Today's the day!!

More Pop A Bobbin Shuttles will be in the Etsy shop here as soon as I've checked my draft listings.

Japanese Knot bag

I fancied a change!!

Crazy Mom Tats visited me a month or so ago and very kindly gave me some fabric.  I find it hard to buy fabric except online.  We have a very expensive shop in town that charges an arm and a leg for their stuff.  There's a tiny shop in Alcester where I go to Crafternoon and theirs is a little cheaper but there's nothing as good as I can get in America when I visit so Sandra's gift was amazing.

Now stupidly I'd left the stash of new fabric out a few weeks ago when Liz and Jim came over for a family get together.  Liz spotted the cats!!!  She's got cats and loves anything with a cat design on it.   She asked if I could make her a bag.  Now I knew that the little square bags were probably of little or no use to her (she doesn't tat!) and I'm not sure if the print is too big for them too. (That will be tested in the future!!!). So, having been shown a Japanese knot bag I decided I'd research that as a possible task. 

I found two designs - one a floppy saggy design which would be easy peasy and the other with a round bottom (not quite so easy). Me, being me, decided to 'go' with the latter!!! When I showed the finished item to Nick he didn't quite know how to tactfully tell me that the handles weren't the same!!! I had to smile. I then showed him how the bag closed and he was well impressed. So, that was that. Then somebody asked whether I was going to make them for the Etsy shop!!!  Now, what do you all think?  It's actually a great size for carrying tatting around in. Any comments welcome.

More shuttles very soon

Below is a list of the shuttles I'll be listing in my Etsy shop which can be found here.  Don't forget to look at my little bags too.  If possible please buy one or two or even twenty to help an old git to keep up with her bead and thread supplies!!!!

I'll list the shuttles on Saturday so that I can get them in the mail on Sunday. Not sure what time I'll put them 'live' but they'll be there.

POP-A-BOBBIN SHUTTLES all with hooks 

3 OREGAN MYRTLE £18 

3 SPALTED BEECH £18 

3 SYCAMORE £18 

2 SEQUOIA £18 

3 ASH £18 

3 ROSEWOOD £18 

1 YEW £18 

1 EBONY £22.50 

1 MAHONIA £20.50

Day 8 - shuttles

I have another like this but until then I'd never seen one. This style (metal) must've bypassed me back whenever.

I started off with the Milliards shuttle as they were readily available in all haberdashery and knitting/sewing shops - even in our small town. BUT I never came across these metal ones 'back then'. So, I now have two in my collection. I'll try test driving this one soon.

Day 7 - shuttles

I think this is the best of the shuttles that I won on that Ebay listing. In fact, I'll admit, this is the one I had my beady eye on in the first place.

I do have a very similar one already which I'll show you sitting next to this another day. 

I wonder how old it is? Pretty old, I think.

Round 8 finished

There you are!!! Round 8 of the Jan doily done and dusted. 

I've been trying to understand myself and this addiction. 

Is it because it's an easy tat with the added frisson of working out the bead placements and the actual stitch count? Or is it because I'm not really worrying about it?

All I really know is that I can't put it down. I've a new design which I really ought to be working on but whenever I sit down I choose the doily!!! Maybe I'll give up on designing and just stick to tatting which is what I mainly did for the first thirty to forty or so years.