Fumble fingers

I had fumble fingers last night. I was trying to finish Stephanie's beaded bridal bag, and it took me forever to string the beads for the drawstrings! I gave up and went to bed at 9, but I was back at it early this morning.

Luckily, my fingers worked this morning! I was able to finish the bag and give it to Stephanie. She was very pleased with it, and that makes me happy!

I've managed to reach the 2/3 mark on my Spinning Wheel glass mat. With a little more tatting tonight and some tatting time tomorrow, I should be able to finish. 

Winner! Winner!

No, not chicken dinner... a beautiful tatting shuttle!

When I learned there were going to be silver shuttles up for auction on eBay, I checked them all out! I think I bid on six or seven of them, but this was the one I really wanted! My great-grandmother was Eva Kresge Morris, and she would have been her late 30s or early 40s when this shuttle was engraved (her daughter, my Grandma Green, was 17 in 1916).

It's fun to think that this shuttle could have belonged to my great-grandmother, but I don't believe she was a tatter.

Eliz commented that as I finished a Spinning Wheel, she found herself wondering what the next color would be. That comment made me chuckle! This is size 20 Manuela that I've had for several years. I like the way it's working so far!

Michelle asked for a close-up to show the beads.

They're pretty subtle. It's hard to catch the shimmer with a camera, but there's just enough sparkle to make the bag extra special! I still haven't started the drawstring. Thank goodness the weekend is coming!

Spring sure is busy!

Why is it that spring seems so busy? I guess it's because we've been cooped up all winter, and the chance to get outside takes priority. All I know is that somehow spring has been getting in the way of my fiber time!

I did make a little progress on my Spinning Wheel in size 20 Omega.

I also managed to finish the top of the beaded bag. All I have left to do is make and add the beaded drawstring, and it will need to be blocked. I think I'll look for my white hankies before I head off to bed tonight. That way I'll be all ready to look work on the hanky edging this week.

I did crochet two more rows on the mermaid tail afghan. I'm going to need to really focus on this once I finish the beaded bag and hanky!

A nice surprise

Yesterday morning when I arrived at school, this beautiful bouquet was sitting on my desk. There was no note or card, and I have no idea who it's from. My friend Robyn who is also retiring this year had a similar bouquet on her desk. We had fun trying to figure out who surprised us, but we still are clueless. Thank you to the person/people who decided to brighten our day!

I don't know where the time went today, but I sure didn't get much tatting done.

Maybe I spent too much time looking at my new goodies! These shuttles arrived from the Ukraine.

These new beauties are from ShuttleByDesign.com. I LOVE these shuttles!

I did spend quite a bit of time working on my beaded crocheted bag. I still have to complete the top edge and make the drawstrings. After that, I think I'll start a hanky for the bride-to-be!

Focus

When I focus on a task, I can really accomplish a great deal. Today I decided to focus on one project at a time, with fantastic results!

First, I focused on completing round four of my Concentric Rectangles doily. I even managed to start round five.

Next, I decided to try and finish the second side of my beaded crocheted bag, and I did it!

I'm feeling really good about today's accomplishments. :-)

I forgot to blog last night

I cleaned up the kitchen after dinner, talked to my daughter on the phone, did a little research on the Internet, and then headed off to bed. Blogging never entered my mind!

I did accomplish little bits yesterday...

another spoke almost completed on my Spinning Wheel glass mat,

a few rings and chains on my Concentric Rectangles doily,

another row on my mermaid tail afghan,

and quite a bit on the second side of my beaded crocheted bag! Our new fourth grade teacher got engaged on Sunday, so I've offered to make her a bag.

My friend Michelle's daughter will be getting married next year. I crocheted a bag for Michelle when she got married. She was daughter Carol's Sunday School teacher through most of elementary school. Anyway, I've offered to crochet a bag for Jessica as well.

Maybe I should go in to the bridal bag business when I retire! ;-)

Making the most of my time

I tatted before school, at lunch time, and after school... time well spent!

I was up extra early this morning, so I had time to finish the last two rows of this side of the beaded bag. The beads are all strung for the second side, so I'm ready to go!

I took my mermaid tail afghan to school today and demonstrated crocheting to the kids. I was able to finish two rows and get the kids excited about seeing The Little Mermaid this summer!

After dinner, I worked on my Concentric Rectangles doily, and now I'm ready for bed!

What a day!

I can't believe how much I accomplished today! The afternoon was cold and wet and Dave had to work, so I sat down in front of the t.v. with all of my projects surrounding me.

I finished my Spinning Wheel glass mat in size 20 Lizbeth, Purple Dk. #633.

I liked the color so much, I decided to combine it with Marilee Rockley's hand-dyed thread, Crocus. These are two of my newest shuttles from shuttlebydesign.com. They are lovely and light and they hold plenty of thread!

The beaded crocheted bag is coming along nicely. Yes, I did make several mistakes that I had to fix. Luckily, that's pretty easy with crochet.

I completed a few more rows on my mermaid tail afghan.

To tope it all off, I rounded another corner on my Concentric Rectangles doily. All in all, it's been a fabulous day!

I almost didn't post

I haven't accomplished much in the last couple of days, but I decided that I'd better post or I would quickly get out of the habit!

The beaded bag is coming along slowly but surely. I'd better get a move on if I'm to finish it before school is out!

My Spinning Wheel really hasn't progressed much. I sure hope I get some time to tat this weekend, because I'm starting to feel like I'm falling behind! ;-)

Dreary day

It's been a dreary, rain-filled day, and days like this make me feel sluggish. I thought I hadn't accomplished much, but then when I took my pictures for today's post, I realized I'd accomplished more than I thought.

My Spinning Wheel glass mat is coming along great! Even though I overslept this morning, I tatted quite a bit before school. We were on shortened schedule today, so I didn't have any extra time for tatting at lunch.

After school, I worked on my beaded crocheted bag. I'd have gotten further, but I found that I had added two beads instead of one right at the beginning of round 2. Luckily, crocheting is much easier to undo than tatting!

Too many irons in the fire?

Sometimes I think so, but I have so many things I want to accomplish that I have to keep trying new things. So, sometimes I make slow progress on my projects, but I'm happy with the progress I make.

I've broken my day into segments. I've been working on my Concentric Rectangles doily when I get home from school. Some days I have more time than others.

My Spinning Wheel glass mat gets my attention in the early morning and on my lunch break.

The beaded bag is my evening project. I may have to rethink working on this at night. I made a mistake in the second round and had to pull out rounds two and three. It seems I make the same mistake every time I make this bag!

Crocus Spinning Wheel

It was a busy day around here. Daughter Joanne and family were on the road back to Minnesota by 8 a.m. I met daughter Carol for lunch, and then we went to see the KVTA production of Aladdin Jr. I made it home by 4, and managed to finish my Crocus Spinning Wheel glass mat!

I love the way this turned out! The pattern is from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior. The thread is size 20 hand-dyed thread from my friend Marilee Rockley aka Yarnplayer. Marilee was the first person I knew of who hand-dyed thread, and I eagerly awaited the release of each new color. Hand-dyed thread has a special feel that I love!

Before heading off to meet daughter Carol, I started crocheting a beaded bag for our new second grade teacher who is getting married in September. I've made this bag many times, and I love giving it as a wedding gift! The pattern is by Jacqueline Young and can be found in Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Crochet. I hope to have time to finish it before school is out, in addition to working on my weekly Spinning Wheel glass mat and my Concentric Rectangles doily.

There never seems to be enough time to accomplish everything on my list!

for Phoebe

I finished my niece's hanky tonight. Looks like it needs a little pressing before I send it off to her! ;-)

I also finished putting the bag together.

I think they make a pretty pair. I sure hope Phoebe likes them!

Pen Pals

When I was a kid, I always wanted a pen pal. Do you remember when you could sign up for a pen pal through Weekly Reader? I know I tried several times, but I never received a pen pal.

Fast forward 50 years, and now I have pen pals! I have wonderful pen pals around the world, and we all have a common love... beautiful lace!

My newest pen pal, Eva, sent me this beautifully embroidered cloth. I can't imagine how many hours it took to make. She also sent some post cards and a lovely letter. Thank you, Eva!

As I was working on my niece's wedding hanky, I realized something was wrong. When I looked carefully, I saw that I left out a 9 ds chain between each motif! I only used it between the first two motifs. I don't think it looks bad, but it's not what I want for my niece. I'll come back to it when I finish her hanky.

I've started the edging again (Cottage Border from A Pattern Book of Tatting by Mary Konior), and this time I'm not joining the edging as I go. Maybe that will keep me from making mistakes! ;-)

I finished the beaded bag after lunch today. It's now washed and on the blocking board. I'll finish the tasseled drawstring when the bag is dry.

I guess I'd better get back to the hank edging... time's a-wastin'!

She's at it again!

Daughter Joanne has been bugging me about posting on my blog. She reminded me again that I haven't posted since Tuesday. Since her baby is due any day, I guess I should do my best to keep her happy!

I needed something simple to take in the car yesterday, so I decided to once again set a goal of tatting all 69 motifs from Minitats by Patti Duff.

This is #1 in size 20 Lizbeth #149, Peacock Blues. It measures 1 1/2" across.

I'm making progress on the second side of the beaded bag. For those of you who are interested, the pattern can be found in Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Crochet, a fantastic crochet reference!

I have started the next round of Doily VI from Tatted Treasures by Jan Stawasz. I hope that with having the week off for spring break I'll be able to make more progress with this beautiful doily!