Vintage can be frustrating

Well, in this case it’s not the thread’s fault. Remember this batch of vintage thread I found? Well, the color and size was just right for the hearts I wanted to tat to add to the SAL. So, I started winding the shuttles testing the thread to make sure it wasn’t degraded. I made steady progress with just a few fits and starts. I successfully tatted 3 hearts. They actually turned out to be matched fairly well.

Then I got started on the final heart. I was busy with other projects. Work has blossomed and I was enjoying being busy doing what I love AND earning money at it. The thread was degraded more than I thought. I started tatting away as I was enjoying Bach Festival only to have the thread break repeatedly. Starting over I reasoned that it was the humidity and heat and my lack of focus. I finally gave up on the second daisy motif. Why?

Because not only had I muffed getting the break repaired by starting again with the same thread (what WAS I thinking) but I had tatted an extra ring in the daisy. Nothing for it but to pitch the mess in the trash and get started with fresh thread.

It’s going better this time. I’ll be finished with it by the end of next week. Then to sew them on the stitched parts.

Ready for snow

 

Well, we don’t get snow here. Unless you drive a few hours to the mountains. Then, you can ski and sled and snowboard and watch from the lodge. I usually end up tatting away in a warm, comfy chair! I finished this sitting in my sunny room at home. The thread is Liz Metallic in the color Frappe. It looks a bit burnished when you tat it up. I like it. Almost like pewter in the photo. The pattern is from Festive Snowflakes.

I’ll be getting back to these soon, but the yard needs tending and with the shorter days, I run out of time. Here’s what I found yesterday in our yard. The bush sends long stems out for these. I think the blooms would make good corsages or bunches for vases.

Kitschy gift

 I’m working on finishing Christmas gifts. I wanted to join in an “ugly sweater” exchange, but I don’t knit, the kit with stitching on wood that I found didn’t turn out (AT ALL!!), and time to get creative evaporated. So, I dug out my Weave-it loom and created this:

I hope it will grace a tree and bring smiles!

Fall is here

 This last weekend, I traveled to the “big city” for a concert. About an hour from my home. Not bad driving. The weather wasn’t great at the Bay and the weather in the Valley was passable. So, I guess the day trippers were watching football or something. Anyway, I enjoyed the concert and camaraderie.

It took going inland to see the trees turning the bright golds and reds of Fall. I tried to snap a picture with my phone but ran out of time to catch the best light. The maple was gorgeous! Now, we have maples and plane trees growing in the neighborhood; most everything in my yard is evergreen though. The plane trees leaves turn colors and drop off branches. Only the wisteria loses leaves after they turn a delicate yellow/gold. Oh, and the cherry tree…..itty-bitty cherry tree.

I have more Autumn color stitching I could do. I think I will finish the Christmas gifts first. Perhaps I’ll have a preview for the Thursday post.

A new challenge

 IOLI has issued another challenge. I can see so many possibilities! Now I must sift through what I have in progress or sketched out.

Perhaps another edging to a bookmark?

Decorate clothing with tatting?

Create something using crochet + tatting or Cro-tat + tatting? Muskaan posted some good ideas.

I think I’d better brainstorm a list, set it aside, let it percolate for a few days (NOT lose it!) and then decide what I’ll be creating.

The presents are piling up

 

This kit didn’t take long to finish. The part that I spent the most time: replacing the white beads that got separated from the kit before I received it. I wonder what they were used for? I’ll never know…..

I’ll trim it and add a way to hang it. I hope it will be treasured.

How do you plan a project?

 Do you grab your shuttle, or needle pack, and thread and just start creating lace?

    Do you brainstorm on paper drawing out a design?

        Do you study a piece of tatting and figure out the pattern?

            Do you study what you’ve tatted previously to figure it out?

                Do you grab a book or open that doc on your computer?

I do all of the above.

Which is why I don’t have a lot to show for my design time. I need to pick a vector and stick with it (as my favorite creative engineer says) so that I stop adding to the bits and pieces pile and start adding to the finished design pile.

I will be taking a page from a writer’s group I know of: regular meetings for encouraging and holding each other accountable to our goals and dreams. Care to join me?

What to do with someone else's UFO?

In my adventures, I have received boxes of “stuff” with “things” in them. Usually, it’s when someone is down-sizing or clearing a house. I’m not sure if living in a historic home influences this or not, but I’ve had fun!

Some of these things are useable: a pin loom, plenty of stitching thread, tatting thread, and lots of scraps of material to stitch with.

Sometimes there’s a half-finished project (or UFO) that intrigues me. Benefit from someone else’s kit fixing, add tatting to it, or try out a new technique. This is one I finished last weekend:

Now to figure out how to use it!