Gift for a friend

Katrine by Lene Bjorn

 One of the things I like best about tatting is giving lace to friends. This will go out in the mail today as a thank you for the encouragement I received.

Gifts

(full disclosure: long post without pictures ahead.....and a question at the end for you to comment on)

I’ve begun to start each day by writing down 3 things I’m grateful for. First on the list is Family and Friends. I try to pause and think about who I will be talking with that day. That usually helps me from chewing on shoe leather until after I’m tired. I wish my feet didn’t end up in my mouth so often. I really need them to stand and walk! Another entry is usually focused on a gift of mine I plan to use that day. Again, it’s a focus thing. I could do so much, I need to do so much, I’m asked to do so much, if I don’t focus I fail big time!

So, where does tatting fit in? Sometimes I make a decision then and there to wear something I’ve tatted. Sometimes I remember to get tatting to someone else. Sometimes I remember that I should send an email or make a phone call or wrap a gift. Sometimes I figure out when I’ll be able to sit down with my shuttles and do that tricky part of the pattern I’m working on. Sometimes It’s at that moment I remember I have accomplished learning to tat and enjoy it. ‘nuf said!

So, what are your grateful thoughts? Does tatting end up on your list?

Oh, and my friends I’ve made through this blog are included in my first item. Thank you for your friendship!

Another Candle Cuff finished

It’s very satisfying to finish a project. Especially when it will be enjoyed by Friend or Family. I’m still playing with the concept and coming up with more patterns. So far, nothing has percolated to the “to tat” list. I’ll admit, most of my design time is being taken by seeing what could be created to commemorate the anniversary of the composing of Stille Nacht. Again, nothing that seems promising enough to put into thread.

The Online class series is starting up! I have shuttles ready to enjoy new patterns! Each week, Georgia et al. present patterns that just beg to be tat. It’s so much fun to see what others are creating. Susan and her team will be discussing design concepts with tips and tricks galore. And I get a kick out of cheering on the Beginners that Cyn works with. It will be a challenge to keep shuttles at the ready for those design ideas.

Looking ahead for 6 weeks

Another quote from the novel I’ve finished:

“Friendships, like quilts, brought warmth and comfort to our lives. Our stitches might not be perfect, but they were as strong as the love that united us in the crazy quilt we called home.”

(Aunt Dimity and the Widow’s Curse by Nancy Atherton)

I hope the next few weeks hold the promise of fun, celebrations, and good times with those you love. I will be shifting into high gear now to clean up Thanksgiving, prepare for Christmas, and start another year! No more lazing with novels, dreaming up new projects, or letting my attention wander too far. It’ll be activity with a check box and lots of time with family and friends!

Well, I still don’t have the distraction under control. But, I’ve made headway!

The loom is almost rethreaded for my next learning experience. That process has taught me how to rethread. Thank goodness the warp is fairly short. I chose to widen the stripes which meant going back to the point where the warp comes off the warping board. Let’s just say I’ve untangled a lot. Including my brain!

The boxes are reduced by half in the study. I still can’t walk up and sit down at the sewing machine. That’s my goal for Thanksgiving. I’ve used that project to dip my toe into Project Management vocabulary. I’m hoping that exercise will help me communicate the creative process of practicing at the organ and designing with thread and shuttle.

Almost all of my tatting has been gifts. Some of the recipients follow this blog, so no pictures until unwrapping happens. Sorry. But, I will leave you with a quote from a novel I’m reading. The character I’m quoting is Vicar for the village church. The community has come together for their first ever quilting bee. “Quilts, like friendships, bring warmth and comfort to our lives. May the Lord guide your needles and the stitches you sew be as strong as the bonds of neighborly affection that unite our village. Amen.”

My previous house saw lots of creative activity, but seldom a gathering of creative friends. I host weekly tatting study group sessions, musicians have come by to rehearse, and neighbors have enjoyed the decorations I’ve created. This house has allowed me to feel much more united with my friends and family. May you find a way to connect through creativity over the next few weeks!

12th Day of Christmas

Today is the 12^th Day of Christmas. 

Really. 

Look at the calendar and count. 

I know, I know….that carol is annoying, but it’s fun too. And celebrating more than 1 day of this Holiday can help reduce stress. For anyone who has found themselves hurting someone’s feelings because they can’t accept an invitation to something Christmas, having 12 days to celebrate can spread Good Cheer. And Twelfth Night can be fun! I had hoped to throw a Twelfth Night party for friends and neighbors this year, but it will have to wait until next year. That will be easier as it will be on Friday in 2017.

One of the activities that filled my calendar this year was throwing a Cioppino party for extended family. Now that was a feast! Crab is plentiful this year. And buying local is so easy in Monterey. I didn’t end up with a good picture to share. That’s because the bowl slipped. If you were there, you remember. For the rest of you, think pasta bowl heaped with seafood in a tomato base soup spilling onto a linen tablecloth. Yeah. It was a mess! But, we recovered and enjoyed the food. And the tablecloth looks OK. Thanks for the tip Altar Guild.

I’m focusing on finishing the angel today. I found these in a local store. I’m hoping one of them is the right size for the head. I need to find beads to use for the body still. The weather is supposed to be better today for yard work, so that may take a fair amount of time today. I still have some sorting to do in the studio also. That may have to wait for a rainy day….like Saturday. I really need to get organized and back to designing. Especially before TIAS starts and class starts up. I think a brisk walk will get me going! I’ll be thinking of a phrase I’ve heard a bit lately, “Go on out and change the world!” Join me?

Christmas Break inspirations and projects

The crazy part of Christmas is over. Consumers are no longer jostling at the stores. The right gift is no longer occupying people’s thoughts. The feasts are all laid out and washed up. Now it’s the part of Christmas that allows me to feel connected with my heritage and people throughout the ages. Any parent can relate to the story of birth and the first few days of a child’s life. Any creative person can relate to how traditions came to be. I hope you have been able to pause and enjoy a brief break.

We have been taking advantage of the time off from work to do some badly needed painting and sorting of boxes. The studio looks more like a storage room in the dim reaches of a theater. There’s instruments, stacks of boxes and furniture, paint cans and oh yes, a loom or two. Not much practicing or tatting lately. I did find more inspiration on a walk: 

 One of my walking buddies has picked and cooked mushrooms for years. She no longer pickles them or fixes soups daily, but she will tell you which mushrooms she likes to use for these dishes. I’m not as creative in the kitchen, so it’s alright I’m learning the Russian names for all these.

It’s almost time to get back to creating with fiber. I think I’ll practice again today. With Epiphany around the corner, I’ve dusted off Wie Schon Leuchtet again. I need to finish the angel. Oh, and I’ve only got a few more squares to complete in my Weave-It study series. Several of these yarn creations remind me of quilt blocks. Mmmmmmm

Oh, and Jane’s TIAS is coming. Now, that’s a gift we all enjoy!
Merry Christmas!

I haven’t managed much tatting time lately. I’ve been enjoying the garden, walks in the hills, and time with friends and family. I’ve also been squeezing in time at the loom to keep up with the class. I have managed to try out ideas for the corners of the edging. 

edging from Tatted Artistry of Teiko Fujito

I gave up on the trial in the top left; too many split rings. The trial on the top right works, but I decided the triangular look wasn’t what the item needed. The trial on the bottom right works best in my mind; although the negative space could use another something to keep the corner of the fabric from poking through. I’d like to play with it a bit more I think. What do you think?

Happy June!

Well, May has come and gone. June is here. Happy June!

Thank you for coming along with me on the adventures I’ve talked about here. I like talking. I like listening more. Thank you to those who have commented. You know who you are.

I've learned a lot about myself writing for this blog. I've learned that while I enjoy working with thread; "hear" the patterns in music; and know that I have a good idea combining the two means of expression; I'm not a visual person per se. I express myself with sounds much better. Words come more difficulty for me. Pictures take even more of an effort. That doesn't mean I'm giving up on this whole Picotsnkeys venture. But realizing that has helped me fine-tune my efforts and redirect my energies.

So, what have I been doing the last few weeks?

Packing and unpacking

Saying goodbye

 

Saying hello


Fine tuning the angel pattern (sorry, no new scan)

I still need to purchase an organ to teach/play. I still need to finish unpacking. I still need to finish the angel pattern write up. I still need to do lots and lots of important tasks. Including writing down more of what is important.

 

Now, where is that to-do list.......

A New Year

Wow! Where did 2013 go??

And 2014 will fly by just as fast, I’m sure!

So, what’s been significant in my life: Termite damage; Holiday celebration with an expanding family and many, many friends; Sorting through boxes and boxes and boxes; Taking on a new volunteer position; and being way too busy to waste time (especially on the web)

 
Stay tuned for details……..

A present for a grad

It’s graduation time. I’ve been enjoying watching family friends celebrate. I truly believe it takes a village to raise a child. Sometimes a family is enough of a village, at other times the blood relatives are not the best influence for a person. I knew even before I married that my children would do better if they enjoyed the mentoring and nurturing of many adults. I tried to place my children in situations where they were able to benefit from people within our family, community and groups. Unfortunately, we moved far away from blood relatives; the jobs just weren’t available for us in those locales. The up side of that is the many contacts we have all over the U.S. Here’s a pair of earrings I’m making for one of those friends.

Beanile earrings pattern by Nina Libin

It’s part of the Butterfly in Your Heart set Nina shared with the Online tatting class. http://www.georgiaseitz.com/2012/nlibinhrtbflyearneck.pdf I rather like using this technique. I’m working on a Saint-Saens piece right now, but when I finish that up, I have a sketch for a Bach Sinfonia that uses this technique along with maltese technique. More on that later.