"Prairie Dusk" hand dyed thread

 Several shades of purple, khaki, and orange, blended together in cordonnet sizes 3 to 80, plus embroidery floss. These colors have a subtle sort of "Halloween" association, but are not limited to that since they're just pretty. The batch is now listed in my Etsy shop.

The bracelet that I was working on this week is now finished and listed as well, though of course with most of my followers being tatters themselves, there is a great interest in the techniques and the pattern. In fact, pictures of the bracelet went "viral" on my Facebook page yesterday, with more than 9 thousand views! So obviously I need to write up the pattern, which I will do as time allows. I do think I need to come up with a variation that is similar but doesn't require the pearl tatting part, so more people would find it do-able.

New bracelet in progress with pearl tatted center

Still unfinished, it needs the thread tails sewn in, steam blocking, and the findings attached. This is a new design experiment with a pearl tatted center. Pearl tatting meaning a 3rd thread added, with unflipped stitches worked over it, alternating sides. The result is sort of a cord with picots on both sides, which I thought might be handy for joining other design elements to. 

So far I'm pleased with this design, especially the colors, which include my own hand dyed "Adventurer" for the center, "Stonehill Wine" for the 2nd round, and Lizbeth #676 Leaf Green Dk for the final round, all size 10. The beads include Toho 11/0 Round Andromeda MA #704 strung onto the thread, and over selected picots I used 8/0 seed beads in a slightly brighter but similar color.

The bracelet turned out a bit too large for my own wrist, so expect to see it listed in my Etsy shop soon. As for the design, I'll probably tweak it and experiment some more.

Hand dyeing a new batch of thread tonight!

Adventurer

For those who are looking for a neutral, camouflage, shaded khaki thread. This batch of my hand dyed leans just a wee bit to the olive side. I had in mind the image of an adventurer off on an expedition to an exotic locale, possibly with a military espy.

The earrings are tatted from size 20 of this batch. I added a brass corrugated bead and a gear for a steampunk style that an "adventuress" (female adventurer) would find pleasing. They almost look like they could be hiding some sort of mechanized ansible device (but they're not - they're only earrings)! Just fun!

Leaves

So September has arrived, and in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, area it isn't hard to find some leaves that have already changed color. The days are still warm and summery though, and I hope that lasts a while.

A new batch of "Sugar Maple" hand dyed thread has been added to my Etsy shop. That batch always gets "oohs and aahs," but I'm loving how many of the other colorways look good as autumn leaves as well :)
The pattern for the earrings is my own original "Small Maple Leaf."

My dear husband, Jan, has been getting loads of admirers and views for his own Etsy shop, and it's given him something to focus his own creativity on.

The Museum of Wisconsin Art will soon be putting some of my tatted jewelry on display in their gift shop. I'm excited to have my work included there! Also coming up on the calendar is Milwaukee Tatting Guild on Monday, September 9, and Tatting Days in Indiana at the Thread Corner the first weekend in November. Lots to do!