The Makings of a Monk and More

I just had to share this cuteness from Sapling. On Oct. 29, 2014, he gives a presentation in front of his class on a saint, St. Anthony of Padua (1195 - 1231).  (Remember, he's in 2nd grade.)

This photo was taken last evening after I had finished sewing his robe and hood. We are working on "accessorizing" his costume today instead of tatting.

UPDATE: Sapling scored 76 out of 85 points on his Saint Anthony of Padua presentation. That's  89.4%.  His costume earned 5:5 points (pats on back for mom) and he earned 45:50 on his poster.  His oral presentation was rated 26:30.  Well done, Sapling!

Anyone wish to take a stab at a fractured song lyric with me?  I have the tune to the Disney song from Mulan, "I'll Make a Man Out of You," stuck in my head....how about: I'll  Make a Monk Out of You?

Maybe I should stick to Knot-Tea fun.

The Makings of a Monk

Can you believe I finally learned how to make Cluny leaves?  Hanging Clunies too.  This is just a snippet I tatted to empty shuttles in preparation for an experiment -- tatting Pumpkins on a Vine by Heidi Sunday with Clunies.  I hope to have something to show you next week.

Emptying shuttles and playing with Cluny leaves

Our new pet, a sweet little female hedgehog named Miss Elsa Prickles, is growing bigger and cuter by the day. Here she is exploring an empty lemonade container.

Look how cute she is, fresh from her bath.

A clean hedgie is a happy hedgie.

My naughty dog Ginger is contemplating jumping into the hedgehog playpen. She looks like a dangerous predator, either a fox or a jackal, to Elsa.

Naughty Ginger

Life is bustling at Silly Hat Central and I am not getting as much time to tat as I would like, but that's the good thing about tatting, you can pick it up for 5 minutes and put it down.

As for Tatting Tea Tuesday, I am sipping a lovely fig-infused cuppa while I type. I have had Fig-related things on my mind and even e-mailed Yarnplayer to ask if she could dye me a custom colorway. Oooh!  Let's hope she can. 

Tatting Tea Tuesday - Lanyard Update

DH brought me two tasty Teavana tea samples from a recent business trip to Texas, so today I sip a marvelous summertime cuppa Fig Rose herbal tea.  The second sample is Limeade Twist, a refreshing burst of summer citrus. These infusions are like sipping sweet or citrus-y sunshine.

Can I get a high five?  I made it to 22 inches (55.88 cm) on my Beaded Lanyard project.
Here are two photos taken when I was at the 18-inch mark.

Beaded Lanyard © 2008 Patti Duff
Tatting by Is'Dihara 

Patti Duff designed this lovely pattern. More beautiful images of her design can be viewed by clicking on this link from the ShuttleBirds Spotlight, April 15, 2014 - Patti's Lanyard and More

It is still a challenge to capture the colors of this lanyard properly and get a clear image of the stitches. The lanyard is prettier than the images show.

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

Corina's Crown, Take Two

Crown tatted by IsDihara, February 2014

Can you believe the mistake with Corina's Crown was staring me in the face and I didn't see it?

Crowns tatted by Corina van Krieken, April 2013

Chalk it up to stitch count error, not a botched technique.  The hat band section of the diagram clearly shows three groups of four (4) stitches for rows one and two.  I tatted three groups of six (6) so of course I got a misshapen chapeau. Recalibrated stitch counts fixed the problem and the crown tatted up a treat.

No idea why I thought Corina's perfectly written 4's were 6's.  I had an easy point of comparison in the sixes Corina wrote for the top of the crown. I make these mistakes so you don't have to!

It was fun trying out the other methods of block tatting so I call this a win-win learning experience with a regal crown to show for my efforts.

Motif 3: Corina's Crown

The first Tatting Tea Tuesday in February dawned with a desire to tat a golden crown.  So off I zoom through the pixels and bits of Pinterest to find Corina from the Nethlands' lovely design:  Tatting Crown - free pattern.

Here is a photo of Corina's crowns.

Crowns tatted by Corina van Krieken, April 2013

Here is my first attempt.

Crown tatted by IsDihara, February 2014

Motif 3 - Corina's Crown
Crown tatted using the Lock Stitch method of block tatting.  Thread choice is Lizbeth^® 20 Gold #611.

In recent years I have grown used to my results more closely matching the pattern photo, so this crown came as a bit of a surprise.

Don't get me wrong. It is a very nice crown. But mine does not mirror the tight brow band or the regal height of Corina's crowns. The stitch count is exactly the same.

This is precisely why I love tatting.  Two people can tat the same thing and get slightly different-looking results. Hmmm, what to do if I want more Corina-esque crowns?

Martha Ess provides the answer for the base. Try a different method of block tatting.

Martha's book "Holidays on the Block" describes four methods of block tatting and shares the advantages and disadvantages of each one. My first attempt uses the lock stitch method (The one with which I am most familiar.) As for the rest, I need to tat a few more crowns to get the exact look that I like.

This crown is very pretty.  But the quibbler in me wants to sample techniques to see if I can get the same look as Corina did with her crowns.  Besides, this crown took no time at all to tat so why not tat a few more?

I will update this post with attempts 2 and 3 as I squeeze them in around (the dreaded) household chores and Day 11 of TIAS.  Stay tuned or check back for progress!

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

Missing out

Yesterday I missed a lovely Tatting Tea Tuesday gathering because of contract work. The weather was gorgeous, the two tatting ladies delightful.  It was an afternoon of "Tatting on the Farm."

Instead of tatting with the ladies in Virginia horse country, I tatted in my tatting corner. It is a nice corner, but it doesn't have a view of horses frisking in the field or the Autumn splendor of the Shenandoah Valley. Next time I will go!

This is what I am working on (using two of my shuttles made by Georgia and Richard Seitz):

IsDihara's Dove - a work in progress

Does anyone recognize the pattern?  Here is a closer look:

IsDihara's Dove - a work in progress

The pattern is:  Dove © Jane Eborall 2011 and HER dove, pictured below, is 100% finished and looking splendid!

DOVE © JANE EBORAL 2011
All Rights Reserved

For my dove, Lizbeth 40 Snow White thread is being used with opaque white seed beads and a black bead for the eye.  It will adorn a bookmark (in place of a tassel) that I am making as a gift. A friend's son is being confirmed at the end of November. Doves and the color red are symbolic of Catholic Confirmation ceremonies.

Let's cross our fingers that my dove will look a fraction as good as Jane's. I can but hope. Jane does such incredible work.

And speaking of work, it is nose back to the grindstone for me.  À tout à l'heure! (See you soon!)

♥ from Postie ♥

Ooh, it has been a good week for post. An unexpected parcel arrived from a northern cousin, she of the flying shuttles, the magnificent Fox! To what do I owe this good fortune?

Goodies from Fox

The note card caused a brief pause, as I didn't recall doing anything requiring a thank you note...

Fox was thanking me again for sending her a Pansy shuttle from La Cossette many moons ago. (Tat-ology 2011: So Blessed)

...enclosed was a pretty wisteria shuttle from La Cossette to add to my collection. Yippee!
That is not all. Cindy from A Happy Bluebird made a terrific felt needle book to pass along.

Fox's timing couldn't be better, as I am stitching my fingers raw with applique work on the Palmetto Tat Days fund-raiser wall hanging. Applique needles are sharp and having a case to keep them in is a life-saver.

Fox and Cindy, THANK YOU so much my friends!

Blue-eyed penguins for Tat Days charity fund raiser

Gettin' Grape-y with a Pineapple
When my stitching fingers need a break, I ply my shuttles toward a promised heart for JB.  Here is a sneak peek of her heart so far.

In progress:
Pineapple Split Ring Heart © 2004 Sherry Matthews
Tatting by IsDihara

Pineapple Split Ring Heart pattern can be found online at Needle Tatting Forum (registration required). It is also linked from Tatting Pattern Central.  (Registration is still required at Needle Tatting Forum to access the pattern, but once logged in, the link at Tatting Pattern Central opens right up.)

Arlene shared a photo of her two completed hearts back in 2008 on her blog: Arlene Tats and Knits: Sending out Hearts  Check out her blog to see a photo of her lovely hearts.

Time to confess...I improvised the pattern, substituting two joined rings for the clover at the bottom.

Red is de rigueur, but the soft purple shades of Lizbeth® 40 #165 Grape Splash add charm, n'est-ce pas? Once completed, this heart will be a milestone - my first pineapple pattern.

Hoping you have time to indulge in lace-making endeavors today and can also enjoy a summer cuppa.  See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!

Motif 24 - German Triangle Motif

For Tatting Tea Tuesday I decided to forego tea and focus on creating a new blog header. Still tweaking the fonts, but doesn't the lace look good in succulent summer colors?

Inspired by Jeff Hamilton (Bridge City Tatting) and Fox (Tat-ology), I have blithely jumped on the bandwagon for Susanne Schwenke's triangle motif.  The pattern and diagram are available in her book "Spitzen-Kreationen" on pages 42-43.

Susanne Schwenke triangle motif
tatted by IsDihara

Thread used is Lizbeth® 20 #156 Juicy Watermelon. I was using up leftovers from the Jane's Bookmark Cross I made at the end of May. This triangle is so nice to tat and gave me good practice working only from a diagram.

The backdrop is one of my fingerless gloves. The soft halo the Angora fibers give the lace is quite pleasing. Here is another look at the gloves:

Hand-spun Angora
knit fingerless gloves, top

One side is smooth and the other is ribbed so it is like having two sets of gloves in one.

Hand-spun Angora
knit fingerless gloves, bottom

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

Double Cross

The first Tatting Tea Tuesday of summer started out with me sipping an iced green tea Nojito.  I make my own mint syrup, adding several splashes of lime to the green tea plus a fresh sprig or two of mint.  YUM!  Feel free to add rum if you prefer a Mojito-tea concoction.

Two Jane's Bookmark Crosses
Designed by Grace Tan/Jane McLellan
Tatted by IsDihara 2013

This week I completed a second Jane's Bookmark Cross. One for each of Sapling's Kindergarten teachers. These turned out great! Both are lovely and were a joy to tat. Sapling's last day of school is June 13, 2013, so I even completed them before deadline.  Perhaps the most amazing part!

This second cross is tatted in Lizbeth® 20 #149 Peacock Blues. It measures three (3) inches in length (7.62 cm) and two (2) inches wide (5.08 cm).

Hats off again to Grace Tan who cleverly adapted Jane McClelland's bookmark pattern into a cross.  And gratitude also to Jane McLellan who adapted her bookmark from a braid that appeared in the May 1984 Anna Burda magazine.  Such amazing talent from these two tatting ladies.

Jane's Bookmark Cross pattern PDF may be downloaded from the Tatting Class Homework page: New Pattern from Grace Tan

Ramblings and a Sneak Peek

To kick off summer tatting season I had wanted to tat another Celtic Strawberry Heart by Birgit Phelps or one of Martha Ess' charming Split Ring Ladybugs (pattern available on Palmetto Tat Days 2009 Pattern CD).  Alas, with the stitching I am doing I wasn't able to start either project.

It seems the Piedmont Palm Frond group was the lone sponsor of a decorated wall hanging this year. We had been keeping mum about our theme but I see no reason to keep it under wraps any longer. Here's a sneak peek at our whimsical blue-eyed penguins:

Playful penguins wall hanging for
2013 Tat Days fund-raising auction.

There will be more to discover about these capricious penguins at Palmetto Tat Days in September.  The wall hanging will have hand-stitched applique, couching and some bead work as well as tatting and bobbin lace. My hope is that such fun-loving sea-birds will be in demand on auction night.

Tatting Tea Tuesday - TIAS Day 10 & Penguin Head

February tends to fly, but holy smokes!  Has it really been a whole month since my last post?

IsDihara's TIAS 2013 Day 10 progress, red background

Freshly completed January TIAS projects usually energize my tatting creativity. This year I set aside Jane Eborall's adorable TIAS at Day 10 with the intent to finish Gingerbread Boy.  (...before the creative wave washed in.)

Gingerbread Boy still unfinished...

Poor, neglected cookie laddie still languishes in my tatting corner. What's the hold up?  Nothing really, just me being obsessive about not messing him up. Can I rationalize that it would be a whole lot easier if I had a diagram to follow? 

Yes! I even tried to draw a digital diagram to get going again. *grumbles.loudly* Computer wouldn't cooperate.  More on that later.

So I switched to designing with my shuttles instead. This is what I created.

Front-facing penguin head 
© 2013 Karen Beary Parent
All Rights Reserved

Imagine black beads in the center of the white rings for eyes.  Also imagine a triangle-shaped bead for the beak. Beads are intended to be sewn on later but could be tatted in as you go.

AUGH! If only my middle-aged computer could handle "the strain" of diagramming. It is not up to the task. (Hard drive errors linked to memory swap issues....AUGH!)  And I haven't yet been brave enough to try diagramming patterns on the iPad.

For Tatting Tea Tuesday, I sip Chocolate Strawberry herbal tea while I finish up TIAS Day 11.

I am also contemplating a graft of a front-facing penguin head onto a penguin body designed by Jane Eborall. If it works it will be disarmingly cute. If not, the unfortunate fellow could be a freak the likes of a Frankenstein monster. (That wasn't melodramatic at all...)

More photos to come after two prams/baby carriages are done and given a quick steam press. 

Wishing you all blissful me time to create something beautiful (and neck bolt free). See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!

TIAS Day 6

Not a lot of tatting has taken place this week. What with "da boyz" (hubby and kidlet) having a snow day on Friday, kidlet's busy social calendar on Saturday, I-don't-remember-what on Sunday and a two-hour ice delay Monday morning; oh, and hubby's second attack of gout Monday evening, the long weekend was seemingly over before it began.

I did complete TIAS Day 6 yesterday afternoon.  I have been enjoying the TIAS tatting immensely! The early stages of this game are the most fun, since I can let my imagination run wild with crazy guesses.  I always try to work in a camel guess (or a Loch Ness monster) early on. 

Is'Dihara's TIAS 2013, Day 6, progress

By the time we get to the halfway point, I am usually influenced by ingenious guesses posted on Jane's TIAS blog. For example, Valerie Ho's hunch that it might be a Viking ship!  Hmmm, don't think it will turn out to be a Viking ship at this stage, but who knows?

Now I am swayed by another excellent bit of deductive guesswork: the pram/baby buggy probability. It could be a flowerpot or even a hot air balloon. But all I see is the carriage of a pram.

Anita M Adamson's shopping cart prediction was featured on Jane Eborall's Facebook page promoting TIAS. Hurray for Anita!  Don't cha just love all the shuttles loaded up in the cart?

Day 7 will reveal another clue to the puzzle and our tatting imaginations will race ahead once more. How did I ever make it through the long, cold, January stretch before TIAS came along?

Merci mille fois, Jane, for giving us this delightful game to play.

Tatting Tea Tuesday - New Books
Today's tea is decaf green flavored with Powell & Mahoney Cosmopolitan cocktail mixer.  Tatting while sipping a warmed concoction of cranberry, lime and orange is a very tasty prospect. The cocktail mixer was left over from New year's Eve and I couldn't let it go to waste, now could I? 

Instead of tatting during cosmopoli-tea time, I opted to leaf through my two new tatting books!  First is a reprint of Judith Connor's 2006 book, "Contemporary Tatting - New Designs from an Old Art."  It contains lovely color photos and hand-drawn diagrams of "a galaxy of patterns."

The second addition to my tatting library is Jan Stawasz' second publication, "Tatted Treasures."  Owning his first book made buying this one an absolute must. Mr. Stawasz' method is very "front-side/back-side" centric.  His patterns have a stately elegance that I find very appealing.

Both books are wonderful and I can recommend them to any tatter.

Holidays, Heart & Gingerbread Boy

Is'Dihara, Anita, Sw4nkyl4c3r and Karen
met to tat and chat at Panera Bread

This past Saturday the Piedmont Lace Guild of Virginia met at a local Panera Bread to make lace.  Pictured above are four of the attendees, including a brand new needle tatter, Karen, far right.

What a fun way to kick off the 2013 lace-making year. Books and patterns were browsed and discussed, as were threads, tools and techniques. Lots of catching up and chit-chat. All enjoyed while we worked on our lace projects. Here is what I worked on:

"Love of Beads" heart  © 2012 Martha Ess
Flora 20 red with matching seed beads
Tatting by Is'Dihara

It may look like a bit like a fan, but this is Martha Ess' "Love of Beads" heart pattern from 2012 Tat Days. It will be a gorgeous Valentine heart when finished, don't you think?

Santa left wonderful goodies under the tree in 2013, like this silky soft shawl. (Pictured here with the Norma Benporath Lace Mat I tatted during Jon Yusof's tat-along.)

Purple Pashmina

JB must be one of Santa's Helpers, because she included two holiday hand towels with her heart exchange mailer.  Photo one is how one looks hanging in my powder room.  And a close up of the exquisite embroidery work on each towel. So elegant!  Thank you so much, JB.

JB also sent (along with a filigree woodcut ornament for my tree) this flirty and fun bracelet.  The beads are made of paper. The best part is that sales benefit BeadforLife.org.  I'm a strong supporter of organizations that empower women and help to enrich/change their lives.  Girl Power!

Sadly, I have run out of blog-writing time. So I must beg your indulgence to wait a few days more to see the progress on my Gingerbread Boy.

Don't forget! Jane Eborall's 2013 TIAS starts THIS Friday, so there will be loads of fun tatting to see us through the cold, dark days of January!

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

Tatting Tea Tuesday - Bungled Boy Restart

Tatting Tea Tuesday starts off with a sigh of relief, as my bumbling, stumbling start on the Gingerbread Boy Tat Along has been hurdled.

Sometimes "modus operandi" can get in the way of good pattern instructions.  Assuming that I was tatting the head first (even after reading the instructions through three times) was my first mistake. The next stumbling bumble was not paying attention to which shuttle to use.

These are common sources for tatting frustration. If you have had trouble getting started, there is hope:  Wendy over at Umi & Tsuru blog has created a pattern supplement to help.

From this point forward I will always think of Wendy as a Heroine of Tatting Adventures, right up there with Auntie "Mac" and her Flying Shuttles.  Thank you, Wendy!

My goal for Tatting Tea Tuesday is to complete the Central Body motif while sipping a steaming, grande-size mug of Spearmint tea.

Oh no; I used Starbucks-style "latte lingo."  Dave Barry lowered the boom on this in his "Ask Mr. Language Person" column in October, 2004:  Latte Lingo 

Or you can read the text of Mr. Barry's column as it was posted here.  The New York Times and a few other newspapers published the column too. All in all, a very amusing read.

Raising a spearmint-infused pint to wish you a Mega Grandissimaximo Giganto de Humongo-Rama-Lama-Ding-Dong Tatting Tea Tuesday. See you next week for more communi-tea!

Tatting Tea Tuesday - Election Day & Carpool Trauma

Since Tatting Tea Tuesday fell on Election Day, Sw4nkyL4c3r and I decided to spend a few hours together tatting. Tatting is always more enjoyable when done together and what a pleasant Election Day treat!

Sw4nkyL4c3r and I drove over to her mom's house to sit with her bed-ridden stepfather, so that her mom could go vote.  Her stepfather is in the late stage Alzheimer's so Mamma Sw4nkyL4c3r rarely interacts with ambulatory/vocal adults. I believe our visit was a welcome respite for her. And it was a lovely tat-n-chat at her kitchen table.

Before long it was time to pick up The Sprout from Kindergarten. What should have been a calm carpool routine was quite unexpectedly interrupted.  I was walking around the van to buckle The Sprout into his car seat when very loud wailing rent the air.

What happened?!? The Sprout bonked his nose unexpectedly on an armrest in the car while showing off for his 4th grade carpool buddy. There was no swelling, no blood, no mark at all.  But you would have thought The Sprout's nose had been ripped off his face.

The most alarming part was watching the him punch himself in the nose repeatedly while huge tears streamed down his face.  He was crying so hard I couldn't understand him.  All I could do was hold his punching arm, maneuver him so I could examine his face and try to hug away the hurt.

He continued to cry the whole way home. The 4th grader looked very sheepish the whole time, so I suspect she may have had something to do with the incident, but she didn't own up to anything.  And The Sprout didn't tell on her, so I cannot say for sure what her role might have been.

I was at a loss for how to deal with the situation.

Once The Sprout was sufficiently calmed, I took him to a book fair and bought him some new books. It was a school fund-raiser so I didn't think it was spoiling him too much.

There were no nose-bonking or wailing relapses for the rest of the evening, but I wonder if I should be speaking to a doctor of some sort about The Sprout's punching himself in the face?

Any more seasoned moms out there who can comment on this type of behavior?

Tatting Tea Tuesday - ♥ from Postie ♥

Ooh, it has been a good week for post.  Look at what my "Twistin' Postman" delivered.  And yes, he did ring twice.

New Tatting Bags and Shuttle Pouches
from Jane Eborall

Squeeeeeeeeeeeeee!  I just love, love, love these new bags! JaneE is so generous.  She even included one of the square tatting bags designed by Anne Bruvold. 

This fabric might not appeal to everyone, but I really fancy it. (bought it ages ago) It has been languishing in my stash closet waiting for the perfect project. Wouldn't you agree that this was it?

Size comparison

My original orange bag is starting to look worn from me taking it (literally) everywhere. The new, round bag is taller for those times when I am teaching and need to use a tatting needle. (Not very often, but it pays to be prepared.)

Not one, but TWO matching shuttle pouches

What a luxury to have matching accessories!  Two shuttles from my collection are included for scale.

The same shuttles at the bottom of the new tatting bag.  Don't they look small?  ツ

Of course, one very eager elf leapt right into the square bag for an impromptu game of hide and seek with his knitted pal, Arthur Dent.  Don't panic, Ciarrán, but he's getting closer...

Not sure if the giggles permeating my kitchen are of the tiny, elfin variety or from The Sprout.  Either way, we're greatly enjoying the parcel from across the pond!  Thank you, Jane!

---

But that's not all.  This box arrived two days later.  Just a little box...

But sometimes the best things come in small packages, as Ciarrán will attest.

Honey Drizzle, Elderberry Jam and a few other Lizbeth^®40 new Fall colors (not all of the them).

These will tide me over until the size 20 threads (and size 3) and new Aerlit^® shuttles arrive.

Hoping you have time to indulge in lace-making endeavors today and can enjoy a cuppa tea too.  See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!

Tatting Tea Tuesday: Motif 18 - Maple Leaf

A damp, Autumn chill descended upon my corner of Tat Land over the weekend.  After several gorgeous week days with temperatures in the 80s (30 degrees C) I was downright cold.

So I put the kettle on for some Chocolate Chai tea, donned my favorite Pashmina and set about tatting leaf samples for a Tat-Along being hosted at my local yarn shop (LYS) on October 14, 2012.

Motif 18 - Maple Leaf
Tatted by IsDihara 2012

The pattern is the Maple Leaf Motif from the February 1975 Workbasket which has been diagrammed and adapted by Tammy Rodgers to include a stem.

I have tatted it with Lizbeth^® 40 Falling Leaves #100 for the rings and Lizbeth^® 40 Victorian Red #670 for the chains. The stem is pearl tatted.  I quite like the look, but will add an extra core thread next time to give the appearance of a sturdier stem.

If your thoughts have turned to tatting leaves, there are loads of great patterns from which to choose.  Georgia Seitz has a great page pulled together, Notes on Designing Tatted Leaves.

Karey Solomon has a booklet for sale called "Tatting Turns over a New Leaf."

Jane Eborall shares her Beady Leaves on her online pattern pages.

Our dearly departed Tatting Goddess, Gina Brummett, posted this leafy image on her tatting blog on January 10, 2007, with the following words:

"A "delphinium" from Tatting Collage by Lindsay Rogers becomes a Christmas or Evergreen tree with green metallic embroidery floss."

Gina's leaves from October 31, 2010 (maples, oaks, celtic and miscellaneous, small leaves) are truly inspirational.

 

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

Light and Lacy in Yellow

In spite of the long list of post-Tat Days projects, I couldn't resist joining in Jon's Tat Along to make the Norma Benporath Lace Mat.

My rationalization? It is perfect in-car tatting for after-school dismissal. Yesterday I had planned to start round two, but got caught up in an utterly diverting chat and didn't tat a double stitch.

Jon's post from September 12, The Lace Mat, gives great historical details about this pattern, but I will try to sum up (so that I can remember in the coming years).

On March 16, 1938, The Queenslander newspaper published this pattern under the headline "Tatting for Busy People" giving Norma Benporath a proper byline.  (Yay!)

The National Library of Australia (NLA) granted Jon permission to rewrite the patterns it has archived to preserve the designs and make them accessible to current tatters.

Jon included a few handy notes for folks eager to start the Tat Along. I was curious about bullet number three in particular:

Here is what my round one looked like before I flattened it out with a quick shot of steam. (After first pinning the lace to my ironing board, or course.)

Thank you Jon for being so wise as to include this note. I would surely have abandoned the work had you not advised me to not panic. ツ

Later this afternoon I will begin round two for Tatting Tea Tuesday. Imagine me with a travel cuppa of chocco-strawberry decaf with a splash of chocolate soy milk. NPR playing on the car radio. Happily tatting along. The sunny yellow thread juxtaposed with the soggy, grey skies.

That is how I plan to banish the rain and continue dreaming of Indian summer.

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

Tat Days, Episode 2

The One With Swag and Shameless Name-dropping
This post focuses on cool stuff I received from even cooler people and the many tatting celebrities I had the pleasure to meet (and heckle or lure into hijinx).

When I got home, I emptied the contents of my "welcome" goodie bag (where I had also stored my purchases) and this is what was inside.

What you don't see is the gallon-sized zip-top baggie filled with all sorts of tatting treasure. Like a tiny fairy shuttle and a needle case and an emergency tatting survival kit, and a bookmark sleeve. Truly too much to mention it all. Double what you see and you have a good idea of my loot haul.

Can you believe there's more?

I was the blushing recipient of some incredible gifts. (Still blushing.)

These pretty beaded posies were a gift from Marie Smith who, rumor has it, made 100 to hand out. Was not able to confirm the rumor (I was too busy admiring the exquisiteness.) but I wore this proudly on my name tag.  Thank you, Marie!

The inimitable Erin Holloway made this brooch for me after I groveled at her feet the previous year, begging for a similar brooch to the one I had failed to win in the silent auction. You can see why! Isn't it gorgeous? Sometimes groveling (and being willing to match the winning silent auction donation) pays off.  To say I will cherish this always doesn't even begin to express my joy. Thank you, Erin!

Truly, I felt like the Belle of the Ball wandering around Tat Days with these two knockout accessories.

No amount of thanks can match Louine Teague's thoughtfulness in creating this tea wallet.  I was, and still am, so touched that she made this in honor of Tatting Tea Tuesday. See the teapot closure? This beauty will come with me everywhere.  Thank you, Louine!

In addition to the multiple beads, threads and other goodies showered upon me by my Tat Days roomie, CrazyMom, I was the gleeful recipient of this stunning bookmark tatted in Gina Brummet's Tequila Sunrise (one of Tatskool's superb HDTs) and a lovely forest green. Thank you, CrazyMom!

CrazyMom also gifted Sprout with a Spiderman Pez, which he couldn't wait to open. It took him all of 15 seconds to load it and start gobbling candy. A special Spiderman Pez tooth-brushing session promptly followed.

This item was the first one I received. It was a gift from my tatting guild mate, friend and carpool buddy.  She made it after hearing that my county fair entries did not garner any ribbon love this year. It meant so much to know that she was inspired by my tatting and thought it was ribbon worthy.  I wore this proudly and with a whole lot of gratitude.

Anita also gifted The Sprout which made him very, very happy. It was one of those cotton cloths that are compressed into a tiny, tiny package so they will "grow" when you open them.  Of course, Sprout spirited it away before I could take a photo. Thank you, Anita!

One last gift came from the irrepressible Hegla, who I believe secretly doubles as one of Santa's Helpers. There were bead jars, a frame that showcases tatting from both sides, a pretty notebook and four LEGO-esque building kits for the Sprout. Plus more bead-sharing and a yard of Coronation cord. Thank you, Hegla!

It's hard to be humble when you're surrounded by such a wealth of tatting riches, in talent, generosity and largesse. Sharren Morgan expressed it so much better than I ever could in her post We Had a Blast (from the Past).  I cannot thank everyone enough for all the effort put into the numerous and mind-boggling gifts we received at Tat Days.

Recounting all the goodies makes me feel like a kid on Christmas morning. It is a good feeling.

After an intermission we'll dive into Shameless Name Dropping. Go refresh your drink, grab a snack or do what you need to do. I will wait.  ツ

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This paragon of tatting has so many fine talents, auctioneering being but one, she deserves her very own name-brand chocolate. White chocolate, of course.

Georgia Seitz

This clever gent permitted me to tease "da udder brudder" through text messaging for the better part of a day. File under "Look Ma, a Shuttle Brother!"

Randy Houtz

Let the record show that Randy was spotted dancing a jig when he thought no one was looking. Here Randy is plying his shuttle during a class.



Lastly, an article written about The Shuttle Brothers called "Men Who Tat"

Marilee, the Yarnplayer, and Sue Anna (of Tollway Tatters fame) traveled from the Prairie State to join the frivolité. Both were sheer delights to be around: charming, funny, insightful and in possession of secret stashes of HDT. What more could an Unrepentant Thread Junkie hope for? I was in heaven for so many reasons.

Marilee and Sue Anna

Ah, Nina Libin.  I am in such awe of her design talent and her patient teaching style that I flock to her classes. But this year I was treated to being in classes with her as a student as well as a teacher. She is incredible. Amazing. I accomplish things in her classes I never thought I could.

Go take a class from this wonderful woman. I hear she may be teaching in the Fingerlakes region of NY in Spring 2013. 

Nina Libin

I was surprised by this next celebrity tatter because I had been chatting in the reception area with her for several minutes before realizing to whom I was speaking.

Her name tag read "Sue F"  (or maybe Sue K?) and it wasn't until she had a flash of recollection about the name "IsDihara" that we figured out we "knew" each other online.

I recall Susan said something vaguely resembling, "Oh, I know! You're the tatter who wrote me, asking for permission to use my pattern combined with some other one, a fleur de lis or something."

And I said something like, "Oh my God, you're Susan Fuller?!? THE Susan Fuller who designed Heart's Desire? That's one of my favorite heart patterns."

And before you could say 'Bob's your uncle' we were talking a blue streak. Tat Days is the BEST!!!

IsDihara, Hegla, CrazyMom and Susan Fuller

Sadly (thankfully?), that is all the photos I have for today, but hopefully the long trek to the bottom of the post hasn't been too grueling.  Go stretch your legs, flex your tatting muscles and meet me back here in a day or so for Tat Days, Episode 3.

Thank you for reading!