New Pattern: "Petal Portal"

 Just finished! 

My original pattern "Petal Portal" for tatted pendant and earrings is listed for sale as an instant download in my Etsy shop. 

The tatting techniques used in the pendant are: ring, floating ring, curled ring, chain, picot, bead picot, join, lock join, Celtic weaving, and encapsulation.

The tatting techniques used in the earrings are: ring, floating ring, split ring, chain, picot, bead picot, Daisy picot, join, lock join, encapsulation. 

So, it's a challenging pattern using a lot of techniques. The instructions are written in English from the shuttle tatting perspective. This pattern also has diagrams with stitch counts and some in-progress photos. 

The thread used for the pendant and earrings is size 20, along with size 15/0 seed beads and 4mm beads.

"Petal Portal" green set

The actual colors that I used in the green set are Lizbeth #604, #684, #676, and my own hand dyed "Nectarine".

The actual colors I used in the purple set are Lizbeth #612, #632, and my own hand dyed "Crocus".

"Petal Portal" purple set

I came up with the title "Petal Portal" because the Josephine rings at the bottom looked to me like little flower buds or petals growing, and the open center of the motif seemed to be a gateway or portal leading to somewhere nice.

The tools and supplies that I used for the green set

Just Working Quietly

Staying in, doing a little handweaving from time to time. Also, I'm in the process of writing up a new tatting pattern for a pendant and earring set. Not showing the picture here yet! Keeping it a surprise.

Speaking of surprises, I was very much surprised to receive this lovely dishtowel machine embroidered with tatting shuttle designs! A friend in the community orchestra (that I play cello in) gave it to me. This was about 2 weeks ago. Since then, orchestra has been cancelled until next fall, to comply with "social distancing" so as to help us avoid the coronavirus.

Spring is still coming along, very slowly as is usual here in Wisconsin. I'm very happy that the Snow Crocus is blooming. A glimmer of hope!

Hand Dyed Thread "Blue Skies"

In this batch I tried to represent the shades of blue in the sky on a sunny day: light warm blue near the horizon to darker cool blue farther up. It's a new colorway, different from the other blue batches I've done before. Available in my Etsy shop.

Speaking of Etsy, 2020 will be my 13th year on Etsy. 

I remember the days before Internet, when I was living in a town much smaller than the one I'm currently in, where the only option for selling handmade items was consignment shops which usually charged a fee of 40% to 50% of the selling price of the item. So, from my perspective, Etsy works beautifully. 

Flutterby Heart

Free tatting pattern for you! 

Instant download:
https://www.keepandshare.com/doc/8248626/flutterby-heart-pdf-411k?da=y 

This is a design that I actually came up with in 2017. For some reason I set my experimental sample aside and forgot about it. While looking through some pictures I ran across a photo and thought, "Hey, this is cute, who designed this?" Uh...well...I then noticed my own name on it! 

To make sure that it was really not someone else's design, I asked in an online tatting group if anybody had seen it before. They hadn't! Except the sharp eyes of Sue H. had noticed it on my own Facebook page! 

Well, I guess I have to admit to a "senior moment". \(^_^)/
But, for you, a new pattern!

Handweaving

There's been a warp on my 24 inch wide, 8 shaft table loom since 2017, mostly ignored! I think what may have turned me off of it at the start was that I noticed a threading error, tried to correct it, but just couldn't fix it. 

Well, I've finally come to accept the flaw as a "design element" and to have fun with the patterns and colors that are emerging! The result will be beautiful towels.

I'm using a mix of 8/2 unmercerized cotton and 10/2 mercerized cotton in the towels. I wonder why the weaving yarn companies don't make the matte cotton and the shiny cotton to match in size exactly, but oh well, I'm using them together anyway. 

Currently, I have 3 towels almost done, and there may be enough warp to weave a fourth towel.

The Winner!

The winner is Gloria Nelson! Congratulations, Gloria! I've sent you an email.

To everyone who commented, thank you so very much for your wonderful words. Each of you is a inspiration and I wish I could give everyone a prize - but all I can offer as consolation is my free digital patterns here. Tat on!!!