What next?

I finished the ring and chain edging on my hanky, but I feel it needs more. From the beginning, I intended that there would be a second round, however, I haven't found a pattern that catches my eye for the second round. Do you have any ideas, or should I leave it as it is?

We went to visit friends today, so I finished a little more tatting on my latest Spinning Wheel while we Dave was driving. I do like the color of this one!

Hanky time

We spent another Saturday at Alison's working on her house. Dave worked. Alison ran the kids around. I tatted! Even using size 20 thread, it takes a long time to tat a hanky edging. I didn't take any extra thread with me, so here is where I had to stop. I think that's pretty good progress for one day!

I did have my shuttles loaded for another Spinning Wheel glass mat. This one is in size 20 Lizbeth, Leaf Green Lt. #683.

You'd think I'd get tire of tatting this pattern, but I don't. In fact, I can hardly wait to see what it will look like in the next color a pull out of the tub of thread I have on hand!

Two new projects

As you can see, I've started my next Spinning Wheel glass mat! This one is in size 10 Lizbeth, Arctic Waters #185.

I prefer white hankies to colored ones, but I had picked this one up at Hobby Lobby on the clearance rack. I really love sales! I spent quite a bit of time looking at hanky edgings, but couldn't find one that put me in the mood to tat. I decided to try and do my own thing. I think I had three false starts before I settled on this simple ring and chain combo. I have a feeling this will be a two-round edging, but we'll have to see how I feel as I proceed!

Hanky!

I finished my hanky today!

It was really easy to keep track of where to join using safety pins. It took me 35 minutes to pin and attach each side... not bad!

The hanky is from Handy Hands. The thread is size 20 Lizbeth, Springtime #115.

The pattern is Handkerchief Edging No. 6 from The Craft of Tatting by Bessie M. Attenborough.

I single crocheted around the edge of the hanky. I attached the edging on the second round, which was single crochet through the back loop only.

I think it looks pretty on both sides!

My friend Denise...

She walks. She talks to me on the phone when we can't get our schedules to coordinate. She's one of the most upbeat people I've ever met. To top it all off, she tats!

This isn't a very good picture, but I wanted to show off the goodies Denise dropped off at school yesterday for the kids. I brought the tatting home to put in baggies, and then I forgot to take them back to school. Luckily, there is school tomorrow! ;-)

I want to thank all my very generous tatting friends who have donated pieces for the kids. We now have two Whitman Sampler tins filled with tatted prizes. The kids go through the tins every day, hoping that their favorite pieces will be there when they reach their next goal. I apologize for not remembering to take pictures of everything. Sometimes I just get caught up in what the kids and I are doing, and photos take a back seat!

Speaking of photos...

Paige forgot to bring her tatting to school yesterday, and she had a whole lot to show off! The black piece is an experiment with picots and sections of bare thread. It's really pretty, and it's in size 80!

Paige chose this very pretty heart as her prize. As you can see, she carries a bag of tatted pieces with her. She's also becoming a shuttle collector. She bought two more shuttles, bringing her grand total to five, and she told me that she's asked for shuttles and thread for her upcoming birthday. She's a girl after my own heart!

Delaney is a budding designer! She figured out on her own how to switch shuttles to create a pattern. Note that her second shuttle is a floss bobbin! Delaney chose a bookmark as her prize. She's also a great influence... her brother in 4th grade signed up to take tatting lessons!

My hanky edging is growing slowly but surely. The kids asked me if I tat when I watch t.v. Of course the answer was yes!

I've also been doing a little crocheting. I didn't think I had much thread left on my ball of Flora, so I decided to try out a pattern I found on YouTube. I love this woman's directions, and the videos are so clear. It turns out that I had far more thread than I thought, so I almost have a length long enough for a pillowcase trim... looks like another project is on the horizon!

I give up!

I've spent the past hour trying to catch up on reading blogs, and I still have 136 to go. I can't do it, so I give up! I need to get back into my morning routine of reading blogs while I have my morning coffee. A little bit here, a little bit there, and soon I have caught up with all my friends in the blogosphere. Somehow, I've lost my routine and I must get it back! I've marked all posts as read, and I'm starting with a clean slate. Let's see how I do this week! ;-)

My little tatters are progressing nicely!

Paige has been using the thread and shuttles she purchased at Hobby Lobby to make bunches of rings. She's hoping to get more for her birthday... Diane the Enabler strikes again! ;-)

Shelby practiced her rings on one continuous thread. Isn't her little purse adorable? Several of the girls have these little bags for carrying their works-in-progress. They also have larger bags for holding their samples and prizes. I might have to go shopping for one of these little purses. They are so adorable!

Owen finished his six inches of Fancy Pants and claimed the tiny tatted bumble bee that he fell in love with. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture. The four 5th grade girls have been practicing, but are not ready to show their progress yet. 

I'm making slow progress on my hanky edging...

and my Spinning Wheel. Why? To be honest, I've spent too much time playing games on my iPad. My grandson got me started on Hay Day, which he no longer plays. I am totally addicted to harvesting crops, producing and selling goods, and moving on to higher levels. One of the teacher aides at school finally got me to try Candy Crush... stay away! Danger! Danger! Why do I feel the need to earn a Sugar Crush? Maybe it's because after playing with all that candy, I have no desire to eat sweets. I think it's time to unplug!

Cottage Border... completed!

Here it is! I think it turned out great! The hanky was a gift from Anika at Tatting it Up.

The thread is Fincrochet No. 30, Tint.1110. I do like the thread, however it was full of little slubs. I was easily able to close rings, but the little slubs make some of the knots look a little bigger. I'm sure the blind man on the galloping horse will never notice!

The pattern is "Cottage Border" from A Pattern Book of Tatting by Mary Konior.

I really wanted to try Frivole's idea of attaching the edging to a crocheted edge, but I couldn't figure out how to put it all together. I think my brain just wasn't in gear this past week. What I really need is a tutorial with pictures, Frivole! (hint, hint, wink!) I'm sure that just a few hints would reset my brain so that I could figure it all out!

I replaced my dingy yellow ironing board cover last week. I think the blue and white is much better for photography purposes, even if the ironing board cover pattern does show through the hanky! ; )