Double Split Rings

This is the coolest technique I have practice in a long time. It's an interwoven split ring inside a split ring. Teri Dusenbury posted the instructions on her blog. It's pretty easy if you're customed to finger tatting.

I think it has a lot of potential. I'm thinking now, how many links can be done... How many colors can be combined... How could it be combined with other techniques. I'm thinking in "daisy picot" split rings ... Please don't call the people in white! lol I'll behave as a good girl now.

Now back to my tatting corner to watch The Simpsons. :-)

Finished Collar

Last night the pain worsen and hubby had to put me an injection. I was able to sleep 3 whole hours. They felt like a blessing. But then woke up at 2:30 am and couldn't sleep any more. So I decided to finish the collar. After I made it I found a way to make the clover fillings and the outer rounds in one pass. So I'll make this one again but in other color and use split rings and SCMR to make it in one pass. The motifs also can be simplify using one shuttle. Definitively is a pattern I'll repeat!

Here is a close up of the collar. I added extra beads on the bottom round. Started like a mistake but I saw it looks prettier this way so I continued it instead of repairing it. :-)

I will post it on my shop later during the day if someone is interested in buying it. The orange is not a bright one. It's more like a dark peach or like the color of an orange sorbet. The beads are clear silver-lined.

Collar

Yesterday was one of those days that there's nothing good on TV so I spent all day listening to music and tatting. I'm in love with a specific book right now: Aunt Ellen's Tatting Handbook. It's a book with a recompilation of patterns from Workbasket Magazine. I'm not sure of the publication year. Anyway, the book has lovely patterns and this is one I wanted to do for awhile. So I took out this orange thread and started on it. It's a collar with 8 motifs and 2 outer rounds. But what I like the best is that it's beaded. I haven't see a lot of collars with beads on it. The center of the motif has beads between the petals and the 1st outer round has clovers with beads on them. I'm anxious to see the whole piece done. The photo on the book doesn't show in clarity the beads. Even without beads will look pretty.

I'm not sure of the color though. I even don't know WHY I got this orange thread. I hate orange. lol So I think I'll sell this one when is done. Anyone wants it?

I'll try to finish the other motifs tonight if I can. Because of the pain I have been laying down on my stomach and tatting that way. But my elbows are starting to sore and I had to take a complete Percocet and now I'm dizzy from it. May be will take a nap and then tat. Today is Friday and there's nothing good on TV until late night. Here in Egypt weekends are Friday and Saturday. Well, see ya later!

TIA Day 2 and 3

There's a new TIA in town. This one is by Iris Niebach. I'm using DMC Petra #8 in white and navy blue.

This is day 2. I didn't take a photo of the 1st part because hubby had the camera at work. So this morning I took the photo.

Then I went to visit the blogs and noticed that the 3rd day was posted and worked it. It's very intriguing the design! I'm anxious to see what will come next. I'm not very patient. lol

New Tatting bags

Aren't they the cutest mini bags? We got them on a "dollar" shop, just that here they're "2.50 LE" shops. :-) I'm getting addicted to this kind of shops. Where I'm living now they are several of them and it's "dangerous" for me. lol Don't get scare. I say it's dangerous because each time I go out to walk (to make exercise) I can't resist entering in one of these shops.


This is the small opened. It has a snap closure and I can easily get 2 shuttles and a small project inside.



This one is my favorite! It's bigger and have 2 compartments with individual zippers. So I can place inside a lot of tatting stuff. It has a wrist strap so I can use a side for tatting and the other to carry my papers when I go out instead of carrying my backpack. I don't use purses or bags. :-)

I have to give credit to hubby, who was the one that spot them on the shop and told me that I can use them for tatting. I think I educated him good in matters of tatting. lol He even wants to learn to tat. Who knows if we can become tatting teachers in Arabic! But there's a problem... I won't share my shuttles with him! *VBG* Well, may be a couple...

Need some help - Poll

I'm designing a fairy for my coming book "Wings for Hope" but I'm having some problems deciding how will it be at the end. Here are the 2 versions.


This was the 1st version I made. Doesn't have the hands, but it will have them on the final motif. It doesn't have legs.




This version have the hands and legs. The skirt is made with josephine chains, but I think I'll opt for regular chains because the josephine chains are twisting. Also, I made on purpose one leg longer than the other. I can't decided if make long legs or shorter legs.

My main dilemma is if to make the legs or not. And if I make the legs, should they be long or short.

So here is the poll. If you have other suggestions for the motif let me know.

Some Tatting and Nursing

This year didn't start in a good way. Hubby has been having problems at work (he and his brother have own business) loosing money when a partner stole some money. Then a car accident that, thanks God, nothing really bad happened but lost 2 weeks of work. Now me been sick again with the Lupus and last night he arrived home just when the online tatting class was going to start with a scrapped leg; all the right chin scrapped really bad. *sigh* So the nurse in me jump in action and I cleaned the wound and bandage it. I have almost forgotten how good it feels to be a nurse. I was an Oncology Nurse and was passionate about it. Worked only 4 years because I was diagnosed with Lupus back then and had to stop working. After all the dressing and care he broke into tears and told me of other things. But I know God will help us. Now he's sleeping the "extra" minutes (it's 5 am!) and I'm planning of a good breakfast for him! :-)

I managed to make Ellen new bookmarks. On the online tatting class we're going to have a monthly pattern with Ellen. I think all of them are going to be small cute motifs to attach to paper clips. This month is a shamrock with 4 leaves. I love them!!! When I was a girl there were a mini field of clovers in front of my house and I used to sit in the border and look for a 4-leaves one. lol Never found one, so now I can tat it.

The one on the left was tatted mostly with her instructions. A center ring, then the dimpled rings joined to the small picots on the center ring and then the chains around. I made a short josephine chain for the stem. The one on the right I used a SCMR and then chained around. Also added a stitch to the dimpled area of the ring and an extra stitch to the chains. I used an Italian thread (can't remember the name) that is like a size #40 and the green is El Beida #12. I don't have the Italian thread with me. Only a half filled shuttle. :-( BUt even with the half filled shuttle I think I can make a small field of clovers to remember the one that I had when I was a girl.

Thanks Ellen for such delightful pattern!

Preparing for a long, long night

I haven't make much in the last couple of days. Hubby came home and yesterday we walked a little, that caused the pain to goes up again. I'm noticing that it's stronger on the mornings. I wake up almost every morning crying from the pain. But after the pills cocktail and breakfast it starts diminishing.

I just finished the beaded motifs I'll sew into a headscarf. I was going to make an edging but I'm running out of beads of 2 of the colors I used on the motifs. So I'm not sure if I'll use only one color of beads on the edging. And because tonight I found that the satellite has a "Fox" network and they will transmit the Oscars live I'll spent all night watching TV and sewing the motifs. *VBG* The ceremony will start at 12 am, Cairo time.

I'll show the headscarf as soon as I finish sewing.

Tatting thoughts

I spend a lot of time along with my tatting. Hubby works far from home so he stays a few nights at work. Last night and this morning was one of those days that I tat a lot. Tatting is my therapy and companion. I don't know you, but when I'm tatting, specially a pattern that I know by memory, I tend to think a lot. Different things, thoughts, plans, dreams... Some times I feel like my brain is running 100 mph! lol Some times I even have to stop tatting to write down a note, idea or a quick drawing for a design.

Some of the things I thought this morning are:

1. Decided that I'm not going to use a pattern from a designer for my 40th BD souvenirs. But I'll make my own design (as I do every BD).
   
2. Also won't use HDT. Though the HDT are so beautiful I will need a huge amount of it for the BD project. So I'll be using a thread that I can find without any problem. Probably will make it with El Beida (the Egyptian thread I use).
3. I'm in the "angry" phase of the griving process about my Lupus exarcebation (sp?). Still in pain, meds don't work good and I'm angry. So, sue me!
4. I got an idea about a book to get donations and awareness about Lupus. I got the idea from a book in Annie's Attic for Breast Cancer and a blog called "Stitch Pink". The title will be "Wings for Hope". The color of Lupus awareness is purple and the symbol is a butterfly. What you think? The month was change from October to May. So that leaves me 2 months for designing, proofing and publishing the book.

I already have a few motifs designed that I can include in the book. Need to contact the LFA (Lupus Fundation of America) to get a simple "What is Lupus" for the book and to see how to establish the donation thingy with Pay Pal on my site and web shop. Probably will sell the samples also. In the last few years I have been getting more active in geting people know about Lupus. Nobody can imagine how difficult is this illness. *sigh* OK... I'm not going to start rambling about it. At least not now. ;-)

Well, those were my thoughts this morning. The photo are the motifs I have finished already for decorating my headscarf. I still need to make 6 more; 3 with pink beads and 3 with green beads. I'm thinking also in making the 1st round only for "filling" motifs and probably will make a edging too. I just need to decorate one end of the scarf because the other gets hide in the wrapping.

I will breakfast now and will take a break from this motif and tat something else. See ya later!

Also yesterday I came with this design. It's pretty simple to make but I just love the look of it with the beads.


This one was the 1st try I did. I fall in love with the design but the center space is too big. Also I added 2 beads too much and when I closed the center ring they got stuck on the begining of the ring. :-(



Here it looks better. I added small rings to the center and instead of making a center ring I did rings and chains with a bead on the core thread. Also added a few more beads to the tip of the flower. I think THIS is the motif I'll use to decorate a new headscarf that hubby got me a couple of nights ago. It's is black and it's screaming for decorations. lol I will also share the pattern of this one but a little bit later.

Blue Earrings

These earrings are inspired on the work of a Polish tatter I know in Multiply. Her name is Aga and she do wonderful things in tatting. Mostly her own jewelry design. These are very simple to make. Just a shuttle with the beads on the thread. The thread I used is DMC Petra #8 in navy blue and the beads are silver lining and an "E" oval frosted blue bead.

Motif 8

This is a motif I'm working on since yesterday. I got a ton of these beautiful big sequins and I have use them to make several butterflies and hearts, substituting buttons for these. Got them here in Egypt in several colors. They are around 3/4". The only thing I don't like is that the center hole is not always in the same position, but these silver ones looks like they are all uniforms. I used DMC Cebelia #30 in white, but will make it with perle #8 to see if I have to "tweak" the ds counting. The pattern will be available later on my site.

This one is not finished yet. I'm thinking in beading the decorative picots. I'm in a beading mood this week. You'll see on the next posts. :-)

Butterfly Pattern

Here is the diagram of the butterfly I posted yesterday. The big numbers are the sequence of the elements and the small numbers the stitches' count.

At the bottom of the butterfly, between the 2 small wings I made a ring but now I think it's a joining picot and not a ring. I'll make another one today with better colors.

Motif 7

Another little cutie with weird antennas. :-) This one is from a Russian Book. The cover only says Frivolite (in Russian) and #1, year 1993. Again I made some mistakes but it's because the diagram is a little weird. Looks like hand-draw and the numbers are a little off here and there. I'll make it again because it's pretty easy to make. The body of the butterfly is a SCMR.

I used the rest of the yellow Olympus in the shuttle and the pink is El Beida #8 in baby pink.

Motif 6

I made this butterfly like 3 days ago. When I was still with the strong pain (it has lessen now). The pattern is from Bina Madden and it's on her web site of Paradise Treasures. Bina is an excellent tatter who shares many techniques and patterns on her web site. I like the design of the butterfly but I made many mistakes.

The very bright yellow thread is Olympus #40. I got it at Palmetto's as a gift. Oh! I love this thread and when I have a little of surplus on my pocket I'll get some. It works as a big #30 even if it's says #40. It's a crisp thread. Very nice to work with.

Brooch, glycerin and wax

Today I learned 2 lessons. First, don't trust the cap of a glycerin vial and the second lesson, don't tat with thread that has glycerin!

Hubby got me a vial of glycerin for my skin and I didn't notice that the cap was cracked. It was near a ball of my navy blue thread and was too late when I noticed. *grrr* The thread absorbed a nice amount of the glycerin. When I touched the thread I didn't feel it sticky but smooth so I thought I could still tat with it. WRONG!!! It was like tatting with metal wire on a shuttle! *mumble, mumble* I was not going to discard the 10+ yards of thread so I went like crazy looking for my "Thread's Heaven". Thread's Heaven is a waxy cube that protects and condition threads. Do I have to tell you that I didn't find it? Well, I did find it BUT after the 3rd round was made. Thus some rings look weird, the thread snapped several times and I had to join in several places. But then a light went on on my brain and remember that the Thread's Heaven was still in the big bag I got from PR. *sigh* That worked like a charm!!! The thread behaved much better and I was able to finish the brooch. Even my fingers feel all smooth and nice. lol The silver button is not atached to the tatted piece. I just wanted to know how it will look. It's pretty big (around 3" on the side) so I won't use it on my headscarf but later I'll attach a pin on the back and sew the button. I know that my mom will keep it. So I'll send her this for her BD in May, if she doesn't come 1st to Egypt.

The pattern is from a booklet called "Maravillas en Frivolite 1". The thread (with glycerin) is DMC Petra #8 and black glass seed beads.

Been crocheting and reading all day! I'm tire. I think I'll read an e-book for a change. lol

Have you heard of "gypsy pains"? From my hip the pain walked to my head. lol Nothing a couple of Panadol and a nap can't solve. :-)

Thanks God the injections are working! The pain is still there but is lessening. I slept all day. :-D

Beautiful Words

May be you have heard me this week yapping about my pain. I have been having strong pain on the left hip bone. So strong that hubby have been giving me injections of Voltaren that doesn't help and I have been taking a "cocktail" of pills with no avail. But over all this I have been trying to tat. May be is the repetitive movement of the hands that numbs the pain or the gentleness of it that make my mind go away from the pain.

I have made my homework this week and was showing Georgia and commented her that tatting is a therapy for me and she replied with some beautiful words that made me cry. May be is just me been over sensitive after so much painkillers but I love them and wanted to share them with you.

"Thank goodness for our tatting, who knows how many tears it has dried and how many hours it has kept us company."

Thanks to all my friends that worry about me, send me wishes of good will and encourage me to keep tatting!

Just after 2 hrs in the ER they sent me home with an injection and order to take 2 Panadols. *puzzle*

Can't resist the pain anymore. Off to the doctor in a few minutes. Not even a whole Percocet every 4 hr is working! :-(

Help with pricing 2

Thanks for all the input!

The lady I'll make the insert is an online friend. Also she is going
to send me the threads. Here in Egypt there's not minimum wage per
hour. And I think in USA and PR was something close to $7 something
per hour. Have been ages since I worked so I don't remember.

I haven't yet decided exactly how much I'll charge her but I think
I'll get more into a standard per hour charge. May be $5 per hour,
because she's friend and anyway I need to tat everyday. :-) Like
Dani said, subtracting the fun factor from the price. Though this is
a boring and repetitive piece.

Thanks all!

Help with Pricing

I need some help! A friend wants to make a shirt with tatting on it and she wants like 12 meters of this insert. The pattern is from a book from Anna Meloni. This sample is like 13 cm long and 5 cm wide and took me around 45 minutes to make. I used DMC Petra #8. So what should I ask for the 12 meters? She is going to send me the thread and it will be black or dark blue. I usually price dark threads items a little higher than light colored threads because of the effort that I need to make with the eyesight. I was thinking may be $5 per meter. I want to be fair for her and for me. So what you think? How much will you ask for a meter of this insert in black perle #8?

Another day... Another painful day... *sigh* Can't explain why so much pain lately.

Mary Maynard's Valentine Heart

I haven't been online too much these few days because I have been having pain in my left hip bone. I can't sit long enough to answer a lot of the e-mails and comment in all the pretty posts. But Last night hubby put me an injection and felt better for a few hours. Long enough to finish this heart that I started Sunday. I can tat laying down on my stomach but I couldn't concentrate enough, but the delay was worth it. I love how the heart looks. It's a big heart too. Measures 4 1/4" by 3 1/2". I used a navy blue thread (DMC Petra) #8 and milky white beads. The pattern can be found here.

UFAM#1: I hate Google, specially when I'm in Egypt and the page appears automatically in Arabic! How many times I have to tell them I don't read Arabic!

Haven't sleep for 26 hours! Can somebody knock me out?

Dangly Flower

This is another pattern by Jane and uses the same technique to bead long picots. I like it a lot. It's so sparkly! I was thinking in using it as a headscarf pin but it's too big.

Here is a photo from the top. It kinda look like and octopus. :-)



I was going to show you how it looks from inside but guess what? I found Ayla snoozing inside. So I'll take the opportunity to go and breakfast. Breakfast?! I have to Google the dragon's food! Geesh I was going to forget!

ZZZzzz...

Motif 5

These I made them this morning. They're so cute. The patterns are form Jane Eborall and can be found here. She uses a nice technique to make the beaded picots without having to load gazillions of beads on the shuttle. Hmm... The big one looks a lot like a bow. I have plenty of beads so I'll make a few more.

Ayla and homework

This morning I woke up with a little headache. Grr... Not again! But is was mild and it disapear after a few minutes. Suddenly I heard a "momma". It was Ayla that was inside my mind. Wait, how I know her name is Ayla??? Then I realize, ah the headache! She was trying to speak with me in my mind. Cool! Now we can understand each other. And while I was pondering all this I felt a bit on one of my nails. Ok, here we go again! I gently took Ayla in my hand and told her not to bit mommy's nails. "But I hungry". Duh! I forgot everything about food. But what does dragons eat? I have no idea! Will have to Google it. She jump from my lap to the tatting box I have near with all the beads and sequins and she look at the sequins and started nibbling in one. Then look at me like asking permission and I nod. I'm not sure if sequins are good for dragons, but it's much better than nibbling on my nails.

While she was happy with her sequin I manage to do homework. These are going to be tonight's patterns and technique on the Online Tatting Class. Last night was a special Superbowl edition and was really good! Tons of links and patterns. My head was spinning with so much ideas! The patterns are by Jane Eborall.Lovely patterns. I guess I woke up with a mood for beads! For the patterns you can visit Jane's site or Georgia's 2009 Lesson Index

I'll tell you more about the motifs in different posts. When I finished the motifs Ayla already finished with the sequin and wondered what I was doing and when I took the photo she was there. lol She's so cute! But I have to hurry and Google for dragon's food before she starts nibbling on my nails again!

Motif 3 & 4

These butterflies are from the book Tatted butterflies by Adelheid Dangela. I love her books and patterns. They are diagrammed.


This one is Celine. It's one of my favorite and I have done it several times, specially when I was in the Butterfly's Round Robins. It says to use 2 shuttles but can be easily done with one and ball. The thread is DMC Petra #8 in white and navy blue.



This one all weird and with silly antennas is Teresa. The pattern uses long twisted picots, but I wanted to use bugles on the picots. The problem is that I didn't use a picot gauge to measure the picots and one wing has longer picots than the other. The antennas are all "here and there" because the pattern doesn't say when you need a SLT (Shoelace Trick) or SS (Switch Shuttles) and the pattern confused me, specially because I was using 2 colors and want the colors in specific positions. But I think she looks fine.

Look what I found!

Yesterday when I was making some butterflies I felt like something bit one of my nails and split. That's not too strange because I have soft nails. But then another one split also. Now THAT'S strange. Because after one split I take a nail file and file them all and check to see if the snag on anything. Then I felt something warm in my lap and when I look down I found this cutie. Isn't she precious?! I still can't understand "Dragonese" and she talks too fast so I'm calling her tentatively "Nail-biter". lol One thing she told me and I understood is that her twin siblings were suppose to arrive 1st but the dragon-stork got lost in the sand storm near the Sahara when they were coming. I told her not to worry. They will come soon.

Now, I would like to know why these dragons choose me to come and live with me? Hmm... Egypt is too enigmatic!


Patter by Anne Bruvold

A snowflake for a change

Gosh! Can you believe me that I can tat faster than I can post! lol I made this a few days ago. It's a snowflake by Becky Dempsey. It's very unusual the pattern. Looks complicated but it's so easy! This one is Crystal Flake and the pattern can be found here. I used DMC Petra #8 and the snowflake measures near 3 inches from tip to tip.