A card for my Friend in Sweden

Motif # 12
A card for my friend in Sweden in Rainbow Bright thread (HDT~Pamela Meyers) Design by Marty.

July 3rd ~Exchange Motif

Motif # 11 Inga Madson design, from "Tatted Animals"

My recipient's favorite colors are green and lavender. I decided a soft green body of Valdini in size 8 would work with the body in lavender orchid variegate. The pearls on the antennae are genuine ~ small. The Butterfly is a bit over 3" tall and a little more in width.

I did make two boo boos. I attached the wrong picot of the inner butterfly on the second wing tatted (the right side). There are no instructions given as to how the pearls, from the inner butterfly antennae, are attached. I improvised. Also, since I was on vacation, I could only dampen and pin out the butterfly...and not starch.

This is an advanced visual pattern; but it does work up fairly fast after the first wing. The body is tatted down the left side and back up the right side ~ no instructions for direction of tatting were included ~ so I "winged" it (sorry for the pun).....

May 11, 2007 Bookmarks

Bookmarks: I've been tatting bookmarks since January; since they've accumulated, I decided to have them as this years 25-Challenge. All but one (the tractor) were tatted in 2009.
Some for exchanges, some for friends, relatives, children.

Motif #10 Adaptation of two designs. Karey Somomon's top and Rosmaire Peel, bottom. Done in green size 40 thread
Motif #9 Design: Elizabeth Davis Size 20 thread, Altin Basak with Lavender Orchid blossoms.

Motif #8 Design from "Big Book of Tatting" Cobalt Thread with white ribbon.

Motif # 7 Design from Aunt Ellen's Tatting Book Hand dyed thread with butterfly charm.

Motif #6 Design: Diane Stevens from "Animal Zoo of Bookmarks" Lisbeth size 20 thread, desert flower. Head Aqua from Rainbow Brite hdt from Pamelay Meyers I made this snake for a young man who has a pet snake.

Motif # 5 Design: Adaptation from "Tat Cat" orignally designed by Diana Howe
Valdini Size 12 Thread with blue/black thread from China. Picots were frayed on head and tail for the Lion effect.

Motif #4 Design from Vintage Dillmont booklet from DMC. Rubi Thread size 20 with Light Peach Olympus thread rings and josephine knots

Motif # 3 Designer: Rosemary Peel Using an edging and joining for a bookmark. Size 20 Lavnder Orchid HDT

Motif #2 The bottom of this bookmark is from an insert pattern in Georgia Seitz pattern book. My friend belongs to a Vintage Tractor Club; and, he loves to read. He told me during a visit in May that he really likes it!

Motif # 1 Adapatation of a Rosemary Peel Toggle design...made into a bookmark. Aqua HDT (from Pamela Meyers) with Rainbow Bright varigated thread with beads on top portion.

Motif # 25

Just in time for St. Patrick's gifts ~ and finishing the Second 25-Challenge

FROM Designer Karey Solomon's, "Tatting Times" a wonderful little Cloverleaf Bookmark. I did this in Valdini size 8 ~ not my favorite thread (I like firmer threads) and this piece was just placed on scanner ~ not blocked. My blocking boards are FULL...:>(

However, I tucked it in a thread exchange padded envelope anyway...I always like receiving motifs from other tatters ~ treasures, really. Because we who tat, realize that time was taken, and each piece is a practice in basics for the future pieces. I thank those who have commented on the progression of my tatting.

I shall have to put my thinking cap on for another 25 ~ I have so many pattern books to choose from, should be an easy task ~ but somehow the decision is just more difficult. I have new books from both Rosemarie Peel (2009) and one from Judith Conners (2000). I might do pieces from those because IMHO they are both great little books for beginners and experienced beginners.

Motif # 24 Heartfelt

Motif # 24 Design by Karey Solomon in her book, "Make Many Merrily."

This pattern is called "Heartfelt" and was done with DMC size 30 multicolored thread in dark, to medium, to light pink hues. I had not blocked this one as it was going as a gift, and there was a deadline to meet! It has a few mistakes because I couldn't figure out the end of the pattern. My fault ~ not designer's. It says to finish the second side as the first and my mind will never wrap around that sentance. I guess it means to work back up the pattern. But when I arrived back at the top, I lost my place...aghhhh I'm missing a picot and possibly a bit of chain at the top. However, it's hard to see at a glance because of the color shift. Which is why I didn't catch it when I was working on it; but, saw it only after it was scanned! Yikes.

Motif 23 SOME BUNNY LOVES YOU

MOTIF # 23 Designer: Janette Baker

This heart is from Janette Baker's first book,
"Learn to Tat." Tatted with
Yarnplayer's Lavender Orchid HDT.

DH starched the piece and I blocked it on my handy dandy foam board (suggested last year by Sharon
Briggs).

I think this may be one of the bettert pieces I have tatted and it is for an, as yet, unnamed receipient!

Motif 21 & Motif 22

Adaptation of a pattern by Karey Solomon; "Baskets Full of Posies"

An adaptation occurs in my tatting when I make a mistake! WicketTat, Aileeen, sent me the little book, Make Mine Merrily, and I set about these two patterns. I used up bits and pieces of thread, some Rubi and some HDT (RB, Pamela's bright lot) and Valdini 12, color 8102 for the basket. These are fantasy color flowers...I made an error on the second ring, and I omitted a ring'; which of course, left a negative space that wasn't suppose to be there!

I had experienced a very stressful Thursday, and I decided ~ THIS is for fun, I'm not having any angst! So I kept tatting the pattern and ended up free tatting across the bottom back to the open space, I added a missing ring and continued up the basket's handle. Because I used 3 flowers and not two, my basket had to be larger; consequently, the handle has additional split rings. And that is how I ended up with an Adaptation of Karey's sweet basket of posies. I really like this little book BTW. I'm becoming rather fond of quick motifs which give almost instant gratification.

Motif 22 is from the same source as #21.



While I'm not overly fond of pinks, this Flora size 20 makes up a very fresh-looking heart, aptly named, "Heartfelt" Please do not look too closely, there is at least one mistake. I have difficulty when instructions read "Complete the second side of heart to match the first." I became weary and probably should have stopped tatting; but, I was so close to being done!
I'm posting it anyway in case a new tatter feels bad about their own mistakes; life happens!

Ordinarily, I would have cut out the offensive bit and retro tatted ~ but I was over taken by sleepiness. That is okay. Always give yourself a bit of a break on a practice piece.. Not everything turns out perfect. Besides, the person who is getting this will never notice a missing ring (what is it with me and missing rings on these two motifs?) I made the heart first and then the baskets of posies....This is such an easy, fast, heart that I'm going to do it again ~ for the corner of a hankie. I've become rather fond of peppermint.