Progress on the Robotke pattern by Jan Stawasz, new motifs (#6)

I am about 1/4 of the way around on Round 8, and I'm loving the look of the wide piece of lace created when R6, 7, and 8 are all done!  It amazes me that I made something so beautiful.

I borrowed Fox's idea of putting beads on top and bottom of the clover rings.  Mine are clear.  I started out with green ones, but they were of poor quality and bled onto my lace.  ANGRY!  Chop chop.

Tiny little ball of thread, size 70, Oren Bayan I got from Tatting Corner

Earrings I made with the Oren Bayan and silver Mill Hill beads.  The motif is taken from a larger piece in my Jan Stawasz book.

Motif #5 and TIAS

A Little Owl by Barbara Payne

Day 2 Jane's TIAS

Love these cute owl earrings I made for a friend--may make some for my sister too.  I got the pattern from the Palmetto Tatters CD, but you can also get it on Craftree for free.

I've never participated in TIAS before, so this is fun!  The shuttle on the right was decorated for me by Susan Fuller.

Keeping busy on the Stawasz Monster Doily too.

New year! 2015 Motifs 1, 2, 3 and 4

Featherline Snowflake, Jon Yusoff designer

This was tatted in size 20 white Lizbeth, from Jon Yusoff's blog.  It was a fiddly tat, but I'm glad I stuck with it.  Nice result, hanging on my new shelf DH built and gave me for Christmas.

Could be that the fiddly-ness was my own fault for doing it "my way" instead of following Jon's directions, but I was determined not to cut and tie. Success--made it all in one go!

I made this cute little doll (which has a treasure box in the bottom--opens across the belt to reveal hidden goodies) for my niece for Christmas.  We put some bracelets in the compartment, and my brother said she squealed when she opened it, so I guess I "done good" this time.

The kimono has tatted flowers  on it, tatted in size 80 Lizbeth Vineyard.

For some reason the spot right in front of the microwave was the only spot in the house I could get good light and get a clear picture of her.  haha

Jewelry box doll, crocheted from etsy pattern

I am going to count Chura's doll as a motif, because I came up with the adaptation for her cherry blossom flower myself.  :D  Super fun.  I hope when I get more experienced, I will be able to design things more often.

Pretty sure I executed Heart of Texas by Teresa Woods in one pass as well.  Sometimes this stubborn desire results in fiddly-ness, as I mentioned above, and I'm not sure happy with the cleft of the heart on final round, but I'll probably do it again to get it right, because OCD.  Completed in Lizbeth red size 40.

Teri Dusenbury's Forever Young pineapple doily

Please check out Teri's blog.  She has posted her lifetime's work on it, so generous!  Here's the link to Forever Young.

Used size 40 Lizbeth in purple marble.  I'm not entirely pleased with my result--I think the range of variegation detracts from the pattern, and the doily ended up very small, only about 6 inches across.  In addition, my own execution flaws made it super ripply.  I had to modify the final two rounds to get a semi-flat result.  Upon re-do, I would likely use a solid color to best show the pineapple design as well as a larger size thread to shoot for 8-10 inches in diameter.  I also have some stitch count variations in mind if I would have the same rippling problem.  

All the same, it's a lovely little piece and I would definitely try other of her pineapple pieces, which I think are primarily butterflies.  I also have Doretha Albee's Pineapple Heaven in the huge list of "stuff I want to tat."  :D

Progress on Jan Stawasz doily from Robotki magazine

Motif 26

Pictures of the same motif based on a design from Anne Orr's collection.  I had to modify the pattern to prevent cupping.

Thread is #10 white crochet cotton with a silver twist in it.

This thread is soft and more consistent than the Aunt Lydia's but the metal twist doesn't "stick" where it belongs.  Aunt Lydia's has the metallic thread wound with the cotton, and the Garden Metallic has it kind of alongside/around the cotton thread.  It is NOT good for tatting as the metallic filament stretches and bunches up when closing rings.  Result-- a lot of breakage of the filament.  I figured out tricks to make it work for me, but I would NOT buy this as a beginner.  Aunt Lydia's metallic would be a better choice.

I really like the daisy in the center of this motif.  There is a daisy-style center to my star in the previous post, and I've chosen a Jon Yusoff snowflake which also has a daisy center to add to this holiday collection.

Yippee! Motifs 24 and 25, I'm finished!

I tatted both of these ornaments from Monica Hahn's Christmas book.  Can't see the sparkles too well in this picture.  Made with size 10 Aunt Lydia's metallic gold.  Really love these. Hoping to make a bunch for gifts/to sell.

Where has she been? And Motifs 21, 22, and 23

What happened to the Renulek tutorial, you ask?  ARGH!  I ran out of beads and stopped working on it.  I can't get more of the same beads, and it's just sickening.  Disheartened.  Put it in the drawer with the other UFOs (unfinished objects).

Never fear, intrepid tatters.  I haven't given up on the art, just moved to a different project.  Or two, or three...

Jan Stawasz doily from Robotke magazine, Renulek summer doily ALMOST finished round 9

Not content to muck up my Renulek, I also bungled the Stawasz doily.

On the many medallions, I joined them on the arms directly across from each other, which is not as written.  Although I checked the pattern over and over again, I still managed to do it W.R.O.N.G.  I was super super upset and put this in the drawer for several days as well, but now I've added row 4 and calling it done--saving the medallion chain for something else.  I'll start the doily over again shortly.

These snowflakes are from Vida Sunderman's book.  Ginny Weathers requested blue snowflakes for an exchange I participated in, and they turned out so nice, icy blue with matching beads.

This hedgehog from Be-Stitched was also made for an exchange.

So the snowflakes and the hedgehog are the next 3 items I'm counting in the 25 motif challenge.  I haven't yet decided if I will count my doilies only once complete or separate new elements I learn in them as different motifs.  We shall see.

Also making Teri Dusenbury's pineapple doily, called Forever Young, in progress.  I'm nearly finished with it--here's a picture from early stages.  Teri has generously given most of her patterns to us on her blog, so be sure to check it out (link above).














Non-tatting: finished Susan's monkey!