The Basics

 I’m drawn to simple things that turn out to be complicated.

Simple: Driving a straight road.

Complicated: Keeping your attention on the road when it’s straight for 35 miles with nothing but fields on either side.

Simple: Plagal cadence.

Complicated: Double the fifth in the bass (pedal) with a suspension on the top.

Simple: Classic square motif.

Complicated: Sewing thread that needs extra joins to keep the overall shape correct.

Remember this cross? 

Here’s a bookmark I’ve been working on.

Another few hours of tatting (and forgetting picots) and untatting (using my handy, dandy, magnifier) and I should be ready to see if it’ll work as is or will need to be in sleeve to be used wisely. (I DO NOT starch bookmarks! One time of trying to resume reading after the book had sat in hot humid weather taught me that lesson!)

More weaving in the heart

I completed more of the Martha Ess Heart pattern:

This is the final round at the point of the heart; from here on out, you work up the side to the top ending at the “cleavage” with a final chain. To complete the pattern, you tat part of a self-closing mock ring, switch to the other color thread, tat part of a second self-closing mock ring, then you weave the shuttles through rings, tat chains and finally close the rings. It sounds complicated and hard to execute. In all sincerity, it was easier to figure out shuttle placement of these few elements than to figure out shuttle placement of the first join of this round.

Funny thing though….I caught almost all of my mistakes in the complicated parts, but as I finished, I noticed that first join does not match the picture. I need to study the pattern, figure out if I really did make a mistake, and then make notes to help the next time around.

Yes, there will be a next time. I’ve had a request to tat this pattern in quilt thread for some earrings.

A tatter's vote

This is nothing political. Just your tatting opinion desired.

I have a tin with shuttles and thread that goes with me to demonstrations. In it live a few shuttles I’m not fond of, but are readily available or are examples of what tatters typically used a generation ago. I also toss in shuttles with just a bit left on them; enough for a butterfly or ring or 2.

After my last foray using the tin, I decided that I really had to empty one shuttle. The thread is quite fine, I assumed size 80. The shuttle is larger, so I thought it would work nicely for beads. I decided that I should use up the thread trying out the Hen N Chicks pattern. The one in the last post....it wasn't the greatest experience!

I should have known better than to use tiny thread for a technique I’ve not tatted before. Not only that, the thread turned out not to be size 80 cotton. It’s more of a rayon size 100. Split rings are tricky in small thread, but with slippery rayon?????

What was I thinking???? Oh yeah, right, I wasn't thinking!

But, I persevered! I had that 25^th motif in sight and I wasn’t going to back down! That’s the good news. Now I have a choice: use the rest of the thread for something else, or just take it off the shuttle and move on? What’s your vote?

See what can happen when you're distracted?

Yes, I got distracted again. I decided to tat the second motif we discussed Monday inclass: 

I wanted to see if I liked it in 2 colors. I think I do. The next time I’ll make sure to have enough thread I won’t need to SLT to finish out the last chain. ;)

Then, I wanted to see how it would look in size 80:

The folks who come by for the Tatting Tuesday Study Group favor working with tiny thread. Mostly in size 80. I can’t say I gravitate towards it now, but they have pushed me to giving it a fair trial. Ever since I worked on the SaintSaens doily, I haven’t really enjoyed size 80. At the time I just thought it was because there are so many cool embroidery/quilting threads out there and what I had in my stash in size 80 looked so boring. Anyway, it’s closer to the size I like for earrings, but a bit too round for my tastes. Three more shuttles are empty now. I’ll have fun choosing what thread to use for the square motif.

Update on the fire is available on CalFire website. It sounds like most of the homes are escaping the inferno. It’s still a threat as the winds will be picking up today and could blow it out of control. Perhaps that will discourage the crews working with the jack hammer in the street. Either that or they will finish demolition. The walls are thick enough the sound isn’t excruciating, but the windows let enough in. No tatting on the front porch until the dust settles either. Maybe I’ll just have to walk down to the beach!

of curls and beads and quilt thread

I’m still learning to curl my rings. I think I need to go back to the beginning. I think I need to do a sample without beads in the quilt thread I’d like to use. I think I need to learn to walk before I run. I know I’m burning a fair amount of time with this, but I’ve already amended notes for several patterns based on pieces with chordal structure.

Chordal structure is a term used to pigeonhole music that plunks along with several voices harmonizing at once. Think hymns, barbershop, anything with a full rich sound. The opposite is a melody tripping along with an accompaniment or a fugue. Chordal harmonies are not exclusive to Western European music, but hold a very prominent place in the palette of sound.

Once I get the curled rings mastered, I’ll work on one of these ideas I have and post my sketches as they appear in thread. I will do my best to interrupt the creativity to post Tuesday and Thursday here, but make absolutely no promises. I have very little discipline when it comes to turning off the organ and setting down the shuttles!

Teaching the earring pattern

Today is the day. I am the guest teacher for Georgia’s Monday On-going Online class (scroll down to the correct date). I’ll be sharing my earring pattern worked around a finding from a bead shop. (see pattern page of this blog) I’ve been looking forward to getting this pattern out there to other tatters. I see so many possibilities and I won’t have enough of me to try them all. Please, join in the fun!

organ factory tours and such

Well, my idea didn’t work too well. I just need to tweek it, but that won’t happen for a while. Other things to do.

Like visiting an organ factory.  Now, before you roll your eyes, let me say that I joined over 30 people on this tour! A bus was rented to get the group from South Bay to North Bay. That meant that on the way, we were treated to a DVD of a tour of another organ company’s factory, a short excerpt of a talk by a third organ builder, and plenty of time to chat with other organists and curious people. It was a wonderful day! I think the comment that I enjoyed the most was from a non-musician. And the commercial at the end of the DVD for the shows visiting other factories (over 300 have been taped) really “tickled me” as my Mom used to say. If you're in the Bay Area and love to see what people do working with their hands creating cool stuff, call and see if you can stop by. They don't always have an organ being put together, but they lots of cool parts.

Like tatting the earring pattern in Sulky “Piano Keys"

I need to finish another one to make a pair, but I can’t decide which one to match. I would like to wear the for the Memorial service this week. So, best get busy eh?

Like having fun at Exclamation Point demonstrating tatting and the different techniques used with different tools. I’ll be working on my supplies for that later.

Like cleaning house (ugh!) and paying bills (double ugh!) and maybe even completing another pattern in the TAT binder (I have to stay focused!). And there’s the list of errands…….

Hair Bun Holder is finished! Whew!!

I finally have finished a rather involved project. It all started last summer.

I got the idea to make a hair bun holder for myself. I decided to base it on a doily pattern attributed to Anne Orr. I first ran into this pattern published in Tatting Doilies & Edgings edited by Rita Weiss for Dover Needlework Series. It’s listed as measuring 8-1/2 inches worked in size 50 thread. It looked all too complicated for me to attempt. After the OnLine class studied it last June, I was more intrigued by the pattern. Here’s what Gina came up with for us: http://www.georgiaseitz.com/2011/anneorrdoilyrewrite.html

After we all signed out of the classroom and went about our summer, I kept coming back to the idea of using this pattern. Then I wandered into a quilt shop recommended to me for colorful tatting thread. They had a glorious collection of thread in all kinds of yummy colors. Now, I’ve not had great success working with tiny thread before this point. But, I couldn’t resist the colors! I really couldn’t decide which one to use…..




Cocolatte

Teaberries

Charcoal

Woodlands

So I asked on Intatters for ideas. What a great group of people! They had several ideas that I really liked. The question remained: how to execute these ideas? This is what I decided on:

top of hair bun holder in teaberries

Based on how I worked a  different beaded hair bun holder, I decided to make the back simple mignonette with a final row around an elastic hair tie.

back of hair bun holder

I can’t wait to try it on!