Ok, I know I have been remiss in posting, but I have several things to show off now that I think you will get a tickle about. I have been experimenting with different pattens to wrap christmas ornaments with. I think I am going to try and make 2 or 3 A month this coming year so that I can either give them away next year or make a tree entirely of tatted ornaments. I think that would be most excellent.

here are some pics of the newest. :D
Enjoy.

Still working with Ornaments.

I finished a couple new ornaments. one is simple white tatting around a red globe. Very dramatic up close, the second is with HDT in a multi colored blue white and green, It is very nice I think. I had a friend threaten to steal it. Then again she also likened herself to a magpie. Not sure whether to be amused or flattered. heh.

Also incuded are the two newest iterations of the snowflake pattern. not sure what to call the blue one, the green one is called "Green grow the rushes" from my friend lark.

In Honor

In Honor of the woman who originally taught me to Tat, I am offering a giveaway!
My Nana was an enigma, She was born in aught 2 as she used to say, She passed away in 2000. 98 is a formidable accomplishment in life. Her story truly is long and involved but suffice it to say she lived a very long full life. She buried all of her family, including her son, my father. She survived 2 husbands. Sold Stanley Home Products, as well as being a full time beautitian! She had a shop set up in her basement. Her nickname on the CB was Gadabout. She loved to travel and see new places. She taught me to crochet, knit and Tat. She would not kiss me because I had WHISKERS! She also gave me her recipe to make her Date Nut pinwheel cookies. What is funny is this, I am the only one she taught these things. She always just "DID" for others, I was the only one who asked to learn them.
So here is the Game~ Guess the Gadabout's Birthday!!! The person who guesses her birthday or guesses closest to her actual birthday will get the white snowflake with the silver beads that is the main blog picture for this blog. I got such wonderful responses from you all I want to return something to you. So, I will take guesses until Yule! December 21, 2008. I will determine who is closest on that day and will send out the prize on Monday the 22nd of December. So send your submissions to my email, inkydaffin AT gmail.com with the subject of "Gadabout". I will notify the winner via email and as a comment to this blog entry to let everyone know who won.
I want to thank Everyone who has posted comments to my posts. You ALL have been wonderful and for that I am truly thankful. In the event that two guess the same date and either hit the date exactly, or hit the closest date exactly I will JUST have to tat a second one to send out. I hope that will be acceptable as far as a tie resolution.

Mike.

Come on up to the Lab and Ill show you my favorite obscession.

Forgive me the RHPS reference, but I watched it with a friend this week and I just have it on the brain just like the newest iteration of the last snowflake I posted. I wanted to give a new friend something a little different, I offered her a snowflake and then decided to send her Two instead. I did not want to send her exactly the same one as before, because well after all, NO SNOWFLAKE is exactly the same as any other. Going on that theory I figured I would change the snowflake a little to see what I got. I decided to use Half double sitiches for the long legs of the flake points. I did the Second half of the DS first on the way out to the point and did the First half of the DS on the way back to the center. I figured this would give the resulting spirals a symmetry to them. Now that I have had a chance to look at this enhancement to the original pattern I Love it even more than the first one that I did. I still get the swirl effect but now it is even MORE pronounced. Also since this alteration works, I guess doing the hds in the same direction for the whole length of the bar to the point and back could also make for a nice effect. I guess what I am saying is this, "It is excellent to follow a pattern, You will always get the expected result. Adding your own flair to the design will make it uniquely yours and could end up pleasing you more than accomplishing the pattern did the first time!" Tatting is such a relaxing passtime for me that I look for ways to make it more fun! I hope you like this flake as much as I did making it. M.

Size does matter

I was speaking with my friend Sandra recently and she said, I am doing snowflakes in sz 10 as they go together quickly and you get a huge snowflake. I got a request for a burgandy flake so I decided to pull out some thread in 10. Here is the result. I pulled one of the rings too tight but Ill correct that on the next one. I loaded enough thread to do 2 of them. point to point this flake is 5" across she is OH so Right! in so many ways. Thanks Sandra!

Playing in the snowflakes.

I found a pattern I liked some and decided to work on it and make it more my own. Here is what I ended up with I really like how the tips of the snowflake are tipped and I get the curve just right. I like how it swirls. I have been counseled about posting things and not posting my pattern with it so I am going to include probably more information than yall ever wanted to know but here goes.

Here is one version of the written pattern I will include 2 for the sake of just being redundant. Muahahah! 
*R 2ds 5p sep X 2ds 10ds cl rw
ch 3ds 6p sep X 2ds J last picot of ring continue 13ds rw
R 2ds 7p sep X 2ds cl rw
15ds j last picot of last ch rw.
Repeat from * 5 times
and:  

* R: 2---2---2---2---2---10 cl rw
CH: 3---2---2---2---2---2---2 j(p on r) 13 rw
R: 2---2---2---2---2---2---2---2 cl rw
CH: 15 j(p on ch) rw * 5 x

And here is a visual pattern as well.

I do not know how, I do not know when, I do not even know why, but I found these tonight when I was out picking up last minute things to make holiday fixings and I am GOING to use them somehow some way in my tatting!!! these are just TOO cool!!!

Working with large pearls while tatting.

As all of you know adding large beads to work can be tedious. I am doing a collar where I am adding 6mm pearls and I was trying to get it on my regular little shuttles. Talk about tedious!!! Still I was trying to work with it but I had just too many pearls for the work I had to do to get safely or securely on the shuttle I was using. Then, I remembered! My friend Sandra sent me some really interesting shuttles from Russia!! I pulled out the middle one, green, and loaded the pearls on it. Talk about AMAZING!! the shuttle is not really any larger than the shuttle I was using but is much much taller! So I loaded my pearls and started tatting. Here is the current result. I am Such a happy TATTER right now!!!

Christmas just would not be the same without...

Ornaments! So I have been working on tatting around christmas ball ornaments. I have been experimenting with different styles of beads on the balls and I like how thats going but adding the beads where I do I have found that it makes the tatting that much more difficult to manage and work with. Still here is a selection of the balls that are done. :D

Oh the weather outside is frightful!

The weather here in colorado has turned COLD! Tonight happens to be snowing and blowing wind. Fine by me as we are on a wind generator for electric!! Since it is cold and really no other things to do I have been busy with tatting. Who woulda thunk it?? right? heheh.. Still I have been having fun with color. Enjoy!

Mike.

Ok I have been a bit busy these last few days. So I decided to show you all the variations I have done on color for the snowflake pattern I have fallen in love with. I have decided upon two basic patterns. one more open and one with the clovers at each point. I included a dime and a quarter to show you all the scale of the snowflakes. :D Here is the work I have done thus far. More to come!

I have decided to do the Primary colors for snowflakes as well. I am going to experiment with Pearls and different beads. So far I have used the gold beads and the green beads in one case. I have blue beads and red ones as well. I am going to hit the bead shop tomorrow if time allows and pick up some foil lined beads to make them shine a little brighter when they are hung on the tree. I love how the gold beads play against ALL the colors. I also have some semi precious beads. Ameythist and onyx etc. I may even try those to see how they look worked into the pattern. I picked up some pearlescent beads to put on the white snowflakes so expect to start seeing some of those as well soon.

Christmas gifts and some tryout tatting.

I started tatting the other day and decided to try some around a christmas ball. I used size 20 and thought it might be a bit too clunky. After it was done I looked at it and it seemed ok. The more I look at it the better I like it though. I think I will try doing some with size 80 to see how it looks. I know it will be a bit more delicate but this one reminds me a bit of snow on the rooftop, kinda sorta. Still I am going to experiment some more with it.







I started a necklace for my aunt. I posted it earlier and I have since finished it. so I am posting the finished product. I also made some earrings to match. I know how hard it can be to match things when it comes to jewelry.











And last but not least an update on the Hat. I have completed two more rounds. I altered the pattern because I did not like how small the rings were in the second round. so I increased it by 1ds each part. so its now 3p3p3p3 cl.

Update on russian tatting shuttles.

I was asked about the size relative to something so that they could determine the size. so here is a new pic with the shuttles next to a ruler and a Tatsy shuttle so that you can determine the sizes.

More...

Sandra was ever so kind as to send me a really neato CARE package. I absent mindedly forgot to include some other MAJOR gifties!! so here, is the rest of the story! (I just knew you would catch the reference Sandra.)


In my package she included these two skeins of HDT one is called apple blossom the green to pink/red and the other is called coral reef. Both are from Tatskool. (note: Tatskool you do some lovely work with the thread dying, thank you I will be looking your direction soon for some colors)



Also here are the Russian Tatting shuttles that were in the box as well.

Christmas is coming.....

So of course we start thinking of what can we do with this obsession called tatting so that I can make christmas gifts and feed the obsession at the same time???
Well I decided to make necklaces for my aunt and two of her children. I saw this pattern somewhere but forgot where so I just made something that looked similar to what I had remembered.




My aunts favorite color is yellow so I ordered a ball of medium yellow, I SWEAR the color charts just do not do the colors justice. I fell in love with this ball immediately. It has such a beautiful sheen to it and it just makes you want to bite into the ball!

Now for a side point. I also ordered the CHRISTMAS RED ball of thread from Cebelia. Did you know that the number for this particular thread is 666? I find it mildly amusing with that whole Santa = Satan bullcrap I heard years ago but still to put the number of the beast on CHRISTMAS RED?? heheh... I just guess I have a warped sense of humor....

Let it snow let it snow let it snow.....

Since its that time again I too have been starting to make snowflakes. I generally cannot follow the patterns out there because my tatting seems to have a mind of its own. So usually play with my own patterns and stitch counts etc...
I got some hand dyed thread from Lark in Nevada, Ill find a link for her and put in in a later post. You can order HDT from her as well and she takes requests!!!
Here is some of the hdt in a snowflake I did.

Its a very simple pattern R 5p sep by 2ds cl rw, ch of 8ds between the rings at the top, 10 from the ring to the join and 15 from join to join. I pull my DS tight so it will be bigger if you tat loosely.

Here are a couple more Snowflakes I have done recently.




I started a pattern for a hat/bonnet. I got a request for it to be in pink and black.

Friends!

I have a friend in Georgia. She and I started talking recently and we share jokes and text messages. Sandra informed me that she would be attending Palmetto days in SC and asked ever so thoughtfully if I needed anything. Wait till you see what I got!! I asked for two balls of sz 20 Dark purple thread as ALL of you know purple is one hard color to find. Still I asked. She found two balls of Opera thread for me and I am happy as a clam. She also got a set of shuttles from russia, they are distinctly different from the ones available here I will scan them and get them up soon so you all can see. They are much thicker than the american ones. But still Ill bet they hold a TON of thread.
In my box she sent me some interesting Flossing doodads that she uses for Magic threads and beading etc. Ill scan those as well.
Also in my box were two tatted pieces one snowflake and one Heart book mark. Both are stunning.

Thank you Sandra!

One of the other addictions

I have another addiction that I have practiced since I fell too. Hardanger.

Hardanger Embroidery is a type of whitework that takes its name from that region. It is made with geometric designs of kloster (blocks), "ships", diamonds, and other embroidery techniques. It is worked on Hardanger or linen fabric which has a "count" of 22 to 29 threads per inch. Traditionally it is worked on white fabric with white cotton thread but in recent years other colors and threads are popular. Norwegian bunads (native costumes) from that region often feature this embroidery on the bottom of the white apron.

Today we use the hardanger type of stitchery to embellish many things. I use it mainly to do Pillows. Since I learned to do the Traditional Whitework I have expanded into working color on white, and color on color and then Vareigated color on color. Watercolors are my friend!!
Still here are some examples of the color on color.

Some more of my recent work.

HI all, I have decided to become a bit more industrious about posting to this blog now that I am actually feeling social, for the most part, once again. So here are some more of my work.
The blue one to the right is a bit like the pink one posted yesterday but still is different in a lot of ways. It has beads on the large picot toward the center and three picots on the outer picot from the trefoils. I love doing the trefoils. I like how they sit and form. I really liked this particular collar because of how the joins came together from the first pass to the second. I will post a close up of the blue here in the next line or so.
Recently I was asked to make a goth choker. I figured I would go with the black, but what do you add and how do you make a choker look GOTH? hmmm I was not sure but the end result gave the person exactly the colors she wanted. I also made her a white choker incase she was feeling a bit angelic instead. I used silver closures with chain on them. She loved both!
I am Happily working out a purple necklace for another friend. I am not far enough along to show you anything you have not seen already but I promise I will post it when I do.