A Tatting Day!

Well here's the Suncatcher pattern by Birgit Phelps that I tried out last week with my recently purchased Size 40 Cordonnet hand dyed "Forrest" tatting thread from Yarnplayer.  I had to do some "retro tatting" and was glad the thread held up to the added stress - but - I found out with this pattern that I have too LOOSEN UP as my tension is too snug and this piece is sort of wavy!  I would like to make this slightly smaller and attach a dangling crystal in the centre and a smaller one from the bottom ring and just maybe I would wear it as a necklace???

Suncatcher - Jan 27 2011

Suncatcher on light background

Now this next pattern Li'l Heart by Birgit Phelps also, is so adorable that I'll be making up some more.  This is a pattern where I FINALLY CAUGHT ONTO "CTM" and actually did it with only the two ending threads to be hidden (usually threaded to the wrong side of the crazy patched block being added to).  The cream is in Size 40 Lizbeth and was a dream to tat up even with my first goofup!  The red is with Size 30 DMC Cebelia and I can honestly say I do NOT LIKE this as it splits and sometimes breaks (may be due to my tight tatting though).  I have brand new balls of Christmas red and green and not sure if I'll be using much of this.

Li'l Heart - Jan 29-30, 2011

And this precious gem is like an inch and a half in size and 3-D Tiny Basket by Sharon Albers and was tatted by my friend Michelle who very kindly gave it to me today at our Northern Lights Lace groups gathering.  Thank you my dear!!!   

Tiny Basket tatted by Michelle - Jan 2011

Now I'm back home and going to try out another new pattern - I've a few more to tat up for a couple of ladies in exchange for postage so gotta get crackin'!!!

TIAS - Day 7

OK I was still up at 2:00 am so checked before shutting down but guess that it was too early for Jane in England to be uploading the next set of tatting instructions! LOL!  Then I was up and attem at 7:30 am anxious to tat my next wing of the airplane - yeppers I think that is what this TIAS is gonna grow up to be!!!


TIAS - day 7

Sheesh now I better go crash for an hour or my tatting afternoon with the Lace girls will be for naught!!!

TIAS - Day 6

OK I still think this TIAS is an airplane with the beads as the portholes and we're building towards the larger wings and front of the plane!  If not then I don't know what it is!

TIAS Day 6

TIAS - Day 5

Hmmm I still have no clue what this TIAS is but an "airplane" comes to mind with the beads as the windows???  Yes I'm still having fun with this!!!


Day 5

Tatted Fan

Yeppers I tried tatting another new pattern and after a false start I was off and running and did the largest size - 3" x 2" and just love it!!!

I just love this pattern and it was very easy to do and comes in three sizes too.  I followed the third or largest pattern and image shown for my project.  I can tell you that there are a zillion of freebie patterns here to try out and other tutorial and techniques stuff too!

Debbie's Encrusted RR#1 Block

Yes I finally completed my embellishing on Debbie S's RR block BEFORE the end of the month and yes it will be going in the mail today after work to Cathy - the last person in the group.  This is a very lovely block but once again PINKS!!!  At least Debbie asked for purple and light green so that was my lifesaver!  LOL!

So here is what I started off with:

Debbies block - after Paula and PeggySue

First I pinned on a hand dyed green leaf lace and then found in a swap packet the crocheted mauve flower and stitched those in place.  In the mean time I tatted up a variegated purple/white heart for another patch.  I then found my variegated DMC floss and stem stitched the curly qs and added the maulve beads at the ends.  Also found my hand dyed floss and fly stitched ferns too.



Rose Anne's flower patch

Then I decided that tiny triangular piece with the fabric folds needed a fancy button cluster – hope that’s not too heavy for your piece.  If yes, feel free to remove the stitches from the back and replace it with whatever you desire.



Rose Anne's button cluster

Now the tatted heart patch …  this heart was completed shortly after receipt of the block, then this weekend I did the seam treatments and added the Colonial knots in the background.  I was going to add my tatted or charm butterfly in this patch too but could not decide so I will be including it in with the block and Cathy/Debbie can decide!

Rose Anne's tatted heart patch

And here without further do ... is the just about completed block of Debbie's!  I just love it and already can see it gracing her guest room wall in an impressive wall hanging!  You'll have to anchor it to the wall just in case it is packed by the guests??? 


Debbie's block - after Paula, PeggySue and Rose Anne
Just Cathy L to embellish yet.

Sure hope you like it!!!

Busy Weekend Again!

OK I've put away the leftovers, started my dishes and relaxing with the last glass of wine before checking the mega pileup of messages!!!  My everyone sure were chatty today!!!

Friday I stitched, tatted and read the night away! 

Saturday was our monthly Aurora Online Quilters gathering and we had 15 quilters show up and one brief visitor - WOW WOW WOW!!!  Nope I didn't get any stitching done at all but tonnes of visiting, club bookwork and also cleanup!  But it was awesome and I wish our gatherings were more like this!!!  Then I rushed out for grocery shopping and back home to start my BBQ pulled beef for Sunday!  Well needless to say it was 1:00 am before it was ready enough to pull apart and then put back into the sauce and into the fridge and 2:00 am before I crashed.

WELL needless to say I slept in and was an hour late getting to the Community Club for another session of our local Alzeheimer's Touch Quilts sewing event.  Yeppers it was potluck again and talk about the awesome spread from the large turnout of ladies.  My niece Audrey works at the Alzeheimer's office and invited us to join them so her sister and I showed up and stitched various lap sized quilt tops of a mish mash of textured type fabrics - some easy to sew some NOT!!! 

It was a lovely day inside but blustery cold outside and when it was time to leave I had to SCRAPE ICE from the INSIDE of my windows - never in my life has that happened to me!!!  After I did that then the defrost took care of the fogging up and quickly I had clear windows but YIKERS there were many driving around with 6" circles on both sides of their front windshield and nowhere else - are they crazy???

So now I'll try and finish off Debbie's crazy patched Encrusted RR block and hopefully get it mailed off tomorrow - depends on how tired I am, if not then I'll finish it off tomorrow evening.

TIAS - Day 4

Hmmmm I'm still wondering what this is going to be, but at least it is shaping up and maybe something will come to mind!!!  If I knew which was up and done, right or left, it might give clues - LOL!

TIAS - Day 4

Encrusted RR#1 3/4s Way Home!!!

Yeppers Miss Paula (sweetie that she did not keep me in suspense long at all) has been a very busy embellisher and did a WOW job on my block!  I just love the spider web and spider under the grape cluster edging (at least that's what I see) and that rose brooch reminds me of the one I gave to Mom many years ago, along with the lovely tatting too!  Then the couched (I think) gold heart trio and the pink Venice lace edging is lovely also!  

Paula's work on the spider n web, rose brooch and tatted edging. 



Paula's couched heart trios and lovely pink Venice lace edging.

My heart after Cathy L, Debbie S, and Paula's embellishments.

WOW this block is just loaded with such beauty for me to behold when it finally arrives home!  But I still see some space for Peggy Sue to embellish - hmmmm wonder what she'll add in?

Encrusted RR#1 Halfway Home!

Okay I'm not going to repost the first set of pictures but if you're interested in seeing this block grow up please check out my previous blog entry here. 

Now here are the pics of embellishments by Debbie S and I just LOVE it and can't wait to see what Paula and Peggy Sue come up with for the open patches on this baby yet!!! 


Debbie S encircled roses motif and above
added the grape cluster edging.



Debbie S beaded dragonfly,
flower cluster and seam treatment.

My heart with Cathy L & Debbie S embellishments.

It's really looking pretty and will have an awesome wall hanging of hearts one of these years of these RR blocks!!!

TIAS - Day 3

Well I'm still going strong on this TIAS (tat is and see) mystery project and so far it's going good too!  BUT I still have no clue what this baby will grow up to be!!!

February Heart BOM

Yes I've completed the next block for the SewBuds Hearts BOM and I just LOVE it!!!  Yep you guess it - it is red for Valentines and Love!!!  I was tickled pink as I tried once again Be-Stitched Allison Tatted Edging and this time I managed to add the beads as I went over the long picots - YAHOOIE!!!


  

Allison Tatted Edging

New Mantra for MOI!

Well you might know that I'm being guided to a more "positive" lifestyle lately and some of my friends have been assisting me in this endeavour.  I have to thank you all over the last year or so for this but thought the above two were really pertinent to my CQing pasttime and well I LOVE snowmen so could not resist blogging these!  Again thank you to all my dear friends and family members too!!!

January Hearts BOM

Within my SewBuds group Katie thought of a hearts BOM of 8" finished blocks - no guidelines - just do whatever you want for each of the (I think) six of us signed up.  We might do more than one round - time will tell.  So basically we stitch up a quilt block with a heart on or in it in whatever technique we wish, embellish or not.  Now one would think this is easy - well not I - see I spent at least a WEEK searching for whatever heart ideas appealed to me.  Once I decided I then got busy on the January block as it has to be ready for next week when Katie's knitting group draws the lucky member's name and then it's mail out time.


January Heart BOM block

So needless to say I settled for needle turned appliqued heart trio for my first go around - yes I decided that each member will receive the same block from me - but each will be a different colour and maybe even different embellishments!  Some may think this would be boring, but for only six of us I don't think it will be, and that way each will have the same from me.  For January I chose shades of blue batiks, the larger one trimmed with bought daisy edging anchored with yellow beaded centres; medium one I tatted an edging and anchored with irridescent beads and the smaller on I blanket stitched around with white floss.

#9069 - J&P Coates Tatting Book #229
Size 20 Lizbeth #122

Now I'm to SIGN these blocks and I can tell you that is something I do not like to do - am gonna have to find a way to pull it off to my liking!!!

Next it's onto preparing the February block and so on till all six of us has received their first go around heart blocks.  I personally hope it goes around at least three rounds - that'll make 24 blocks - see I'll make one for myself too.  Would make a nice size throw for the couch I thinks!!!

"Tat It And See" - TIAS

Yep some new fun and games with tatting for me!  See Jane Eborall a tatting designer of the UK has come up with TIAS - a sort of mystery tatting activity and I decided to give it a go this year.  So if you're intereted in tatting and want to give a try, check out her TIAS blog. 

Here are my Day 1 and Day 2 samples (actually the same project).


Day 1 steps - starting ends not hidden



Day 2 steps - with Sew Mates Lacis shuttles

Day 2 steps closeup - with ends hidden within

Something Funny!

WELL my sister Florence was visiting Dad and she just called my cell (which for once was on) and then put it on speaker (which I've just found that function myself after how many years) and I had a brief chat with Dad.  He's been up more than in bed and they think his pneumonia is clearing but he's still weak.  Hopefully he'll start to improve more now that he's up and about.  THAT was great to hear his voice much stronger!!!

NOW, I have to tell you something funny that happened the other day at work!

See most of my artistic endeavours land up on display at work (mainly cause my apartment is messy) and this way I get to see them too besides the co-workers who are thrilled and most times amazed with them too.  Anyways, Christmas is over and the decorations all retired to their boxes until the next season and everyone, including me, is saying how bare and dull the office looks now.  SO, I searched and found the Valentines decorations and put them out but still it did not seen enough.

MPQ - Celtic Workshop

I then looked around home and found my trio square wall hangings or table matts that I clipped together for a vertical wall hanging and then found my Celtic table topper for the occasional table at the entrance with the heart box ontop.  I kinda hummed and hawed as I was not sure if I liked the box ontop of this topper but just left it.  WELL, two co-workers kept moving the box around to better view the topper and finally one of them came to me and asked if we could find another place for the box as it bothered her there.  I just chuckled as I kinda felt the same!!!  Sure, I had no problem with that and actually I love the topper just by itself whenever I glance over there.  So then the other co-worker comes by and smiles and declares “thank you for removing that box”, not that it wasn’t lovely, just interfered with the topper.  Kinda funny that the three of us were thinking along the same line!

A Tatting Day!

Well I woke kinda blah and decided that today was going to be a day or staying put and just taking it easy tatting, reading and watching TV!  And I did just that besides two loads of laundry, cooking supper and doing my dishes so my sink still is shining!  Nothing else though! 


Tat a Snowflake - Trish Faubion's from A Tatter's Workbook
done in size 30 crochet cotton

So here's the medallion that I started last week and just finished off this morning.  It was fairly easy to do and I learnt how to insert the centre tatting (which could be a different colour cotton) section of a finished outer design.


Tri-Heart by Susan B. Taliaferro
in size 30 DMC


This is a new one I just printed off and really like this one but it was a little trickier to tat for me and I had to concentrate but I did it!!!


Tatted Heart - by Handy Hands, Inc.
in size 20 Lizbeth #129

Now this one I've done before in size 30 (not sure if blogged) and I think I'm liking the daintier finer works better.  I do LOVE this Lizbeth cotton and might just have to switch to size 30 or 40 for future projects.  This pattern was on a free handout on display beside the threads - lovely eh!

Yep today was definitely a tatting day and now I'm ready to crash!!!

New Tatting Shuttles & Motif Made

My newly purchased tatting shuttle have arrived and I can tell you that I just LOVE them.  They are the same size as the regular Clover shuttles but in a silkier feel to them and naturally softer colours.  I find these smaller shuttle fit my hand better and give me more control while tatting.

Clover pastel shuttles

Clover pastel shuttles


And here is the new motif I've tried with my newest shuttles!  Now I think I'm too tight in making my stitches so that's why it does not look like the Palmetto Tree with Optional Saw Grass (2000 Palmetto Tatters Guild pattern) on the pattern sheet.  I'm going to have to try this again and loosen my tension and see if it will look more pointy fronds than my rounded ones. 


Palmetto Tree with Saw Grass



3" high X 2.25" wide

Encrusted RR#1 - Paula's Block

First off I have to say that “pink” stumps me every time and I finally had to start this off with my tatted edging "Spring Flowers Bookmark" that I stitched along the roses silkie and the green patch adding purple beads for the flower like pieces.  From there I added beads to the white butterfly.  I also found a new tatting pattern and tried it out and decided I had to make a bouquet of 3-D roses "The Jessica Rose" for the green patch – let me tell you that took a while to complete but well worth it I think!  Then my December went downhill and I didn’t get any more stitched on here until New Year’s Eve.
 

After Peggy Sue's embellishing

That’s when I started to fill in the daisy netting flowers with SRE and beaded centres and from there I added more beads to the frilled lower edge.  Then I stitched on my dragonflies and butterfly charms and decided to fill the empty space with scattered pearls.  I then decided that the large roses needed some centre definition, so I used DMC metallic and only for the bud parts in stem.  I think this made them pop!

Upper pink and lace patch - Rose Anne's embellishing

OKAY that’s done now what do I do with the roses on the green patch along with the butterflies and dragonfly charms???  Well I finally gave up looking through my CQing books and pics for inspiration and emailed my CQing groups for help.  I received a number of suggestions – three I decided upon – keep background simple (Cobi), frame the roses in an SRE heart (Katie) and add some fern-like fillers (Leslie).  Easier said than done I tell you!!!  I thank all that sent ideas and I’ve kept them for future use, much appreciated.


OK tatted edging and 3-D roses bouquet - now what?

First off I fly stitched “ferns” onto the background amongst the roses, then I found my silk ribbon, folded it in half and anchored it under the stems and then twisted them up and around in a heart shape anchoring with a single bead strategically.  After I ended it, I went back and added a couple more beads alternately.  Then I found a white blended to cream floss and added French knots all around.  I think this ties in nicely with the green and cream tatted edging.


Green patch - Rose Anne's embellishing

And here is the block so far – two more stitchers yet to work on this!  Looks pretty good, if I say so myself!!! 

After Peggy Sue's and Rose Anne's embellishing!

So I hope Paula likes what I added to her block and I must say I am finding this “encrusting” technique a bit of a challenge – as I think I like to keep things more simpler and open!  These RRs are great learning tools!!!

8 Hours Later!!!

I told you I get side tracked fast and what probably should have only been a couple of hours (1 hour for soaking the sink with bleach) landed up with about 6 hours as I did cupboard cleaning too. VOILA!!!

Sparkling clean!



And cleared off some too!!!


Now do I have the energy to do the opposite side along with clearing off the mike and fridge sometimes this week too???

A New Start to the New Year!

OK, I’ve been procrastinating for years since my part time job ended and I had more evenings and weekends free for myself. What did I do, I RELAXED and STITCHED instead of setting my home to rights!!!

SO, today with Kerry’s convincing I signed into FlyLady and opened up the “Beginner Baby Steps” program and what does it start with – A Shiny Sink!!! Well that is kinda impossible when I’ve dishes left right and centre so yep you guessed it I did my dishes, but then that lead to cleaning out my overloaded dishes etc cupboards so I can put the stuff I use away!!! Well that lead to clearing out two shopping bags full of useless plastic and emptying some jars of ingredients from who knows when and also pitching out larger jars that I decided I did not need to keep anymore and a small package of jam like jars to be packed up for my sister who does canning still.

OMGG, you won’t believe it but a large box of odds and ends along with 4 shopping bags of garbage just got hauled out!!! Next is putting away the clean dishes in spots that will hold all now. I’ve pulled out my shrimp n sauce and a pepsi (I deserve it!) and a bit of rest to read the instructions for the Shiny Sink process and that will be my next step!!!

THEN, it’s back to stitching for the rest of this day! I think that is definitely all I’ll do for today – PHEWIE!!! Will have to see what Step #2 is for tomorrow – hopefully something that is achievable without major upheaval in his untidiness!

YES, I did smile when I came back in and saw the tidier kitchen!!! Don’t jump the gun there is still lots to do here!!! But like the program says “Baby Steps” and this place did not get like this in one day or week so I do not expect it to be set right for a while yet!!!