Tenth Motif

At the end of last year someone posted a file in the old Yahoo Groups etatters of an Ice Crystal with an explanation and diagram to help with some of the difficulties in the pattern. I've never seen the original pattern, and don't know whose it is, but I kept a printed copy of the explanation.* These two Icicles borrow the main arm of that Ice Crystal. The first is DMC size 20 cordonette with crystal seed beads. I added the chains and joined rings at the top, then decided maybe that wouldn't be really useful for hanging, as it was intended to be a Christmas tree ornament. The second I made with DMC size 80 tatting cotton and gold seed beads. The split rings at the top make a much better hanger. The gold beads are interesting, but the crystal ones are more in keeping with the icicle idea. Now I need to make more. :)

*"The original Ice Crystal design is a doily from the Blomqvist and Persson book." -- Information from Sharon at http://25motifchallenge.blogspot.com/ THANKS -- And now I own the book!

Ninth Motif

I didn't run out of thread on the shuttles this time - but stayed up last night ... er ... early this morning until 3:00 to finish this. It's the same varigated thread wound with white, but this time I used Design 39 from Tatting 60 Original Lace Treasures for the main body of the bookmark. The top was created by turning the first and last repeats backward and closing the end with another repeat. The tail is four threads encapsulated in two threads with two split chains at the end. I rather like this blue denim look.

Eighth Motif

Teresa in the Tatting forum at eCraftWorld mentioned using two different threads wound on the shuttle to make bookmarks. That sounded like an interesting idea, so I gave it a try. This little bit was the result. It's made of one strand of white DMC Size 80 tatting cotton and one strand of Coats hand quilting thread in varigated blues. I think the color combindation makes it look just a bit like denim. It stopped being a bookmark when I ran out of thread on one of the shuttles. Now it is going to be a bit of decoration for my niece's dark-blue t-shirt so it won't look so "boy". ;) The pattern is "Design 43" from Christel Wiedmann's Tatting, 60 Original Lace Treasures.

Seventh Motif

About time I had something new to post! I did something werid to my shoulder, but the therapist has given me the okay to tat again. Another Iris Niebach design from "Tatted Doilies" -- this one is Graciella. Unlike the others I've done, this one is worked in 4 rounds, instead of one continuous round. The thread is Coats machine quilting thread in varigated greens. Hmmm...don't think I'll use this thread for anything but leaves in the future. It just looks too busy and detracts from the design. I'm giving it to my sister. Her favorite color is green. She's going to put it under one or more of the little dragons on her collection shelf.