Quickie Snowflake Earrings

These use the techniques of beads dangling on picots, climbing out of a ring with a mock picot formed with a lockstitch, and zigzag chain.

For pattern in pdf format click here.

Materials:

Size 80 tatting thread or glacé quilting thread

48 size 11 seed beads

1 tatting shuttle

2 earring findings

For each earring, string 24 sb onto the thread. Have 6 sb on the shuttle, 18 on the ball thread.

Center r 1--1-1--1-1--1-1--1-1--1-1--1, cl. Lockstitch to make the 6^th small p. *Ch (with a b in each p) 6-2-2-6. J to next small p on center R. Repeat from * for a total of 6 “branches”, and j at the beginning.

ZZ ch 4/4, 3 times. Slide 6 b up from the shuttle. R (with a b in each p) 2-2-2-2+ ( to earring finding) 2-2-2-2, cl.

Stiffen, if desired, with clear nail polish, extra-hold hairspray, or a commercial stiffening product. Or, try this tip from Ruth Perry:

"Try tatting them in Hand Quilting thread that has a glaze on the thread. Dip in hot water, and press between clean cloths. This will give them stiffness that will hold its shape and they will still be dainty."

Abbreviations:

b bead
Ch chain
ds double stitch
j join
+ join
p picot
- small picot
-- large picot
R ring
sb seed bead
/ separates stitches on each side of split ring, or sets of zigzag tatting ZZ zigzag, or rickrack tatting of set stitches (first half of ds repeated a number of times, followed by second half repeated a number of times, completing one set)