I have been cleaning out drawers and cabinets lately and found a lot of tatting from years ago. Some of it I shake my head at, amazed at how far I’ve come, and some I look at with a laugh at the things I tried.
I found the lady in a drawer where I put her after she had hung on the wall for awhile. She’s “Colonial Lady Applique” from Aunt Ellen’s Tatting Handbook, originally from Workbasket Vol. 19, August 1954. It’s marked as “challenging”. I knew I could tat pretty well when I completed her! I don’t remember what thread I used but I do know I worked very hard on her because I entered her in the Kansas State Fair in 1990 or ’91 (terrible I don’t remember exactly!). I actually got top blue for her that year. The one and only time I’ve entered at the state fair.
And poor Aunt Ellen’s Handbook! I have made qute a few things out of it and it shows how much I used it. It’s falling apart and has notes in the margins of the items I made. It was given to me by my “other mother”, my mother-in-law, in 1989 – I know because I made a note in the front cover. I rarely even look in it now, but it is responsible for many gifts and happy hours of tatting.
Wow, it is beautiful. I’m sure it represents many many hours of work. Lovely.
Thank you, it does! It was quite a challenge, but it really helped my confidence in my tatting.