Motifs 1 & 2: Confirmation Bookmark

Confirmation Bookmark 2013

Q:  What do you get when when you cross a Dove and a Phone Box?
A:  a Confirmation bookmark  
(Click and drag mouse over answer to reveal.)

Miss me?   (Not after that joke, I'll wager.)

I wanted to offer up a fractured song lyric today but my brain is a-buzz with Sapling jokes (the variety found to be funny by first graders).  Let's try this one that Sapling told in this morning's carpool:

Knock, knock
Who's there?
Doctor
Doctor who?
You know my name!

25 Motif Challenge - A 3rd Go
I resolve to begin a 3rd 25 Motif Challenge in 2014. The goal of this challenge will be to keep me tatting regularly. Oh, and finish in one calendar year if I can.

Dove © Jane Eborall 2011
Tatted by IsDihara 2013

Motifs 1 & 2 - Bookmark for a Boy's Confirmation
Jane Eborall's Dove will launch my first tat --  a Confirmation bookmark. Didn't it turn out nicely?

Threads used are Lizbeth^® 20 Christmas Red for the bookmark and Lizbeth^® 20 601 Snow White for the dove. Patterns used for the two elements are Dove © Jane Eborall 2011 and T.A.R.D.I.S. bookmark © Anne Bruvold 2009.

T.A.R.D.I.S. bookmark © Anne Bruvold 2009
Tatted by IsDihara 2013 - 2014

Doctor Who fans will giggle knowing that I chose a T.A.R.D.I.S. pattern for the body of the bookmark. (Doesn't the top half resemble a red T.A.R.D.I.S.?) The white dove is designed by Jane Eborall in the UK. Doves and the color red are symbolic of Confirmation so I am told.

The connecting cord is braided, encapsulating the thread ends into "cobra" braid used in paracord survival bracelets. Cobra braid is basically a series of shoe-lace tricks tied around a core.

OK, one last joke...  (Are you groaning?)

Q:  What do you call a camel with no humps?
A:  Humphrey
(Click and drag mouse over answer to reveal.)

Have a marvelous Tatting Tea Tuesday everyone. Wishing you all blissful me time to create something beautiful. See you next Tuesday for joke-free communi-tea!

Motif 17 - Dragon Tails

Remember earlier this summer when I posted about Flying Minor Norwegian Massacre?  Poor Toothless had gotten gnashed to bits by a VBD  (Very Bad Dog).

I had promised a repair/re-tinkering, but realized that it might be faster to make a whole new dragon. Since I could only find three of the the previously-wound four shuttles, I had tabled this project until after Tat Days 2012.

Fast forward to three days before departing for Tat Days.  That is when I decided to tat The Sprout a replacement Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon as a love present while I am away.


Rest easy iridescent dragon fans, As Toothless Turns (into a Hideous Zippleback) will still happen, after I locate the elusive fourth shuttle.

Motif 17 - Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon #2

Note:  Threads used for this dragon are Lizbeth^® 40 #164 Blue River Glades and Lizbeth^® 40 #167 Jungle Greens.

Here is the progress after the first sit-down:

The interlocking rings are a technique of CORRECTION - Wally Sosa's, who lives in Puerto Rico when she is not traveling. (Jane from South Africa made a lovely necklace/choker using this technique and that is where I first saw it.)  Thank you Jane from South Africa for the correction!

I love how the interlocking rings give the impression of scales.  And it also looks like X's and O's.  (Hugs and Kisses) Second sit-down (same day) resulted in tail number two.

Hideous Zipplebacks are sly, but feisty creatures, as I found out first hand while tatting head number one. He nearly bit my hand off as I tried to close the ring that forms his snout.

An Altoids Smalls tin in the photo below helps to show size.  This gutsy lil' guy is smaller (and a whole lot more spirited) than his predecessor.  The snout of head number one came undone while I was closing the final snout ring of head number two. 

Snout repairs would have to wait until after the wings (So there, snarly wyr!) and his neck scales still need to be added.

VOILA!  Wings are done, neck scales and snout repairs have been completed.This two-headed thread threat  (hee, hee, a pun) was quite a handful. But how magnificent the outcome!

Hideous Zippleback's wingspan is 3.5 x 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) wide as well as 3.5 x 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) long from nose to tail. Thank you, Wally Sosa, and Anne Bruvold, for sharing these marvelous creations with us!

Not sure yet what The Sprout will name him, but feel free to make suggestions in the comments.

See you again after Tat Days, if I don't see you there!

Presenting Zaurun Toothless

Toothless, an Iridescent & Gold Dragon

25 Motif Challenge - A 2nd Go
Remember the dragon hatchling from last week? He has both wings now. Isn't he handsome?

He reminds me of this gorgeous iridescent dragon painting, though I didn't find it online until after Toothless was finished. Serendipity!

Motif 1 - Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon
Toothless will launch my second 25 Motif Challenge. Here are his thread specs:

The foundation is a Water Dragon tatted in Signature^® thread from Japan. The color is M07 - Pastels. It is a long-staple Egyptian quilting cotton that I blended with a sample of YLI red-gold variegated thread.

The interlocking rings and body bits are tatted in Altin Basak 40 Nakis Simi (Gold - Sari) and Ozen, size 50 - a 100% Polyester thread sample from Backwoods Tatter (by way of CrazyMom).

For the wings, I used the Signature^® thread - M07 for the chains and Altin Basak 40 Nakis Simi (Gold - Sari) for the rings.

Toothless, an Iridescent & Gold Dragon, sideview

Anne Bruvold's Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon has been on my Must Tat List since 2008. A long time, but so worth the wait.

The Sprout loves him and plays with him every day (Such a joy to watch!) but he insisted on changing his name from Zaurun to Toothless.

One of my favorite things about him, aside from the color, is that he is posable. He is flexible, not stiff, but the interlocking rings give his neck, body and tail just enough support. I simply must try to get a photo of him perched on something and looking down on his prey.

FYI-- the braided "reins" were a special request from The Sprout. Who is the dragon rider?

Thank you, Anne, for sharing this marvelous pattern!

Tatting Tea Tuesday - Lanyard Love & A Hatchling

Keeping this short and sweet in order to be ready to receive The Sprout's teacher shortly after lunch for a scheduled Home Visit.

Two Interlocking Ring Lanyards

Motif 25 - Interlocking Ring Lanyards - Finished
Thanks to 12 - 13 hours of hurricane rain (courtesy of Ms. Irene) I had several hours of tatting time. I finished not one, but two "braided" lanyards using Jane from South Africa's interlocking rings.

The threads used for the one on the left are:

• Lizbeth^® 20 #638 Christmas Green for the foundation row.
• Lizbeth^® 20 #652 Royal Blue for the Interlocking Row.

The threads used for the one on the right are:

• Lizbeth^® 40 #157 Raspberry Frappe for the foundation row.
• Lizbeth^® 40 #638 Christmas Green for the Interlocking Row.

The lanyards turned out rather well if I do say so myself. If I tat another, I will add a bead to the center of each ring in the foundation chain to give the braid some sparkly pizazz.

This officially completes my first 25 motif challenge.

I will be starting a second challenge as soon as I decide whether to focus on a tatted animal theme, work my way through a tatting book or continue letting untried techniques be my guide.

Hatchling Has a Head
One other project that I can share with you is progress on the Dragon Hatchling.

The foundation is Anne Bruvold's Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon (Water Dragon) tatted in pastel-colored quilting cotton blended with a sample of YLI red-gold variegated thread.

Applying interlocking rings to the the tail, body and neck adds dimension and looks like scales. The interlocking rings and body bits are tatted in Altin Basak 40 Nakis Simi (Gold - Sari) and Ozen, size 50 - a 100% Polyester thread sample from Backwoods Tatter (by way of CrazyMom).

Next to come are the wings. He is to be a love present for The Sprout while I am away at Tat Days. So I must get him finished in time!

As I tat this darling wee dragon, I imagine him hatching in an abandoned mine shaft where gold dust still glitters in alluvial deposits. His name is Zaurun. It is a blending of the Pashto name Zarin, the Hindi (and Cambodian) name Arun and the symbol for the chemical element for gold, Au.

Here is how one (very classy, IMHO) woman weathered Irene: High Tea in a Hurricane

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

Tatting Tea Tuesday - In the Zone

Juggling multiple projects can frazzle the nerves but this past week I was in the zone. Let's credit the adrenaline rush from registering for Palmetto Tat Days online. I'm getting excited!

My tea for today is a tall glass of iced pomegranate apple green tea. It goes down smooth and easy on hot summer days.

Beginning Tatting - Level 1 Kit

This week:

• I wound 12 floss cards with tatting thread samples, loaded 6 Pony shuttles and assembled 6 new (beginner level) tatting kits for my class that starts tomorrow night.

Fleur de Lis Motif Sample

• I tatted a new sample in Lizbeth^® 20 #642 Lilac Medium. The rings on the sides are floating free to test a hypothesis fueled by Jane Eborall's awesome Diamond Mat. How will the Fleur de Lis motif look joined together into larger shapes?

A quick-n-dirty, not-pretty-enough-for-prime-time pattern is available for any brave soul wishing to test tat. Email me at the address listed in the "About Me" widget on the right navigation panel above. (Look for the red-headed cartoon girl.)

Heart's Honor © Wanda Salmans 2011

• Wanda Salmans' Heart's Honor bookmark is closer to completion. I'm half way through round two.

This is my "on the go" tatting project. It is great for tatting in the car or while DH watches TV shows I don't care for. This design is eminently preferable to "Mansquito" or Sasquatch or Ghost Hunter TV. (Apologies to fans of these shows. They are just not my cup of tea.)

Lizbeth^® 40 Peacock Blues is the thread I am using for Wanda's lovely bookmark. It looks pretty to me, but sometimes I am not a good judge of a variegated thread overpowering a design. Do tell: do you think Wanda's design is getting lost?

Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon © 2008 Anne Bruvold

• I began a test tat of Anne Bruvold's Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon in pastel-colored quilting cotton blended with a sample of YLI red-gold variegated thread CrazyMom sent me.Thanks, CrazyMom, I have been so anxious to try the sparkly threads you sent.
• As I mentioned, I registered for Palmetto Tat Days online.  Wheeee! 
• I registered The Sprout for his second year of preschool. Where has this summer gone?

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