Ready to block

I finished the tatting of the frame. Now to block.

I do not pin or starch to block my lace. Especially if I’ll be mounting the lace on fabric to frame behind glass. I don’t pin the picots. I don’t use a rolling pin to flatten the lace. I just give a good soak for a few minutes in plain water and then lay it out on a clean napkin or tea towel. Occasionally, I'll finger press things in place to dry. 

For this piece, I chose to move it to the grid once it dried for a few minutes. Then I gently pressed all the beads into place so that everything will lay flat for sewing it on the fabric. 

Turning a ..........

Corner.

Like many new tatters, I tackled edgings. I found patterns that were easier to follow. Then, I tried to come up with my own edging pattern. I thought I would be clever and adapt a bookmark pattern I enjoyed tatting. That worked until the corner.

That proved a bit more difficult than I expected. So, I did what I always do in music and asked more experienced tatters for tips. The best tip: consider how the straight part of the edging looks with a mirror set at a 45-degree angle. Most of the time, I could come up with a suitable solution. Most of the time.

Sometimes a browse through vintage books will solve the problem. Sometimes you just gotta sample, sample, sample.

Kinda like practice, practice, practice.

Fortunately for the frame I’m working on, the pattern is pretty easy to turn a corner with.

Both are good options

 Work on the frame is continuing. I’ve completed a round using this:

Plan is to build on that idea for this:

No progress can be good

I didn’t make a bit of progress on any of my projects. I went for a challenging hike instead. That took 5 hours of my time, but it was so worth it. I’m very hopeful that I have recovered from my brush with cardiac issues. I’ve learned how to adjust, and I have had a great deal of help.

Now back to the projects……

Continuing with projects

I have another star on the shuttles. This one is green in size 5. The last one I completed was in size 80. A huge difference in how I hold the shuttle, how I set up the thread for rings. Etc. I hope to have a photo of the set soon.

Another sample finished

 This is tatted in a popular colorway. I seldom reach for it as the patterns I like to use for snowflakes don’t always work for variegated thread. This pattern works nicely. I like the way the colors pool.

Sampling done

 

Ready to load beads. Lots and lots of beads. The frame will need to be no more than 7 inches square at the outer edge. We’ll see how that works out.