Tuesday, November 24, 2009

A Heartbeat Away...



AUGH! It's frustrating to be so close and yet so far from completing this project. It is the project [original SweetHeart by Birgit Phelps, © 2003] I have been picking up (and putting down) since July.

The thread is Tatskool's lovely Rainbow Bright.

See that top ring there? The partially open one showing signs of an extended wrestling match? I am determined to reopen that ring. I have been working at it for over an hour now.

Not sure if my nerves or the thread will break first!

So it is time to unwind with a relaxing cup of Italian chamomile herbal tea and redirect my energies. Perhaps even write the instructions for round three and draw the diagram for this pattern.

UPDATE: Perseverence pays off! The ring is undone.

The jury is still out on whether this heart will have a pronounced enough gap between the bumps at the top, but I like the length of the point at the bottom. (That negative space around the tip is a bit floppy...some tweaking may be needed there.) And I'm not sure if the variegated thread is overpowering the design. Perhaps pairing it with a color-matched solid. Maybe black to lend a stained glass look?

Can you tell I'm one of those types who can go on indefinitely tweaking? LOL!

Moving on.

Sharon Briggs has said that once you start, you will find inspiration everywhere you look. Look at this surprising source of snowflake inspiration.


Image Source: Wegman's Garlic Naan
Tandoori Flat Bread Wrapper

Graceful little flake, isn't it? Because it is printed in a warm green, it reminds me of henna paste or an ivy plant. The dark green, bell-shaped bits could either be rings or Clunies. The dots could be joins or Josephine rings or nothing at all. The outlined edge could be large clovers or onion rings or dimpled rings or ...

Sharon, (if you are reading) you are a bona fide tatting genius!

Does this image inspire you? If so, please, please share. Would love to see where this leads you.

Wishing you all blissful me time to create something beautiful. See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!

10 comments:

Fox said...

Love that heart in the colourful thread!

About undoing ... I spend half my tatting time with a pick and a scowl.

I am eating patience these days!

That green picture IS inspiring. Very soft and swirly. Makes me think the heart - albeit perhaps as an envious one - might look wonderful in the right shade of apple/lime..
Have a great day!

Stephanie said...

The heart looks great. Rainbow Bright is so much fun to play with, isn't it? I am always having to open up rings, so an old pair of tweezers is always kept within arm's reach. They make it a breeze to grab the core thread!

Thanks for the nice comment on my poinsettia! If you'd like the pattern, just let me know and I can email it to you.

Anonymous said...

Hi:
I love the heart. I love the thread. A nice blog as always.

Gina said...

I KNEW that was Rainbow bright even before I read it!

You know...I think I know of a tatted motif similar to that design. Seems it was in one of Judy Banashek's books, but I'm not sure there were 3 rings on each tip. The shape reminds me of those exotic buildings/temples in the East.

tattrldy said...

The heart looks good - and it's great you finally got the ring open! I'm not sure about the top, either - it not being finished, it's hard for me to tell if I'll like the finished shape.

But you are bad! bad! to put out an interesting inspiration like that wrapper - right before Christmas!! I have too many things to do right now to work on something for this right now! Okay, I made a copy of it, but it't going in the bottom drawer, to be re-visited after the holidays!

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Wanda

Unknown said...

Oh, that wrapper is cool! I love it!

Good luck with the heart! I'm sure you will figure it out.

Tatteristic's 25 Motif Tatting Challenge said...

I love the heart pattern and the colors - very beautiful. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Sharon said...

The heart turned out lovely although as you have discovered, it's shape will be more evident in a different colour. The effusive Rainbow Bright is such a wonderful colour to bring life to bland designs, but it can overpower. That wrapper is just begging to be tatted. I told you you'd start seeing designs everywhere.

Fox said...

D,
I love this snowflake pattern. Just went here by chance and realized I hadn't given much thought before to where the design came from.

They are everywhere - the inspirations! I find even when I use my camera - my other serious addiction - (fox shots on flickr)
I am seeing things differently because of tatting. Patterns abound! I now view the world from a matrix of rings and chains!
Fox : )

IsDihara said...

Sharon, thanks for dropping by! This is turning into an ongoing project experiment. *chuckles*

Fox, you may be onto something...you can be the leader of the Matrix Tatters group! (great name, isn't it?)