Saint Saens joins gone bad

Well, my adventures with the joins of this round continue. This version in blue thread had me stumped for how to join. Yes, I know, I wrestled with the white version at this point also. You see, the music doesn’t really bridge from one section to another here, but the sections are quite different. Thus, I wanted to design small motifs that were not alike and yet alike. But, how to connect them gracefully? Hmmmm. Because, well, the music is graceful in this movement; powerful, yet graceful.

I thought I had come up with a good pattern. In the dark thread, the connecting rings should disappear against a black cloth. The beads and such will still stand out. So, I’m pleased. Except when I try to execute and end up with this:

Saint Saens with a bad join

 

Not seeing anything odd? Don’t feel bad. It’s the small stuff here:

detail showing blue "blips"

 

Still not seeing it? Don’t feel bad. It’s only the one join between the two smaller parts. I twisted the one as I made my join. The one on the left should look more like this:

detail without blue "blips"

 

I’ll let you know how my attempt to cut out just that one little bitty knot for the lock join and fix it works.

Oh, a friend thinks at this point it looks like Mickey Mouse. What do they know?

it's RAINING!!

Well, it’s finally raining! I know, I know, it’s not enough to relieve the drought. But, it’s wonderful just the same. It means I won’t be sitting on the bench outside to tat this afternoon. I think I’ll go by the Lace Museum instead. I need to renew my membership. And, they have an open time to bring in your lace project and visit while you work.

I always feel a bit sheepish. I only tat. I’m just not drawn to bobbin lace. Don’t know why. Anyway, the museum always needs volunteers knowledgeable about lace and I know so little. And truth be told, I’d rather learn more music and tatting techniques than lace identification. Sigh. So, I feel sheepish. The lacers are always so friendly though. Aren’t we a great group of people in our little lacy corner of the world?

Anyway, back to the weather. It’ll be sunny tomorrow. And dry. But, the rain is nice today. I’ll be vigilant on the roads. They’ll be slick with this little bit of water lifting the oil up off the pavement. I’ve got a lot of lace to tat, after all.

Bach motif

I had the pleasure this summer of attending a concert in Carmel, CA. It was part of the Bach Festival that happens every year there. I’ve wanted to attend something connected with the Bach Festival since I lived in Monterey almost 20 years ago. It was a fantastic experience. I real treat!

The day inspired me to create a small motif.

BWV 225 Singet dem Herrn

It is based on the middle movement of a Cantata by Bach. Like many Cantatas, this piece uses a chorale (here represented by the white thread) and voices weaving harmony from melodies (here represented by the two blue colors of thread) in a dance of sound.

Saint Saens in blue

I realized the other day that I haven’t shown any of the Saint Saens pattern worked in blue thread. So I’ll be sharing a few over the next few posts. Here’s up through Round 1:

Saint Saens Round 1 with connecting rings

 

The thread is Lizbeth Wedgewood Lt. and Wedgewood Dk. in size 20.

The previous version of the Saint Saens I used size 80 thread for the connecting rings as I wanted them to fade into the background and needed to use the same color thread. I'm not sure which version I like better yet. I think I'll reserve judgement until the tatting is finished and mounted.

Of blogging and pins

Well, quite a while ago, I mentioned that I would be posting on Tuesday and Thursday. With my schedule of Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the Homework blog, that means that I can block out a regular blogging time in my day. Or so the theory goes…….

In an attempt to try out such a hair-brained idea, here’s the post for today:

I’ve sent off my tatting to the judges who volunteer for TAT. I hope they think my efforts are worthy of “Master Tatter.” It’s been a 2 year process. I’ll confess it was difficult at times to keep at it. Some of the patterns just didn’t grab me. My family reminded me that some of the pieces I work on for the organ don’t grab me; to accomplish what I set out, tatting will be no different. Many people have encouraged me along the path. I remember seeing a photo of the pins on a website many, many moons ago. I’ve been thinking of how my set would look. Anyone else have a set they own?