This is fun!!

The First Place prize for the IOLI 2024 Convention Lace Contest Original Design was awarded to Barbara Hevener for her Opera Bag. The  picture above is of the cover of the Fall 2024 Bulletin. This issue highlights all the Prizewinning Lace. Mrs. Hevener’s design includes this fabulous tatted goodie.

I really like the way she uses different sized split rings. Her pattern is clearly written out, not too complicated, and one of those that starts out a long line of rings and ends up a nicely shaped object. Just plain fun!! Thank you IOLI and Barbara Hevener for inspiring and sharing with us all!

Going Loopy again

 
Here’s my next set of earrings. The pattern is by Marilee Rockley aka Yarnplayer. She sells her wonderful HDT (Hand Dyed Thread) along with her patterns here. I’ve tatted quite a few and thoroughly enjoy them. Anyway, I lost one of a previous pair, so I tatted up a new set. Complete with lots of beads.

I bodged it

 I found this book in a vintage shop. I couldn’t resist buying it. I don’t sew clothes that often anymore. I did when I was younger (Nothing in the stores fit and was too expensive) and I remember how many times I would make a mistake and have to figure out how to make it a “feature” of my outfit.

***** I have since found out that a bodger is someone who makes chairs like the old-style Windsor chairs. Just one of many meanings of the word. *****

Which brings me to my latest tatting adventure…….. 

Loopy by Marilee Rockley 

I lost one earring from a favorite set. It is the lovely pattern from Yarnplayer. I no longer have the thread I used for the first set. I guess I liked the colors! So, I began a new set with different thread and decided to add beads. Lots of beads. It took me awhile to remember where I had put my copy of the pattern with notes from that first set. Once I found those notes, it took me awhile to remember just how I tatted the pattern. I chose the thread and beads, planned out how to place the beads, and started in. I hope to have a decent pair when I finish with the fourth earring. I hope……..

This made me smile

 

Christina's Angel by Mark Myers

I tatted this as a thank you for a friend. She gifted me tickets to the local Symphony Concert. It was great fun!

Round 3 idea

 

I managed a workable stitch count for the motif on round 3 of the Vintage doily. I think I still need to increase the TDS chains so that the motifs can join to each other. Lots going on in the studio and house just now so that may have to wait until next week.

Testing time again

 I’m testing out more options for the wonderful tools Stephanie Designs has for tatting. I’ve signed an NDA, so no info here until the product is ready for the shelves. I try to really think through how the products could be used. That often means sitting and fiddling with things and doesn’t really produce much lace. Then again, it’s worth it!

Pictures to come when they’re ready.

Time to get back to full speed at work

 The weather has cooled, the back is back to “normal”, the work on the house is falling into a steady bang and thump, and I’m itching to create! Time to get to work!!

This has me thinking

 I don’t have much to show for the last few days. The heat is starting to abate. Our marine layer hasn’t started back up. But, this is the time of year when I have a daily rainbow on the wall. I probably spend way too much time watching sunrises and enjoying the rainbow as it moves across the wall. Then again, life doesn’t get much better than this!

What got me to thinking is the music I found to play on the Orgelkids organ. In 2019, Orgelkids NL held a competition for demo pieces. The winners are available on the website. I found much to enjoy. I could have played for a good hour. We were sharing though. All that music got me thinking about tatting and how much has stayed the same and how much things have changed. That would make a good panel discussion.

It's hot here

 

I’ve been looking at photos of Asheville, NC where I travelled for Palmetto’s Tat Days a year ago. Taking time away from creating to clean up is just not what we should be doing! And if death has touched your life, that just is not OK. I hope the chaos calms down and the rebuilding goes smoothly so that we can get back to creating.

For us, the temperature has been warm. Very warm. It’s so rarely this hot, most houses here do not have AC. When we moved in, many of our windows were painted shut. You just don’t need to open windows to let in the air that often. We’ve slowly been refurbishing the windows. So, we can open them to capture the cooler air in mornings and evenings. While it’s warm, I’m not working with the silk on the elephant, the metallic on the cord, or really anything. I’ve been using the time to sort and sift through the boxes of stash that were passed on to me. I hope to have more boxes prepared to go to other people by the end of this hot spell.

I built an organ!

Not by myself and not a “real” organ. It does play and the pipes are so sweet! It comes as a kit from Orgelkids USA. It was so much fun!! We had a group of 10 people mostly following the directions. I can’t wait to bring it to groups to show how an organ works.