Tatting Police

Yes, there really are tatting police. 

An Illinois State Police sergeant stopped by our table at Tollway Tatters last Saturday in the Hinsdale Oasis to see what we were up to, and was cheerfully given a tatting lesson, shuttles, and hand dyed thread! Now we have one of Illinois' finest hooked on tatting!

I want to mention a side note, before I continue posting about the fun times at the Tollway, that I'm feeling sad about the many copyright violations that have occurred recently. The pages of entire books, my own and those of other current tatting pattern designers, have been discovered posted on Google+. Every person who downloads one of these illegally posted copies is depriving the artist/designer of a sale. This is the same as defrauding a laborer of their just wages. This, combined with the shock that a magazine copied my designs without asking permission or acknowledgement (more about that on Corina Meyfeldt's post) has got me feeling a bit down about doing any more designing, but will hang in there.

On to the fun times!

Tatting shuttles were in abundance at the Tollway Tatters! There were Moonlit, Sunlit, Shuttle Brothers, and others, I can't remember them all. Lace-lovin' Librarian - Diane even got me to like the "Bad Boye" shuttles, with the way she cleaned them up, improved their "manners", and "dressed" them properly :)

More pictures of the fun below.

And, coming up, May 31, I'm teaching a beginning tatting workshop at Shake Rag Alley. Diane shared lots of her excellent teaching ideas with me, so I'll be able to get the new tatters off to a quick start.

3 generations of crafters!

Julie

Barbara looking for more patterns

Sue Anna and Lelia

Some of Lelia's tatting. The smallest hearts are Grace Tan's pattern.

Beautiful shopping bags from Lelia!

Handmade project bags by Lelia!

Stonehill Wine

"Stonehill Wine" has a grayish olive green which shades into a pale fuchsia, a brighter fuchsia, and finally a dark fuchsia/burgundy.

The tatted sample at left is from this new batch of hand dyed thread. I was trying a necklace pattern by Nina Libin that has beaded, reversing chains.The pattern is found here: http://www.georgiaseitz.com/classes2/libin.html

Saturday, May 24 I'll be going to Tollway Tatters! It's always a fun time when tatting friends can get together. I'll try to remember to take pictures there.

"Parakeet"

More vibrant than pastel, these bright greens to medium blue are similar to the coloring of some parakeets. Color idea suggested by the president of the Lighthouse Lacers guild, Sue Anna.

My start on "Boomerang" earrings from the new HDT is seen in the photo above. The boomerang pattern is found in "Marilee's Beaded Tatting Finery" book. Georgia Seitz wrote a very nice review at BellaOnline Tatting. I feel so honored!

By the way, if anyone wants to learn how to shuttle tat in the scenic vacation area of Mineral Point, WI area on May 31st, there are still openings in my Beginning Shuttle Tatting Workshop at Shake Rag Alley, but the class is filling up fast. Register on the Shake Rag Alley website.

Hand dyed thread "Campfire"

"Time & Again" tatted earrings

 "Campfire" because the warm and smoky colors combined with sunset colors remind me of a campfire at twilight. Just listed in my Etsy shop!

The red and blue colors from the previous dye batch arranged themselves nicely in these "Time & Again" earrings from the pattern in my book "Marilee's Beaded Tatting Finery". 

The blue earrings are also from a pattern in that book.

"Melange" tatted earrings

This handsome guy winding skeins and standing at my display is my dear husband, Jan. His new venture is assisting me with skein winding and twisting, as well as printing off shipping labels. He prepared nearly all the skeins in the Campfire batch for me to dye. I expect that hand dyed thread batches will be listed in my shop more frequently, now that I have an assistant :)