Tatt3r tries NewStuff

This is all NewStuff for me. I've never done needle lace, and Aurelia Loveman is posting "Needle Lace in Five Easy Lessons" on her blog. Who can resist the opportunity to dabble in needle lace? Not me!
I finished Lesson 2B last night, couching my cordonnet to the pattern. You can see the little divots in the pattern? That's me just poking around. I have never done much cross stitch or needle point, so my hand-eye coordination isn't up to par.
Here is a close-up of one tatted corner, basted to the hanky. After I finished the third corner, I was ready to put this project in a drawer and find something new to do. My mom saw the corners, and thought they would make a beautiful hanky. I finished the fourth corner, blocked the tatting, and basted them to a little hanky from the local Five and Dime. Now I'm ready to do some more NewStuff and sew the tatting to the hanky. I've never done a hanky before, and I guess it's about time.
I followed instructions on how to finish a hanky (p.68) in Geraldine Stott's "The Bobbin Lace Manual". More NewStuff. I wasn't sure I liked the little holes at first, but I've decided to go ahead and finish in this style. In this picture I've attached the tatting at almost every picot, removed the basting thread. Next I will have to cut away the hanky. I'm saving that for a quiet weekday morning, dog sleeping on the couch, husband off to work, and lots of bright sunshine for my old eyes.

Tatted Cross Patterns

Here are scans of the little crosses I made for my friend L. Each little cross is tatted with Cebelia #20 and measures about 3" (8 cm) long.

I've put both patterns on my on my Geocities tatting page.

Simple Cross - 10 rings

Tatted Cross

Tatted Bookmarks for my friend

I'm meeting L. for lunch tomorrow. She's the one who creates beautiful hand-crafted greeting cards. We have traded cards for bookmarks, cards for an African violet, and this time I made more bookmarks. I hope she is pleasantly surprised.

I was in a hurry, and these are made in #20 Cebelia, which makes a sturdy bookmark that doesn't need heavy blocking. The lavendar one in the center isn't blocked yet, just pinned.

I used 2 different patterns, and made simple variations; some intentional, some not. The green and blue are the same, just more picots on the green. The yellow one is also the same pattern, but I made the rings larger, and left off a ring from the center leg. Oops. I didn't see that till I was ending off, so I didn't fix it. I think it looks better than the earlier ones, I'll have to make sure I write that down.
The pink and lavendar are from the same pattern, but I changed the stitch counts from the original. I made a white cross from an internet pattern, size 30 thread. I lost the print out (no surprize there) and made the pink one with the stitch counts from my first effort, but changed the technique. I used a Self-Closing Mock ring in the center, then split rings out to the top and rings and chains around. I wanted to make the next one a bit more delicate without sacrificing the sturdiness of #20 thread, so I downsized my rings and chains for the purple cross. It turned out pretty good, but will need careful blocking to maintain symmetry in the chains.
I have a headache today, but I might be able to make and block one more cross. If I finish before I go to bed, the spray starch should dry overnight.

Start of a Tatted Doily

I like to take a project along when we go on vacation. We say we are camping, but we actually read, nap, walk and mostly relax. I find I can focus on one project and accomplish a lot. I finished the 4th tatted hanky corner, and found it a home. The thread is a bit vibrant, but my mom said it would be perfect for the pocket of a dark suit she wears. I need to finish the threads on the last corner, then I'll be able to start the dreaded sewing of the hanky hem.
I started a tatted doily, something I didn't expect to do. I was leafing through "Old Fashioned Tatting Patterns" edited by Barbara Foster, and the doily on page 58 caught my eye. On reading the instructions, I realized this doily was created with all the joins done with needle and thread. I decided I could interpret the doily with modern techniques, and try to retain the charm of the original. I am not especially happy with the center, but could not think of any other method to duplicate the original. I am happy with the outer rounds, especially the little 10 petal motifs. I remembered how to do a Self-Closing Mock Ring, and it fit perfectly. I am now ready to do 12 small wheels for my last round. I plan to use the same wheel I used for the hanky corners. I'll have to do a bit of measuring and calculating just to be sure they will fit.
Finally, here is a bit of eye candy for you. Lake Huron is wonderful. See the empty picnic table? See the empty beach? Not a soul in site. Lake Michigan has nothing to tempt me. A bit of solitude on a windswept Lake Huron beach is what I crave.