Well, yesterday I set up the elementary library for the last time in my teaching career. Somehow, it didn't seem like the last time. There's still plenty for me to do. Registration is Wednesday, so I should have class lists by the beginning of next week. Once I receive the lists, I'll have to set up the new students in the computer so that they can check out books. I'll also set up the computer lab, assigning students to computers for the year.
My friend Kris retired last year, so I will now have the responsibility of setting up the middle/high school library as well. It's not a big deal, just rehanging signage and checking in and shelving books that were found over the summer. It's hard to believe that next year these will be someone else's responsibility!
Once I get in school mode, it's a little harder to justify time for tatting... but I do it! ;-)
As you can see, I've passed the halfway point on round 9 of my Jan Stawasz Masterpiece. When I finish this round, I'm going to borrow a tip from other tatters and mark where the next two rounds need to be attached before actually tatting. That way I'll now ahead of time if I've made another big mistake!
As many of you know, I love hand-dyed thread, and I always like to support new fiber artists. No, I don't need any thread. I'll probably have to start giving some of it away so that Dave and I can stay in our house... yes, my obsession with all things tatting can be a bit overwhelming! Anyway, AlenAleaDesign opened her Etsy shop in July, and I just had to order some of her beautiful thread. Doesn't every tatter need Australian hand-dyed thread? The two on the left are size 40 and the three on the right are size 20. I wonder what they will become? Time will tell.
I had a lovely surprise in the mail yesterday. My dear friend
Carol sent me this gorgeous butterfly! I had seen her blog post stating that a gift was in the mail, but I never suspected that it was flitting my way! Carol takes some beautiful pictures of art exhibits that she visits. She only lives about an hour from me, so perhaps I should take a hint from her and start taking advantage of exhibits within driving distance. I do love the beautiful note card with one of my favorite paintings,
Girl with a Pearl Earring. After all, she's wearing a headband in my favorite color, and I love pearls! Thank you, Carol!
One of the advantages of having a shuttle collection is that I can help others out when they have questions about some of the shuttles available. I'm not an expert, and my recall of details is often flawed, but I can show pictures. I was asked about Jan Stawasz shuttles. I do own several, and I love them! They are especially good for size 10 thread, which Mr. Stawasz preferred. I read somewhere that the shuttles are resin, but I was under the impression that they're fiberglass. I'm not an expert on these things, and I guess it really doesn't matter. They are well made and hold a lot of thread!
My all-time favorite shuttles are from Grizzly Mountain Arts, especially my scrimshaw shuttles. I've had a fascination with scrimshaw since elementary school, when my friend Francine and I would sit and read mysteries for hours. One book discussed ambergris, and after my dad helped me research ambergris, I became fascinated with all things related to the northeastern states, whaling, scrimshaw, etc. I searched for years for a scrimshaw tatting shuttle, and when I found Dave Stanbrough's beauties I was thrilled! Each shuttle is an artistic masterpiece, and I feel like a master tatter whenever I use one!
My go-to shuttle is the Clover, and once Clover introduced their larger shuttles, my other shuttles were relegated to the display cases. I love the feel of these shuttles. I don't mind the larger size. The hold enough thread that I don't feel like I'm rewinding my shuttles all the time, and I love the nice sharp point! Oh, I know that there of those of you who think those points are lethal, but they are my friends, and I have yet to stab myself to the point where I bleed... whew! What's your go-to shuttle?
