Come fly with me!!!

I'm SOOOOO excited. 

My lessons have been accepted for Tat Days in September!! I'm going over the pond to join my friends old and hopefully new on the weekend I love the most. Palmetto Tat Days. Here's the link to their web site.  This year I've got to put on my bravest face and travel alone.  Sally isn't coming due to other commitments - I'm sorry to say.  I know she'll be sad that she'll miss the fun.  

I applied back in January or February (really can't remember) as soon as they asked for teachers as I'd secretly been discussing this with BC3.  I NEVER, EVER presume I'm going to get a place there as they might not like what I offer - or me either!!!  I always work on several patterns to give them more choice and thankfully they liked what I sent in!!!

This now means that I have a few patterns which didn't fit their constant search to offer a wide variety of techniques and fun things.  Those will be going up onto my pattern pages over the next few weeks - if I remember!!!!

Just wanted to show you the final green t-shirt finished.  

Green t-shirt

What I didn't tell you was that when I bought the yellow t-shirt for the eye, heart, T, A, T, I also bought two more as they were such lovely fabric AND cheap. You've got to realise this about this OG - I'm as 'cheap as chips' as the saying goes!!!!  Let me point out - that's English chips and NOT American ones!!!  There's a vast difference between the two!!!

If you look at the top picture you'll see that the garment has a sweet sort of edging already so I didn't want to cover that.  The first 'row' is simple split rings joined on one side (the variegated side) with a vsp.  I then went back along one side with a lock chain which lock joined into the vsp's.  Simple to make.

For the plain thread I used a 'somewhere around 50' cotton thread that I have in my stash. For the other thread I used a Perfect Quilter doubled.

IF I remember I'll show you the completed t-shirt which will hopefully have the same trim at the bottom of the sleeves too.

Mystery changes colour

So, I got bored after the purple and I worked the next two parts in two greens HWT'd together. 

This was a nice easy relaxing couple of rounds and thoroughly enjoyable.

Next time I add to this mystery I think you'll find it quite different.  I'm not saying anymore so just 'watch this space'.  Not the space between my ears but the space on this page!!!!

Eye love to tat

I actually made a start on sewing the 'bits' onto the t-shirt over the weekend but also had to undo and reposition twice. The eye was originally too high up and the two too!!! Then this picture shows the two re-sewn again but this time the '2' is crooked so I've got to take it off and do it again.

I (thankfully) abandoned the idea at the last minute of using fusible web stuff to hold the pieces in place before sewing - think of the pickle I'd have got into trying to get the 'stickiness' off when I wanted to re-sew!!!!

I also did this eye a little differently - not quite the same as the pattern. This is because in the pattern I used long picots which were cut. When I sewed the eye onto the last t-shirt it looked wonderful but each lash had to be sewn down in several places. That wasn't too bad as I've got a lot of patience.  BUT after many washes the lashes looked - well, manky.  This time I didn't do long picots - just ordinary chains so the lashes are sewn on with a black thread afterwards on this t-shirt. I'm sure this will wash better and keep it's 'good looks'!!!!

More on the mystery!!

First of all I must say Happy Birthday, Bill.  Bill?  Well more commonly known as William Shakespeare.  Well I really ought to acknowledge the old guy as he was born near me and spent a lot of time getting into trouble around this area.  Does that sound familiar? I swear, though, that trouble finds me without having to look for it.

Now this next stage in the mystery may look exactly the same as the last time I showed it to you. Well, must admit I thought I'd got into a muddle when I looked at my files!!!

BUT if you look closely there is a row around the whole piece now. I think I found a small mistake either in the last part or this so had to 'wing it' round the ends!!!! Made BC3 work hard on getting it right!!!

I'm still pleased with it but feel that if there's anymore to be done then another colour will have to come into play!!! It's getting boring now - colour wise!

Finally all components are finished!

Everything is sorted and ready for the t-shirt which is now found, bought and home!!!! 

Yellow is the colour I chose in the end and yesterday I pinned all the bits of tatting on so that today I hope to have time to begin the task of sewing them on!!!

In fact I may use fusible web to 'stick' them on first so that they are easier to sew and I'll then use my 'favourite' thread with which I have a love/hate relationship!!! It's the invisible kind - IF I can find it!! That's supposed to be a joke - invisible - find. Get it? Sorry!!!

Today I've uploaded the 2 and T A and linked them to the eye and the heart. Also added links to them from the eye pattern so all links SHOULD work in case anybody else wants/needs to do similar!!!

Did anybody notice the front page of my pattern site?  I've changed that slightly too.   I like to change stuff regularly - now, Nick, how about I change you?!?!?!!?  That was a joke too!!!

Part 3 of the mystery

Just showing you the next part of my mystery. Any guesses yet?

Must go 'off topic' and tell you about our trip to the vets with our cat last week. Catching Tilly is always a problem and we had the usual 'catch me if you can' event landing up under the bed in the back bedroom.

Going to the vet is something we ALWAYS dread. There is on street parking nearby but you have to (a) find a space and (b) pay to park in it. The vet's do have their own car park but it's a nightmare. 

First you have to negotiate an archway which is just a tad wider than the car. Once through there you have a small courtyard with a right hand turn up a steep ramp to a space where about six cars can park. Meet anybody on the way in or out and you've got major problems. So between us there's always a 'discussion' as to who should drive there. It's only about five minutes drive and twenty minutes walking. We've walked in the past but carrying a 'cross' cat in a carrier is hard work with frequent rest stops.

This year we both had the same BRILLIANT idea. Why not use Nick's mobility scooter? So, that's what we did. I walked as usual and Tilly's carrier just fitted on the foot well under his feet. 

When we told the staff at the vets how we'd avoided the car park issues they said they'd never had a patient arrive like that before!!! Tilly? Well she was not impressed with her annual visit as usual but we now know that this is the way she'll be travelling in future!!!

Next part of the mystery

Yesterday I decided to add a bit more to the puzzle that I set you here.

This may help you to solve my mystery adventure. There again it may not help at all!!!

Somebody somewhere in Tat Land must recognise it soon!!!

Meantime I'm pleased to report that I've found a t-shirt and will hopefully be adding my bits and pieces to it over the weekend.  I still know where they are too which is pretty amazing!!!!

T A T

OK so here are the rest of the 'bits' for the new t-shirt!!! 

Thanks to Maureen commenting on yesterday's post I've also managed to find a picture of the original t-shirt which was/is on my blog.  

The real one is now found in a crumpled heap by the side of my chair - UNDER a load of other 'stuff'!!!! So, here's a link to it!!!

I'm going to make a really determined effort over the next few days to source a t-shirt to sew all these bits onto. I know what'll happen, though - by then I'll have lost my eye, 2 and TAT!!!! First place to look will be under the scanner!!

2

That's the title of this blog post!!! Just '2'!!!

Here it is the number 2 for my yet to be sourced t-shirt!!!

You will notice that I'm using lots and lots of different colours. The reason is simple - I have no idea what colour t-shirt I really want. Oh, except that it won't be blue as the last one with the slogan on was blue. Let me see if I can find a picture of the old t-shirt. No, not to be found on the computer anywhere.

Let me see if I can FIND the old tshirt to take a picture of it.

Heart

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.  Distracted from yesterday's project already!! 

Having told you about the tshirt idea on Friday - (here) I thought I'd do the heart ready for when I got the 'right' tshirt to sew them on. So, here's the heart. 

The pattern is this one - only cause I knew it was the right size to go with the eye!!!

Next I'll have to work on the 2, T and A but being a dozy old moo I didn't write them down last time I made them for the old tshirt so I'll have to start all over again!!!!

The start of another tatting adventure

This is going to be my relaxation project for a while. Probably for a few weeks as I'll always continue to have 'other things' on the go too.

Now, I'm NOT going to tell you what it is or where it comes from.  I'm going to challenge you all to tell me which pattern it is.  There may well be a prize at the end - something I've made probably OR a tatting leaflet or more.  We'll see.  The pattern does have a name, by the way and it isn't my design!!! 

I will tell you two things about it:-

1. It's going to be large.

2. It's going to be made with HWT - hand wound thread.

The plain colours of this project are reels of quilting thread that I found in a sewing shop in Cincinnati more years ago than I dare remember (see pictures below)!!!  The family was shopping in Krogers (think it was that store) when I sneaked off to the shop nearby.  Two or so years later on a return visit to Cincinnati I managed to sneak back there for more colours!!!  I did manage to sneak in the King Tut with the plain pink for this part!

Talk about value for money - doubt these reels will ever run out and I've used them loads of times for HWT.

Updated

Just a quick post today to let you know that I've updated the eye pattern which can be found here.

The reason for doing it right now is because I 'need' to make another one for a new tshirt/top I hope to buy!!! There will be an eye, a heart, a 2 and the letters T A T.  I found a few mistakes in the original and also needed to redraw all the pictures as they'd been done on a PC and I now use a Mac.  Then I decided to notate it for front/backside working too.  A simple job turned into a 'not so simple' one!!!

The tshirt I originally did the pattern for in 2006 is now being retired to the charity shop as my body seems to have outgrown it. OR, as I'd rather believe - it's shrunk in the wash. Cough, cough, splutter, splutter!!

Another task finished

Must be old age but I'm beginning to finish things I've started and not that long ago either!!! I think a health scare last week focussed the aged brain into getting my computer and tatting corner tidied up!!!  Won't last long now the scare's sorted so don't panic - I'm not leaving you all yet, I hope!!!  As I said to Nick - gotta stick around longer just to annoy people and I included him too!!!

So, here it is - the square motif finished in all it's 'glory'. A reminder picture is below although I know you've seen it before!!!!

Now this pattern isn't for the faint hearted.  I've been on Facebook for a long time now and have realised that people nowadays want fast, easy projects to do.  That's fine but it won't progress our craft and that's what I try to do.  Why?  Well if it's a bit more interesting than rings and chains then I'm hoping that people will want to try more challenges.

Well, whatever - it keeps me amused to try new 'stuff'.

Ah, but wait til you see what I'm going to do next - you may want me to eat my computer!!!!  A few years ago it would've been my hat.  Not sure which I'd prefer to eat!!!

Yesterday

Last week I was asked if I could possibly help a local WI group as their speaker for the meeting had been taken ill and couldn't manage to do her stint. 

Interestingly the chairperson is a lass I taught to tat about 400 years ago (well you can take a nought off the end of that!) so I was very happy to say I'd step in. Well that meant a grand rummage and sort through the two large boxes and the suitcase of tatting (all full to the brim!) to find out what I could take to show.

It's some years since I did the 'talk circuit' so I was a bit nervous. I started off explaining a little of the history and showing the knot itself using cord and a Tatsy shuttle. Then I spoke about how I'd stumbled on tatting via my gran and the time just went so quickly that I was surprised when the chairperson started to fidget as if I should shut up. So, I did shut up - after few more minutes!!! 

The highlight for me was when one of the members came up to me at the end and said that she didn't know who had been booked originally to give the talk but that she was very glad that she couldn't come and that I did!!!! RESULT - one VERY happy OG and BC3 wandered their way home for several LARGE cups of tea!!!

Now, I'm wondering how many other groups in the locality would like to be inundated with knotted thread for a couple of hours?!?!?!?

Finally and at LAST

So after a few more attempts at an edging (which I'm not going to bore you with) I can now show you the finished item. Now this would work for any size you care to make a doily/mat/thingie!!

I'm now at the stage of finishing off the pattern. This is a difficult one as it was inspired by a pattern in a magazine - a pretty old Italian one. You can see the original picture if you click on this link.

Let me explain. When I worked my first version it was by simply looking at the picture and then reading the numbers in the long hand written pattern. Guesswork then took place!!! I think the original is made in two rounds but you all know me and my lack of patience with sewing in ends - I immediately started with a SCMR for the centre and then used a SSSR (hiding one colour in that) to work my way out to the outer part.

Then I changed the centre completely to use rings and chains (with thrown off rings) and again using the SSSR idea and throwing in a split chain (minute!) too. Side rings were changed in size and a SR used at the corners. 

So, although in essence this looks a lot like the original I do think it is 'almost' my pattern. In order to share this pattern (I hope legally) I am going to publish it on my pattern pages with a note that it was inspired by the original. 

I will put a © (copyright notice) on the page in order to protect it for both the original unknown designer and for my own input (including drawings) which I THINK is fair.  I'd appreciate any comments on this and if people think it shouldn't be shared at all then I'll happily leave it to stagnate on my computer instead!!!

9 squares and more

You can see here that I decided to play some more and added a few more squares. It's now a nine square mat!!!!

I just had time too yesterday to try out an edging idea but it really doesn't work for me - yet!!! More tomorrow, I hope. Well, unless I get distracted!!!

Then there were four!

After seeing the single square I just knew this was going to work!!! 

SO, here's a group of four.  I LOVE the way the four SR's join together hey diddle diddle right in the middle.  That's a bonus.  Also those pesky side green rings meet nicely too.  This is beginning to look NOT a lot like the original square which I've put below mine.

BUT I'm now not happy with it again. I think it 'needs' an edging to go round it so let's go call on BC3 to see what he can come up with!!!!

Got IT!!!

Solved the problem of the centre that I didn't like. 

I realised that I needed to have something 'in there' to stabilise it. That (before this 'invention') centre part was like a dead eye staring at me and because of it I was no longer seeing the rest of the motif!!!

So, with smaller side rings, split rings on the chains and now the centre solved then I'm 'good to go' on this motif!!!!  I LOVE the way the chains coming out of the centre rings 'look' as if they're sort of going through the green chains.

All this is achieved with no ties and ends until it's finished!!  Mind, if you want to work it that way then you do need to know the split chain (VERY small one) and the SSSR carrying the second colour.  More about that later!!!  IF I remember!

Now for four

Next step was to try four of the green and blue squares together.

For this attempt I tried using a split ring again in the middle of the very long and wobbly chain. That still works for me.

I also used the skimmed down side rings but that didn't work as you can see. If you can't, then enlarge the picture and see how they tend to overlap each other. NOT good.  Well not in my opinion.

So, back to the future - or should that be the past?  

I still haven't totally decided what to do with the middles of the squares although I'm nearly 'there'!!!  Working hard with 'you know who' on solving the conundrum.