Tat's it - I'm out of butterflies. Bored with making them now and also itching to get back to the heart again. Well, tat's what I'm telling myself - we'll see what this evening brings!!!! Off to list these three on ebay. They really look a lot prettier in real life than in the pictures.

Still in butterfly making mood. Three more yesterday afternoon/evening and hopefully some more this afternoon/evening. The weather is dire so I probably won't make my daily walk again today. HATE being stuck in all day. Anyway, here they are. I'm just going to list the five I've done on ebay along with some more Aero shuttles.

I had an evening off worrying about the heart!!! Gave myself a treat and made these two little critters in rings. I'm just delighted with them. I shall make a few more in different colours and then go back to the heart.I had an evening off worrying about the heart!!! Gave myself a treat and made these two little critters in rings. I'm just delighted with them. I shall make a few more in different colours and then go back to the heart.

I've just pressed the wretched heart and look - it doesn't look too bad!!!! Mind, it doesn't fit the ring I'm making it for so it's GOT to be sorted. Think I'll have to take out a SR on each side and do some tweaking on stitch counts. Anyway, I've abandonned it for a few days. Meanwhile, I'm playing with fishes in rings. I'm wondering whether the bubbles will work? Do I need more?

Naming the Heart

I have a name for my heart - HATEFUL HEART. I hate it at the moment. Not sure if I'll continue with it. Look at it - have you ever seen ANYTHING so UGLY. Actually I usually get to this 'stage' in a design so I'm not going to worry too much about it. Think positive, Jane. Think positive. I LIKE the chains forming the outside. I LIKE the centre. I'm pretty sure of what I need to do next. I need to take out a SR at each side and re-tat again. Been a BAD day as my computer went terminal on me this morning and it's only thanks to a major 'kiss of life' from 'him wot must be obeyed' that it's now back and staggering along. I shan't even try to re-draw or re-tat this evening - I need joy in my life so I'll make something else!!!! Oh, woe is me!!!

Progress and Lack of Progress!

I had a good session on the heart yesterday as I started in the afternoon. Naughty tatting in the afternoons but the weather was abysmal!!

So first of all below are various 'scraps' due to mishaps, restarts and plain lack of concentration!!!

The piece I've tatted below is the first one I tried based on the drawing (also below). You can see that the actual tatting looks nothing like the drawing. Yesterday I thought that the piece 'bulged' too much at the sides so decided to do away with one SR on each side but when I was tatting the new version up I realised that this wouldn't work. I will have to add the SR's back in to today's drawing. I've also joined two SCMR's to SR's to add stability to the middle. The first tryout below doesn't look too far off! The problems with any alteration is that the text has to be constantly changed and the numbering of the rings too. If I didn't draw and re-draw, text and re-text then I'd get VERY lost!! The final tryout on the right is probably going to be the final 'start point' for the heart (longer chains at the top and a bit more 'tweaking'). I shall now use a 'decent' colour and thread and try playing with beads. Also need to re-draw this one today.

If you look very closely at the final one you will see that it must have been late in the evening. I obviously can't read my own instructions and missed two joins. These I tied in afterwards but they may well throw the whole design out of shape and I might find myself starting again from scratch. It has been known to happen many times in the past!!!

Later in the day and I've drawn up the new diagram to go with the text based on the last tryout above.

Next Stage

Yesterday I re-drew the heart in the ring - here it is.

I wasn't happy with the previous tryouts as the three SR's (8, 9 & 10) looked rather clumsy and forced me to use the split chain. You will see above that I have turned the SR6 into a SCMR to try and avoid this. All changed yet again when I started to tat this drawing! I made SR8 much smaller as shown in order to get a more defined 'dip' in the heart shape. After I'd worked the following chain out towards R9 I realised that this wasn't going to look very good so I undid that part and tried it again using a chain direct from the base SR5 and using a lock join to the two picots on SR6 & SR7. I carried on as it didn't look too bad!! Well, it didn't until I'd finished the whole thing!! I'm going to have to sort this bit out again tonight.

When I got to R10 I decided to try another SCMR instead of a ring. This has given me what I wanted - more 'bulk' at the top of the heart. By this time I decided it would be best to finiish off this tryout and take a look at it within the ring.

I put the heart in the ring tying it in the places I thought best. YIKES - horrid!! If you look carefully at the picture below you will see where I've tied it in AND tied 'suggested' additional joins to firm the whole thing up. Also you will see that the group of SR's (11, 12 & 13) and the chains before and after need to be 'sorted out'. I think I will probably have to 'get rid of' one of the SR's. So, what this means is that today I shall have to re-draw and alter the text accordingly to the whole pattern. Almost starting from scratch again.

Later the same day!!! I've now re-drawn the heart twice! If you take a look at the two drawings you'll see that I've removed two split rings down the sides and jiggled the top to add another two SCMR's. BUT having done the first one I realised that it would be a mess where the pattern meets in the dip. I tried to work the SR5 and then continue round the outside. When I got to the very end (back in the dip) I saw that it would be a mess!!! I then went back and re-drew this. Whilst drawing I always alter the text - using lots of question marks which remind me to check on the next tatting session!!! Next stage will be to test the last picture and the text together. I expect there will be other major alterations before this simple heart is finished.

New Year - New Design

Happy New Year and I'm off to a stuttering start tatting wise!!!! I'm going to show this design in all it's 'glory' from the very, very start to (with a bit of luck!) it's finish. Below is how I'm teaching myself to start a new pattern. In the past I've started with the picture of what I'm hoping to achieve and just tatted it but over the past year or two I'm gradually changing over to 'drawing' it on the computer first. So, picture number one is the ring with a 'standard' heart in it which I put together and placed on 'layer 2' of my drawing program (SerifDraw Plus).

The next step was to 'draw in' what I think might work on layer one (a bit like tracing). Now, while I'm doing this I think of how it will be achieved and in this case (at the moment) it will have two split chains between SR9 and SR11.

The third step was to turn on the telly, power up the laptop, get two shuttles filled with thread (and in THIS case I know it will have lots of SR's but will have to be worked in one colour) and start with the text. I type in the text as I go then at the end of the evening email it to myself to pick up on the main computer in the morning. I usually use two colours in the first few tryouts so that I can clearly see where I'm going but sometimes I stick to just one. In the picture below you can see that this heart isn't going to work out quite big enough for the ring. I also don't like the arrangement at the top left hand part. In the second drawing I did you will notice that I was trying to achieve a deeper 'dip' in the heart. So many that I've done and seen in the past don't (to my way of thinking) have a very clear outline. This is one of the things I'm hoping to achieve. Later today I shall take what I've done and look at it carefully and re-draw it. I'll add this later.

Back again with thoughts on making tatted earrings

I couldn't get into my blog yesterday so the seahorses are what should've been added then!!!

The earrings are some I made yesterday and I'm VERY pleased with them. They look even prettier in 'real life'. I've listed all four pieces on ebay!!! The pattern is here http://tinyurl.com/yco7pv

Some of my thoughts on making tatted earrings.

Having made earrings for about twenty to thirty years I've found out by many, many mistakes that the design has to be simple and strong. By strong I mean that it has to withstand being worn!!! Obvious, I know, BUT not always easy to achieve. The really pretty lacy looking earrings don't often work for me. After a few 'outings' I find that they bend even when well stiffened. To combat this the addition of as many beads as possible can help! (See my other earrrings which are based on the 3D snowflake). http://tinyurl.com/ylrmef

Using a very tight tension and a strong six core thread helps too. A thread like Flora, Manuela etc. Earrings can be made using a fine 60, 70 or 80 but I find that these work better with an added filament - again plenty of beads. Design is the main part of making earrings. Keep them simple and with clean lines. Slim earrings no more than and inch or so wide work well - length doesn't matter. Adding a split ring (like those you find on a key ring) to hang the finished piece to the findings is also an good idea and this is best worked into the tatting itself. The earrings below have them added into the long beaded picot but with the Christmas tree earrings I actually tat over the ring.

Another suggestion and one which I've used on the white pair below, is to Scotch Guard them to prevent them getting dirty.

The above are only my thoughts on making earrings and I would be very happy to add other people's suggestions to these.

Additional ideas from the comments section and email lists.

Also, as Wally suggests - you can squidge in some PVA to make the earrings not only a bit stiffer but to also keep off the dirt!!

From Sylvia in Penarth (that's in Wales!!). I have also tatted around a four hole tiny button, these make very pretty ear-rings, I used flora and a tight tension, they ended up stiff enough as they were. So keeping clean wasn't a problem, I washed them!!

Gina has reminded me that another thing I do is use PVA glue to 'blob' the piece of tatting onto the finding if a split ring isn't used. I used to do this in the past but nowadays try to 'build in' a split ring as it makes for a safer finished item.

More Seahorses!

Still making seahorses with a plan to do the last two today - life permitting!!! These two are really prettier than they look with the colours being really bright. No idea why they don't look as bright as usual - perhaps the scanner's not quite awake like me!! Just listed these two on ebay. Two more planned for later today and then I'm definitely going to make new earrings!!!!

Seahorses and Tatting Shuttles for Ebay!

I'm so pleased with my latest little projects. These are the first two and I've just listed them on ebay. I'm going to make four more and then I may make some earrings that I've been thinking about! I've also listed the Aero shuttles on ebay too.

Shopping Bag Finished - probably!

I made myself finish the shopping bag off on Christmas Eve. I sewed the pieces on and this part is finished. I may add more pieces around the sides but that will have to wait for further inspiration!!! I made the bag back in August but it's taken all this time to find the time to finish it!!!!

Below is the wonderful parcel I had from my Secret Santa who was Omar Bentley in Oz. Such a lot of fun - especially opening the canned Koala.

T T & A

This is the final part of my bag project apart from any further 'decorations' which I will add as and when I like. To achieve this effect I've used a 'sort of' block tatting. I was playing the other day and 'discovered' another way of doing block tatting which was a progression of a suggetion of Sue Hansons. Now I'm really a lazy tatter and look for the easy way out of everything. Sue's idea of doing a SLT and turn at the end of each row to save the traditional way of changing shuttles etc really appealed to me!!! I then had a 'brainwave' which was quite a surprise as my brain doesn't often work that way and thought I'd try doing it without the SLT and turn but try going back on the second row without flipping the knots. This works a treat. Woweee, I thought. Jane's invented something. So I wrote to the tat guru - Georgia Seitz - and asked if I had come up with something new. Duh, no!!!! Georgia told me that Julie Patterson had done this in her book 2. So I wrote to Julie to tell her how funny it was that I'd come up with this too. What tickled me even more was that Julie wrote back and said that when she used block tatting in her book she thought that this was the only and right way!!!! I really would suggest getting a copy of Julie's book as the way she has illustrated and explained it is in one word - EXCELLENT. I will try and do it at some point in my own way for my pattern site.
Now the idea/technique that I've used below isn't a 'true' block tat and this will be explained too in due course.

2 Finished

Here is a picture of the number 2. I've used the braid that's shown below.

Making a braid

I've been playing recently and found a simple way of making a braid. As you can see in the picture below this can be shaped easily as you go along. I'm going to use it to make my 2 and T A T for my shopping bag.

Last Starcatcher and New Stuff

This is number 36 of the starcatchers and has to be the last unless, of course, I go and buy some more of that sized ring. I'm going to make some seahorses to put in rings to sell on ebay and Pamela Myers in Ireland tells me that the shop called 'Claires' has them on offer at the moment. I'll try and get down town today as we have a branch here. I usually buy them from there as there's so much choice of colours and at least two sizes.

I've also started work on my 2 T A T. Below is a first tryout but I think this will be abandoned for another idea which occurred to me in the night!

Techniques and Great Minds!!!!

I think I bought the bracelet rings for the starcatchers way back in August. I bought two packets of 18 each. I now have one left! I've kept very few (3) for myself and have managed to give away all the others. Mental note to myself - don't start so early in the year making Christmas giveaways as they rarely stick around until Christmas!!!

Yesterday I finished my final piece for the Palmetto Tatting days application. Mind, there's a lot more to do before I file my application. I came up with a REALLY clever idea for doing block tatting another (and easier IMHO) way. I was just SO proud of myself. I thought I'd better check this out with the tatting guru (Georgia Seitz) as she'd know if it'd been done before. Duh, yes!!! It has!!! Julie Patterson uses it in her book which I must now go and buy. The book is called 'More Crosses Than You Can Bear'. There's a review on it here http://www.georgiaseitz.com/reviews/juliep/juliepbk2.html

Looks like I'll have to keep an eye on Julie - one VERY talented lady.

I am pleased to announce that a supply of 'England' Aeros have arrived home with me safely. These are the 'Rolls Royces' of the Aero bobbin shuttles and far superior (but I can never see why!) to those made in Germany. All I can think is that they changed the moulding or the quality of the plastic.

I will start listing them on Ebay and/or Etsy just after Christmas. No point now as nobody would get them before the 'festive season'. Just can't believe my luck - a few will be put aside for my 'old age' and my sister wants a few too. The rest can fly round the world to whoever wants them. Only hope they go to good homes where they will be used and loved!!!

Great Tat News

The lady to whom I spoke on the Friday market two weeks ago rang me this morning to say that she can get me the Aero bobbin shuttles. YIPEEEEEE. They are straight from Redditch where they used to be made many, many moons ago so obviously they are the original ones with 'England' marked on them. My ex husband actually found two in a cupboard when he worked there many years ago and he 'set them free' to tat for me!!! About the only decent thing he ever did for me, come to think about it!!! Anyway, I will be picking them up on Friday and then after Christmas I will start listing them on ebay. I think I'll keep a few just for myself - one needs to look after the 'inner soul' at times. Oh, and my sister will get a couple too. Well, tat's all for now.

Three more completed yesterday. This time I TRIED to find other colours - avoiding the bright ones. Did it work or not? Hmmmm, not sure but I'm still pleased with them. I think this is one of my favourite of all time patterns. I worked it out yesterday. I bought two packets of the rings (18 in each) and now have two left. 34 starcatchers done and 6 now left to giveaway. That's one for each of the grandsons. Nathan had his on Saturday so just Callum and Oscar to have theirs.
Now I've no excuse not to return to Palmetto work!!! I've enjoyed the autopilot tatting for two days but now want to do something new!!!

More Star Catchers with a Difference

I made three more of these yesterday late afternoon and evening. It was a long evening as, for once, there was a good film on the telly!!!! If you take a careful look at these you'll see that I've changed the centres slightly. I've done them like the starfish which makes working the whole thing a tad bit easier!!!

A Very Busy Time

When will it ever stop?!?!? I've been very busy, as I said, preparing my submission for the Palmetto tat days next September. I'm now mostly through it with just two more small ideas which I need to think about and do to finish it off.

I was intending to get back to my shopping bag idea yesterday but when I took my friend her Christmas tat giveaway she asked if she could buy two more off me for her daughter!! This happened the other day too. So, I've run out!! Back to the starcatchers!! I did one yesterday evening and have another 'on the shuttles' at the moment. What a lovely treat - no thinking - just tatting AND with beads too!!!

I know I've been quiet lately but I have been working on lesson plans which I am going to submit to the Palmetto tatters. A HUGE challenge as it's always difficult to come up with new ideas. The hardest part is thinking of an idea where the point you want to put across to the class is included quite early on in the time allocated. This really has to be done this way as students work at different speeds. SO reminds me of being back in my classroom. Planning lessons for over thirty young children, setting the targets, getting them settled down and then five minutes later little Johnny had finished!!! Duh. Did one strangle the little beggar or find him another challenge?

As the last main pattern for the application is now almost done I'm going to 'treat' myself to a day of tatting something for myself. I really, really want to do the 2 T A T to go on my shopping bag. I've done the eye (see previous posting) and the heart will be straight forward. The 2 is not so bad as I made a start on that some time ago.