Category: Tat Days

Projects from Tat Days

I took Jane Eborall’s ‘New Moon’ class at Tat Days.  I always enjoy her patterns.  I put grey Lizbeth thread my shuttles and used size 11 clear seed beads.  For all that the class was a level one I enjoyed it.  The nose of the moon is the one tricky spot in the pattern.  I got just past that point when the class ended.

Jane Eborall's Quarter Moon Class on wandasknottythoughts.com
Jane Eborall’s Quarter Moon Class

I was finally able to finish it the week following Tat Days.

Jane Eborall's tatted New Moon
Jane Eborall’s tatted New Moon

I also took Mimi Dillman’s Cluny Improvement Motif.  I had never done clunies except as practice, and only in the previous few weeks.  I am so glad that I took the class.  Mimi showed a different way to hold your hand for the loom which made it soooo much easier than what I had been doing.

Mimi demonstrating clunies to some of her class on wandasknottythoughts
Mimi demonstrating clunies to some of her class

The improvement motif definitely made me work on improving clunies.  But Mimi was right – I think my best cluny was the first one, not the last.

Completed tatted Cluny Improvement Motif on wandasknottythoughts
Completed Cluny Improvement Motif

After I got home I started another cluny motif, not because I had finished the first but because I didn’t have it with me when I wanted to tat.  The second motif was made in two colors – the ones that were already on the shuttles. Both of them are now finished

Two color tatted Cluny Improvement Motif on wandasknottythoughts
Two color Cluny Improvement Motif

I have some work to do on making those color changes look better – and the clunies themselves.  But at least now I like making clunies.   Don’t be surprised if they end up in some of my future patterns.

I haven’t yet finished my other two Tat Days projects.  Both will need my full attention to get them right.   I’m hoping to have time – and energy – to finish them soon.

“He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.” Friedrich Nietzsche                         brainy quote.com

Tat Days!

My first Palmetto Tat Days are over.  I’m home and back to work.  But, man, did I have fun! It was great!

I had decided to rent a car to get from Atlanta to Taccoa, which is about two hours away.  As I would have plenty of room – and would appreciate a navigator! – I volunteered to give a ride to anyone that was arriving at about the same time.  That’s how I met Linda Barnes.  Her plane came in a little before mine.  We didn’t know each other, so I sent her a picture from the plane.  We connected with no problems.

Meeting Linda Barnes at the Atlanta airport on wandasknottythoughts.com
Meeting Linda Barnes at the Atlanta airport

Another tatter that needed a ride was Linda Patron.  Her plane came in a short while after mine.  I sent her a picture of Linda B. and me and we still had a little trouble finding her. We were at baggage claim one and so was she – we were at the north baggage claim and she was at the south.  Once we figured that out we found each other easily.  Once in the car we visited together the whole way to the conference center.

Meeting Linda Patron at the airport on wandasknottythoughts.com
Meeting Linda Patron

This was my first Tat Days but I knew one person that was there.  Karen, aka IsDihara, and I had met several years ago. I was so excited to see her!  I had heard that she wasn’t going to be able to go, but she made it!

Karen, aka IsDahara, was able to come to Tat Days on wandasknottythoughts.com
Karen, aka IsDahara, was able to come to Tat Days!

I didn’t know who my room mate was going to be.  I found out when I went to the room for bed about 10:00 p.m.  I opened the door and look who I found!

Diane, Lace-Lovin'-Librarian is my room mate! on wandasknottythoughts.com
Diane, Lace-Lovin’-Librarian is my room mate!

Yep, Diane, Lace-Lovin’-Librarian was my room mate!  I recognized her right away.  It was so cool!  We got along right from the start.  I couldn’t have asked for a better room mate.

Thursday night arrivals at Tat Days 2016 on wandasknottythoughts.com
Thursday night arrivals at Tat Days 2016

This is the general room on the lower floor of the conference center.  There seemed to always be people here.

I didn’t take nearly as many pictures as I usually do when I’m someplace special – I was too busy meeting people and experiencing everything that is Tat Days.  I also did a little tatting 🙂  I didn’t get any of my projects done while there, but I learned a lot and had a great experience.  I hope to make it back next year.

Palmetto Tat Days, September 8-9, 2017 in Toccoa, Georgia.  The theme is “Tat a Con – All Things Tatted”

I will be sharing more of the pictures I took in the next few weeks – be warned!

“What we learn with pleasure we never forget” Alfred Mercier

p.s. I’ve been trying to post this since Tuesday but life keeps getting in the way. With any luck things will get back to normal soon and so will my posting.

Lanyard 2016

I’ve had several people ask how I made the Lanyard from last week.

Tat Days Lanyard
Tat Days Lanyard

I hadn’t planned on writing it out but changed my mind.  This is my version of a simple idea that tats up quickly.

Lanyard, Wanda's version
Lanyard, Wanda’s version

I’ve added the drawing with text to my Patterns page.

It has been a busy week.  We’ve had a lot going on around the house as well as putting in a lot of overtime at work.  The only tatting I’ve done is not worth sharing; it’s not pretty.  I’ve been practicing cluny tatting.  One of the classes I’m taking at Tat Days in September is a cluny pattern.  Yes, I’ve made them before but only enough to say I know how to do them.  Now I would like them to look good as well.  I can’t say they look good yet but it doesn’t take me as long now to make them.

I have a lot of ideas of things I would like to tat.  Now I’m trying to make the time to do them.  Hopefully when I have the energy to do them and not just think about them.

“A woman’s mind is cleaner than a man’s: She changes it more often.”

Oliver Herford

www.brainyquote.com

Color of the day is Lavender

I decided to make myself a lanyard for Tat Days.  It should be in a color that looks good with shirts I may be taking with me.  It’s amazing how that one requirement limits color choices for me.  I have a lot of thread, most of which are colors that I like – who wants to tat with colors they don’t like?? – but inevitably a lot of my clothes are those colors, too.  But not always the same shade.

With much comparing and mind changing I finally settled on DMC Cebelia Lavender.  For some reason I’ve had a ball of this in size 10 for quite some time.  A lanyard made of size 10 would tat up fast and be quite durable.   So far, so good.

In the beginning, I planned to make Patti Duff’s Beaded Lanyard (you can find it on Craftree).  I got a bit ahead of myself while trying to find beads that would work with the thread. I started playing without having Patti’s pattern printed.

Tatted hatband instead of lanyard in DMC Cebelia size 10 on wandasknottythoughts
Hatband instead of lanyard

I went for a while before admitting I didn’t like the looks of my efforts for the lanyard.  Not one to throw tatting out just because it didn’t turn out as expected, I put it on my hat as a hatband.  I like it better as a hatband than as a lanyard.

I started again, and again I was impatient.  This time I didn’t want to string the beads.  The black beads weren’t the right size anyway.  With no pattern but an idea, I started once more, this time without beads as well.   I know I’ve seen something akin to this out there on the Internet but I made it without referring to a pattern.

Tatted lanyard in DMC Cebelia size 10 Lavender on wandasknottythoughts
Lanyard in DMC Cebelia size 10 Lavender

I like it this version much better.  It went fast and was easy to do while a passenger in the car.  I did get a bit carried away – it’s a bit long.  Oh, well!  Better than too short.  I added a couple of clips to the ends that can be clipped together or to a name tag or some such.  Done!

Tatted hatband and lanyard in DMC Cebelia Lavender size 10 on wandasknottythoughts
Tatted hatband and lanyard in DMC Cebelia Lavender size 10

I’m ecstatic about going to Tat Days.  I’m counting down the days!  I keep checking the Palmetto Tatters Guild page for updates.   I’m planning what clothes to pack and what to wear.  I’ve traveled before but not anywhere like this, not with tatting as the destination.  **happy dance**  Anyone else getting excited about going?

“Over prepare, then go with the flow” – found in a fortune cookie