Tag: tatting class

Shuttles From Tat Days

During Tat Days, Lisa Adams, of Tatting Corner, has an auction to raise money for a good cause. This year the auction was for The Animal Protection League. Representatives from the League were there to explain their mission, which is a beautiful cause. The auction raised $3,695! The auction consists of tatting-related items, including books, threads, and shuttles, among other things. It was fun to watch all the action at the auction as tatters bid on the different items. My husband and I contributed by having the winning bids on a few shuttles.

Pawel Pekalski shuttle on wandasknottythoughts
Pawel Pekalski shuttle

This is a stainless steel shuttle from PekaloDesign. I haven’t tried tatting with it yet, but I’m looking forward to it. I hear they are wonderful to tat with.

Etched bone shuttle on wandasknottythoughts
Etched bone shuttle

How about the etching on this shuttle? It feels nice, too. There were two like this, and I was lucky enough to get one.

Brass shuttle on wandasknottythoughts
Brass shuttle

This brass shuttle is a type I’ve never had before. It’s numbered and dated which must mean it is a limited edition. I’m looking forward to seeing how this one feels to tat with.

While I was attending the tatting classes, my husband was finding other things to do. On Friday he went to several antique stores and flea markets. He surprised me with another shuttle.

Celluloid antique shuttle on wandasknottythoughts
Celluloid antique shuttle

My husband has been around my and my shuttles enough to know what to look for in a shuttle. This one is a bit misshapen from use, but the tips are tights and the point is in good shape. He didn’t spend nearly as much on this one as the other three shuttles.

Since I’ve been home I’ve been tatting a lot, but on a new pattern and not so much on the class projects. I did finally finish tatting the body for Craig’s Tatted Pocket Toddler.

Tatted Pocket Toddler body on wandasknottythoughts
Tatted Pocket Toddler body

I enjoyed tatting this. Craig put a log of work into the pattern and the directions. I’m currently working on the dress for this doll. Maybe I’ll have it done by the time I post next time.

Tat Days were only Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, but my husband and I made a week of it. We left home on Sunday afternoon and went to Kentucky to see the Ark Encounter and the Creation Museum. We visited the Ark on the 4th, and the Creation Museum on the fifth before heading to Anderson. We have heard a lot about these and were glad we had the opportunity to visit them.

Jack and I at the Ark Encounter on wandasknottythoughts
Jack and me at the Ark Encounter

The Ark is BIG. We got there just after opening and there were already a lot of people there. We had bought our tickets online, so we got on the bus at the parking lot with minimal wait to be taken to the Ark. This is a very cool place to visit if you are in the area.

At the Creation Museum on wandasknottythoughts
At the Creation Museum

The Creation Museum is not just items under glass. There was a lot of walking here and at the Ark. We spent about five hours at each place and still didn’t see everything. Both places also have zoos, with interesting animal interactions. We didn’t personally do anything but look at the animals, but the opportunity to feed and interact with some of them was available.

The entire week was wonderful! We saw some beautiful country, visited interesting places, and had a wonderful time at Tat Days! We are both looking forward to going again next year!

“Jobs fill your pocket but adventures fill your soul.” ~ Jamie Lyn Beatty

Tatting Corner’s Tat Days part 3

Wow, I can’t believe it’s been two weeks since Tatting Corner’s Tat Days. I still haven’t finished Pearl as I’ve been busy tatting for several other things, but everything else from Tat Days is done.

Circle be unbroken on wandasknottythoughts
Circle be unbroken

I finished Mary Anna Robinson’s ‘Circle Be Unbroken’ covered cabone ring while we were on the way home. I’m not sure I got it quite right but it looks good, so I’m happy with it. I had fun in Mary Anna’s class. Thanks, Mary Anna!

Dona's Christmas Stocking on wandasknottythoughts
Dona’s Christmas Stocking

I also finished ‘Dona’s Christmas Stocking’ on the way home. I made at least one wrong join on one side, but it worked out okay when I put the two sides together. I’m not sure I got the fringe at the time quite right, either, but there is an opening at the top, so it came out alright, too. This is very cute. I can see myself making more of these, maybe for my family Christmas ornament this year.

Dorset Button with Tatting #3 on wandasknottythoughts
Dorset Button with Tatting #3

I worked on Mike Lyon’s Dorset button on the way home also but didn’t finish it. I actually started the center weaving again, which is still off-center, but it looks better than my first try. I made the picots on the cabone ring waaayy too big, which messed up the sizing on the outside tatting. I’m still happy with it though I’ll try to do better on the next one I make. I’m sure I’ll be doing Dorset buttons again, though I don’t know when.

I have several time-sensitive projects right now so I am waiting to finish Pearl until they are done. I’ve been seeing other people’s mermaids on Facebook, which has me itching to pick her up again, but I must be strong! I WILL finish her, but later.

I’m so excited about next year’s tatting cruise. My sister, who is coming too, and I have been talking about things we’ll need and things we want to do. Yes, it’s next year, but there’s a lot to think about when you haven’t done it before. Some of it we definitely need to start saving for. While I’m writing this post I have Dishnetwork’s Dishscape of a coral reef on the TV, keeping me in the mood for the trip! (A screen saver with sound.)

DIshscape of a coral reef on wandasknottythoughts
Dishscape of a coral reef

I am not associated in any way with Dishnetwork and make no income from this mention.

“God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the sea, and rides upon the storm.” William Cowper

Tatting Corner’s Tat Days part 2

I am so inspired by my experience at Tat Days that I have all kinds of ideas for new things to tat. I’m not sure when I’ll have the time to try them all! I did finish all of my projects from Tat Days except for Pearl, the mermaid.

Bugle mania project on wandasknottythoughts
3 Bugle Picot Motif

The 3 Bugle Picot motif is the only project I finished at Tat Days, except for sewing in the ends. It’s almost amazing that I finished it there, all the stops and starts I did. Marsha Bramson and K Boniface set up at one of the round dinner tables instead of at a long class table and I almost missed that they had started. Several people that hadn’t signed up for the class joined, they didn’t realize at first it was a class and not a tat-n-chat. Marsha and K brought all kinds of beads that we could use and there were lots of discussions going on about the class patterns and bead uses. I had trouble choosing what I wanted to do, then kept loading the beads wrong.

Bugle mania class on wandasknottythoughts
Bugle mania class with Marsha
Bugle mania with K on wandasknottythoughts
Bugle mania with K

The class time seemed to go very fast! As I don’t use beads often I learned a lot. Did you notice how those bugle beads are used in the motif? Both K and Marsha had good suggestions and helpful hints.

I enjoyed that class so much that this week while I was at JoAnn’s I noticed they had bugle beads on sale – 40% off *smile* – so I acquired some. Now I can try the other patterns from the class.

Bugle beads on wandasknottythoughts
Bugle beads

Lisa had tables set up for any show-and-tell items people brought. There wasn’t a lot, but those that brought items were very interesting to look at. I brought a few things myself to share.

Show and tell items at Tat Days on wandasknottythoughts
Show and tell items at Tat Days

I brought the flowers and butterflies decorated bangle I made and finished it off with a prism in the center. I also brought a decorated wishbone, done without the thimble holder. Interestingly, two of the classes I took were covering cabone rings, which is done the same way I covered the bangle bracelets and the wishbone that I brought. I’ll share those projects in another post.

Did you hear? Lisa is doing another Tatting Corner cruise! It’s “Knotical Adventures” on the Royal Caribbean ship ‘Harmony of the Seas’, leaving from Galveston in November of 2023. And I get to go!! Whoo hoo! Check it out on Tatting Corner’s website.

“You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing, and by falling over.” Richard Branson

Tatting Class

Back in July I mentioned that I was going to have a tatting class.  The tatting class consisted of three local ladies, two whom I have known since our children were young.  I was pretty excited to have people interested in a class and that they were local.
We had our first session in July, then had to have a bit longer of a break before our next lesson than any of us wanted due to personal obligations for all of us.  But we finally had another class and then another.  Then we decided we would just try to meet up at least once a month to get together and tat.
How cool is that?
 New tatters! on wandasknottythoughts@gmail.com
Tatting class in July
Carla, Becky, and Sherry

 

New tatters learning the double stitch on wandasknottythoughts@gmail.com
Tatting class in August
It is so fun getting together with these ladies.  We are laughing almost the entire time.  A couple of them have started the same project of a simple heart pattern.  Each are progressing at a different pace but are making progress, they just need to keep practicing. As they learn and practice tatting I’m learning and practicing how better to pass on my tatting knowledge.  We’re all having a great time learning.
Next month we’ll be meeting at my house.  At the last meeting we started talking about coming up with a name for our tatting group.  Any suggestions?
“It is not knowledge, but the act of learning, not possession but the act of getting there, which grants the greatest enjoyment.”
Carl Friedrich Gauss
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The opposite of small

I had several ladies recently ask me about teaching them to tat. **happy dance** We set up a date and I started organizing things that I use to teach with.
I still have a lot of the Boye shuttles from the bag of seconds I bought a while ago.  While watching TV over the course of a few days I sanded three down then decorated them a bit.  They weren’t very elaborate or really all that pretty but each was unique.  I also wrapped cardboard pieces with two colors of size 5 thread for the students.  I like my students to be able to really see what they are doing before going to smaller thread.  I had the thread already so I didn’t have to buy a large thread though I rarely work in this size.
One of my teaching tools is a large example of tatting to make it easy to see the construction of the knots.  Somehow since the last time I had a class I lost my piece of tatted cord.  Even the balls of cord are missing.  I found some 3/16 inch twisted poly rope at Wal-mart in pretty colors that I thought would work.
Tatting class preparation on wandasknottythoughts.com
It worked out well – other than being nylon and hard to keep the knots in place as they were made.
Working with such large ‘thread’ creates several issues, the foremost is how you can manipulate the shuttle around the thread.  My usual working space between first and second fingers is a bit small for the ‘shuttles’ carrying the cord so an alternative had to be devised.  In the past I’ve asked my husband for a bit of help but he wasn’t available at the right time so I had to make do with something else.
My foot worked.
An alternative way to tat with large thread on wandasknottythoughts.com
 It was kind of awkward but got easier as I worked.
The first class was this last Wednesday.  All three ladies were doing well making the double stitch.  It will be a couple of weeks before we have the second class due to vacation schedules (not mine this time!) but all of us are looking forward to it.
Now back to using thread that’s a little smaller…
 “Aim high. You may still miss your target but at least you won’t shoot your foot off.”
Lois McMaster Bujold

 

Tat and chat


Back in June I taught the basics in a tatting class to a couple of ladies from Wichita.  I’m very pleased that both have kept up with it and are enjoying it a lot.  We’ve communicated by email several times and thought it would be fun to get together again.  The timing finally worked and we met at Cheryl’s house last week.
Me, Cheryl and Erica

Cheryl has made several lovely bookmarks and is working on another; Erica is working on a gift for a friend.   I’m impressed with their tatting, they are both doing a great job!  We talked patterns, threads, techniques, and shuttles.  They each had a list of questions to ask, which I hope I was able to answer satisfactorily for them.  It was a fun visit which I’m hoping we’ll be able to do again sometime.

I hate to say it but the above photo is the only one I took (!).  I was going to take one of some of their work but got side-tracked by the conversation.  Time seemed to go by much to quickly!

Can you believe it?  I still haven’t touched any more of my new thread yet. I have yet another project with a deadline that I am hurrying to meet.  If I hadn’t gotten sick last weekend, and had a different schedule all week, I would have been able to proceed in a more relaxed manner.  But now I’m in a rush again.  And of course I couldn’t just choose an existing pattern, mine or someone else’s – no, I had to go and try something new. Again!  You’d think I’d learn, especially when there’s a deadline, but I do this to myself time and time again.  I guess I like taking the chance that it will all work out.  And in time!

Lizbeth #149 Peacock Blues size 20.

Thank you to all who wished me health this last week.  I do feel a lot better, though now it seems to have morphed into really bad allergies with just a reminder now and then that colds hang on awhile.

“I fear the boredom that comes with not learning and not taking chances.”
Robert Fulghum
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Tatting class at Odd Balls Yarn Shop

Saturday, June 15, I taught a tatting class at Odd Balls Yarn Shop in Newton, KS. I had two students, Erica and Cheryl, who already knew each other.  I meant to ask if one had talked the other into taking the class but I forgot to. Too busy getting busy teaching them to tat ☺
Here’s Erica checking to see if the stitch flipped or not.  The dark table cloth helped her see her light-colored thread.

This is Cheryl concentrating on her chain.  She had a dark thread on the shuttle so we put a white board in front of her to help her see the thread. 
Both had some trouble keeping tension with the left hand at first.  They tried to hold the thread the way I learned to hold it for a little bit then they both switched to holding it the way they do when they crochet and Bingo! things went much faster and easier.  Both ladies were able to flip their stitches for both chains and rings with a little work on my part to make sure they could work with the hand positions.  We ran out of time before we could finish their projects of decorated buttons but they were well on their way. 
I utilized my new teaching tools during this class.  One of the biggest problems with teaching someone to tat (IMHO), even with size 30 thread like we used in the class, is making sure that the student understands/sees what you are talking about.  My solution is to use a bit bigger ‘thread’.
This is about a size 3 cord.
When I needed to explain what a stitch looked like, how to tell if it was correct, how to count stitches between picots, etc, it was very easy to show it with this size ‘thread’.  It seems to have worked very well.  Cheryl had brought with her some of the thread that she had, including a whole box of size 80 DMC tatting thread of different colors.  Between the two extremes I explained that tatting could be done with any size thread, with or without an actual shuttle.  (No, I didn’t try putting this cord on a shuttle!)
Cheryl, myself and Erica at the tatting class
We all had a lot of fun Saturday! I’m looking forward to seeing how they progress in with their tatting.
Erica has a website with some of the things she does.  Check out Buxom Bones, maybe she’ll put some of her tatting there ☺
“We learn by practice.  Whether it means to learn to dance by practicing dancing or to learn to live by practicing living, the principles are the same.  One becomes in some area an athlete of God.”
Martha Graham
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