Green Cowl

Here, as promised are pictures of the green cowl now completed. As you can see, I only did the diamond pattern all round for this one. It made it quicker to make as I didn't have to keep referring to the pattern chart!

Knitted Cowl for Charlie

Since joining in with the Tatting Pattern Central I have discovered Knitting Pattern Central and made the mistake of showing Charlie, my daughter-in-law, the site. She browsed through the patterns and all I could hear was Ooo's and Ahhh's and ended up with a request.

Here is the first one that she has chosen and this is the LINK to the pattern. I really enjoyed knitting this cowel. It is a lovely pattern and it made such a change from tatting. I like it so much that I am making another one in shades of green, but I am only doing the diamond pattern. I will post a pic when I have finished it.

Dearest Friend Card

Today is my dearest friend's birthday. Janet has been my friend since 1983 and has been "there" for me through thick and thin. A true friend who never expects anything in return!

Coronet Doily Variation - Completed

 Here, as promised, are pictures of the finished Coronet Doily Variation.

 It was made with Coates Aida size 20 and measures approximately 25inches across.

Huge project nearly done!

At last I have almost finished the variation of my Star Attraction Doily. I have only two more little joining motifs to do and then I will press it ready for photographing tomorrow morning in the daylight. As soon as I have done this I will post a picture. I have not been tatting very much lately as my health is not permitting me.....very FRUSTRATING!!!!

Ruby Anniversary

Yesterday, my husband and I celebrated our 40th (Ruby) wedding anniversary. We went out for a meal in the evening with our son and daughter-in-law, Howard and Charlotte, and our best friends, Janet and Allen.

It was a beautiful meal, with plenty of reminiscing, laughing until we were crying, and of course, free flowing alcohol!

Picture Parade!

 

 The pictures of the arum lilies with leaves and the gladiolus have been sent to me from Christine Tse Yuet Ngor. She purchased my books some time ago and has now sent me pictures of what she has completed. She is really enjoying tatting my patterns and I think she has done a brilliant job!

 

Patty Markley from the Shuttelbirds tatting guild has sent me this picture of my Rosette Doily that she has made and is now sitting prettily on her table! Beautifully tatted, Patty!

Long time!

It's been quite a while since my last post! We have had some alterations at home and the extra work has really taken its toll on me, so much so, that I haven't tatted a stitch for two whole weeks! Now that isn't like me at all! I have an appointment to see a very special specialist about my back on 12th December and so I am keeping all my fingers (and toes!) crossed that he will be able to help me!
I have got as far as the 5th small doily around the coronet doily...I am very pleased with how it is looking and can't wait to get it finished, but the pain in my back will not let me lift my arms for long enough and with it being a complicated pattern I need to be able to concentrate. All I am doing at the moment are puzzles that I have downloaded off the internet onto my iPad!

Joining Motif for Coronet Doilies

Following Judy Edwards adaptation of my Coronet Doilies (see previous post) I thought I would have a go at doing my own version.

This is how I would join the smaller outer coronet doily motifs together.

Only 5 more outer doilies and joining motifs to make! It will be quite large when it is completed (I am using size 20 Aida threads). I will post the overall size when I have finished.

Blue Ribbon Win!

Judy Edwards entered her adaptation of my Coronet Doily into NC State Fair and won first prize in the lace section, which included all types of lace.

I think that this is a wonderful result and kudos for tatting!

Well done, Judy!

Double Fuchsia Flower

While I have been waiting for my thread to arrive for my Coronet Doily I have been playing with designing a double fuchsia. I did a single one in my very first book Petals to Pearls but I was recently looking at one of my beautiful double flowers in my garden and thought what a gorgeous one it would be to be replicated!

Here is the end result. I will do some leaves to make a display and then produce the pattern for it!

Cornet Doily - next step

Now that my new threads have arrived I can get on with this project! I'm pretty sure how I am going to join the outer motifs, but I think I will leave it as a surprise! LOL

Janet's Xmas Tree

Here is Janet's trial run of my Xmas tree pattern, but using a needle instead of a shuttle. Didn't she do well?

Janet did not want to make the tree into 3D earrings - as in the pattern - but wanted it as a tree motif.

As she says in her message to me, the second side is not quite as even as the first, but she will get it much better with practice. Looking forward to seeing her improvement as time goes on!

Well done, Janet!

Coronet Doily Adaptation

Over on InTatters one of the members had tatted my large coronet doily and then tatted and joined the smaller version around the outside. She then had to design a joining section. As you can see from this picture she did a pretty good job but I thought it would be fun to do my own version.

So far I have made the centre doily and done two of the smaller ones (pic not taken yet) but unfortunately I am running out of thread! I managed to get hold of Mary-Helen yesterday evening and very fortunately she has got the right thread and colours that I am using and is sending them to me. I will then crack on with the project.

In the meantime, I thought I would design a new fuschia flower. I have one in my book of summer flowers, but looking at a beautiful double one in my garden, I am going to see if I can do it justice!

Round/Square Doily

I have finally finished my Round/Square Doily. The outside edge is a little crowded, but I think the shape makes a change from the usual round or square doilies.

My best friend, Janet, loves it and that's all that matters. I shall present it to her tomorrow on her 44th wedding anniversary. Her husband, Allan, will have to make do with a kiss! LOL!!!

Giovanna's Flowers

Giovanna has been busy. Just take a look at these lovely flowers she has completed!

Round/Square Doily

This is one of those patterns that I have picked up my shuttle to see where it would take me!

I started round, then went to square and now it would appear to be ending up as a rounded square! LOL.

My best friend loves it, so guess what? With an anniversary coming up it will be hers!

Another Celtic Knot Bookmark

This is a variation on the Simple Celtic Knot Bookmark in my last post. I thought I would make it a little more interesting by weaving 3 rows of split rings.

Simple Celtic Knot Bookmark

I have designed this simple bookmark. The twisted chains give it a Celtic Knot style and by using 4 shuttles in alternating colours, makes it look a little more interesting.

I have written the pattern out and published the PDF which you can get from here

or from the Free Patterns section of my blog.

Don't worry if you do not have 4 shuttles, it can be done with 2 shuttles and 2 ball threads, but it can twist up quite a bit this way. Much easier to keep the threads under control if you use 4 shuttles!

Maria's version of Rosette Doily

Maria sent me a picture of the Rosette Doily that she just completed and considering she is a new tatter I thought she did it very well indeed!

Here is a link to her blog for more pictures.

Nina's pics

Nina was having difficulty with my Josephine Knot Bookmark as can be seen in the green version. She thought that she had to close the JK with a picot. When I explained how to do it properly, you can see the result in the red version.

Well done Nina!

Variagated Doily

I had some of this thread left on my shuttles from the ~Rosette Doily~ and thought I would use it up. I basically designed one row and then just kept repeating it. Sometimes offset and sometimes straight on. Not bad, but I don't think it is the best of designs!

Rosette Doily - Test Tatted

Here is a picture of the Rosette Doily - the pattern for which my friend, Stephanie, test tatted for me. Didn't she do a grand job? I love the way she has used the white to accentuate the rosette edging! It just shows how colour can affect the end result and colour combinations are endless!

Rosette Doily Link

I have now put the link to the Rosette Doily in the Free Patterns section on my blog. You will find it on the right hand side.....just scroll down.

The site that I use for my PDF files is freepdfhosting.com and it is a wonderful site to use. I can highly recommend it if you have PDF files that you would like others to be able to download.

Rosette Doily

Here is my latest doily now tatted in a variagated thread. It is Lizbeth size 40 col 124. I have written out the pattern and my good friend, Stephanie, is test tatting it for me. As soon as she is done I will post the link to the PDF.
Here is the link now available.

Round doily

My dear daughter-in-law asked me to make her another doily in brown and cream, to match her decor, to go under a vase.

On the journey to visit my mum on Tuesday, I came up with this design and finished it last night.

I used split rings and split chains to climb out of the rounds to prevent tying and cutting, but this shows up as the wrong colour. I decided that it didn't matter as the centre would be under the ornament and not seen.

I eventually worked out how to do the split chain with just one colour, but I couldn't remember how to do a single shuttle split ring, which might have solved the two-colour problem in the rings!

I really enjoyed doing this simple pattern and I am going to do it again with a single variagated thread and write the pattern out at the same time. When it is done I will post it here on my blog.

Book Covers All Done

At last, I have finished the book cover for the Book of Mormon for my friend, Eileene. It, and the Bible cover, are already winging their way across the pond by first class air mail!

I found it very difficult to get the finished lace to the exact measurements, but I think there is enough stretch in them to fit the books. Better to be a little tight than to fall off!

Some good news!

I saw a new neurosurgeon on Saturday just gone, and he thinks that my pain is not coming from the loose screws in my number 10 thoracic vertebrae, but higher up and therefore, surgery is probably not the way to go!

Instead, he thinks I would be best served by trying a nerve block.....locating the nerve roots that are causing me the pain and injecting them with anaesthetic and steroids. If this proceedure relieves the pain, then it can be done as a permanent proceedure.

It will leave me with a permanent numb band around my chest, but that has to be a million times better than severe pain 24/7!

I'm just hoping that I don't have to wait too long for the treatment.

In the meantime I have slowed down on the tatting, as I find it hard to sit for any length of time at the moment. The book cover for Eileene is coming along, but much slower than I wanted!

Next book cover

Here is the design of the cover for Eileene's Book of Mormon. It is the same format as the bible cover, but with a different motif.

I have to get a move on with this now, as I have heard that my next big spinal operation is looming. I see a new specialist on 24th July and then the op should be done within a couple of weeks after. It can't come soon enough for me. Perhaps then I can get my life back!

Bible cover completed

Here, as promised, are pictures of the bible cover. This is how it will look on the bible

This is the cover spread out before the side sleeves are folded over

This is the cover with the side sleeves folded over and anchored with a small tatted edging at the top and bottom of each sleeve.

Bible cover- update

The bible cover is almost completed and when it is I will post pictures of it.

For the other cover that Eileene wants for her Book of Mormon, I think I will try and find a different motif....just so that I don't get bored! I designed a pretty square motif last year, using SCMRs (self closing mock rings) and I think that I can adapt this little motif to do the job I want.

Daffodil

Carla placed this picture and post on her blog of my daffodil pattern that she worked from my ebook Tatted Flowers From Bulbs.
Didn't she do a good job?

Bible cover

I was asked by my dear friend, Eileene, from USA, to make covers for her Holy Bible and Book of Mormon. She gave me the measurements and this is what I have come up with so far. The motifs will cover the front and back of each book and the rows of tatting will go down the spines. I will also do rows of tatting at each end and fasten at the top and bottom to make sleeves to anchor the covers on the books. I am using DMC size 70 and so the work is really delicate. The one I am doing at the moment (the bible one) will be 12 1/2" by 7 1/2".

What do you think of it so far?

Josehpine Knot Bookmark Pattern

I have now written out the pattern for my latest bookmark, that I have called Josephine Knot Bookmark. You will find the link here or there is also a link on the right side bar of this blog in the "My Free Patterns" section. Enjoy!

Bookmark

This is the adaptation of the Starfish doily. By using just one "tentacle" and elongating it, it makes a great bookmark!

3 Pics!

I was playing around with my cross bookmark pattern, which I thought I could make into a star shape and this is the result - 5 pointed like a starfish - I quite like it. Next I am going to make a "straight" bookmark with the same josephine knot edging.

My next door neighbour is very kind to me, always lending me great books to read and so I thought I would surprise her with one of my cross bookmarks.

Here is a picture of my recent oval doily now in it's final resting place. I often put my tatted doilies under glass as it protects them and the glass protects the top of the wooden furniture. This occassional table is was bought in 1985 and there isn't a scratch on it!