Flora

I've started the Flora crochet-along! As I was crocheting the chrysanthemum pattern, I kept thinking it would make a pretty dish cloth. Then, as I was watching the video, Mikey said that he was inspired to turn this dish cloth pattern into a square. Hahaha! I guess this is why we see so many similar patterns in our searches for something new!

I'm not overly fond of this pattern now that I've finished it. Dave thinks it's beautiful, and that counts for a lot with me! I have until May 15th to finish two more blocks like this one, an easy goal to meet. This block is about 15" square, so I have a feeling this blanket will really be a focal point in my living room!

Tollway Tatters meet today! I'm looking forward to seeing my tatting buddies again!

A most eventful weekend

This weekend was the high school performance of The Music Man. I know I'm a bit prejudiced because my daughter is the director, but it was fabulous!

The cast of 50, including some middle school students, were outstanding. I watched the movie this morning (we had the day off for Casimir Pulaski Day), and when the movie was over, I realized just how wonderful a job they all did!

Can you tell I'm proud of my daughter?

I did spend some time tatting today, using up Flora thread on my shuttles. Patti Duff's Minitats is a great source for motifs that don't require a lot of thread.

I finally tatted Motif #3 correctly. All I needed to do was turn off the t.v. so that I switched shuttles instead of reversing my work at the proper spot!

Motif #5 gave me practice with the shoelace trick. Most of the time I prefer using two shuttles to using the shoelace trick, but I think it worked out nicely this time!

Motif #6 is very simple, yet I somehow manage to mess up the final two joins and have to unpick my work every time I make it.

I had eleven 4th graders ask me to teach them to tat on Thursday! This is going to be an exciting week!

Bazooka or Double Bubble?

That's the question that ran through my mind all weekend as I worked on my latest Spinning Wheel. I'm a Bazooka girl, or at least I was. I can't imagine sticking a wad of that sticky sweet stuff in my mouth any more... my fillings might fall out of my teeth! I remember reading the comics while softening that pink chunk in my mouth. I never did care for the taste of Double Bubble, but there were times when any pink would do... except for that awful stuff that came with baseball cards!

So, enquiring minds want to know... which bubble gum do/did you prefer?

Or maybe as a tatter, you'd rather say which thread you prefer. This is size 20 Flora, #37. I haven't checked in a long time. Is Flora even available any more?

There was a lovely surprise in the mail on Saturday...

goodies for my tatting students from Tatting Marie! The kids were so excited! Thank you, Marie!

Paige chose this pretty snowflake as her reward for tatting a ring and chain pattern... two of them, in fact! Paige told me that she has tatted a whole ball of thread at home. It must be time to go shopping!

Grace has been practicing her chain and picot pattern. She chose an adorable tatted nativity.

Yesterday at church, a friend of mine whose oldest child is in second grade, asked me if her daughter would be learning to tat next year in third grade. I guess the word is spreading!

It's amazing!

I now have four 5th grade girls learning to tat! Guess who's teaching them? If you guessed 3rd graders, you are right!

When do we get our work done? Before taking time for tatting, of course! The kids come in for about 10 minutes after lunch every day, and then if they finish all their required library/computer work, there's usually about 10 minutes at the end of class, time for reading, research, or tatting! I don't have time to help everyone with those time constraints, but I am able to teach a few at a time, and those few help their classmates. The kids are very good about helping each other. They're even learning to recognize their mistakes, and they're figuring out how to correct them. It's wonderful to see them all working together!

Kate has been practicing her picots, earning an adorable tatted spider!

Delaney has absolutely perfected Fancy Pants! I was very flattered that she chose a two layer flower that I tatted.

What have I been up to, you ask?

Why, I've started another Spinning Wheel, of course! That size 20 Flora was just crying to be made into a Spinning Wheel!

An explanation...

I've had some people ask me to explain "Fancy Pants." It's quite simple really... I borrowed the term from Donna Edwards.

As you can see, it's the title of her book, which explains tatting very clearly. The step-by-step directions with accompanying photographs makes this a wonderful book for beginners. My favorite part of the whole book is...

Isn't it great?

On the third grade tatting front...

Paige practiced more picots, and she went shopping over the weekend to buy more shuttles and thread. She even bought a package of bobbins for an Aerlit shuttle. That makes three new shuttle and thread collectors (Paige, Dylan, and Peyton)! Paige asked to learn rings today, and I think she's going to do just fine.

Kate finished another length of chain and chose one of Denise's necklaces as her prize. Delaney did the same, and I thought I took her picture, but I can't find it. Sorry, Delaney!

Dylan finished five rings, and chose a tiny little butterfly. She's ready to move on to combining rings and chains.

I think this is Dylan's. Isn't it a great use of her tatting?

Over the weekend I played with some pink Flora, one of my favorite threads! The heart is a Handy Hands pattern. The piece on the right is "Hope" from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior. The bottom piece is a fragment of "Hope."

Yesterday I tatted "Posy" from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior. There's a fragment of this pattern also. The fragments were practice pieces before tatting the motif. I kind of like using the bits left on shuttles to try out a new pattern!

Christmas Decoration Ring

I love this little motif! The pattern is by Barbara Pannell, and can be found in Tatting for 2005: 25 Years of the Ring of Tatters. Doesn't it make a darling snowflake?

The thread is size 20 Flora #64. The shuttle is one of my favorites from La Cossette. There's nothing like tatting with a pretty shuttle!

25 Motif Challenge 2009

Here it is! My first entry for the 2009 version of the 25 Motif Challenge! I'll bet you're surprised to see a Spinning Wheel glass mat! This one is in Flora #66, size 20. If you haven't visited my blog before, the pattern is from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior, one of my favorite patterns from one of my favorite books!

I have lots more to blog about... new shuttles, new thread, etc., but I'm short on time, so this is it for today. More later!

Leftovers

Yes, I've tatted another bookmark! I really like this insertion pattern, and I had some leftover thread on two shuttles that I want to take with me to Alabama. The purple is size 10 Flora, and the pastel is size 20 Rainbow Sherbet (I think) from Sherry Pence. I wanted to see how two different sized threads would work together. I don't think I'll make a practice of combining thread sizes, but it worked for this little bookmark, and it was a good way to use up the thread on the shuttles. I only had about 3" of each thread left when I finished... just enough to hide the ends!

Tatted hanky edging... finished!

I finished Tiffany's hanky tonight, and I think it looks really pretty. This completes my second personal challenge piece: size 20 Flora, Grizzly Mountain Arts Tatsy-style shuttle, "Forget-me-not" from A Pattern Book of Tatting by Mary Konior. The hanky is from Handy Hands Tatting.

The receiving blanket in the background has crocheted edging that I've been working on for the last few months. I've found that crocheting is much harder on my wrist than tatting, so an edging that I normally would complete in a few evenings while watching t.v., has taken me much longer!

A little bit of "Honesty"

It must be my Scottish blood... I just can't get rid of that little bit of thread left on the shuttle. So, I tatted a little bit of "Honesty" from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior, page 40, size 20 Flora.

The circular piece is "Posy" from page 93 of the same book, using the same thread. This one definitely has a right and wrong side because of a thread that carries across the back to join each section of the motif. I really like the effect with the variegated thread!

I've completed one full pattern repeat of "Stella alpina" from Iris Niebach's Tatting Fantasia. I've had Iris's book for quite a while, but felt intimidated because of the size of each piece. Arlene (see link on right side) has been a great inspiration to me, meaning that I looked at the patterns even more carefully than before... ha! ha! ha! Then I received an e-mail from Iris! She told me that she thought I could tat one of her pieces and that her first book had some simple doilies. So, a few nights ago, I pulled out the book, an already wound shuttle, and got to work. What can I say other than I love the way this pattern goes together! Now that I have one full pattern repeat finished, I'm really getting into a rhythm!