Dangerously Beautiful?

I wanted you all to see why I was only distressed that I could not tat on plane on the way home -- not truly moaning about losing my plain gray Aero shuttles. All this beauty came in the mail just before I left for vacation:
Aren't they pretty? Having these declared dangerous and "not permitted" really would have made me cry!
The top shuttle on the right, and first to arrive, is a Dragon Shuttle made by Chris Hinton from The Shuttle Shop. The wood is beautifully veined and polished to a smooth lustre. Of course, the carved rendition of Ann Bruvold's dragon right there in the center makes it very special. Even more charming is Chris's personal "Hi" to me carved into the post. That's a particularly nice thing to do after I literally destroyed two of his winder shuttles during testing. I intend to take very good care of this shuttle. All the shuttles are posed in the Dragon Shuttle's new case -- what could be more appropriate than this silk-covered box I got in San Francisco's Chinatown? (Well, okay, one with a dragon pattern on the silk, but flowers are good, right?)

The shuttle on the right arrived next. It's a new Pop-a-Bobbin Shuttle from "'im in the garage" that I got from Jane Eborall's Etsy site. These great shuttles sell like hotcakes, so my timing had to be just right. I'd been waiting to pounce on the new offerings since Jane announced the posting time on her blog. This one is teak -- it sounds as exotic as it looks. It's also a very smooth bit of work, and I love the feel of the wood. Oh! It has a purple bobbin too! Wouldn't it be fun if bobbins came in every color of the rainbow? This is my fifth Pop-a-Bobbin shuttle -- greedy, huh?

My last beautiful shuttle actually arrived home the same day I did. Isn't it marvelous? It used to be a plain dull gray Aero shuttle until Joëlle at La Cossette agreed to try covering an un-neutered Aero for me. I like the length of the Aero shuttle and frequently have my fingers just above the winding post when I tat. Without the post, I'd drop the shuttle! I use the winder all the time, too. I told her any of three patterns (or was it four?) which were in her Etsy shop at the time would be just fine. I don't know how she actually picked the one I liked the very best! These are blackberries and are on both sides of the shuttle. I love that bit of orangy-yellow leaf on the bottom end of one side. What ever paper and medium she used to secure it has certainly altered the feel of the shuttle. It doesn't feel like a flimsy plastic shuttle anymore; it's much more substantial. Besides that bonus, the covering medium also gives the shuttle a bit of a texture making it easy to hold onto without creating any place the thread can catch. I think I need more of these pretty shuttles.

There's just one more to see. This one I've had for quite some time, but it's another shuttle that doesn't travel with me. This one was made by David Reed Smith. It's very light wood with a small, flat brass hook set into the end. It's very nice to work with. Can you just see a double-shuttle project with this on one thread and the Dragon on the other? Nice image, eh? Anyway, not content with just the shuttle, I also got this crochet hook in a turned case. The hook pulls out of the end, reverses, and goes back in for use. It has a hole through the end of the long cap so it can be worn as a necklace or on a chatelaine. I wonder if it would make it through the x-ray machines at the airport? Ha. Well, I'M not going to be the one to test it, that's for sure and certain.

There. Now you've seen my at-home shuttles. The dull gray Aeros are my traveling shuttles. I've always got one in a contact lens case with a pair of fingernail clippers and a couple of extra bobbins of thread so I can make butterflies or caterpillars anywhere.