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!

Knot-Tea Fun

The Christmas Weed is dead!

Was it Wanda's wise comment that spurred Big Daddy (my husband) to action?

She wrote, "Mr. Pernicious is growing like a weed ;-) You do know what comes after flowers, right? Seeds!"

I may have embellished upon her wisdom a tiny bit, "...come Spring that weed will be tall enough to bite you in the backside, Mister, and babies will be shooting up from the seeds." (*wry grin*)

Applause for Wanda, for bringing the persuasive power of seeds to bear on the situation.




To celebrate this "seedy" victory, sing with me a fractured song lyric sung to the joyous munchkin refrain from L. Frank Baum's film, The Wizard of Oz.

Ding Dong the Weed is Dead

Ding Dong! The Weed is dead. Which old Weed? The Christmas Weed!
Ding Dong! The Christmas Weed is dead.
Wake up - sleepy head, rub your eyes, get out of bed.
Wake up, the Christmas Weed is dead. 

It's gone where the bread crumbs go, O're the fence, you know. 
Yo-ho, let's open up and sing and ring the bells out.
Ding Dong, the merry-oh, sing it high, sing it low.
Let them know
The Christmas Weed is dead! 

Knots and Tea
Just had to share this adorable felted heart pin and the beautiful, white tatted heart sent to me by JB.  Don't they look smashing together?

Here is JB's tatted heart in all its lacy glory. She does such wonderful work.

I did not tat this heart.  It was included in a gift JB mailed to me before the holidays.

As for tea, today I am drinking a lovely tisane (herbal infusion) called Christmas Eve/Veille de Noël by Stash.  It is a festive blend of mint and sweet spices that brews up into a warm, soothing cup.

Check back tomorrow to see the heart on which I am currently working.  And progress on my Gingerbread Boy.