Fly to Palmetto tat days!!!

Update on the Queen's visit yesterday.  I went mowing grass instead as I doubted she'd have time for tatting.  Actually my closest to her was seeing her red helicopter fly past as we'd just finished up on the grass.  I doubt she missed me!!!!  I will get to teach her one day - or perhaps Kate!!!!  Thankfully she brought the most fabulous weather with her and the grass was finished.

A few days ago this picture came to me from Pam - one of the Palmetto 'gals'.  They were shown to her at one of their meetings recently and she took the photo below.  Pam thinks this is the order from left to right.  Wanda Tripp, Karen Lowrimore, Joanie Culverhouse, Katherine Buckner and Hope Bates.  Some of these are already on the TIAS blog but it's great to see them altogether.  Which reminds me - there's still room on the TIAS blog for more - currently it stands at around 80 landings!!!!

I love going to Palmetto Tat Days as it's such fun there and a fantastic place to learn new stuff - even and especially for an OG like me!!!  You'll have to look back through my blog to see how good it is.  Here's a link to their site.  OOOOOh, just seen what they're doing at their next meeting too.  Something that I gave them a while back. 

New potential tatter?

I managed to list the magnetic brooches in Etsy yesterday afternoon and a lot of them have flown already.  Thanks, folks.

Today I have the chance to teach a potential tatter but need to ask you all how I go about it.

OK I've taught a few people in my life but not one like this.  There were people already in town yesterday taking precautions for her visit to my corner of tat land.  

You know those little holes in the pavement that they lift up to turn off localised  water supplies?  They measure roughly 9" square.  Well yesterday in preparation for this person (and her DH - who might also want to learn to tat) all of them at the bottom end of the town were being inspected.  There were roughly 20 men and women lifting each one!!!  There were the 'water men', security men and police all peering down each hole!!!  This was outside the ladies loo too which was a bit off putting as I really needed to go in there so instead I 'dashed' home!!!

So, the biggest problem is how do I get this person to sit down and learn.    Will she have time in her busy schedule?  Should I offer to hold her hands while we turn the knot?  Should I take one or two wound shuttles with me so she doesn't have to spend valuable time winding them?  

BUT the biggest problem of all is how to get close enough to even start on our lesson. Then, of course, do I curtsey or just pretend she's just an old mate? 

Who is it?  Who may want to learn to tat (in my dreams)?  Who is bringing her DH with her too?  Why, the Queen!!!!  They're both coming to re-open the theatre which has had a multi million pound re-vamp.  It's drop dead gorgeous too.  She'll also be watching a small part of Romeo and Juliet - the balcony scene.  This is being played by two actors Mariah Gale and Sam Troughton.  I can boast here - I taught Sam to read as I was his first teacher in primary school.  A great kid from a super family too.

Actually I'll probably go and mow grass instead!!!!!!!

A few more!

It might seem that these are quick to make but I assure you they're not!!!  

They are fiddly and annoying when the magnets decide to 'play party time'!!!

Still these are a few more of what I HOPE to get into my Etsy store later today.  What is that saying?  'Time and tide wait for no man'?  Well nothing waits for me!!!  I seem to be forever chasing my tail lately.  Wonder why that is?

I'm afraid I'm going to have to put the prices up slightly.  I've noticed that since I started listing the bookmarks that the amount I'm actually getting (in order to feed the thread and bead addiction!!!) is dropping due to the dollar to pound conversion! 

It's a good job I don't have to use the car to go to the Post Office - here in the UK the price of petrol (aka gas) has now gone up to over £1.30 a litre.  Not sure what that is in gallons although I've tried to work it out.  Then again America uses different 'sorts' of gallons to us!!!  Ain't life complicated for a mathematically challenged old git?

The hardest thing to do!

Now what's the hardest thing I have to do in tatting and the most dreaded? 

Well, at the moment it's scanning.  No, not your regular scanning.  I use the scanner a LOT particularly for the flat pieces of tatting.  BUT the worst thing of all is the pieces that include magnets!!!  

These are little STINKERS to scan as they move.  They sneakily move around the platten when you're not looking.  Honest, no word of a lie.  I sit here and carefully place them on the platten.  Then I gently lower the lid.  Fine.  I do the 'preview' part and there they are sitting smartly as they were placed.  GREAT, I think to myself.  Then I do the 'save as' and all the other plaver and press 'scan'.

So, what's wrong with that?  Well, somehow and for some reason (which many of you must know about, but I don't) the little stinkers then decide they're going to have a party and one of them ALWAYS moves!!!!!  I've now resorted to doing them two at a time which seems to work but it's a darn nuisance!!!

These brooches are ones I've just finished (evenings over the weekend have been spent making these).  Once I've done a few more I'll add them to the Etsy shop.  After that it'll probably be back to bookmarks as there are only a few left in there!!!  I may remove the few that are left as nobody seems to want them.  I can turn them into something 'better' I think!!!!!

Will it work or won't it?

Throws!  Love 'em, hate 'em!  Why do we  have them and can we do without them?  

A few years ago we bought new armchairs - the sort that recline.  To keep them looking good we did the obvious thing - bought throws for them.  These are really a great idea BUT they migrate!!!  Getting them on is one problem and then keeping them from moving into the centre of the chairs is impossible.  They are, after all, one huge piece of fabric and when the aged butt hits them they are forced to move!!

Anyway I got thinking about this and decided to make new ones which aren't in one piece.  The first picture shows the back, seat and lower piece which are all stitched together.  The back goes over quite a way - like a regular throw.  The seat part is 'just enough' to tuck into the seat at the sides.  I then added another piece which goes over the foot part and protects the front of the seat.

The bottom picture shows a long rectangular piece which goes over an arm, down through the seat and back over the other arm.  This has a enough fabric in it to form a 'bead catching lip' at the back!!!!  This is one of the reasons I have to have a throw - to catch those errant beads!!!

Oh, don't look at the clutter round tat corner!!!  I keep tidying it up and it keeps creeping back!!! Perhaps that's one of the reasons I keep losing things too. 

Does anybody know if this type of throw has been tried before?  I'm hoping it works but if it doesn't then I'll stitch all the pieces into one large one and go back to struggling with 'arranging' it every day!

How DO I do it?

I have a wonderful talent of which I am totally NOT proud.  What is it, you may well ask!!!

Well, it's a talent for losing things!!!  I can lose anything within two minutes of having been given it!!!  I lose tatting all the time.  So the other day I'd finished this little magnetic brooch and went off upstairs to scan it.  

Simples you may think and it certainly would be for anybody else.  I lost it for nearly 24 hours!!!!  Where was it found?  In a pocket which I'd checked several times.  I reckon there are gremlins with a wicked sense of humour living in this house!!!