Where’s that pattern?

Colonial Lady Applique from ‘Aunt Ellen’s Tatting Handbook’
tatted by Wanda Salmans 
I have a lot of old Workbasket magazines.  You remember those, don’t you?  Quite a few of them have a least one tatting pattern in them, along with all kinds of other crafts.  The problem, of course, it knowing what patterns are in which edition.  I usually end up spending a lot of time getting lost in looking through a stack of them, forgetting what I was looking for in the first place.  That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I loose a lot of tatting time that way.
Over at Craftree/Intatters there is a library that is being compiled, which has a lot of patterns in it.  I’m not sure how many from Workbasket magazines.  If not many yet there probably will be eventually. 
I came across another place that has a large (make that huge!) bibliography of tatting.  There are a lot of books both old and new listed, some with reviews.  And a list of Workbaskets and what patterns are in which edition. That place is Something Under the Bed.  I am in awe of how much work Leigh has done here and not just for tatting but for several other crafts as well.  I highly recommend this sight if you’re looking for information on a book or pattern.   
The pattern for the Colonial Lady above in the picture I found in ‘Aunt Ellen’s Tatting Handbook’ copyright 1982, but was originally in a Work basket from 1954 (I know this because I made a note of it on the pattern in the book.) I talk about making this lady in a post several years ago.  She still looks good.
The Workbasket magazine in the picture is the June/July 1994 No Vol. 59 edition.  It has a tatted “Independence Day Pin” in it – which I’ve made but can’t think of where I put it right now. I actually made several of them to give to family one year.  But if you wanted to make it and didn’t know which edition to look in, you could find it on Leigh’s site.
What are you waiting for?  I know you have a pattern you need to find.
I have no affiliation with Leigh or her website, I just found it a fabulous place.
“Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns, so that each small piece of her fabric reveals the organization of the entire tapestry.”
Richard P. Feynman
www.brainyquotes.com

12 thoughts on “Where’s that pattern?”

    1. I've tried to keep track of my books and I get behind – or rather, I've never caught up. Kudos to anyone that can be this organized with patterns or books.

  1. If it were me, because I am not at all interested in anything in those mags except tatting, I would remove all the tatting patterns and put them in a binder.

    I did that with the HH booklets I had collected; I removed patterns I liked and re-cycled the rest of the booklets. Easy peasy!

    Of course, I understand this solution is considered anathema to those who will not mess with books or publications to deface them, but hey! To each her own, right?

    1. I wish I could do that, but part of it is, I'm just lazy. And I need to do that with the HH booklets, but again, I just don't take the time to do it. My cabinets would have a lot more room if I did.

    2. The way I see it is that I am lazy! The way I tackle it is to have only what I can keep track of in my head – then there is way less to worry about and look after! : ))

  2. Last year a friend gave me two boxes of Work Baskets, all tied in bundles by year. I'll have to check out the link & maybe it'll help me know what I now have. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. Karen in OR

  3. I had to do a Fox with my Anna magazines, took out everything I wanted to keep and all the tatting patterns as we needed to make space, and still my husband feels I have too much. Can't reduce it anymore. I can understand anyone not wanting to strip them down. My heart broke when I did it. But all the tatting patterns are in folders and knitting and bits in another.
    It's amazing how the old patterns are coming back, just like fashion they go around.
    Margaret

  4. One solution, but it takes time and may take money depending on your resources. If you have a printer that includes a scanner, scan the patterns. You can print them out and put the print outs in a binder. This method has the benefit of possibly using neutral pH paper, instead of acidic newsprint or magazine paper.

  5. I'm so glad you brought Leigh's site to everyone's attention! I found it a while ago, and it is mind-boggling! I was able to track down a Workbasket pattern because of it. I can't believe she has indexed every single Workbasket issue and organized the index according to subject, i.e. tatting, knitting, crochet, etc. Plus she has the image of the cover for each one, and they are fun to look at to see how styles changed over the decades! And there are other collectors out there who are willing to part with their Workbasket magazines. Of course, Leigh includes other craft magazines as well, in her huge data base. I can only assume she locked herself away in a tower for several years to accomplish all of this! This is a fabulous reference site for all needle crafters!

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