Still emptying shuttles

I can't believe how much thread is left on some of my shuttles! I've managed to empty three, but I have 13 shuttles on my table waiting to be relieved of their burden so that they can be part of a new project.

No, I did not spend the day tatting butterflies, although it does look like it. I also spent time with my latest Spinning Wheel glass mat.

I'm not an orange person, but this orange is very pretty! This is organic cotton sewing thread that I found here on Etsy. I didn't think I was going to like tatting with it since it is so fine, but I like it a lot!

Funky butterfly

We had another rainy day, so I spent lots of time tatting and walking. Luckily, we have a wrap-around porch, so I'm able to walk rain or shine.

I had fun trying to use up thread on shuttles today.

It's amazing how much can be accomplished with little bits of time.

Despite my best efforts, I only managed to empty one shuttle.

I guess I'm going to have lots of butterflies to share!

And here's the funky butterfly. I was trying to use the thread close at hand rather than winding new shuttles. As you can see, I ran out of the blue thread, so I finished off with red. I think he's kind of cute! The pattern is by Kendra Goodnow and can be found in the Fall 2016  Handy Hands newsletter.

When the rain let up late this afternoon, Dave went out and got the mail... one package... for me! I love my new Celtic shuttle from Grizzly Mountain Arts! I love Celtic designs...

...and I love anything nautical! You'd think this shuttle was made just for me! ;-)

I do feel a little guilty about being the proud owner of this beautiful copper shuttle, also by Dave Stanbrough. I knew that another tatter was interested in this shuttle, so I waited almost a half hour after the designated listing time. When I checked the Etsy shop, the shuttle was still there. I took it as a sign that it was meant to be mine.

I really am out of control when it comes to shuttles. Luckily, Dave just smiles when he sees me open a new package!

Internet down... again

I don't know if it was because of the heavy rains on Monday, or if it was just a fluke, but our Internet was down for about 17 hours. It's funny how much the Internet has become a part of our lives!

I needed to exercise my wrist in a different way. Maybe I've been putting in too much time tatting at one sitting. So between yesterday and today, I only tatted one more butterfly.

This morning I went to school to help Kristine set up the computers for the coming school year. I hope she enjoys being the school librarian as much as I did!

In order to exercise my wrists differently, I started a new dishcloth. Mine are getting kind of old and grungy looking, except for one that daughter Alison made for me. I managed to hit a sale at Hobby Lobby, and I chose some fresh new colors for my kitchen!

Suz, is this the display case you had in mind?  ;-)

Emptying shuttles

With all the Spinning Wheels I've been tatting lately, I have a lot of shuttles with bits of thread left on them. I've been reading about others "spring cleaning" so that they could reload their shuttles, and I decided to join in the fun!

It's nice to have a little baggie of butterflies in my purse to give away. Since I have several appointments coming up that will most likely involve some time sitting in waiting rooms, it's a great time to stock up on bits of tatting.

Since some new shuttles arrived in the mail this week, I guess I really didn't have to use up bits of thread. Isn't this a beauty? It's a Celtic shuttle from Grizzly Mountain Arts. I love Dave Stanbrough's shuttles and needlework tools. I just happened to get lucky and see this one before anyone else did!

A day or two later, Dave listed another Celtic shuttle. I wanted it so badly, but I decided to wait a half hour to give someone else a chance at purchasing it, and it sold in less than half an hour. I'm not surprised!

I also purchased another Handi-Wind Shuttle. I really like these with size 80 thread. That little screw-in handle really helps.

Look at my new La Cossette shuttle! I love blue, and I love paisley, making this the perfect shuttle for me!

Winding down

I can't believe that my summer is almost at an end. It has been wonderful, but it has just zipped by.

Joanne, Jan, and Sophia headed home to Minnesota on Sunday. We took Mom up to my sister's house on Sunday. I am very lucky to have been able to spend so much time with my family this summer!

Mom and I were looking through her Handwoven magazine, and I saw that Schacht now makes a floor stand for the Cricket loom. Mom bought one for me and it arrived yesterday. It was very easy to put together. I did have to have Dave drill holes in the loom, but a template came with it, so it didn't take him long. I plan on warping it today. Thank you, Mom!

I finished Sophia's doily this morning. I love the way it turned out! The edging pattern is "Butterflies" from A Pattern Book of Tatting by Mary Konior. The fabric center is about 8 1/4". With the edging, the doily is about 10 1/4". I used size 20 Lizbeth, #119, Jelly Bean... perfect for a little girl! I chose to attach the edging with crochet, as Frivole has done with some of her hankies. I'm so glad I used this method. I found that by the time I reached the end of the doily that I had left too many spaces between the butterflies, and I needed two more butterflies to finish. It was so easy to pull out the crochet and rejoin. Thanks for sharing your idea and method, Frivole!

I didn't measure the thread to see how much I used, but I did fill my large Clover shuttle two times to complete the doily. This is how much thread I had left on the shuttle... talk about cutting it close!

My next big project is to pack my tatting bag for our Tollway Tatters meeting this Thursday. We're going to have a special guest, and I want to be sure and bring along some of my favorite items to show everyone, including my two newest tatting books and my newest Grizzly Mountain Arts shuttle. I anticipate a wonderful day!

School starts two weeks from yesterday. I've started working on lesson plans, even though I have no idea of how many sections I'll have of each grade or what my schedule will be. I love getting ready for a new school year!

Oops!

I needed a mental break from split rings. I'm catching on to adding the picot to the second half, but I really have to concentrate on what I'm doing. So today I decided to return to simple rings and chains...

oops! This is a very simple pattern,  "Butterflies" from A Pattern Book of Tatting by Mary Konior, but I managed to mess it up. I wanted to use it for a round doily center. That's not going to work, because I've created a corner! This is not the corner shown in the book, but it doesn't really matter... I wanted this piece for a ROUND doily center, not a SQUARE hanky.

Now I have a decision to make. Should I continue and make this edging for a hanky, or should I fix the mistake and use the edging for the round doily? If I fix the mistake, should I retro-tat, or should I cut my losses and add new thread? What would you do?

Use it up or throw it out!

Well, I couldn't throw out the leftover hand-dyed thread from my latest Spinning Wheel. So, I tatted a doodad ornament and three butterflies. Now I am free to move on to a new project!

...or finish up a work-in-progress. ;-)