My Tatted Tie, Part 1-The Need For Advice

This will be the first of several posts related to my Tatted Tie. As I mentioned in my last post, I had to modify my original idea in order to make the idea work. Here is the first attempt:

As you can see, the basic idea was for me to tat four groups of four rings. The bottom four rings on each group of 16 could be made a little larger than the others to allow me to widen the tie. The next group of four motifs, I'm calling a "Tie Unit" could then be made larger (using the same stitch count as the last four rings on the previous tie unit, with the exception of the bottom four rings). This could be continued until the tie was the length I wanted. I'm sure some of you might notice an obvious flaw with this idea. By the time I got to the bottom of the tie, the rings are going to be huge. Another problem is the thread itself. I used a size 3 "fashion crochet" thread to make this sample. I didn't like tatting with it. It is a 2-ply thread from what I can tell, and it is soft. It's also too thick for my tatting tastes. What you see above was made with two Aero bobbins worth of thread, which I think was about 4 yards between the two shuttles. This version was scraped and I modified the drawing I made.

The result of the redesign was this, Tatted Tie, Mark 2:

The Mark 2 is similar to the Mark 1 with a few exceptions. Each Tie Unit now varies in size as work progresses, and the rings stay the same size. The tie is widened by simply adding the equavalent of one motif to each row of the Tie Unit. I'm not sure how often I will need to widen the Tie Units in order to make the tie the correct width. I have a hunch some math will need to get involved. Depending on how many increases will be needed, I may be able to increase the width every 6 or 8 rows. We'll see. I used some size 10 crochet thread for the Mark 2 tie. I used about 8 yards of thread between the two shuttles. And no, I don't plan on using a variegated thread for the tie. In case you're wondering, both versions of the Tatted Tie were completed tatted using regular and split rings and each was tatted continously. Oh, and when the tie is finished, I plan on outlining the tie with chains to finish it off.

Now for my need of advice. I need help with the choice of thread. I think I'm going to stick with size 10 thread. It is the best compromise. Anything larger than 10 and I don't like tatting with it, and size 20 and smaller would take forever to tat. I know that 6-cord thread is generally the best choice for most tatting. Would it be good here? I was thinking buying a few balls of Lizbeth size 10 for the tie, but I have heard that some people don't like how stiff the thread is in this size. I haven't used a 6-cord size 10 thread before so I can't comment. Another thing I'd like your opinion on is colour choices. I really don't think I'm going to take more than one (or two) ties. I would like the tie work with as many other colours as possible. What would you recommend? Black? White? Dark Blue??? I'm open to two colour ideas as well.

That's all for now. I am going to have to get ready for bed soon. I have training tomorrow at 8 am at our chain's second location. Which is located on the other side of the city. Which is going to be fun getting there since Construction Season is in full swing here, and I know there are detours galore over there. Wish me luck. Till next time.



PS: I changed my blog layout today. I hope you like it. If there are any problems, or you don't like something, please let me know.