Flowering Tea Tuesday

It's time for another Tatting Tea Tuesday.

Apologies for the blurred photo this week. My regular camera is on the fritz and I'm using a "dinker dog" that picks up motion blur easily.

In the photo above you can see my oversize ceramic tea mug. It has an etched blue flower design. Hmm? Not what you were expecting?

I do own a nice selection of lovely china teacups and saucers. But delicate tea ware tends to tip and drip when you're concentrating on your lace. So this big, steady posy mug is my vessel of choice.

Ever try flowering teas? They are breathtaking to watch unfold as they steep. Quite a nice way to start off a lace-making hour. Watch a variety of teas blossom in this captivating video.

Lastly, if you were wondering, it is time to take a small sanity break from my latest design experiment. Just a few days or so to regroup from "one step forward, two steps back" -itus.

The good news is that I have worked out a nice bottom point for the second round of Birgit Phelp's 2003 SweetHeart, but in the process have discovered something that I am told all designers face: fixing one problem often creates several other challenges.

The bad news is that the heart lace really shows the rough treatment I've been inflicting upon it. Dirt stains, broken threads, obvious patch jobs, the first ring joined in the wrong place! You get the idea. It's a mess. But here it is, warts and all.

For all its flaws, the overall shape seems to be coming together alright. Round 3 to come. (If round 2 doesn't kill me first...)

One more thing! Today I discovered a witty and slightly cheeky site called Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down. It will bring a smile to your lips, even if all the time you have to spend is to read their mission statement. It's nice to find two people on this big, blue marble who have their priorities in order. ツ

Wishing you all blissful me time to create something beautiful.

See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!