Butterflies

Remember my friend that I did the small snowflakes for the other week? Well she asked me to make her 10 small (5 ring) butterflies.

I'd done them for her before many, many years ago but had 'lost' the pattern and hadn't got any of her blue thread. I had to ask for both!!!

The thread arrived on Saturday morning with the pattern. I'd forgotten that she doesn't do anything other than rings and chains so her pattern started with a back wing and followed on round with a long picot on the head ring which was later cut for the feelers.

Anybody who knows me and the way I design must realise that I HATE ends and will 'work round' them at every opportunity and find ways of avoiding finishing ends.

So the first thing I did was re-write her wee pattern to make the final ring the head using a SR and thus cutting the ends to form the feelers. The butterflies are done and will be flying off in the post tomorrow!!

Tatting afternoon

What a fabulous day yesterday. The sun shone. Yup, all day - until it got dark!! Not only that but Jennifer Williams drove all the way from Welsh Wales for a tatting chatting day.

She arrived mid morning and that meant time for coffee and - well, you've guessed - tat chat in the garden.

We then went to Nuneaton (about thirty miles away) to join the Heart of England Tatters. This is the group run by Rosemarie Peel. We got there slightly late but it didn't matter. Rosemarie had a fabulous pattern for us to try. A development from a Randy Houtz one.

As usual Rosemarie was well prepared and the lesson got underway. Billy Muggins here didn't do very well. I had two (or was it three?) starts on it before the final and serious attempt got under way. Then at the crucial point my 'very important' thread broke. I gave up I'm appalled to admit. I really should've taken brain cell # 3 with me but I never gave it a thought. I'll have another attempt at the pattern in a few days time.

There was a raffle and as Rosemarie announced that she was drawing it she said 'the winner is' and I muttered number 451 quietly to Jennifer just in time to hear Rosemarie say 'number 451'. I was gobsmacked which you can imagine was a first time.

The prize was that I was asked to choose a shuttle and this is the one I chose. I've never seen one like this before. It was from the collection of the late and much missed Caroline Cramp. This was a lady who was forever tatting and laughing.

After the afternoon session finished we returned to my house for something to eat (courtesy of the Chinese place at the end of the road!) and then Jennifer drove back to Wales. Thanks, Jennifer for persuading me out of my pit and taking me to Nuneaton - I enjoyed the trip and your company very much.

Another dangle

Same pattern, same colours but used the opposite way round!!!

Great news. Remember Matthew Takeda's SSSR? Well, when Georgia first did the lesson on it I did some drawings for her. I tried the SSSR and didn't really see the potential of it.

Then along came Tattingchic with her variation on it (which, incidentally, Matthew had tried but not pursued).

Very kindly both Matthew and Tattingchic have given me permission to add their ideas to my web site which is in the 'usual place'!!!!

I find it amazing that new ideas keep cropping up and that they have all been there under all our noses as it were.

Matthew did remark that he could see little point in the SSSR at first but it's causing me sleepless nights as I can now see designs rocketing round the empty space in my head!!!

Just messing around!

I thought I'd make a few dingle dangles for gifts so this is the first of - well, several!!!

I've played with this pattern and made all the chains the same colour this time (well, actually I forgot to do a SLT) and I think I like it better. Less 'fussy'!!!

I must admit that this is one of my favourites so I often return to play with it. Really MUST sort out the pattern as in places it needs 'attention'. Maybe this evening whilst I'm working another I'll do that!!!

Sometimes

Sometimes I make something I'm REALLY pleased with. Doesn't happen often but when it does then I really feel great.

This is a hanky that I started some time ago. I do like something that I can pick up when I'm bored with designing or am too tired.

Worked in a number 80 (or thereabouts) variagated thread and using an edging that I did a year or so ago I made this edging again.

When it was finished (first picture) I wanted to add something to the corners to make it slightly less boring so in went some butterflies (second picture). It's SO pretty that I'll be able to give it to someone very special to me.

I may make another to work on while we're on holiday as it is so easy to pick up from time to time. We'll see!!!

Bags and other 'stuff'!!

Below are the bags which I've got in stock but which aren't going to be listed in Etsy until much later this year. If anybody wants one or wants to see larger pictures then please email me on lovetotat @ gmail.com and I'll sort out payment etc with you.

I can accept USD checks too as well as Paypal.

Another matter which I've been playing with is TattingChic's idea which she posted here. This second method of hers for climbing out of a round using a 'one coloured split ring' really, really works.

I will shortly post a technique page for the SSSR and this method once the pair of us have worked on the wording etc!!!

Thank you TattingChic for bringing this to tat land and Martha Ess for so carefully planting the idea in her head!!!! Now I know where brain cell # 3 has got to!!!!

Shopping bag

My new shopping bag (in American - tote!).

I finally finished this project. I'm very pleased with it.

For many years I've taken a shopping bag out with me when I go shopping so the new 'trend' to save the planet by using re-useable bags had no effect on me. Well, that's a lie - it's just encouraged me to make more bags!!

I do wish I could find the one I made many years ago which was a 'planned' pattern made in the same way. That time I used Laura Ashley prints and made a sun rising over some hills.

I'm not sure what sort of work you'd call this apart from 'hit and miss'!!!!

I bought some iron on vilene and worked out what size I wanted the bag to eventually be. Then I took the odds and ends which I'd kept from the tatting bags and placed them on the vilene (sticky side up). I lifted the pieces and pressed under some of the edges and overlapped others until I was happy with placement etc. Then the fun bit. Out came the iron and they were all 'stuck down'. Naturally there were edges that didn't stick but that didn't matter.

Next I used a narrow zig zag stitch on the machine and went round each piece. Finally the bag was made. The handles are made of three strips of fabric which have been plaited.

Bank Holiday

Well, here in the UK it's a Bank Holiday today. Over in the USA it's Memorial Day.

In my small corner of tat land I'm pleased to say that it's going to be no holiday at all!!! I'm no good at 'not doing anything' so being busy is best for me!!

The bags I've been making are steadily selling both out of my Etsy shop (see side bar) and 'off the cuff'!!!

I've currently run out of the pink bags (my 'flavour of the month' at the moment) so am going to sew up three more today. Along with two more of the blue musical fabric and another very pretty green one. I very much doubt I'll get them all sewn but the worst part (cutting them out) is done!!!

I really, really MUST write the pattern down as it's scribbled on a scrap of paper and (currently) residing with brain cell # 3 whom we all know isn't that reliable!!

Spot YOURS!!!

I'm a bit on the mean side. I'm actually very mean. I hate wasting anything. Food, money, thread, fabric etc.

So because of my frugality I have kept all the scraps of fabric from my bag making. If you've bought a roly poly or one of the latest bags you may spot 'yours' in the pictures below!!!

Earlier this week (or was it last week, even) I decided to start a new line in shopping bags (also called totes in America). Thus I got out all my scraps.

This is the 'fabric' I've made for the first shopper.

This will be the 'only' shopper as it took me forever to do!!! That's unless people are prepared to pay a lot of money for one!!!! Also I got bored towards the end too. I haven't made one of these for years and years and years. I'm not even sure where the original bag went to - it's probably up in the loft somewhere.

As I still have to make up the bag this is definitely a 'lost leader' in my brain!!!

Tatting on autopilot!

Some time ago I spoke about a friend and the fact that I do tatting for her from time to time.

Last week she rang me up to ask for more help. Sadly she has suffered a stroke so can't tat at the moment. I've been working my little socks off doing more little motifs for her.

This is the link to my last post about this work.

I hate to repeat myself - Nick's always telling me that I do but I put it down to having been a teacher for so long!!! Oh, and raising two kids!!!

Good Luck

I have a dear friend who is moving into a new house on her own this coming week.

I'm not one for making cards but I made this little one for her. Her living room has a green carpet and she loves 'bling'. Thus the beaded horseshoe.

Guess what? I forgot to scan the card before posting it!!! Oh, heck, also forgot to write down how I made it!!!

What a megga dumby I am. All who agree please stand up and be counted.

YIKES - THAT many agree? Oh, dear - I'm off outa here!!!

Look what flew in yesterday

Now, in our town we have a butterfly farm which does a lot of work preserving some of the species of insects etc which live there.

So, yesterday when the butterfly below arrived I was astonished to see that it had come all the way from Scotland!!!!

Isn't this so pretty? It was a gift from Trayna (thank you SO much, Trayna) along with some motifs for the Ring of Tatters bookmarks.

Below is also a scan of the frame I found for the butterfly. Now, all I've got to do is find something to mount the critter on and then assemble it.

She'd also put in a skein of Madeira embroidery floss which I've never tried before. Whooopppeeee.

Still monkeying around!

First of all a bit of a confession!!!!

The Funky Monkey wasn't the first monkey that I did. I did the 'lot' that are on the web page today first.

I started sort of aiming for the standing up version and then somebody I was talking to said 'why not the 3 wise monkeys'?

This meant another google search for a good picture and the rest was relatively straightforward.

Oddly enough the 3 wise ones have longer bodies. The arms and heads vary slightly but tat's all.

The old bag lady strikes again!!!

While I've been teasing about the monkeys (don't forget to watch the index page for the next pattern) I've also been busy with the bags.

Below are some that are finished along with two further pink bags (Sherry, I've got yours put by, so don't worry!).

The pale blue one is covered with music notation. Also some musical references written on it too. As I've never been interested in the least in music I've no idea what it all means!!!

If anybody would like one of these bags please drop me a line on lovetotat @ gmail.com and I'll send you one!!!! Oh, you'll get an invoice from Paypal too!!!!

I doubt I'll list these in Etsy until I get back from America. I will be taking them to Palmetto tat days with me!!!

Ta de dah!!! Here they are!!!

First of all the rest of the guesses.

Sunela said:-
"I think it is a KANGAROO!! May be the MOM who is expecting."

Marty came up with this idea:-
"It can't be a soccer guy -- they don't wear hats. It's Archy the Cockroach, yes?"

Mark (Tatman) said:-
"With a black top hat(it appears) it could be Abraham Lincoln. Didn't he have tentacles????!!!!! I think all tatters should grow tentacles so that each pair of claws could hold a shuttle and tat. How else are we to get a lot of tatting done before we leave this earth??!!!! :-D "

So, those who were guessing 'naked' were right. Except for hair,/fur that is!!! May I introduce you to the Funky Monkey!!!!

I've also done a 'City Monkey' (notice the rolled up umbrella and bowler hat) and 'Lady Monkey' (hat and handbag).

I bet somebody can come up with other versions too!!!!

I hereby issue a challenge - 'dress a monkey'!!!! How's tat?

Now if you go to my web site you'll find something intriguing on the index page!! Down next to the link to the monkey pattern. Any further guesses?!?!?

Final day for guessing!!!

I think a lot of you have got there by now!!!

This is the final guessing day. Tomorrow I will reveal all (NO, not my naked body - don't want to frighten people off).

Some of the comments from yesterday and earlier!!

TatForFun said this:-

"How should should we wait until the picture's revealed? haaaa...I'm dying to see the whole picture...pleeease ^_^
But I think it's not a man or a boy...the color is to girly LOL
Is it a peacock? "

Gina D said this too:-

"Goodmorning. I've been following your hints and my guess is that it is a pink dragon. "

Valerie said:-

"me thinks it's something with tentacles... hmmm. "

Jenny's doing aerobics and says she's sticking her neck out!!!

"Ok I'll stick my neck out and say it is a mouse. Thanks for the fun"

Marty said this:-

Tentacles? How about a pink tree with waving branches? Nah, what ever it is it's not wearing nuthin'!

Tia's got another idea:-

"OOOOH A Jelly Fish?"

Jon has VERY good hearing!!!

"The picture is showing the tail of a rattle snake. I can almost hear it rattling. "

Day 7

I think you'll all 'get it' today but I'll wait and see!!!!

Carol Amich said yesterday:-

"I guess an octopus or squid!!"

Bev came up with this rhyme:-

Some see pink elephants,
some see a man,
some see what ever they can...
but I've stood on my head,
and spun around and all I got
was on the ground.
From down here, all I see..
isn't pink elephants; but a pink monkey....

Elizabeth said:-

"Looks like a chicken laying a bunch of eggs.LOL"

Tia said:-

"well....that could be a hand...if the picots had been in diffrent lengths....or it is antennae for a naked...Snail...Yup definatly going with Snail."

Jenny Griffin thinks this:-

"could it possibly be another ballerina?"

Day 6

I'm getting worried. Very, very worried. Seems to me that people think I'm a 'dirty old woman'!!!!

This is a remark that came in from Snowy:-

"Now with this new element I am alternating between pink elephant or naked man....scary thought! LOL "

Ginny's remark is fine - nothing to worry about there!!!:-

"Is it a Owl?"

Marty said:-

"Nah - it's a soccer player -- that's a leg! "

Jon said this:-

"I can see that it may be a pink elephant, but I don't know which part Snowy sees the naked man, ;-/, lol. "

Personally I think you're all mad, mad, mad!!! Then again it takes a mad woman to see/know a mad one!!!! Here's today's piece!!!

HOTP

That means Hot Off The Press!!!

Just had an email from Pat @ Roseground Supplies. They now stock the new Lizbeth thread. How COOOOOOOOL is that?!?!??? For prices and colours (the thread isn't listed yet) please contact Pat directly on pat @ roseground.com

Day 5

Today we have another part of the finished 'thingy'!!!

Yesterday Bev suggested this:-

"Could this be a critter that swings from trees? Do we get 20 questions? Animal? Vegetable? Mineral?"

Now how she could get to that from what she saw yesterday is puzzling to me!!!!!

Thelma says

"Is it maybe a tatted cross???"

Christine has come up with a good answer:-

"It has to be a pink elephant."

Day 4 - something different!

Now, just to confuse you and add to the tease I'm putting up the completed first part of this pattern.

This would be the first 'part' you would work if you chose to work it. BUT, here's the problem.

Have I shown this diagram the right way up?!?!? Of course it could be shown partly turned round or even upside down!!! That's the conundrum!!!

Yesterday Lynne said the following -

"A crinoline lady with tiered skirt, this is the bottom layer of the skirt and day 2 is the tier above it!!!! or shall I wait for the white coats!!!!!"

Lynne, I suggest you hold in there. Don't let them take you just yet!!!

I'm worried about Steph too. What sort of mind does she think I've got?! This is her suggestion:-

"I've got it!! It's a little naked man, isn't it? I just knew it!! ;)"

Day 3 of Tease a Tat

This is day 3. Things will get a bit more interesting tomorrow.

This remark from Eileen really tickled me. She said -
"I knew right away what it is. It's a caterpillar with sunburn, saw one in my garden yesterday. You know what they say........"ask a silly question" etc."

Do please remember I have a perverted sense of humour so things might not always seem the 'right way up'!!!!!!

Day 2 of Tease

OK, we have a clown in tat land!!! His name? Mark Myers!! This is what he says as a guess.

Um.....the goat I diagrammed for you???? strange color for a goat, anyway. But with you tatting it......WHO KNOWS!!! LOL!

He sent me a diagram of a goat two/three days ago with the challenge to make a pattern to fit it!!! I mean, dear Mark, you know what a busy person I am and how houseproud I am and how I'm always dusting and vacuuming. How did you expect me to get it done so quickly?

But then I do tell some terrible lies about my love of housework and I did have half an hour free the other day!!!!!!!!!!

HOT OFF THE PRESS
Just in case this has not been noticed in the comments section I have put the link from Laurie here

New game - Tease a Tat!!!!

Now this is how this one works!! IF anybody wants to have a go, that is!!!

I'm not asking you to do anything except guess what this pattern will finally be! I'll be posting little 'bits' of it either as scans of the finished item or as diagrams. If you're any good at jigsaw puzzles you should be able to copy and paste them together later to make up the item!!!

All you have to do is email me on love to tat @ gmail.com with your guesses.

I'll blog people's guesses and any drawings submitted too. Drawings can be a pencil drawing on the back of an envelope or - well, anything really.

Does this sound like fun or just downright stupid?!?!? As usual - answers on a postage stamp!!!

New in my shop!

I was going to start showing you the new patterns today but unfortunately I'm not quite ready just yet. Tomorrow. I'm hoping it'll be tomorrow.

The sewing machine has gone on holiday! Well, not really but it's going to have a rest for a few days!

I managed to finish off and list some of the bags yesterday.

Houston, I have a problem. I like them all but particularly the pink one followed closely by the butterfly one. I DON'T need another tatting bag, do I? But this is SUCH a useful bag!!!

I'm just going to have to keep one but not one of these as they're now in the shop. I do have 'spares' of each at the moment so I've got time to choose. Here are the new ones I've added.

One of my needle tatting adventures

Another piece from my old suitcase!!! Remember the small giraffe pattern on my site? Originally the giraffe was made as an earring to amuse the kids I was teaching. I then heard about needle tatting.

Goodness knows how I heard about it because it was in the days of stage coaches and the penny black stamps!! Well, not really but it was a long time ago.

I heard about Ed and Selma Morin's needle tatting book and took the enormous risk of putting dollars in an envelope and writing to America which was (in those days - the 1970's) somewhere over the other side of the moon.

I bought needles too. Not sure who I bought these things from but I did. So, having bought the needles I tried them out.

Oh, watch this space tomorrow. There will be news of the new patterns!!!!

Somewhere I've still got the ghastly (truly ghastly) needle tatted top I made. I was quite pleased with the giraffes but didn't like needle tatting one bit. I've never gone back to it even though some years later I bought finer needles.

Bags again!

This is one of the finished new bags. I must say I was very pleasantly surprised with these. The colour (which didn't show so well on yesterday's post) actually glows.

I'm also adding the fabrics I'm going to be working with next - pretty, pretty patterned one and the stunning pink.

Next set of bags!

Well the next set of bags will be paisley. This is such a pretty print and I already have one order for a bag!!! I cut them out and got a good start yesterday so may well finish them today. Below is a picture of a completed butterfly bag too.

The £%&$*" pattern is progressing well. What a relief. The new way of working is going well.

I also managed to take the mower for a walk round the garden. It enjoyed the experience. Mind our garden is a postage stamp size compared to the yards you see in America. I'll take a photo sometime and show you.

It's a real English garden, I guess, with walls on two sides. It's a very easy garden to manage and most of the stuff seems to grow in spite of me!!!

Yesterday saw the completion of the three other butterfly bags AND one matching poke proof pouch. One of the bags and the pouch have already been spoken for!!

I spent a little bit of time on the new set of patterns I'm working on. I'm hoping that they'll be ready to go soon!! I'm really excited about them all and can't wait to see what people say about them. There's still some work to do on the set as I've changed my mind about how to work part of them so I'm having to re-work them all AND alter drawings!!!

Also I have to add some fun bits to two parts as well. Just to keep me amused, of course!!!

Also because of this set of patterns I have made up a new technique page. It's one I've used before but never quite got round to putting a page together. Now who was that who said 'typical'?

One down - three to go!!!

What with housework, shopping and other boring stuff I didn't get much time to sew yesterday!! However I did manage one of the butterfly bags and I'm delighted with it. Hopefully I'll get the others done today (hmmmm, difficult typing with my fingers crossed!) and then I'll list them.

Oh, I noticed a few days ago that I'd got 100 followers. I mentioned this to Nick who said (rather dryly) 'one of those is the Inland Revenue'!!! Which reminds me - must do some more to my tax return!!!!

A rose by any other name!

Seems like I've put the aged and gnarled old foot in it!! Apparently the double double ds that Rhoda shows in her book turns out to have been published under the name of the balanced double stitch by Ruth Perry!!! If only Rhoda was contactable I'd have a word in her ear for causing me this bovver!!!

I'm adding this link here as it gives food for thought from a well known local chap!

Anyway to turn to nicer thoughts! I'm showing a picture here of some of the prettiest fabric in my stash (well, that's my opinion for today) and to let anybody know who's interested that I've cut four bags t of it. This piece (the leftover) is enough to make a matching poke proof pouch!!! I'm hoping to get to sew one or two of them today!!

I'm delighted that I've already sold three of the six bags I listed two days ago in my Etsy shop. I wasn't intending to list them as I was trying to make a batch to sell in the vending room at Palmetto to help towards the cost of flights. I think I'll just have to make more!!!!

More about the double double idea!

Yesterday I managed to squeeze in time to do this page explaining Rhoda Auld's idea. There's a picture at the bottom of the blog of what it eventually looks like.

I'm not sure it's going to be a lot of use but it's an interesting idea!!! Well, it interested me for a few hours! I'll be returning to Rhoda's book for another look now she's woken me up again!

I also managed to list two sets of coasters and the tatting bags in my Etsy store yesterday. It was another of those occasions when I'd finished listing and wandered off to do something else. I returned half an hour later and one of the bags had already sold.

I'm now wondering whether to use the butterfly fabric or a rather nice brownish paisley print that I've got. Mind there are so many it's very hard to choose out of my stash.

How did I get so much done when I was out all morning teaching Silver Surfers?

Ever heard of a 'double double' stitch?

Back in 1974 or 5 I bought Rhoda Auld's book "Tatting the Contemporary Art of Knotting with a Shuttle". I bought it for patterns, of course, as it was in the days of 'no tatting patterns'.

There are no patterns in the book BUT it's a mine of information and inspiration. I still take it out from time to time to just read for sheer enjoyment and whilst doing that the other day I came across the following paragraph.

I decided to play with this idea and found that it works well for chains too. I'll make up a technique page for it and maybe call it the 'double double' stitch (dds). Not that it really NEEDS a page as it's so simple and SO obvious!!!

This evening I'll play with it and show you what happens tomorrow. I was going to play yesterday evening but the latest project 'took over'!!!

On the horns of a dilemma!

Well, not really but I do need to decide which fabric to use next!!!

I LOVE these butterflies but also the sewing notions too.

So hard to decide which to use.

First of all here's a close up of the bobbin fabric that I used for the last two bags. Isn't it lovely?

Oh, before I wander off for a shower, breakfast etc I must share this link with you. What FUN. I wish I'd been there to see this performance - I'd have tried to join in, knowing me!!!