Not tatting, but....

I have to show you all what I have been working on.


This is a crochet miniature thread bear. The bear is about 2.5 inches tall when sitting. The pattern for the bear is located here, for anyone interested. I plan on making these bears as gifts this year, so I made this particular bear to test the pattern (you know, to make sure I could make it). I used DMC Traditions thread in size 10, colour number 5109 for most of the bear, along with a little Coats Opera size 30 in white. Crochet was one of the first art/craft that I learned. I think I was about 8 when my mom showed me how to crochet. Anyway, I plan on tatting accessories for the bears (hats, maybe vests, etc) to dress them up. I am currently tatting a hat for this bear to check sizing needs. I'll post about the hat when(/if) I get it done.

Motifs # 9 and # 10

Here is my motif number 9:



It is a "Stargazer Lily" by Linda S Davies. The pattern is available in Linda's book, "Exotic Range of Tatted Flowers". The book is available at Linda's website. I really like this pattern. It is fairly simple, so each petal can be made quite fast. Combined with lily stamens, purchased or homemade (mine are homemade), and some wire, you get a very realistic lily. I used Flora thread in colour numbers 205 & 225.

My next motif comes from the creative mind of Nancy Tracy of Be-Stitched:


It is Nancy's newest pattern of the month, a Magnolia. While mine doesn't look like Nancy's, it is still a very beautiful, realistic flower. I used Coats thread in an unknown variegated pink and Coats Opera thread in white, both size 30. You will see this flower again. I plan on making the Magnolia in size 10 thread. Magnolia flowers can be up to 8 inches (or more) in diameter, and I like to make 3D flowers as realistic as possible.

And finally, I got some new shuttles!!!


The green shuttle on the left is a Sew Mate Shuttle. The shuttle on the upper right is a David Reed Smith shuttle made with walnut wood. The shuttle on the lower right is a David Reed Smith shuttle made out of Zebrawood. Even though I far prefer Aero shuttles (or almost any bobbin type shuttle) I really like these three post type shuttles. I have always wanted a DRS shuttle for as long as I knew they existed. Thanks to my grandma and the birthday money I got last month, I finally have my David Reed Smith shuttles.

A BEANILE Lace Pendant (Motif # 8)

Here is my motif number 8.....


.....I'm just not sure which one. OK, that's not entirely true. I know which one I like, but I would like the opinion of my fellow tatters. Which of these three Green Iris Pendants (by Nina Libin) looks the best? The threads used are as follows:

A: One, three ply strand of DMC Metallic embroidery thread (I believe this is the recommended thread for the pattern).
B: Two strands of DFN 6 strand metallic embroidery floss (with beads I got from Kate in the December 2007 Ornament exchange).
C: Three strands of DFN 6 strand metallic embroidery floss.

All three used size 11 beads. The beads in A and C are Japanese Delicas. You may wonder why I made three of the pendants in different sizes/kinds of thread. I wasn't happy with the results I was getting with the DMC metallic embroidery thread. I contacted Nina to see if I was using the wrong thread. Apparently that was (one of) the thread(s) she was using. I suggested using metallic 6 strand embroidery floss. I guess she wasn't aware of metallic 6 strand embroidery floss, and suggested I try 2 or three strands to see how they work.

I would love to hear what you all think about the three pendants, so please leave comments about them. Oh, and the losing pendant will be cut apart for bead recovery. The cost of the Delicas requires it. My favourite is C, which is my choice for motif #8:


Besides the tatting I have been doing (I have a couple projects in progress), I was hoping to transplant my baby African Violets this weekend. Here is a picture:

As you can see, some of the pots are quite full of little baby violets. Of course, once they are repotted, I will probably have twice (or even thrice) the number of African violets when I am done. It's a good thing that most of the ones pictured are miniatures.

Two Coasters & a Ladybug (AKA Motifs 5,6, & 7)

I have been tatting quite a bit lately. I have three motifs to show right now. There is another one in progress, and a couple that just need finishing. First up, a small coaster by Ben Fikkert. It is called "Romance", from his book "A Tatting Adventure", and is done in DMC Cordonnet size 40.

I liked this pattern, so I made it again. This time, I used Marilee's "Tiger Eye" (the second dye lot) in size 50.

My next motif is Nancy Tracy's Ladybug. It is done in Coats thread in a size 20 in black, and Flora size 20, in colour number 221. This is the latest Be-stitched pattern.















The pattern called for beads to make the spots on the wings. I used magnetic Hematite beads, which caused the wings to close up like a real lady bug. The picture on the left (er, above, apparently) shows how the pattern should look. I had to make the chains a little larger to accommodate the slightly larger-than-called-for beads.

And the TIAS Project is.....A Hippo!

Well, here is my completed TIAS project.


I only made one major mistake. The bead I chose for the eye was a bit too big so the ring around the bead looks kinda funny. I did forget one picot but I noticed it too late and just joined between the stitches. I bet you can't even tell. Jane said she couldn't....

I also thought I'd show a picture of a doily I made in December using some of Marilee's thread.

I posted the photo on Flickr and shared it on the HBT group, but since I'm not sure how many blog reader and 25 Motif Challenge participants are members, I thought I'd share it here. I used some of Marilee's "Winter Blend" thread in size 30. The doily is the Amusement Doily by the Celtess. The doily was a gift for my grandmother.

Not much tatting done....

Well, it's been over a week since I last posted, and I haven't done much tatting. I did manage to get 3 more Teneriffe lace centres done. I'll post about that project later. I have been working on Jane's TIAS project. Here is my progress on the ****.


It's starting to look familiar, but I'll keep my guess to myself. I have also made one of Mary's Pocket Angels. I'm not going to count it as part of my challenge.

I made the angel in C-Lon beading thread. It seems to be similar in size to a size 10 thread. I had started work on the latest Be-Stitched pattern, but part way through, I realized I didn't have the right size and colour beads. So it will have to wait until I can get some. Meanwhile, my latest order of threads from Marilee (Yarnplayer) arrived . So expect to see some motifs in HDT (hand dyed thread). Hey Laura! Clyde! I think you'll have company at your next H.D.T.A meeting!

"Look Ma, I can do Cluny Leaves!" AKA Motif #4

Here is my motif number four.

This is Mimi Dillman's Kite with Cluny Tail, available on the Palmetto Tatters Guild Tat Days 2007 CD. This was a really good pattern to practice cluny leaves on since consistency was not important. I will have to do other patterns with cluny leaves. I used Flora size 20 thread, colour number 55. I will show my progress on Jane's TIAS during my next post.

Motif # 3

Here is my third motif for the 25 Motif Challenge. I am not sure how many people have made Jane's Gecko, which is available on her pattern site, but I just had to make one more.


This particular Gecko will be (at least I plan to) attached to a t-shirt for myself. There are not a lot of tatting patterns that I think I would wear, but this Gecko is one of them. For this motif, I used some of Yarnplayer's hand dyed thread. The colour is "Deep Ocean" in a size 30. I really wish I had bought more of this colour in this size.

I am also following along with Jane's Tat It And See. Here are the first two parts completed.

And finally, Connie mentioned that she would love to see some of my plants, so I will try to add a picture of one every once in a while. Here is a picture of one of my Phalaenopsis orchids. This one is called 'Salu Princess'. It has been flowering for more than a month.

I've been tagged!

Well, I've had my blog for a week, and I've been tagged. Kate tagged me.

Here are the rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself: some random, some weird.
3. Tag 3 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

1. Some of the crafts that I routinely enjoy include tatting, crochet, knitting and needlepoint (usually with plastic canvas).
2. I also enjoy growing plants, such as orchids, African violets, carnivorous plants, palms and odd plants that many people don't normally grow. An example of the latter is my mangrove tree.
3. When I was young, I used to eat practically everything with ketchup on it. I have somewhat outgrown that habit.
4. I consider myself a multitasker. I will routinely watch TV (muted & with closed captioning on), listen to music, and tat or crochet.
5. I enjoy cooking. I really like making foods that are not commonly made by scratch anymore. Most recently was cheese.
6. I am moderately arachnophobic. However, you didn't hear that from me, and I will deny it. Unless a spider walks by..... then would you squish it for me?
7. I really, really hate winter. That is probably why I like growing palms and other tropical plants.

Since I am pretty sure that most, if not all tatters have been tagged by now, I won't tag anyone. Yet.

Tatting and Teneriffe Lace, Motif #2

I have finished my second motif for the challenge. Well, it's finished for now. It's missing something but I'm not sure what yet. I guess I should show it:



The centre of the motif is Teneriffe Lace. I am learning how to do Teneriffe Lace. The pattern for it is in the book "The Technique of Teneriffe Lace". The tatting is kind of free form. I had planned on making the motif round, but while working on the second round, I realized that it wasn't going to work with the currant stitch counts. Some changes had to made, which turned into a hexagon. I like it as a hexagon. The thread used is Anchor Pearl Cotton size 8. I seem to have misplaced the label, so I'm not sure of the colour number. Now, onto motif number three.

Motif Number 1

Here is my first motif for the 25 Motif Challenge:














It is Nancy Tracy's Tatted Eagle available from Be-stitched (or at least will be). I used Flora thread, size 20 in colour number 204. This was the first time I used Flora thread. I think I will be using this thread more often.

Welcome to my blog!

Welcome to my tatting blog. I have been watching the 25 Motif Challenge for a while now, and have decided to join. I hope you enjoy following along.