Back on track...

It's taken me a couple of weeks, but I'm finally back to the spot where I found my mistake. See how the large rings join to make a floral motif? My mistake was that I forgot to join the second large ring to the first large ring. Now, all is well, and I can proceed with caution! I think Cornelia will be stunning when she's finished!

Tatted Doilies by Iris Niebach

If the tatting pattern police ever stopped by my house and told me I could only keep one Iris Niebach book, this would be the one... thank goodness there are no tatting pattern police!

Tatted Doilies by Iris Niebach has 12 beautiful doilies, plus photos of two variations of one of the doilies. There are examples of every doily shape I can think of: round, oval, square, hexagon, octagon. I know, I didn't mention rectangle, but I think even I could figure out how to put two squares together to make a rectangle! As always, Iris includes detailed explanations of techniques and beautifully diagrammed patterns.

Of course, I love doilies! If I had never learned to tat, I would spend all of my time crocheting doilies. I love giving gifts of lace, and to me, a doily is a usable work of art. If you don't like doilies decorating your furniture, you can always frame them and hang them on the wall, which is what Mom chose to do with the Iris doily I made for her.

Focusing does pay!

I know I've mentioned before that I suffer from what my friend Denise calls "flights of fancy." Denise suffers from this malady as well, which is probably why we're such good friends! But, for the past two weeks I've done my best to stay focused on Stella Alpina, and that focused energy paid off! I'm so happy with the way this little doily (about 7 1/2") turned out! It's from Tatting Fantasia by Iris Niebach. I used Altin Basak size 50, color # 381. I loaded up four of my David Reed Smith shuttles, but only used three of them. Oh, darn! Now I'm going to have to find something to tat with that thread on the fourth shuttle! ; )

This one qualifies for my personal challenge!

Personal tatting challenge no. 3

I've completed my third personal tatting challenge! This is "Beatrice" from Tatted Doilies by Iris Niebach. I am fascinated by Iris's designs. I love that a complex piece can be completed in one round. Even if I do reach a level of expertise where I feel like I can design, I doubt that I would be able to envision patterns the way Iris does! The thread is Altin Basak #3004, size 50. I used a SewMate shuttle, which I really like. However, when it comes to plastic shuttles, the Clovers are still my favorite.

Oh, dear! I just thought of something... now I'll have to choose a new project!