Before I start - there are a few shuttles left in my Etsy shop. Not many, but a few!!!!
Several people have been talking about how and when they learnt to tat but I've done a post on this before - some four and a half years ago. Rather than repeat myself (which Nick says I'm ALWAYS doing!) I'll give you the link.
Several people have been talking about how and when they learnt to tat but I've done a post on this before - some four and a half years ago. Rather than repeat myself (which Nick says I'm ALWAYS doing!) I'll give you the link.
Enough to say that a bit more water has passed under the bridge since I wrote that post!!!! Doesn't change the facts, though. I'm older (now 67) and not a lot wiser!!! A lot has changed during those years since I learnt (and since I posted that piece) and a some things haven't!!!
Rings have stayed and chains too. Notation has moved on a bit too and also the thing that I craved more than anything as a teenager - colour has arrived beautifully. There were so few colours in the Coats threads and they were pretty darn boring.
Antimacassars, collars, doilies, hanky edgings and motifs were all that were 'on offer' in the Coats and Penelope leaflets.
I remember the times when I took great risks with my craft. Long before the internet I found the odd advertisement in magazines telling of goodies available in the USA. Things I NEEDED to have. The Mary Sue Kuhn books were a 'must have' with an intriguing 'new idea'. This was, of course, the 'how to do' a split ring. Something we all take so much for granted nowadays. Originally from Anne Orr this lass called Mary Sue had taken something nobody seemed to have put much store by and woken up tat land (well my little corner of it!!). In those 'far off' days I used to buy dollars at the bank (for a price!), put them in an envelope and 'hope' they got to the right place in that far off country and hoping too that I got the goodies back!!!
I got quite a few books and the odd tools (like the jiffy needles) that way including some netting books. Now all these things are a click away - boy, have things changed.
Heck, I'm rambling again - must be a sign of old age. I'm off for a shower!!!!
Heck, I'm rambling again - must be a sign of old age. I'm off for a shower!!!!
You're not that old yet Jane, although tatting has changed over the years, I used to buy a magazine just if it had tatting in as there were so few patterns around, and books were very limited in this country. I then found the Anna magazine which had tatting and knitted lace in now I have every copy from about 1976 until they finished publishing in English about three years ago. They were my main souce for patterns. Now we have the internet and blog land, I only started my blog a year ago and now I have a whole new world of tatting has opened up to me, times have changed a lot over the years, its called progess and for tatting it has progessed a lot.
ReplyDeleteMargaret
It's kind of amazing how tatters are always coming up with new techniques, considering how it's all based on one stitch. When I learned to tat, rings and chains were all you needed to know (and really they still are; there are still plenty of patterns that use nothing else). Anne Orr invented the split ring but didn't seem to realize what she had, judging from some of her patterns where she could have used it but didn't. Now they are one of the basic techniques, and we have split chains, SCMR's, loop tatted rings, and don't even get me started on all the new joins I've learned in the last couple of years. Tatting has come a long way!
ReplyDeleteAh, the good old days... I'm happy to have moved on to the Age of the Internet. I've learned so much from other tatters, and I love the sense of community!
ReplyDeleteI remember you posting about learning to tat. Tatting sure has come along way since I learned too. So many patterns to choose from and wow, the thread choices are just so numerous now. When I need a new pattern to tat, I always come to your pages first. Seems like I can always find what I'm looking for here. You are a GEM!!
ReplyDeleteHappy Valentine's Day!
Enjoyed the story.... so that's what your passport looked like back then, eh?
ReplyDeleteDid you smile much as a little girl? LOL
Aw, cute little Janey
So glad you learned tatting - you've been a great help to me!!
Thanks for being there when I need your help with my tatting!!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you learned to tat so you could inspire us. Was so excited to see you had a purple heart shuttle in the shop....then saw it did not have a hook. I guess I will have to wait. Shout out when you get one with a hook.
ReplyDelete