County Fair Tatting

Quick update on the County Fair tatting — today I turned in my entry. Woo hoo!

Several of the registration volunteers were enthusiastic about seeing what I brought, but every single one said "what is it, ceramic painting?"

Ceramic painting?!?

OK. (Forgive me for not snapping a photo before I turned it in.) Since I had two glass mats, I decided to display them in a mirrored case so they would be considered together and not handled overly much, except by the judges.

I decorated the football-sized display case with a porcelain teacup and saucer that complimented the colors in the lace. Glass mats need glasses (or tea cups), right?

Well, everyone focused on the tea cup and ignored the lace. Oh no!

Plus, the ladies at the registration desk said, "Only one entry per category. The judges may disqualify this entry."

I explained that it was a set, and was displayed as such on purpose. I politely asked if I could fill out the description ticket to read "tea time coaster set."

The registration ladies declined to allow me to fill out the description card.

Elation turned to depression and I went home feeling dejected. My first entry may be rejected for not following the rules.

I will keep you all updated and be sure to include a photo of the display case once I bring it back home (Or maybe even from the Home Arts hall...)

Breaking News! A Tatting Revival

Just had to share this link to a recent tatting article in the news. It features a tatter who lives close to me -- Sw4nkyL4c3r.

Tatting is Making a Revival

Remember when she came over for Tatting Tea Tuesday? For details Set the WABAC Machine.

Isn't it wonderful to read that a tatting revival is underway? First it was dying and then a lost art. But Sw4nkyL4cer is trying to bring it back. ツ

She really does a wonderful job teaching needle tatting at the Ben Lomond Historic Site and Old Rose Garden. Her classes are always full and her students come back session after session.

I had to chuckle after reading her follow-up email today. She said the reporter made up some "mystery quotes."

Factoring in the errors I found on the page, (the bad caption underneath the photo) I shudder to imagine what creative license he may have taken.

But, you know what they say. There is no such thing as bad press. ツ

NEXT: Holy Schemoley! Shuttle Search Solved

Zoo Flakes - ABC

The Sprout's summer reading challenge has been an unexpected source for tatting inspiration.

Zoo Flakes by Will C. Howell(image source: Google images via amazon.com)

Of course, I can't show you pages from the book due to copyright law, but check your local library for a copy.

This lovely little children's book has captured my imagination. I have been poring over it, marveling at the cut-out paper snowflakes built upon animal shapes.

It has also provided a novel diversion while I wait for Martha Ess' new critter book to be released.

Which begs the question: might it be possible to work Martha's winsome critters (or Christel Weidemann's farm animals or Jane Eborall's animals or Inga Madsen's or Heather Johnston's animals) into snowflakes or small doilies? A polar bear...a penguin...a winter fox...a gecko...a dragon...a swan...a baby whale?

How about using a Zoo flake as a template for a new doily design?

Kersti Anear has green-lighted this idea for an InTatters forum challenge. So I put the question to you. Would you be interested?  If so, I'd love to know!

And of course, head on over to InTatters to take part in the challenge. (But I won't have the forum post up until this evening.)

Motif #13 - Gloria Butterflies

Motif #13 Gloria Butterflies by Iris Niebach

Just look at these glorious butterflies tatted in size 40 Lizbeth Berry Burst. Such pretty little flutters!

The original edging pattern comes from Iris Niebach's book, Fantasia 3. It is aptly named Gloria.

(This motif is amended from Iris' original pattern.)

It measures 5.1 cm (2 inches) in diameter and is motif #13 in my 25 motif challenge.

See where I ran out of thread on the second butterfly's wing? I was using a thread sample and thought I had enough to finish. It was so close!

Five yards were loaded on one shuttle and about 3 on the other. Eleven centimters (4.3 inches) were left on one shuttle and 72.4 cm (28.5 inches) on the other.

This motif is destined to become a bookmark. Won't these two little flutters look precious flitting atop some late summer reading?

What's in a Name
I don't know if Iris Niebach names her patterns after loved ones, students, memorable local personalities or tatters who have gone before. But if I were Gloria, I would be delighted beyond words to be the namesake for this remarkable design.

To Cluny or Not to Cluny?

Apologies go to Ms. Niebach for changing the pattern. As written, it calls for Cluny leaves and a connecting chain above the Cluny leaves to be worked in between the butterflies.

You can see the original pattern on The Tattingplayer.

I tried to tat Clunies. I did.

My first attempt did not turn out well.

For starters, I wove the shuttle over and under six threads. That resulted in an even weave that didn't resemble a tallie at all. When it came time to close, I had no loom threads to pull through and got very confused. What else could I do but unweave the offending tallie all the way back to an empty loom.

Another thing I don't understand is the second, unflipped half-stitch at the start of the weaving. Is this a regular second half of a double stitch, unflipped? Or an unflipped second stitch made during the second half of split-ring tatting (which actually is the unflipped, first half stitch of regular tatting). I bet I am really over-thinking it, aren't I?

Anyway, after a much-needed visit to the online tatting class archives I have discovered my error in weaving around all six loom threads. Thank you to Georgia Seitz, Mimi Dillman, Tammy Rodgers and Wally Sosa for your excellent tutorials!

I have dipped my toe in the Cluny leaf pool and now must conquer this new technique or die trying.

Rest assured, once I get a good grasp of Clunies I will be making more of this butterfly edging pattern, exactly as Ms. Niebach intended. It's a keeper!

Tatting Tea Tuesday -- Goodbye July

Let's kick off the last Tatting Tea Tuesday for July with a photo of my pretty new teacup. It's perfect for steeping loose leaf teas and comes with a handy lid.

It's hard to think about hot tea when the thermometer is once again threatening triple digits.

Is it just me or is this scorcher of a summer spinning out of control? I was hoping for a few cool barbecues, some front porch tatting and hammock time by now. Would someone kindly stop summer from rushing headlong into the fiery arms of Autumn?

Motif #11 - Spinning Wheel Glass Mat

Summer may be spinning out of control, but the glass mat I have been working on reeled off without incident. It is tatted in Heather, the Tarnished Tatter's Bali HDT in size 30. The pattern is from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior. It measures 4 inches (10 cm.) across.

This will be motif #11 for my 25 motif challenge. Now that it is finished I wonder if all the central rings could be tatted in yellow. Or . . .

How would it look tatted with a stained glass effect?

A Tatting Lesson

While in my home state last week, I started teaching my niece Jalice (not her real name) to tat. Want to see photos of our first lesson?

Jalice getting acquainted with her purple Sew-Mate post shuttle. She picked up the flip in 2 - 3 minutes. That's the fastest I have seen anyone leap that hurdle.

Jalice picking out her first knot. Alas, she did a lot of this during the first lesson. If she got discouraged she didn't let it show.

Here she is showing off her first double stitches. She picked up the basics quickly, but didn't close the ring (5-5-5-5). An impromptu lesson over the phone (using YouTube videos) served to illustrate the process.

Motif #12 - Queen of Hearts

Last but not least is my latest bit of tatting. Mary Konior's Queen of Hearts in Lizbeth size 40, color #139 Fruit Fizz and #696 Autumn Orange medium.

This heart measures 2 3/8 inches (6 cm.) at its widest point and counts as motif #12 in my 25 motif challenge.

I like these two colors more than I expected to. The Autumn Orange medium looks like a fresh-cut jack-o-lantern. The Fruit Fizz looks like something straight out of a Nigella Lawson recipe. (Enlarge the recipe image to see what I mean.)

Thinking I was being clever, I employed shoe-lace tricks to alternate the colors for each big ring. Don't know how it affected the color flow. Will have to tat one without the shoe-lace tricks for comparison. I am beginning to understand why Tatskool makes so many test tats!

This heart is not error-free. The first chain, at the bottom tip, is inward-facing. It is supposed to curve outward. Oops! I didn't even notice until I got the whole way around and began tatting the last chain. What could I do, but tat it backwards to match the first one? The final join had to be altered because of this error.

Fox made me feel a little bit better about getting the first chain going the wrong direction with her post: It's All About Karey. At least Fox fixed hers...

There is one more error where I joined a four-picot chain in the wrong place. Can you spot it? I didn't even notice until I enlarged the image 150% in PhotoShop.
Ah well, c'est la vie.

Wishing you all more me-time to create something beautiful.

See you in August for more communi-tea!

Gonna Tat Like It's My Birthday

Last year I was fortunate enough for my birthday to fall on Tatting Tea Tuesday. This year, as the big day falls on a Wednesday, I'm gonna tat like it's my birthday.

Because today IS my birthday! LOL 

The Sprout liked this (no doubt because of the large robot):




I thought this one was hilarious!





♥ from Postie
Two tatting parcels were waiting when I got home  yesterday. It is hard to be blue when you know you have tatting goodies from postie! Here's what I got:

Icelas sent the lovely vintage handkerchief with matching thread and a handmade bookmark as a blog giveaway prize. A few others (Tatskool, Lace-lovin' Librarian Diane, Vanessa) have tatted incredible edgings recently. Looks like it is my turn.

Honestly, I've not seen such a perfect match between thread and cloth. Well done, Icelas! And thanks for sending such a pretty prize package my way.

Heather, the Tarnished Tatter, has been having fun dyeing new HDT. She sent two skeins: IsDihara's Dream in size 50 and Summer Brights in size 40.

Your eyes do not deceive. She named a colorway after me. Isn't that just the bee's knees?

Alas, I must buckle down and get my county fair entry finished, mounted or shadow-boxed or some fashion of presentation. So these tempting threads will be whispering sweet nothings in my ear for a short while.

Next post -- photos of me teaching my niece to tat!

Tatting Tea TuesdayRound 6 Finished

Row 6 of Purple and Teal Square Doily
Debbie Arnold © 2002
Round six (6) of the County Fair doily is complete.

Less than four weeks remain before the fair opens. Four more rows to tat. The pressure is on! Maybe I should stop here until after the fair judging?

The next three rounds build the beautiful bracketed square shape. If I forge ahead and don't get all 10 rows done, I risk it looking unfinished. If I leave it as is, it looks like a nice glass mat.

Speaking of which, progress on the spinning wheel glass mat continues slow but steady. It occurs to me that instead of a doily, I could submit multiple coasters for the county fair. But how to present them?

FYI - both mats are the same size.

4 repeats of Mary Konior's Spinning
Wheel Glass Mat in Bali HDT, size 30
Every Time a Bell Rings...
...an angel gets his wings, or so goes the quote from "It's a Wonderful Life."

I snapped this partial shot of the glass mat because it looked like one half of a pair of angel wings. Has anyone else used this pattern to tat angel wings?

Lastly, I attempted to make a birthday card using rubber stamps, scrapbooking papers and a few embellishments. It started out simple, but exploded into a three-trip-to-Michaels event fairly quickly. Why?

I purchased the wrong kind of inkpad for the coated cardstock used to craft the lotus blossom and the ink never fully dried. Not with help from a hair dryer or a heat gun. Even after sitting out to air dry in a well air-conditioned house for a week, the ink rubbed off easily on my fingers. Live and learn!

People like Etha Schuette make it look easy. That just goes to show you how talented they are.

Whether it is a card, a bit of lace or something else, here's hoping you all find time time to create something beautiful. See you next Tuesday for more communi-tea!

Note: This post was scheduled in advance, but I took along fresh spearmint leaves from my backyard mint patch to brew a refreshing tea before departing home to Silly Hat Central. Hoping your tea was tasty today!