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!)

Still Here

Holy smokes!  Has it really been over a month since my last post?

It would be great if my absence were due to a mad rush of tatting on a big project.  Sadly, that is not the case. I have been working on freelance writing/editing projects for the Alaska Neurology Center.

Actually my first project was marketing related (something I have NO previous experience in) -- I drafted up a logo design concept for their Sleep Disorder and Treatment Center. They wanted something unique and I suppose turning to a non-Marketing type is one way to do it!

Here is an early prototype of the design concept I submitted.  It changed a bit in subsequent revisions so I don't feel like I am revealing secrets by showing you.

Since that project wrapped up, I have been writing about a new MRI scanner (the GE Discovery MR750w 3.0T, if anyone is interested).  Preparing copy for their website and brochures. Today I hope to receive the next topic -- perhaps the services they provide for Multiple Sclerosis patients.

All in all interesting work.  And it is work I am glad to have. Especially since the contract was supposed to expire on September 30 and they have asked me continue on into October.

I miss you all, but will be back once the freelance work is ended. I AM reading all the tatting blogs and have been greatly enjoying all your posts. Keep 'em coming.  Big hugs to everyone!

---

An American Box Turtle paid a visit this morning. My two hounds went crazy!

Yesterday I spotted my first Woolly Bear Caterpillar of 2013.  He was just a little guy, only about half as long as I usually see such "worms."

Do Woolly Bear Caterpillars Forecast Winter Weather?   (Source: almanac.com)

According to legend, the wider that middle brown section is (i.e., the more brown segments there are), the milder the coming winter will be. Conversely, a narrow brown band is said to predict a harsh winter.

Motif 25 - Magenta Monster Mollusk

A few weeks ago I was asked by a young girl if I would tat her a small animal -- a pink octopus like the one I had on the display table during one of my summer tatting demos.

So I grabbed my shuttles and began a test tat.

The magenta-colored head tatted up perfectly. 'I got this,' I thought and pressed on.

 I make these mistakes so you don't have to
Almost immediately I misunderstood the directions, not noticing my error until four limbs had been completed.  (So very like me, and precisely the reason for test tatting a piece first.) I ended up with NINE limbs instead of eight.

Motif 25 Nonny the Nonapus
May I present my strange creation and the head of his soon-to-be eight-limbed cousin? Here Nonny is holding up his claim to fame.

Nonny is tatted using Lizbeth^®  20 Magenta Dk 618. He measures about 1.5 inches (3.81 centimeters).

EDIT:  The pattern for Martha's adorable octopus can be found on page 14 of her book, "New Critters on the Block."

Test tat of Octopus © 2006 Martha Ess,
Tatted by IsDihara 2013

This completes my second 25 Motif Challenge.  I finished it in less than 2 years, an improvement from my first challenge.  (FYI--if one motif is tatted and posted within a two-week period it should take no more than one year to complete the challenge.)

I am not disappointed with my timing, just being aware of it.  The challenge isn't about racing to meet a deadline. Completing the challenge gives me a great sense of accomplishment and keeps me tatting on a regular basis.  Both are good things.

So I will carry on for a 3rd Challenge, so long as you readers aren't hopelessly bored.  Completing my class projects from Tat Days 2012 will be the goal for the first part of this new challenge. Hearts and Beanile lace jewelry and critters, oh my!

More Monster Mollusks
If you would like to read more about monster mollusks, two links to stories about real-life nonapus (or enneapus) are included below.

• Susami, a blue-ringed octopus: Nine-limbed octopus gives aquarium a leg up
• Common octopus: Nine-tentacled octopus

"Strange beauty, eight-limbed and eight-handed Whence camest to dazzle our eyes?" 
~Arthur Clement Hilton

AParently Speaking

Feeling nostalgic, I scrolled through old "mommy blog" posts the other day. Reading about Sapling's early days reminds me that I need to publish these little moments into a hard copy book so we can read them when he's grown.

The first blog post I ever wrote:  Lettuce be on your heads

Little Sprout circa 2007 wearing his first "silly hat"

Digital scrapbooking was my hobby before Sapling (who was called Little Sprout, and later Sprout) was old enough to allow mommy "me time."  When everyone was asleep I would sit at the computer and create scrapbook pages for a few hours.  I also "scrapped" this blog header.  Still love how it looks.

Here is a sampling of my favorite scrapbook pages:

Toilet Paper Tomfoolery

My Little Prince

Found my Toes

Pumpkin Patch

Horsey Rides with Grandpa

Strawberry Pickin'  (Big Daddy made this one.)

Christmas Cookie Wishes

And one of several I created for those first Father's Days:

A Ribbon for Me? SQUEEEEEEEE!

2013 county fair results

Remember in December 2011 when Jon Yusoff first told us of Tatting Treasures Unearthed and began sharing her diagrams of Norma Benporath's lace patterns? Her announcement was the beginning of a tat-along wherein Lace Mats were made by tatters all over the globe.

It was great fun participating in the tat-along. Choosing the colors, creating the lace, marveling at 35 other magnificent mats and voting in the secret poll; all of it sheer delight.

Thank you, Jon, for hosting an event that resulted in my first county fair blue ribbon.

That's right, a blue ribbon! Squeee!

A closer look at the Lace Mat

Only two entries were submitted in the tatting category this year.  (There were five last year.) The other entry was a lovely oval doily done in needle tatting by my friend Sw4nkyL4c3r.

2013 county fair ribbon winner - tatting

I was stunned and nearly hyperventilated when I saw Sw4nkyL4c3r's doily with a red ribbon.  (I am not making this up.) So sure was I that hers was a shoe-in for the blue, that I froze, looking around for some other entry that wasn't there -- afraid to look at my own.  I was sure that if hers got a red, then mine surely received either white (third) or nothing at all.  It was only after I couldn't find any other entry that I peeked at mine.  Even then I didn't believe my eyes.

OK, enough of all that. I have since calmed down.

I demonstrated tatting at the county fair this past Sunday and here is a photo taken by a kind bystander.

IsDihara at the county fair
(Check out the sneak peek of charity wall hanging!)

The Tat Days charity project was sponsored by the Piedmont Palm Frond and I am so proud of the work we have done. This wall hanging is ADORABLE with its playful penguins frolicking on glacial ice. Lots of cute details to make all Tat Days participants say, "Awwwwwwwww!"

Please consider making a donation to the fund-raising auction, whether or not you are able to attend the tatting conference in Toccoa, GA.

The Blogess

Another blog I cannot get enough of is The Blogess. Author Jenny Lawson's audacity has generated many blog success stories and a book!

WARNING:  Her personality is addictive and outrageous. Snort-your-drink, wet-your-pants funny.

If I had a tiny fraction of her chutzpah I'd be a wealthy woman. She is brazen and cheeky and I love reading her posts.

Like this one:  Does this cat make me look fat?

Thank you, CrazyMom, for turning me on to this humdinger of a blog.

Jason. For the love of God

Posting a note to myself.  One of the first blogs I read regularly in 2006 (that wasn't a tatting blog) was this one.  It was called (you guessed it)  "Jason. For the love of God."  That Chick Over There regularly kept me in stitches with her thoughts, prose and rants.

Then came the sad, sad day when I noticed her RSS feed hadn't updated in awhile.  The while stretched longer and longer until I resigned myself that I would no longer get to read her thoughts on life. It was like a light had gone out in the world.

Fast forward to today. While making preparations for the July 1^st demise of Google Reader, I noticed a new (to me) post!  It directed readers to a new blog.... *drumroll*

That Chick Over There You might also know me as Stephanie Snowe. I'm a mom, a wife, a writer, and a blogger. Oh and people think I'm hilarious and they are right.

...now has her own domain: Stephanie Snowe: The Blog!

Oh how I have missed you, Chick.  Settling in for a leisurely read.  It is a good day.

UPDATE:
Carol Lawecki asked for information on what alternatives exist for Google Reader. Here is what I found:

• Flipboard -  lets you compose and share personalised magazines. It's very well done.
• Reeder -  available on the Mac, iPhone, and iPad. It takes your Google Reader subscriptions and presents them in a "clean and well-lighted" way.
• Digg Reader - ready to save power users from Google Reader shutdown
• Feedly - a highly customizable app, offered as an app on iOS and Android, and as extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari on your laptop or desktop.

MercuryNews.com has a nice graphic summarizing options:  Google Reader's going away, but...

Hope this helps!