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!

Fergal & Miss Scarlet Found

Great news!  Fergal and Miss Scarlet have been found safe and sound. Lace-lovin' Librarian Diane has been making them feel relaxed and comforted while they re-connect with Killian.

Now we can all breath a sigh of relief.  Except for Maebh, who might have been secretly hoping for a surprise reunion.

L&MBER ALERT - Fergal & Miss Scarlet

A L&MBER alert has been issued in the case of missing leprechaun Fergal and his traveling companion Miss Scarlet. This is not a test.

Fergal was last seen in the company of Miss Scarlet and Training Academy mate Killian at the home of Lace Lovin' Librarian Diane. If you have any information concerning the whereabouts of these two missing persons, please REPORT SIGHTING.

A Corner to Call My Own

A new (used) chair

Silly Hat Central has a new (used) chair and, before the two hounds get any ideas, I have claimed it for my new tatting corner.  (So there, hounds.)

You see, this is what the hounds did to the previous chair that sat in this corner. Bad dogs!

Julie Beagle on a shredded chair cushion

The new chair is comfy and sits next to a big front window. The heating vent underneath will warm my toes and (so say the hounds) keep my tushy toasty.   

The black floor lamp will most certainly be swapped out for an OttLite^® and the side table nook will soon overflow with threads, tools and pattern pages. (Sorry, Bad Piggie.)

A good spot in which to tat while waiting for the season's first snowflakes, don't you think?

Missing out

Yesterday I missed a lovely Tatting Tea Tuesday gathering because of contract work. The weather was gorgeous, the two tatting ladies delightful.  It was an afternoon of "Tatting on the Farm."

Instead of tatting with the ladies in Virginia horse country, I tatted in my tatting corner. It is a nice corner, but it doesn't have a view of horses frisking in the field or the Autumn splendor of the Shenandoah Valley. Next time I will go!

This is what I am working on (using two of my shuttles made by Georgia and Richard Seitz):

IsDihara's Dove - a work in progress

Does anyone recognize the pattern?  Here is a closer look:

IsDihara's Dove - a work in progress

The pattern is:  Dove © Jane Eborall 2011 and HER dove, pictured below, is 100% finished and looking splendid!

DOVE © JANE EBORAL 2011
All Rights Reserved

For my dove, Lizbeth 40 Snow White thread is being used with opaque white seed beads and a black bead for the eye.  It will adorn a bookmark (in place of a tassel) that I am making as a gift. A friend's son is being confirmed at the end of November. Doves and the color red are symbolic of Catholic Confirmation ceremonies.

Let's cross our fingers that my dove will look a fraction as good as Jane's. I can but hope. Jane does such incredible work.

And speaking of work, it is nose back to the grindstone for me.  À tout à l'heure! (See you soon!)

Still Here

Holy smokes!  Has it really been over a month since my last post?

It would be great if my absence were due to a mad rush of tatting on a big project.  Sadly, that is not the case. I have been working on freelance writing/editing projects for the Alaska Neurology Center.

Actually my first project was marketing related (something I have NO previous experience in) -- I drafted up a logo design concept for their Sleep Disorder and Treatment Center. They wanted something unique and I suppose turning to a non-Marketing type is one way to do it!

Here is an early prototype of the design concept I submitted.  It changed a bit in subsequent revisions so I don't feel like I am revealing secrets by showing you.

Since that project wrapped up, I have been writing about a new MRI scanner (the GE Discovery MR750w 3.0T, if anyone is interested).  Preparing copy for their website and brochures. Today I hope to receive the next topic -- perhaps the services they provide for Multiple Sclerosis patients.

All in all interesting work.  And it is work I am glad to have. Especially since the contract was supposed to expire on September 30 and they have asked me continue on into October.

I miss you all, but will be back once the freelance work is ended. I AM reading all the tatting blogs and have been greatly enjoying all your posts. Keep 'em coming.  Big hugs to everyone!

---

An American Box Turtle paid a visit this morning. My two hounds went crazy!

Yesterday I spotted my first Woolly Bear Caterpillar of 2013.  He was just a little guy, only about half as long as I usually see such "worms."

Do Woolly Bear Caterpillars Forecast Winter Weather?   (Source: almanac.com)

According to legend, the wider that middle brown section is (i.e., the more brown segments there are), the milder the coming winter will be. Conversely, a narrow brown band is said to predict a harsh winter.

Motif 25 - Magenta Monster Mollusk

A few weeks ago I was asked by a young girl if I would tat her a small animal -- a pink octopus like the one I had on the display table during one of my summer tatting demos.

So I grabbed my shuttles and began a test tat.

The magenta-colored head tatted up perfectly. 'I got this,' I thought and pressed on.

 I make these mistakes so you don't have to
Almost immediately I misunderstood the directions, not noticing my error until four limbs had been completed.  (So very like me, and precisely the reason for test tatting a piece first.) I ended up with NINE limbs instead of eight.

Motif 25 Nonny the Nonapus
May I present my strange creation and the head of his soon-to-be eight-limbed cousin? Here Nonny is holding up his claim to fame.

Nonny is tatted using Lizbeth^®  20 Magenta Dk 618. He measures about 1.5 inches (3.81 centimeters).

EDIT:  The pattern for Martha's adorable octopus can be found on page 14 of her book, "New Critters on the Block."

Test tat of Octopus © 2006 Martha Ess,
Tatted by IsDihara 2013

This completes my second 25 Motif Challenge.  I finished it in less than 2 years, an improvement from my first challenge.  (FYI--if one motif is tatted and posted within a two-week period it should take no more than one year to complete the challenge.)

I am not disappointed with my timing, just being aware of it.  The challenge isn't about racing to meet a deadline. Completing the challenge gives me a great sense of accomplishment and keeps me tatting on a regular basis.  Both are good things.

So I will carry on for a 3rd Challenge, so long as you readers aren't hopelessly bored.  Completing my class projects from Tat Days 2012 will be the goal for the first part of this new challenge. Hearts and Beanile lace jewelry and critters, oh my!

More Monster Mollusks
If you would like to read more about monster mollusks, two links to stories about real-life nonapus (or enneapus) are included below.

• Susami, a blue-ringed octopus: Nine-limbed octopus gives aquarium a leg up
• Common octopus: Nine-tentacled octopus

"Strange beauty, eight-limbed and eight-handed Whence camest to dazzle our eyes?" 
~Arthur Clement Hilton