Another arrival in Tatland!!

Elvis is alive and living in Tatland! Honestly! Just click on the title to find out more!!!
Forgot to mention earlier - listed more tatting stuff on ebay!!! My seller ID is simply janeeborall!!

Nothing to do with tatting!

Friday, good, megga good, exceptionally good, fantastic day.
I had a phone call yesterday evening from my youngest daughter who then put four year old Nathan on the phone. He told me that 'mummy's got a baby in her tummy and it's going to 'pop out' soon'. I can't explain how I feel as I'd been hoping for ages that Nathan would have a sibling to share his parents with. Callum has Oscar and Athena has Carter and finally Nathan will have somebody too!!!
After all those years of teaching I realised way back that it was really good to have more than one child if possible. I'm the oldest of three (one brother and one sister). I know it's not always possible but it's good to have somebody to play with, argue with and, well, just BE with!!!!
I apologise to anybody who thinks that this blog is all tatting - caught you out this time, eh?!?!?!!?
No tatting yesterday and probably not a lot today as the garden took a lot of my time!!!

Time to abandon the edging for a while

Oh dear, oh dear. This is now NOT a good design. I suddenly realised that (as usual) I was being too clever with this edging and so have changed it quite drastically. It occurred to me that the CTJ wasn't actually needed at all!!! How silly is that!! So I tried starting in a different place!! Oh, not a good idea!! That scrap has been duly filed in the bin!! Below is another attempt replacing a ring with a split ring and thus getting rid of the CTJ in one go. BUT I'm not sure I like it now and it certainly needs some 'help' with the swop from the top to the bottom part as it now looks untidy. I find it's a good idea to use strongly contrasting colours when doing this sort of thing as it really, really shows up the problems!!!
I shall now leave it for a while until the 'muse' strikes again!!! I HATE TATTING. Well I did for five or ten minutes!!!!

Still playing with the edging

Well I followed Mark's suggestions and the small sample below on today's posting is what I came up with.

I think I put too many picots on the lower part of the upper part (well, I know what I'm talking about!!!!) so then went off to try something else. Oh, I was also not happy with the clarity of the bottom either!!! Below is a 'two part' tryout. In the first two 'pointy bits' I followed the same idea again but this time with less picots on the chains. Also I made the lower part slightly bigger which I think gives it a separate 'feel' to the header part.
The last two points are yet another idea using the original split ring but throwing a ring off it and down to the main central ring. I again used picots and the larger lower part. This is going to be a challenging (to me) pattern to write down for people to follow. It's not hard at all but does need some careful explanations around the continuous join concept. Anybody willing to give it a whirl? I think I may do all four versions in the end for the pattern site. Time will tell!!!

Edging

Well I did nothing to the edging yesterday as I got waylaid into another tatting project which I want to get further along the way today. This is a gift idea to take on our trip.
BUT thanks SO much to Mark Myers for the following idea. He's such a clever chap with his computer graphics. See - he's added another ring to the top and picots. What a difference this makes. I shall try and get back to it this evening to alter the pattern. Gina, I will let you have the pattern in the original form as soon as I'm sure I can understand it!!!! Susan, I think both you and Mark were thinking along the same lines!!!!!

Edging again

Back again on the edging. I didn't get anything done on Saturday and in fact didn't even pick up a shuttle - BAD DAY!!!! My new computer was playing up so it meant taking it back to the factory settings and then re-installing Vista. Last time I did an 'upgrade' but this time a 'clean install'. The drivers got themselves in a heck of a muddle. This time everything seems to be working well, so far!!! The edging finally got picked up at eight o'clock Sunday evening and I'm still not happy with the header on it. I think it needs to be 'prettier' so perhaps more picots would soften the outline. All suggestions VERY welcome before I abandon the idea!!! Interesting progression using the continuous thread join and I'm pleased with that part. I also like the 'firmness' of it as that will make it stand up to countless amounts of washing! Anyway, here's last evening's version!!!

Edging

I'm not very keen on making edgings for myself - well, not for handkerchiefs and table linen. There is one sort that I do like to make and that's deep ones for tshirt necklines. I like these to be in the same or contrasting colours to the tshirt and so I decided a few days ago that when I'm in America later this year and with young children around me then something like this would be easiest to take and work on. No beads but two colours (hopefully) and two shuttles (the cats won't want to chase those around like balls of thread!). So the adventure into the 'perfect' edging has begun!!! I like the other one I did here http://tinyurl.com/35dldl but of course I'm bored with that one. I also want to play again with the continuous thread join as it means you can get a deeper edging but in one round. Below is the 'story so far'. I'm afraid the colours don't contrast very well but they were what was handy to me at the time!!

Now, I'm reasonably happy with this - it lies well but I don't like the pointy top!!! I'll have to think of something different for this. It's too stark although I think it could be classified as a 'Vandyke' style. I also need to find out if this will lie to a curve or I'll have to alter it accordingly. I'll make a 'corner' for it for V necked tshirts (or even handkerchiefs!) as there's nothing MORE frustrating than having a lovely edging without a corner!!! I spent the afternoon yesterday looking through dozens of books for inspiration or an edging I could adapt and then picked up a rejected and an earlier attempt of this piece that was lying around the house!!! Any suggestions would be gratefully accepted - my email address is lovetotat at gmail.com.

Close up of my picture

Now I wonder how many people have noticed that I've changed my picture on the blog. A more up to date (and older version) of me!!! I'm so glad it's only small - the horrors of my face cannot be seen!!! Mind, if it was a close up you could see why I never look in mirrors!! Anyway, below is a close up of the tshirt!!! Hope you like it!!!
I may just get the pattern for the eye onto my pattern pages over the weekend - a lot depends on the weather, though as well as my memory!!!!

Another pair

Here are another pair - purple and shaded yellow/orange with beads to 'match'. This is again a fine thread doubled. Two days of wearing the orange and blue ones have made me realise that they do need stiffening. I shall do this after this post is done and then wear them stiffened to see if that stops the 'slight' bending. I cannot stand them when they go 'off track'.

Two pairs of earrings

I'm very pleased with the orange and blue pair which I'll start testing today by wearing them. The other pair is worked in a number 40 Olympus (variegated) and a 40 Coats (?) but isn't as 'firm' as the others. Again I will test this pair out another day. They may be fine slightly stiffened. I think I may try another pair with drastic alterations to the stitch count and using a single number 80 thread. I feel it's worth playing with these a little longer!!!

Now I know what it is!!!

It's going to be an earring. Definitely! I need to make another and then wear them for a while to test whether they stand up to use. This is my first attempt to see if it would be viable. This was worked in a no. 20 thread. I went very wrong with the first and only bead!!!

The second attempt on Sunday evening went drastically wrong!! Must have been the red wine - well, that's my excuse!!!

The next one is 'getting there'. I worked this with a single no. 80 (or thereabouts!) thread. I did go a bit 'off track' at the top but it was nearly OK. I'd done a rough drawing of how I thought it would turn out yesterday morning but realised that I'd numbered the rings wrongly as I'd forgotten to put numbers in the RoCh's!!!!! This made re-writing the text a pain yesterday evening. This new way of working really is better. Have an idea, play for a while (doing text as you go) and then draw quite early on. Even a rough drawing before I start is a help if it's an animal!!

Finally I decided to try the no. 80 (or whatever!) doubled and this has worked REALLY well. Much firmer result. I shall try again this evening with a no. 40 and then 'test drive' both lots over the next week or so by wearing them before putting the pattern on my site.
Of course this little motif could be used for anything from a zip pull to a little sew on. I would like to experiment with a large 'dangly' bead in the centre of the bottom chain. The good thing about these Vlp's is that you can play with them when you get to them without the hassle of planning ahead and working out what beads to put where. Ideal for a lazy moo like me!!!!!

What will this turn out to be?

This bit of tatting has been haunting me for the past week. It was an abortive start to a butterfly. Aborted because I didn't like the colours of thread or beads. It even went round the town with me yesterday and I almost bumped into a number of people because I had it in my hand and was thinking about it!!! Danger tatter thinking!!! I've a feeling that it could turn into a sweet little earring! I shall play with it later in a no. 80 thread.

I listed some stuff on ebay on Thursday on a 10p listing day. Never again!! I wonder what they do on these special offer days? It took two days for anybody to even notice that the Aeros were back!!! Very odd - I feel there must be a sub-plot here!!!

The Butterflies get better

Yesterday I listed some more 'stuff' on ebay. I love making and wearing earrings and over the twenty or more years I've been making them I've found that you have to keep them simple in structure so that they don't 'bend' after a few wearings!!! Even stiffened if they are too wide then they tend to 'curl or bend'. One answer is lots of beads!! The blue, green and orange pair I made for myself then discovered that I'd already got some in those colours and that style!!! If I'd got a brain I'd be dangerous!!!

Now everybody knows (or should by now!) that I like a little colour in my life!!!! I get into my tatting stash and then get lost in decision making on which colours of threads and then beads. I think my all time favourites for 'surprising' colours must be bright orange and bright pink. I make myself look at other combos too and this time I came up with the turquoise and blue. I'm pretty sure they worked just fine. Then the beads. I used to think that the 'same' coloured beads were the 'right' ones but now I'm into trying startlingly different ones. The second butterfly has turquoise and yellow beads with the orange and pink!!!!

Wow and double, treble wow

Yesterday a small but priceless treasure arrived here in the UK. To say that I was gobsmacked would be a gross understatement. In this tiny and pretty little box were the dearest little turtles made by tatbit herself. I just can't tell you how beautiful they are and no pictures would do them justice. How Teri managed to tat these onto the cab is just beyond me. Even Nick was lost for words and that's a miracle in itself. His main question was 'how fine is that thread?'. They will travel with me to Palmetto and everywhere I go. Treasured beyond measure - I've never seen anything like these little turtles. Colours that tatbit used are amazing too. To see tatbit's blog click on the title of this post - I'm not sure how to do links in the message itself yet!!!!

Earrings

Two pairs of earrings. These are some of my favourites to wear and to make. The thing I like most about them is that because of the multitude of beads (worked on fine thread) they hold their shape through thick and thin!! I'm wearing some pairs which I must have made three years ago and they are as 'good as new'. I do use diluted PVA as a slight stiffener and protection from body oils, dirt etc. (I do wash behind my ears!!). The brown and pink pair are a gift for a neighbour but the green, blue, orange are - well just for fun. I may list them on ebay.

During the night I had a BRILLIANT idea for a new earring design so once I've tidied up my work area I shall be trying these out. They will have lots of beads too!!!

More pretties

Mystery solved

Thanks a million to Karey Solomon who says she's got the Tatbeads. I knew they'd got their passports!!! I'm rather relieved they're off my hands for a while as they are SUCH a handful. They mentioned that they wanted to go to the Hector tatting convention but I said they were too small to travel alone and as I wasn't able to go then they had to stay home. I found the ladder outside the window leant against the wall so I presume that's the way they sneaked out. I hope they've saved up enough money for their fare home - I'm not sending them any!!!! Karey, if you have any problems with them threaten them with the scissors!!!!!

New arrival in Tatland

Elaine Law sent a picture of a frog she'd made to go in the Tatbead family's garden so please take a look. Click on the title to take you directly to the tatbead's extended family!!
Oh, there's another mystery here. They all came with me to the Ring of Tatter's stand at the NEC a couple of weeks ago. They came home and were last seen 'lurking' in the middle room. I then realised after a few days that they were no longer there. They've been missing now for a week. I did hear a rumour that they were last seen heading towards Heathrow airport. I can't find their passports either so I''m getting a bit concerned. If ANYBODY knows anything about their whereabouts would they please let me know. I would be grateful of any sightings or any thoughts on where they could be.

Another attempt

I finally got the brain working on this one again. I started at the head which is an extra SR and meant altering the text completely throughout! Then I took out a ring and chain on both the upper wings. I've yet to put this in a ring but I'm much happier with it now.

Also listed more shuttles on ebay yesterday and was also told this morning that I could 'let the cat out of the bag' that I've been chosen to teach at the Palmetto Tat Days - yippeeeeee!!! http://www.palmettotatters.org/events/TatDays2007/TATDAYS2007.shtml

Later in the day and I've got the same butterfly in it's ring. Rarely do I get things finished within 24 hours of starting. I've usually 'mislaid' them in between times!!!

Butterflies in rings

Towards the end of last week I made two more butterflies (below). As I wasn't concentrating on the larger one I made a bit of a mistake. Looking at it I realise that the result is a much better upper wing so I did the other to match!!! I now have to re-write and re-draw the pattern again!!! Serves me right - shouldn't try and tackle this when I'm tired!!!