A puzzle for you all!!!

Can you guess what this is?

I'm sure  you've been able to read BC3's little brain by now so I'm not going to keep you in suspenders (whoops, suspense) for long.

They're fingers.  YES THEY ARE.  It's thanks to a very nice lady (thank you, Mary) who left a comment on my Facebook tatting page telling me that you can knit gloves from the fingers to the cuff.  

What a splendid idea when you're using up 'odds and ends' like I was in the last two pairs of gloves.  This would mean that you could make all the fingers the same and then play with the hand  and cuff with whatever you liked.  

So, off I went on another adventure.  More on Thursday when I've got a bit further.  If I'm managing OK I'll give you the link too.  Remember - knitting isn't my 'thing' really but I do enjoy a challenge.

Finished the second glove!

Well there you go!!!  Two different balls of yarn in a pair of gloves with just a little leftover at the end!!!  IF I'd had more of the lower yarn I would've divided it so that I started in the same place but having knitted socks with it I knew that the colour repeats were so long that I probably would've run out of it a lot sooner and wouldn't have been able to complete the pair.

BUT - you'll have to come back tomorrow to read the next part of the story as it doesn't end here!!!  

Oooooh, I do make myself laugh!!!

Let's go back to the Fandango square.

When I came up with this little Fandango square back when the dinosaurs roamed the earth I didn't realise how many patterns would come from it - or how many uses it would have.

I need a little something or other for my 'go to' when I'm tired tat.  Something I can just pick  up and 'do'.  So I decided it would have  to be the Fandango - BUT.  

Me being me I couldn't leave it alone - I had to fiddle with it as I wanted a ring in the middle.

Also I wanted to play with HWT - hand wound threads.  I am afraid I'm not into variegated threads unless they have subtle colour changes.  So I like to make my own. 

I year or two or whatever back I had a whole lot of odds and ends given to me by Sue so I've got them out of the cupboard to play again.  The biggest fun with this project is that no decisions have to be made until you want to start a new square!!!  This is my start!!!

Hanky finished

Finally it's done.  I made it up as I went along which makes for interesting (and frustrating) times!!!

I no longer have this as I’ve given it to a neighbour.  The colours just reminded me of Judy and I’m determined NOT to keep any more tatting as the pieces I’ve already done are cluttering up the house.  Boxes full of tatting which I really need to give away too.

Grace - endless hearts

I’ve been playing with Grace’s lovely little hearts braid and corner.  The reason I stopped where I did was because I decided I didn’t like the colour combo!!!!  That is typical of me.  

I’ve used a size 40 thread and I extended the long chains too as I like the space above them.  When I get back to it again (and I will) I will use size 40 once more.  I wasn’t happy with parts of it and I’m afraid I abandoned the EPJ join in favour of a regular lock join with a vsp over it.  Just one join was a bit of a pain without the EPJ but a ‘poke your hook into the base’ proved easier than I thought!!!  

This is a delightful little pattern and it’s so kind of Grace to give it away for free too.  Thanks, Grace.

Another glove!!!

The odd scraps of yarn I've got left from two other pairs of socks have been weighed and found to be enough (easily) for another pair of gloves.  Can you see where the colours change just above where the thumb starts?

Well I made sure I divided that second ball into two balls before I started.  The ball which made the lower part was one which Terry in Canada kindly gave me.  It was already divided into two balls by Terry.  I've now got two pairs of socks which will match one pair of gloves - well, sort of!!!! 

That's, of course, when I've completed the second glove!!!!

The forgotten Mrs Odum!

I do love talking to other tatters round the world.  I've had long conversations with Judith Connors over the past few months.  Nearly always about tatting but also I've learned a lot about Australia and their dealings with the virus.

One of those conversations was about the now famous Mrs Odum and her daisy.  The original pattern is at the bottom of this post but I've 'fiddled' with it adding in extra joins to stabilise the long chains.  

One of the other things that has come from Judith and our conversations is a recommendation for a television series called Harrow.  We binge watched it night after night.  Thanks, Judith for your friendship, knowledge and inspiration.

Here is the front, then the back of my latest Odum.

Only 'just'!!!

I thought it was going to be a bit 'iffy' trying to stretch my leftovers out to a second glove but it WORKED!!!

Can you see the little ball which is all I had left of the original?  

I must admit to a mild panic when I'd got the second finger done - would I have enough for two more fingers AND a thumb?  

Well I'm going to call these my 'bonus' gloves.  The original pair I made a few years ago are so, so warm.  I may keep these as 'spares' or my kids may like them.  If I give them away and then lose the originals then that will be a darn good excuse to BUY yarn to make another pair.  I do like knitting gloves.  

Hang on a minute - I think I've got more 'odd balls' of four ply yarn lurking in my stash.  Wonder if there's enough for another pair?  

More to follow!!!  Well, I hope!!!  

Just a hanky!!!

I think this hanky came from Handy Hands in a gift bag or something.  Maybe even in one of their Newsletters? 

Anyway I've never tried tatting straight onto a hanky before and it has it's problems!!!  The main one being, of course, a dithering BC3 who couldn't decide what to do.  I started this ages and ages ago so I think the first round was a lock chain with a vsp in the middle.  The simplest way to do that is to do an ordinary ds before and after the vsp.  

Then I did a ordinary chain on the following round which I forgot to scan to show you!!!  That's going to have to be a 'wait and see' game until I get the final round finished.

The aim (for me!) with a hanky is to use a pattern that will be VERY easy to iron if required.  I love the mega fancy ones that people make for special occasions but they are a beast to iron.  I'll be giving this to a neighbour 'just because'.  The colour will suit her too.

A Spiral Snowflake

Here's the last post about the Spiral Snowflake.

This is NOT how I envisaged the snowflake turning out AT ALL.  I am going to have to play further with the idea which is still lodged within the dark depths of BC3's muddled old brain!!!  I was wanting something quite  different but . . . . . . .

Anyway, here's the link to the pattern and I would just like you all to wish BC3 'bon voyage' as he sets off on another attempt to produce what I WANT!!!!

http://janeeborall.freeservers.com/allimages3/OrangewWhite_tiny.jpg

http://janeeborall.freeservers.com/allimages3/OrangeWhite.jpg

Moaning Monday - a conundrum

Question.  If a pattern is published in 2004 and then a person finds out in 2020 that it was published under another name in a book in 2014 who owns the copyright?

To add to this conundrum - the publisher of the 2014 version (a very close variation of the 2004 one) says that the designer did it in 1997 but it wasn’t published until 2014.  

How would the 2004 designer have known about the 1997 version if it wasn’t in the public domain?  

Also how does this all relate to Intellectual Property.  I'm NOT asking this to stir up ANY trouble as it's already been discussed with the publisher and it was just a discussion and ended up with our own conclusions BUT answers  and opinions happily accepted.

Having asked this question I may end up here!!!! 

Bowl cosies

After my little stint of pot holders/dishcloths I decided to try making bowl cosies.

Now I've made fabric ones aplenty in the past but this time I decided to experiment with crochet ones.  Why would anyone want a bowl cozy, you may well ask?  Bowls tend to 'cosy up' to each other in a cupboard so why do they want another 'man (or woman) made' one?  Let's face it they don't go out for walks and need a coat like we do!!!! 

Well they're for putting a bowl in in the microwave and they stop humans from burning their fingers when they get the very hot food out.  

I use mine a lot for the pudding sized bowls and I have several small bowls I use a lot too so I made a smaller version too.  

There is some logic in what I do from time to time!!!

Another spiral

Just a few posts this week as I've not got a lot to show!!!  Still plodding along with the knitting and the spiral snowflakes.  

I've found that the reverse join (although not 'essential') is a great technique for this little flake.  Mainly to keep the colour looking better in the very short chains.

Here's another I've done!!!!

Get behind me temptation!!!

A couple of weeks ago I got 'one of those' emails - like everybody does!!! 

This one is always quite interesting and on this occasion it was offering 4 ply wool (as in sock wool) at a truly great price.  

I kept this email in my inbox all week and kept going to look and kept trying to decide which ball (or balls) I was going to choose.  

I happened to be in the room where the tatting cupboard is (and my stash of yarn) when I wondered if I'd got any 4 ply wool that needed using up.  I found a few balls.  

There was a ball of variegated blue which I'd made my favourite pair of gloves from a few years ago.  They're SO warm.  So I found the gloves themselves and went to weigh both the gloves and the leftover yarn.  Eureka.  I've got enough for another pair!!!  Here's one of the pair already finished.

More dishcloths and hot pads

This is total relaxation for me.  Well, tatting is too but sometimes the old brain needs another challenge as well - just to convince it that it's really, really tatting that's consumed me for the past 64 years!!

During those years I've pursued many other crafts but always it's the shuttles I come back to.  

Anyway, I digress - but you're used to that by now!!!

Below is a blue and also a white thingy that I made a week or two back.

Margriet finished

Well here's my version of Margriet finished.  

Here's the link to the page too.  

I've found another oval doily which I've just started translating as well.  

A new little snowflake.

Can you guess what's brought this little idea on? 

Yes - too long spent on the Dutch translations!!!  

I'm not happy with it yet so will spend more time on it although it is only rings and chains.  I'll continue with this idea!!!

Another technique page

Now this is a simple but oh so useful little technique devised recently by Elaine P. Gan.  At first I must admit I didn't 'see' it as a particularly useful tool as, after all, the SLT was doing the same thing for me and that was already implanted in BC3's little old brain.

BUT when I came to try it out in a new little pattern I'm working on it certainly was helpful.  Not QUITE as Elaine probably would have thought of but it has now got me really excited.  

I bet you want to know what it is?  Well, Elaine has called it the reverse join which totally sums up the usefulness of this idea.  I used it with a switch shuttles too - will show you the new little design tomorrow - even though the web page itself isn't quite ready.

Here's a little technique page which I've done for thsoe who prefer to have things the 'old fashioned'way and not as a video!

Marie's Margriet

Marie offered to test tat Margriet for me but I didn't expect such a gorgous result.  Well I sort of did as I've seen her work and it is always stunning but having worked this pattern in a plain colour I just didn't appreciate how stunning it could look with a little more thought.  THANKS Marie.

Marie also added another round to the doily andI think it sets it off beautifully.  I would never have thought of that!!!

These are the colours that she used.  Lizbeth, size 20 in Elderberry Jam (177) and Raspberry Pink Lt (623).

HOT OFF THE PRESS - an update to this post.  Marie said she entered her doily in the county fair and received 1st place and "Best of Class."  See picture below.

Happy days, Marie and congratulations.

Sidetracked once again!!!

This time I can name and shame the person responsible for the start of this distraction!!!  It's Sandra!!  

Now Sandra's been pretty isolated since lockdown and has taken up knitting with a vengeance and has come across lots of patterns for hot pads or dishcloths or whatever you like to call them.  I've made a few over the past couple of months of which this is just one.  I must find the others and show you as they're all different.

Now to a story.  Many years ago when Nick and I were in America we spotted these hanging from people's appliances and places round their kitchens.  I'd never seen them back here in England but I managed to get a few while we were over there.  Very useful for wiping the fingers on when you're cooking!  

So, after the hot pad phase I've decided it's the hanging dish towel phase which will  happen next!!!  Here's my first one.  Can you see that it's 'not quite' finished?  I've got the thread (on the bobbin) and the button ready to sew on but will it actually happen this side of Christmas?!!??  I'll let you guess - yes or no!!!!