duck egg for breakfast. It wasn't any ordinary duck egg; it was a double yolk duck egg! Dave didn't make any comment, which meant it tasted like an egg. I really didn't expect anything different!

While looking at patterns the other day, I came across Happy Occhi by Petra Tornack-Zimmermann, a book I purchased when it was published in 2012. I haven't looked at it in ages, let alone tat anything from it.

I decided to remedy that situation, and this morning I tatted Josephina. Don't look too closely. You'll see that at least three of my Josephine rings are less than stellar. The next time I tat this tiny motif (it's only 1" square), I think I'll use a lighter colored thread so that I can see my mistakes before closing the ring. The book is in German, but using my iPhone and Google Translate, I was able to read all of the instructions. I didn't really need to read the instructions, because the diagrams are very clear.

I haven't worked on my Eightsome Reel mat (pattern by Mary Konior) in a few days, so that was next on my to-do list. I ordered some more of Marilee Rockley's size 20 Lantana Citrus. I don't want to take any chances on running out!

I like to keep a tatting project in my purse, and lately that project has been Ice Drops. I know that once everything settles down at school I'll be able to accomplish quite a bit while I'm supervising students. This week, however, I didn't even complete one Ice Drop. So, I finished it up today. Blue and white makes me happy. What color combinations make you happy?

Just ducky

Dave brought in his first duck egg this morning! You should have seen the smile on his face. Guess what he's having for breakfast tomorrow?

I was doing a little straightening up this morning, and I found another Ice Drop in need of a ribbon. I guess I was careless about finishing while Joanne and the grandkids were here.

Today's Ice Drop is the basic pattern with three picots. I really do like tatting the basic Ice Drop.

When I got home from school today, I decided I needed to work on my Mud Cloth Inspired Throw, which is a free pattern from Red Heart. I hope to finish this in time for the annual Mean Green Goes Pink night in October. I should be able to if I work on it a little each day.

While I finished walking my 10,000 steps for the day, Dave worked on taking down the tree that was most likely to fall on the house if another storm should come through. The high branches are almost all down. There's one left to come down, but it got too dark for him to see. After that, the rest of the tree should be fairly easy to take down. I guess he'll need that duck egg for energy tomorrow!

Thursday tatting

I made tatting an Ice Drop my priority today, and I was successful! Why was it a priority? Well, I spent a lot of time on my computer looking at vintage tatting patterns. I wasn't looking for anything in particular. I was just enjoying browsing!

First day of school

Today was the first day with students! Yes, I've attended meetings the past two days, but those don't count. It was great to see the kids again!

I did my best to get back on track with my goals today. My first goal was to finish the third motif of my Eightsome Reel doily, pattern by Mary Konior. I love my new shuttle from Rita Richmond of Shuttle by Design!

I started another Ice Drop before leaving for school, but I had to wait until I returned home to finish it. My other big accomplishment was completing my 10,000 steps before I left for school!

Our friend Ann stopped by this afternoon. Ann is in her 80s, and she is one of the most energetic people I have ever met. She brought this cute little crocheted flower basket and asked if I could make a tatted version.

I'm really not a designer, and I'm hoping there is a pattern that would work somewhere out there. If you know of one, please let me know!

Ha!

I spoke too soon about new routines. I managed to get my 10,000 steps in today, but the rest...

Well, let's just say I only managed to finish one Ice Drop. The day just got away from me!

New routines

It's back to school time, and that means trying to establish new routines. There's so much I want to accomplish every day, and I know that I won't always reach my goals. Still, I'll keep trying!

My daughters and I have a walking challenge going on. We try to walk at least 10,000 steps each day. It doesn't always happen, but it's great fun to encourage each other to get it done!

My Ice Drop stash is seriously low, so I'm going to set my sights on tatting one Ice Drop each day. I have other things I want to accomplish, so I think I'll be sticking to the basic pattern for a while. I need to have Ice Drops to pass out at Christmas!

I also want to work on projects that I have waiting to be finished. I started this shawl for granddaughter Sophia in June. I looked at it several times while Joanne and the kids were here over the past two weeks. They just left on Sunday, and I finished it this morning. Sophia could have taken it home with her if I'd just picked it up and worked on it a little each day. Oh, well... I guess a surprise package will be in the mail!

I have quite a stash of beautiful hand-dyed thread. So, I've decided it's time to start using it on projects that have been on my to-do list. A while back I tatted a small square doily with Mary Konior's Eightsome Reel pattern. It was a test to see if the measurements would work out for a mantle runner for my sister-in-law. When I saw Marilee Rockley's Lantana Citrus, I thought of Eightsome Reel right away. Just think, if I manage to tat one motif each day, it will only take nine days to complete my little doily!

Stormy weather

We had a rude awakening about 2:45 yesterday morning. A severe thunderstorm blew through and woke us up. After about 10 minutes of watching and listening to the rain, wind, and hail, I went back to bed. Dave, however, couldn't get back to sleep.

As it started getting light, Sophia looked outside and said that a tree had fallen down. We couldn't believe it. It was right outside our bedroom window, and we didn't hear it fall!

It landed on our gazebo, but luckily it didn't do any damage.

As it got lighter out, we were able to see that a pine tree east of the tree house had fallen down. There wasn't anything I could do, so after breakfast I headed out for Tollway Tatters.

Sue Anna was all smiles, as usual!

She was working on one of Marilee's earring patterns. I think Sue Anna has tatted more of Marilee's patterns than anyone I know, except for Marilee!

Barbara was Sue Anna's travel companion for the day.

She was working on a heart pattern. Barbara is very particular about her work, and she would rather take the time to undo a couple of rings than have her project look less than perfect. I think I know a few tatters just like her!

Glenda traveled all the way from Iowa to be with us again! We love having her with us. It's hard to believe that she would drive six hours just to spend time with us!

Glenda like to make notes as she's tatting. I think that's a habit I should develop!

Thea and Gail met at a tatting class that Gail taught. I met Gail at Tatting Corner Tat Days last summer. These two ladies are a wonderful addition to our group!

Thea was working on Christmas ornaments. I should start thinking about Christmas ornaments also!

Gail was working on a pattern from a class she took at Tatting Corner Tat Days. The class was taught by Kaye Judt, and the two patterns Gail had from the classes she took with Kaye will be in Kaye's new book, which will be available soon.

I worked on an Ice Drop. It seems to be the only project I can do while talking!

By the time I returned home, Dave and our son-in-law Jan had taken care of the biggest tree. However, both chain saws died, so they stopped much sooner than they had planned. I took this picture today. I guess we'll be relocating hostas. I'm pretty sure they can't take that much sun.

Initially, we thought we had lost two or three trees. However, as Dave and Jan cleared away debris, it was clear that at least seven trees need to come down because of the damage done to them. As Dave and I were driving home from purchasing a new chain saw, we could see that although we had a lot of tree damage, there were others west of us who had been hit a lot harder. Luckily, we didn't see any damaged buildings, just downed trees and flattened crops.

Joanne and family headed back to Minnesota about 6:45 this morning. It's a good thing they left when they did. The rain came pouring down about five minutes after they left. It would not have been fun trying to get three kids into the car during a downpour. Joanne said it rained until they were well out of Illinois and into Wisconsin.

As soon as they left, I set a few goals for myself. The first was to finish the Ice Drop I had started at Tollway Tatters.

Nest, I finished an Eightsome Reel motif by Mary Konior. The thread is Marilee Rockley's Lantana Citrus. I'm hoping I have enough thread to tat a nine motif doily. I think I should be okay.

As I was cleaning up my tatting space (I don't know how it gets messy so quickly), I found a few Ice Drops that needed ribbons.

I usually am very good about attaching ribbons right away, but somehow these were left undecorated.

I'm starting to feel like my Ice Drop stash is growing again!