It's printed!

 My new book is printed! So exciting to see it as an actual book to hold and page through. It weighs close to 7 ounces; heavier than my other self-published books, since there are 48 pages as opposed to 28. My writing style is about the same, but this book has actual drawn diagrams so I am hopeful those will help people with following the patterns.

The designs are all for tatted jewelry with beads. I used Lizbeth thread in size 20 for many of the projects, but some are done in size 10. There is a supply list given with each project. Tatted jewelry with beads is more particular about thread size than most other tatting. For instance, you can tat a doily pattern in any thread size that you want, and you'll get a larger or smaller doily, but the pattern still works, regardless. With tatted jewelry that includes beads in the design, you need to be thinking more like a jeweler than a lace-maker. The sizes of the beads and the tatting need to fit together well. Have fun choosing any color combos you like for your projects!

Snowflake and Android

 Getting back to life after writing a pattern book - whew! There's lots of laundry piled up and cleaning that got put off while I was focusing my energies on the book. Feeling a bit more normal now, and looking forward to seeing the printed book, which is still in queue at the print shop. I'll let you know when it's done - for sure!

Meanwhile, I've discovered that my Android-based smartphone and tablet (mine's a Nook) don't like to download files from a link, such as the download link on Etsy. It's easier to download the file on a computer first, and then transfer to the mobile device, either by usb cable, or simply by emailing the file to yourself, then opening the email attachment and saving it to your device that way. By the way, I discovered that my Nook didn't have Adobe Reader when I tried to view the file. No problem, Adobe Reader is a free app, installs quickly, and displays PDF files perfectly, complete with page index to get to the page you want quickly. I like how the pictures can be zoomed for a closer look and that I can have my patterns with me wherever I happen to be tatting.

I've started on a white and sky blue set using patterns from my new book - the photo below shows my progress so far. And, oh yes, I hand dyed some thread this week! That's the "Snowflake" colorway in the top photo.

For those looking for posts on how the Greater Milwaukee Tatting Guild is doing, they've had their own blog for a while, and you can see the guild posts at http://greatermilwaukeetattingguild.blogspot.com/

Digital is available, printed book coming soon!

As of January 10, I went ahead and put the PDF version of my new book out for sale. It's available as an instant download both in my Etsy shop, and also in my Craftsy pattern store.
There will be a printed book coming soon! It's currently at the print shop getting put together.

I worked very hard on this book, and have to admit that I'm pleased with it - and actually amazed that it got done! I hope those who buy it will enjoy it.

As with all my patterns, I'm totally happy when people post pictures of the things they've made from my designs. BUT, please respect my copyright and do not post my files or pictures of the inside pages of my book ANYWHERE. Just mentioning this, because occasionally I've seen some copyrighted work posted on places like Google+ and Pinterest. This is piracy and hurts the designer because they depend on sales of their patterns to make a living. If designers are not respected, they will stop sharing their designs, and the whole craft will be poorer as a result.

It's okay to "pin" the covers of the book, though - that's free advertising.

Proofreading

Doing the final proofreading of my new book before publishing, and so far I've found an errant "the", a redundant "ing" and 2 double stitches that went missing. Will continue to check it over carefully, and then when I'm satisfied it's correct, will take it to the printer. I'll also make the digital eBook available for purchase soon. I won't know what to price it at until I find out how much it will cost to print it. This book has 48 pages, which is 20 more pages than Up and Tat 'Em, and is crammed with good stuff - at least I think so :) The title of my new book is Marilee's Beaded Tatting Finery, and here's a sneak peak at the cover:

I just counted the photos in the book and there are over 190, plus a diagram for each of the 15 patterns. So, must get back to proofreading for now, but wanted to keep you posted that it's coming very soon!