Priscilla Bookmark

At the Spanish tatting group, we are translating and modernizing the Priscilla No. 3 tatting book and I got inspired in one of the patterns to make this one. I'm trying to make it in colors and then I'll write the pattern. It's so amazing when a simple pattern can inspire you to get something different. :-)

This is the original photo. It's figure #20 on Priscilla Tatting Book No. 3 on page 7.

Onion Roll

Last month I gave a totally new look to my site. I think now it looks more clean and organized. Eliminated a lot of gadgets and left only a few on the 1st page. Plus also it has a neat Contact Me form that send me any comment straight to my e-mail.

So I'm now in the task of writing my patterns back. Most of them are up already. Some still aren't post because I have to get my notebook to write them. It's so boring to have to write numbers and - over and over! Pattern writting is boring, but I haven't time yet to get into diagramming them. Bought a "ruler" of circles and oval to see if I can diagram using pen and paper (old school). But enough rambling...

Georgia was asking via e-mail about patterns that use padded tatting and roll tatting. On my site I got a pair of flowers that are padded and I remembered that I made a motif using roll tatting. I think I never published it. It's from 2007. So this morning I posted it on my site.

It's very simple. I think that if I make the roll part in another color will look neater. To make the roll tatting I kinda use the method that is on Jane's site. Just that instead of "rolling" the stitches after a few, I roll them one after I make it.

Here is the pattern: Onion Roll Hope you enjoy the pattern!

New toy

I recently lost my trusty hook in a chain that I had with me over 10 years. It was a #12 hook on a wire with 5 lapis azulis beads joined to a keyring. If you have seen me tatting in person you may remember it. You can't imagine how I even cried when I couldn;t find it. It got lost when I went to the Puerto Rican Institute for my demo. :-(

So I was looking to replace it an found this one at Handy Hands. It came today. Boy! The are pretty!!! Will never be the same as my old trusty hook but at least I got new hooks to help me join my tatting and even to bead. It comes with a #6, #10 and #12 hooks and a 0.04mm hook. I have another 0.04mm hook that I was thinking to cut and put in a ring. But now I don't have to do it. :-)

Now I'll place these on a keyring and give it to Chaty Teddy to hold them for me with my scissors and plastic picot gauge. Will take photos of Chaty Teddy later so you can see who is she.

Double Picot Gauge

Some people have been commenting that they can't see the video about using plastic double picot gauges that Kika from the Ning Frivolite en Espanol made. I transfer it to YouTube. Hope now everyone can see it.

She uses the double picot gauge to measure the half open rings that we were studying, but I use them to keep the same bare thread for the mignonette. These gauges keep in place, leaving your fingers "free" for the tatting without worrying about the measurement of the bare thread between rings.

Lucky Penny

I don't know why people threw their pennies, but mom is sure to pick them! lol She's always finding pennies everywhere she goes. Once I was with her and we found 23 cents scattered on our apartment's parking. Last week she got another lucky penny and when she got in the car she show it to me. "Look a lucky penny of my birth year! Now you can make me a tatted lucky penny frame". I just rolled my eyes and we went through our day. So since that day I have been looking for a pattern that can be use for her lucky penny.

I have been working all this month on the same book of DMC Book of Charted Tatting Desings. Boy! It looks like I'll do all the book! lol So this morning I finished with a bridal garter and the shuttle was still full and browsing the book I came with this motif. It's very pretty and I like the tiny mignonette rings. Here is ho9w it looks with a penny in the center.


Yep, the penny is going to cover the tiny mignonette rings on the center but still looks gorgeous! This is not the penny mom found. I have no idea where she put it. May be is still in the car, so when she arrives from work I'll go and sneak out to hunt for the penny. Then I'll frame all the thing together.

What does she do with all those lucky pennies? Well, when she has plenty of them she exchange them. Sometimes we are short of pennies to buy something and they come to the rescue! So keep throwing pennies so mom can get them. lol

Woes of a Fan

Since I saw this fan on the cover of Il Chiacchierino 14 I was in love and told myself "I gotta make it!" So I spent like a week tatting the fan. I used Lizbeth #20 in Ecru because the instructions say to use a #20. Also, studying the pattern I "discover" that it can be made in 2 passes if using split chains. I did it in 4 because I didn't use 2 shuttles. But if worked with 2 shuttles it will come out in 2 passes.

So, I finished it and loved it! Now to mount it on the fan blades. Here is where my woes start! The fan blades are too big for the tatted piece. :-( I think I can cut the excess of the blades but I can't stretch the tatting anymore to cover for left to right. Hmm... May be I could experiment taking out one blade or to "close" a little the blades. *sigh* I got so pump up because I was making my first tatted fan and now I came with this dissaster!

Oh well, I'll keep checking what can I do and when I find a reasonable solution I'll finish it. The blades are from a very cheap fan I got from Egypt. The blades are very thin and fragile but this is a fan that will go to display. It's not intended for use. Before mounting the tatting I'll paint the blades with an acrylic paint spray to give some shine and to cover the brown spots that they have.

Looking for my Muse

Have you seen it? It usually happens to me that after finishing a big project, like last week crown and basket, then I spent like 2-3 days in tatting limbo. Spend the day browsing the books and photos I have but nothing appeals. *sigh* I know Muse is hidding somewhere and she'll come soon.

Meanwhile, I leave you with a photo I took for the demo at the Puerto Rican Culture Institute and didn't published on the blogs. The doily is a half finished one that I can't remember from where I got the pattern (that's why is not finished). The big baby is wearing a hat, pattern from Sharon Briggs. And the 2 lil babies are wearing a crochet mini hat embelished with tatting.

FolkArt Spray

This is the spray I used on the crown and basket. After I stiffed them with a mix of 3 parts glue/2 parts water and let it dry for a couple of days I applied 2 coats of this spray. It stiff more than the glue/water mix alone. Doesn't clog the picots, though makes them a little "transparent". Doesn't make it very shiny but the shine is enought to notice it. Also it says that doesn't yellow the crafts. I used in the past a glue/water mix on a crochet project and after a few months the project was yellow. So I hope that the sprays protect the projects of becoming yellow with time.

I bought it at a local Fabric Shop, but I have seen it at Walmart. It cost $7. I'm going to tat some small motifs and use only the spray to see how it stiff without the glue/water mix.

Flower Basket

Well, at last the basket is dry! It's still raining, but the day before yesterday we had a few hours of sunshine, long enough to let me apply 2 coats of the high gloss spray. The original pattern has a handle. I didn't make it because I want the basket for exhibition and it's where I'm going to place my business cards. So as they can easily be taken I opt for no handle.

The pattern is from the DMC Book of Charted Tatting Designs. It's been one of my favorites and lately the one I have been using. I'm just trying to inspire my lil sister for her "wed-niversary". She wants to make a wedding ceremony the day of her 1st anniversary, so that's why the word.

She saw the crown and she loves it. But... She wants it made in black and red! *shrugs* Let see if I tat it completely black with red beads and pearls or black and red threads with pearls. I guess she will want a black basket too!

Pendant Set

I have been dreaming, literally, with this design for a few days and yesterday I managed to make it real. :-)

The earrings are small plastic rings (1 cm) covered in tatting. The big beads are made of wood and the small ones are a "Peppery" mix of seed beads. The pendant is the same but the size of the plastic ring is like 3 cm.

I'm not yet sure if sell this set as it is or to make a cord. Does this design looks similar to any other online or can I write the pattern and call it mine? Because of the copyright problems, that even I am having, I don't dare to publish anything more until I'm sure that I can call it mine.

Wedding Crown

Lately I have been wanted to tat wedding stuff and I finished a crown and a flower basket. The basket is still wet from the starching but I can show you the crown.

The pattern is from "DMC Book of Charted Tatting Designs". The instructions ask for a #20 thread but I used #10 to make it bigger. Mom says that may be adding another motif will look better. I stiffened it with white glue/water mix and then sprayed with a fabric/floral hi gloss spray. I still need to give another coat of the spray to make it shine, but it looks pretty stiff now.

Because has been raining so much the things take a long time to dry. So the basket will come in a few days.

Also I'm looking for this book. It's listed on Amazon but for $12. If I do remember, this book was sold for around $4. If anyone knows where I can get a copy, even a used one, please e-mail me. I'll appreciate it!

An itty bitty shopping spree for itty bitty things

I haven't post like, in centuries! This year didn't start very well and I got so depress that lost interest in almost everything. I have told you about the mess with my health insurance and my medicines. Well, thank God that was resolved a few weeks ago. Now I'm with the plan from the government and a complementary insurance and they will approve my medicines.

So this month I wanted to reward myself and went into a little shopping spree today to buy a few small things.

First I got me the cutest Flash Drive. It's a teddy bear. Isn't it cute? It's a 4Gb driver. It comes with a small chain and a plug to place on the body when using the driver, so you don't loose the body.
















I also got an external DVR-RW/CD-RW for my netbook. I love this small computer but it's annoying the lack of a DVD rom. Every time I have to transfer to a flash drive or the external HD from mom's pc to mine when I work. So now I can save everything in a CD or DVD and pop it in any computer. Plus now I can see movies laying down in bed.





What else I got? Well, it's not something I bought but more of a contribution. Last week, we had a big run/walk marathon and this year the earns were going to benefit a center for teens and community education called Centro Sor Isolina Ferre. It was like 2 pm when mom and me stop at BK to have lunch. Burger King was one of the sponsors and they were selling these keychains with the form of a tennis. I like to help with these institutions so I got 2 of them. A black one for me and a yellow one for mom.

And to finish the shopping spree I got the tiniest earphones I've ever seen! I'm all the time plug to my iPod and brake the earphones often. So this time I paid a little more and got me these Sony earphones that fit perfectly! My ears are small and common earphone bother because I use them a lot. The white part is the one that goes inside the ear and it's made of a very soft foam. They feel so nice!!! And the most important thing is that I don't have to pump up the volume to hear well.


Well, those where my itty bitty things I got today. To finish the day ina happy mood we went all (sis Letty and her hubby and mom) to the cinema and watch "The Tooth Fairy" with Dwayne "The Rock" (forgot his last name). I enjoy a lot the movie. Who doesn't enjoy a movie with this hunk of a man? lol Don't worry, hubby knows of my "crushes" and he's ok with them.

So now that my mood is a little bit higher I think I'll blog often like in the past. I have been tatting a lot and I have to show a lot. TTFN!