Tollway Tatters

We had a great Tollway Tatters meeting today. I was only able to stay with the group for about an hour, but during that time there were ten of us sharing what we were working on.

I was able to tat one ornament during our meeting.

 Then, I tatted another after I left the meeting.

I'm happy to say that I completed my goal of tatting one ornament each day in January. I'm all set for my tatted Christmas presents next December!

I used a different tatting shuttle for each piece that I tatted during January for a total of 46 shuttles! I'm going to try and keep track of the number of shuttles I use during February. Since I'm not planning on tatting an ornament each day, I'm pretty sure the number will be smaller.

The high school play this year is Bandstand, the story of some G.I.s who form a band after World War II. I'm not familiar with the musical, but I'm definitely looking forward to it.

There's going to be a raffle the benefit Adopt A Soldier and Project Headspace. Daughter Carol asked if I would make a red, white, and blue tree for the raffle. I started on it today. This is the largest tree I've worked on so far, and it's going to take quite a bit of time. What I've done so far is about four hours worth of work... or should I say fun?

Sub day

I was called in to sub for part of the day today. Luckily, I still had some free time. 

So, I finished my ornament of the day. Only one day left of my self imposed ornament challenge!

My stash of Chapstick holders is still growing. I will probably start passing them out to the kids at school next week.

I'm trying to decide what my February challenge will be. I have all day tomorrow to think about it!

Another slow day

Maybe it's the cold weather, but I just didn't feel like doing much today.

Still, I managed to tat my ornament of the day.

I also crocheted five more Chapstick holders. Not bad for a day when I didn't feel like doing much!

Still at it

I'm still managing to tat an ornament each day in January... just a few more days to go!

The fabric I need for my pinwheel project isn't due to arrive until next week, and I'm still in the mood to sew. I searched YouTube and found instructions for Hidden Wells quilt-as-you-go blocks. I made several Hidden Wells quilts back in the '80s, and I loved the look. I had some jelly rolls from Temu and decided to do some experimenting. First I chose which four strips would go together. Then, I started stitching. I didn't have much time to sew today, but I am happy with what I was able to complete.

I'm still trying to use up small balls of yarn by crocheting Chapstick holders. I think I may run out of key rings before I run out of yarn!

I could have...

It was a slow crafting day for me. I did manage to finish my ornament of the day.

I also sewed my pinwheel blocks into four patch blocks today. I could have done so much more, but I let myself get distracted by YouTube videos, blog posts, and books sitting on my table.

Have I mentioned that retirement can be fun? 😁

 

E-learning

Today was another e-learning day because of the wind chills. Except for going to the grocery store, I stayed inside where it was nice and warm.

I finished my ornament of the day before breakfast. That doesn't happen very often.

Why five Chapstick holders were finished before Dave and I went grocery shopping.

The rest of my day was spent finishing up my pinwheel squares. It seems strange to me that I had one square left over. I'm pretty sure I'll find something to do with it. 

I have a couple of options for my next step. I guess I'll have to lay out the squares and make a decision, but that's a task for another day!

Snowy day

We had snow showers throughout the day, so I was happy to stay inside and craft. 

My pile of sewn squares is slowly becoming a pile of pinwheels. I still have to pay close attention to each one, but I'm enjoying the process.

I was happy to finish my ornament of the day this afternoon.

It was also nice to finish another set of Chapstick holders.

Tomorrow is another e-learning day because of the weather. Dave and I do need to go to the grocery store, but I'm hoping to have plenty of time for fun!

Keeping busy

 

With frigid temperatures, I knew I needed to keep myself busy today. I started by baking a loaf of bread, which I put together last night. I love the smell of freshly baked bread, and I knew it would be perfect with the butternut squash soup planned for dinner.

Next on my list was my ornament of the day. I'm pretty proud of myself for keeping pace with these ornaments.

I have five more Chapstick holders for my stash. I think I'll keep going with these until I run out of rings. That may take a while!

I spent a couple of hours working on my quilt project. I made quite a few mistakes, so I made good use of my new seam ripper, a Christmas present from daughter Alison. I like the size of the handle. It's nice to hold and has a good balance.

I watched a video from the Missouri Star Quilt Company on how to make easy pinwheel squares. The fabric I'm using was an impulse buy from Temu. It was very inexpensive, and it is not the best quality. Since this project is an experiment, I'm happy to be using fabric that I don't really care about. When I think I have the hang of it, I'll use some pretty fabric that I've been saving.

There was only one piece of mail today, and it was for me! I love these beautiful shuttles from Shuttle by Design. I'll be sure to use them in the coming days!

Cold day

Today was an e-learning day because of the cold, so I had plenty of time to play.

I started the day by crocheting some more Chapstick holders.

After that, I tatted my ornament of the day.

After dinner, I crocheted some more Chapstick holders.

The best part of the day was spending time in my new sewing area. Dave helped me get it set up, and then I spent a couple of hours sewing blocks together for a quilting idea I've been reading about... more on that later!

Short on time

 

I was short on crafting time today, but I did manage to finish one ornament. I'm still on track!

Keeping up

 

Today I managed to keep up my current pace of five Chapstick holders...

and another ornament. I don't think I'll be able to keep up the pace tomorrow. I have too much going on. However, I plan on making up for lost time this weekend!

Developing a pattern

 

I seem to be developing a pattern of crocheting five Chapstick holders and...

one tatted ornament a day. Not a bad pattern to my way of thinking!

Oops!

 

After I tatted my second ring on my ornament of the day, I realized that I hadn't tatted the chain as I have been. Oops! Rather than un-tatting, I just alternated chain designs. Although it doesn't match my other ornaments, it still counts!

I crocheted some more Chapstick covers during the football game last night. I'm slowing down. It now takes me about 20 minutes to finish one. It's a great way to use up small bits of yarn, and they are a big hit with both kids and adults!

Jam packed

My day has been jam packed with activity! I addition to attending church, we managed to take down quite a few Christmas decorations. We had kept them up so that family who couldn't be here at Christmas could see them when they came last weekend. We still have quite a bit to put away, but we've made a good start.

Today seemed like a good day to finish up one of my projects. I started this cowl a few days ago, and I only had two rounds left. The colors don't show up very well in the picture. It's so pretty in person that I think I may keep it for myself!

My ornament of the day is finished, so I'm still on track for finishing an ornament a day in January.

I had one skein of really soft chunky yarn in my stash, something I purchased by mistake. I'm not a fan of working with chunky yarn. I wasn't sure what to make with it, but since I'm on a roll with cowls, I decided that was the way to go. It's not quite as tall as the worsted weight cowls I've been making, but it's still a nice size.

I gave away all of my chapstick holders last week. I've had requests for some more, and I have quite a few small balls of leftover yarn. This is the perfect project to work on while watching football. Go Bears!

Day trip

We made a trip to Milwaukee today to watch granddaughter Ella play volleyball. It was a lot of fun, but it was a long day. It's about a three hour trip each way for us. We left at 5:30 this morning and arrived home at 4:30 p.m.

I started another Christmas ornament while watching t.v. last night. It was far enough along that I was able to finish it today. Whew! My streak is still going!

Slow tatting week

I sure haven't accomplished what I had hoped to this week.

One ornament a day is all I've been able to manage, and tomorrow isn't looking very promising. Still, I've been tatting an ornament a day!

Another single

 

Another day got away from me, but I did tat my ornament of the day!

Another busy day

 

Today really got away from me. We left early this morning to take Mom to an eye doctor appointment and were caught in a snow squall... not a big deal if you have nowhere to go. What should have been a quick trip to the eye doctor and back, wound up taking us all morning. The roads were terrible and traffic was slow.

I did get to school in time for lunch duty. The middle school kids were wild! You would have thought they had never seen winter weather before. 

All of the activity of the day wore me out, so I only managed to tat one ornament. I count it as a good day!

Just one

Good news! Our Internet connection has been restored! Isn't it funny how important technology has become to us?

I had a very busy day, so I only had time to tat one ornament. Tomorrow is shaping up to be another busy day. Let's hope I keep up the ornament pace!

Another post from my phone

We’re hoping our internet connection will be fixed tomorrow. 

I finished another hat this morning. It’s not my favorite, but it was claimed quickly!

I didn’t get around to tatting until after dinner. Luckily, I can tat this ornament in a little more than an hour!

Posting from my phone

Our internet connection is down. Dave found a broken cable, so we will have to call for repairs tomorrow. 

Family members have all headed for home. We had a wonderful weekend together. I was pretty tired from all the activity, so I only managed to tat one ornament today. 

One is better than none!

Wonderful weekend!

It's been a wonderful weekend with all four of my daughters at home! With two in Illinois, one in Minnesota, and one in Georgia, it's not often that all four are here at the same time.

Even with a house full of family, I managed to get some tatting done. It's easy to tat a button ornament while chatting.

The next book on my shelf is an Applemints publication  from 2018, Tatting Lace Best Selection. I remember purchasing this book for the bow patterns shown on the cover. However, I never did tat a bow.

Instead, I chose this simple edging found on page 61. I like the simplicity of the design. The only picots are for joining, which makes it very easy to tat.

Some family left today, and some will leave tomorrow. Tonight it's time for football. Go Bears!