Eleventh Motif

Another bookmark...this one is Kersti Anear's "Tatted Bookmark" except I put a different top on it and left off the tassle. My 5-year-old niece saw it at this point and said "Oh, pink! And beads! Can I have it?" 5-year-old girls don't need tassles, but they apparently do need pink and beads. It is made with two threads wound on each shuttle. One is a pale pink varigated polyester machine embroidery thread and the other is a dark pink cotton sewing thread. It worked out -- the cotton seemed to lend enough body to the polyester that it didn't fray. Of course, I was very careful to tat a lot looser than I usually do.

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.

Sixth Motif

Inspired by Eleonora, I borrowed the center motif to create this bookmark in shades of purple. Again, in Coats hand quilting thread. My niece is delighted, because I've promised it to her.

Fifth Motif

Again, dipping into Iris Niebach's "Tatted Doilies" -- this one is Eleonora. It is made with Coats hand quilting thread. The colors are muted pastels and prettier than the scan shows. It looks especially washed out and pale next to the machine quilting "rainbow" varigated thread. I'm not really satisfied with it, as I stressed it too much when I blocked it. I'll have to try this one again!

Fourth Motif

Spent a lot of the weekend breaking threads. This is one that didn't break. It's Cornelia from Iris Neibach's "Tatted Doilies" (yes! I really like that book). This one is also in Coats machine quilting thread -- Rainbow colors. It might be a bit too bright. ;)

Third Motif

From Iris Niebach's "Tatted Doilies" this one is Beatrice. It's done in Coats Machine Quilting thread in a varigated red -- about size 100. The nice thing about this one is that it's worked all in one row. BUT -- what am I going to do with something this small? It only measures 3 3/4 inches in diameter. I'll have to look around and see who I know with a knick-knack shelf. :)

Second Motif

It's a bookmark. I actually made it for the etatters bookmark challenge. Wow -- dual duty! It's made with DMC size 80 thread, shuttle only. I need a lot more practice doing thread gaps instead of chains. No matter how I attempt to measure them they don't come out the same. Hmmmm...maybe this would look better if I blocked it. Everything looks better with blocking, eh?Oh, yes -- it does look better blocked (except for that one picot that I somehow folded over!).