Carl Sagan once said, “We live in an extraordinary age."
Sunday morning as I was sipping my tea and skimming Facebook posts, I noticed a comment that made me stop and think about the extraordinary tatting age we live in.
The comment was this:
I learned to tat in more primitive times. Pattern books were a rare commodity. No classes were offered. All there was to go on was one or two paragraphs in a Coats & Clark mini-booklet.
The Internet as we know it did not yet exist, It was in its infancy.
Those primitive times were the 1980's in a region known as the Pennsylvania Wilds. "The Wilds" were a cradle of sorts for tatting. Myrtle Hamilton lived there. Georgia Seitz spoke of Myrtle Hamilton as a caretaker of tatting in her 2007 Tat Days banquet speech. Please read it, the whole speech is lovely.
In the extraordinary age we live in, many tatting conventions are available to attend in North America. (This is not a complete list, just the events I was able to confirm before Tatting Tea Tuesday.)
Take this extraordinary opportunity to learn, share and grow among fellow tatters, Find one in your area and plan to attend in 2015. You'll be glad you did.
Sunday morning as I was sipping my tea and skimming Facebook posts, I noticed a comment that made me stop and think about the extraordinary tatting age we live in.
The comment was this:
"Is there a tatter who is willing to teach a beginner? ...Sometimes it only takes a few visits and then they [beginning tatters] can go on their own. Do you know other tatters in your area? Do you attend any tatting conventions?"Ponder these questions for a moment. In this tatting age it is commonplace to ask such questions. Who else thinks this is extraordinary?
I learned to tat in more primitive times. Pattern books were a rare commodity. No classes were offered. All there was to go on was one or two paragraphs in a Coats & Clark mini-booklet.
The Internet as we know it did not yet exist, It was in its infancy.
Those primitive times were the 1980's in a region known as the Pennsylvania Wilds. "The Wilds" were a cradle of sorts for tatting. Myrtle Hamilton lived there. Georgia Seitz spoke of Myrtle Hamilton as a caretaker of tatting in her 2007 Tat Days banquet speech. Please read it, the whole speech is lovely.
In the extraordinary age we live in, many tatting conventions are available to attend in North America. (This is not a complete list, just the events I was able to confirm before Tatting Tea Tuesday.)
[EDIT] Contact Ruth Perry for more information about Sunshine Tatters.
Shuttlebirds Tatting Days began in 1997 Tatting Seminars in Hector, NY (now known as Tatting Seminars in the Fingerlakes) began in 1999 The Thread Corner began hosting a Tatting Day in 2000 Palmetto Tatting Guild hosted its first tatting convention in 2003 Fringe Element Tatters [EDIT] hosted its first Tat Day in 2005 Sunshine Tatters will host their first Tatting Day in 2015
Take this extraordinary opportunity to learn, share and grow among fellow tatters, Find one in your area and plan to attend in 2015. You'll be glad you did.
5 comments:
Hi I am part of the Fringe Tatters in southern Ontario Canada and the Fringe will be holding their 10th Anniversary in 2015!!! This weekend (September 26th/27th) is the annual tatting event in Cambridge Ontario. To anyone who maybe coming I look forward to seeing you!!
Kelly
A wonderful time to be tatting! Even if it's not possible to go to tatting gatherings, the contact that the internet allows with other tatters is magical. And has led to all sorts of inspiration and developments.
where is the sunshine tatters located?
Yes, it is amazing how different it is to tat today than when I learned. The Internet has helped tatters not only in connecting with others but in having a resource to learn new techniques as well as just the exposure to new ideas. I want very much to attend a tat days somewhere, anywhere, but it might be a few years yet before I'm able to make it. But, wow, it's great to know there are places to go to enjoy actual, live visits with other tatters.
I'm often struck by this too. Also in the teaching world, if you teach something unusual like Latin, having the internet has changed so many things. No longer the lone ranger but to have a group of like-minded people- wonderful!!! I have learned so much about tatting that never would have crossed my path- split rings!
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