Tomorrow

The weekend held, basically, exactly what I thought it would. There was some adventuring and too much cleaning. There was very little tatting though. Friday was a long day of schooling followed by kitchen cleaning because we were having guests over on Saturday. Saturday had a little more cleaning, and much more errand running, but it ended with a gathering of friends, which we needed badly.

Sunday was the day that killed me though. I decided to use the carpet cleaner in our bedroom, also known as the cat's room, where they most often chose to do those things people hate cats for. Halfway though cleaning the brushes on the machine stopped spinning. Thank the gods for the Internet and YouTube, because without them I wouldn't have been able to fix it myself and finish cleaning. Of course I managed to destroy all of my nails in the process. At least the torn one doesn't look out of place anymore.

I did spend yesterday evening making up some more pendants for tomorrow. I wanted to have it done in a few more colors for the listing. So today I'll be getting the listings ready so I can put them up first thing tomorrow. I really do hope you all like the pendant and the pattern for it. It's a simple piece, of course, but I think it have a lovely and fairly unique look. Here's to tatting and tomorrow then.

Listed

So between the bandaged finger and the quiet shop, I had little motivation to tat anything yesterday. The finger is much better this morning by the way. I've coated it with liquid bandage and that seems to be taking the edge off. I still have to be careful to not knock the exposed nail bed, but it's usable now. Back to yesterday though. I did get the new bracelet listed. It took me a long time just to suss out a name for it and honestly I'm not all that pleased with that, but it'll do.

I used the rest of my day to clean and you don't want to hear about all that again. Most of my floors are clean again though and I realized how much better I feel about the house when they are. Not sure what the weekend holds. There will likely be some adventuring and some more cleaning. My youngest has her birthday next week followed by a party next weekend and if there was ever a reason to clean, it's house guests.

Just a reminder that next Tuesday, the 1st of April, is International Tatting Day. I will be releasing a pendant designed for the event at a low one day price. It will stay in the shop, but the price will likely double. I will also be selling the pattern for the pendant as well. There is another set of patterns in the works too, but they are off with test tatters/ proof readers and I'll get them in the shop as soon as they are ready. Next week will hopefully be a busy one!

A Bracelet and a Wound

The slow shop is starting to make me lazier than usual. I'm having to force myself to pick up my needle and thread to get things I know I want to get done, done. After much internal goading, I worked most of the afternoon on the new design, fiddling with small details to get it just right. Loads of folks keep suggesting beads and dangles and whatnot, but as much as I occasionally like sparkle, I am always much more concerned with making the lace work all by itself. After a few tries, I had myself a bracelet that I was pretty happy with. It may get listed in the shop today. I think I'm going to have to adjust some stitch count and joins to make it into a nice choker though. It's a little too straight to be comfortable around the neck. It needs just the slightest bit of curve which is always harder to achieve than it sounds.

Now, I would have gotten to that yesterday evening, but I managed an injury that affects my ability to tat as well as type. I going painfully slow at the moment. What ridiculously silly thing did I do? Well I'm not certain how I managed it, but I bent my pinkie nail backwards causing it to rip off well below the quick. Low enough that it bled for some time and touching it is, well...it's tender. I've got it bandaged now, but it helps only a bit. Isn't it silly how such a small wound can hurt so much and cause you to have to alter your behavior? Apparently I use my pinkie far more than I ever realized and you are lucky that spell check is so effective or you'd be reading nonsense tight now.

Hopefully I'll figure out some way to get some tatting done today anyway. The hardest part is really working slowly around the bandage as thread seems attracted to it and it seems to snag no matter which finger a bandage is on. I'm fairly certain I'll need to keep it covered for another day at least. So today I'll ask the Universe for quick healing and sales of currently made pieces so I won't feel compelled to get anything made too quickly.

New

Well the Universe didn't grant me much yesterday, no sales, no great bout of inspiration, but I couldn't just sit about for yet another day or worse, clean. I was so determined to keep busy that at one point I pulled out my scrap yarn and started crocheting just to keep my hands moving. Eventually I pulled out my thread and tried my hand at designing again. My first round was a complete failure. It was trying to be the start of something interesting, but all it really ended up being was a lesson or two. I guess that's something. I mean I see a few bits in there that have the potential to evolve into something great, but not quite yet.

After that failure, I almost gave up for the day, but instead I decided to just tat and see what would happen. This time I thought I was actually onto something. It needed work and so I went back and made it into a nice pendant or earring shape. Honestly though, I'm kind of sick of just making simple earring and pendant shapes. So I took another couple of stabs at it until I sussed out the best way to turn it into a chain.






The design is still missing something, so I'll probably work a little more on it today. The basics are there though. The pieces fit together so the hard part is done. Now it's just flourishes and details to make it really interesting. I'm just glad I managed to do something new yesterday. I was beginning to think I didn't have any more new designs left in me. Here's to a productive day of designing and hopefully the Universe will reward my hard work with the sales I've been missing in the shop. Hey, it could happen.

Uninspired

Well schooling took up more of the day yesterday than usual and all because of a writing assignment. I mean I never loved writing essays myself, particularly when I had to write on one of the dreaded, who's your hero, favorite book, favorite anything topic. I don't have a single favorite anything of anything, but I digress, the child is very resistant to writing anything longer than a sentence regardless of topic. I find it all a bit odd since I spend so much of my time writing and it just happens so organically. Oh well, the point is schooling ran long and once it was done I went straight to steam mopping, lots of steam mopping.

I did try to do some designing once I was done with cleaning for the day, but I couldn't come up with a singe idea that wanted to work. I was trying to design from scratch on paper and I was quickly reminded that this is not my strong suit. I work best when I have a partially formed idea and just start tatting, but I didn't have any of those either. No orders came in to save me from myself either. So I just floundered with a pencil in hand for a while followed by trying with the needle and thread and confirming the failure.

I didn't get around to listing the new earrings either. I was tired from cleaning and frustrated from failed designs. I should get round to that today. Then, I'm hoping that today I get inspired or lucky. Either one will do really, so I'm crossing my fingers.

Cleaning

Another long weekend, but not for any particularly good reasons. There were no great creation innovations, no large sales to keep me busy. No, instead we got new things in the post and I had to spend much time assembling and playing with them. The saddest part about this, is they were cleaning implements and I was excited to use them. Seriously, how sad is that?

Over the weekend I got a new carpet cleaner and steam mop. Both of mine had died just after the holidays, but they aren't exactly cheap items so I had to wait until tax time to replace them. Of course this means that things that ought to be cleaned often, weren't. So as soon as I got them, I had to try them out. Yes, it was a sad weekend.

I did tat up something, but it really isn't anything new. I used the new Twirlz thread to make up a pair of earrings in one of the patterns I often use. It was lamented that this thread really doesn't photograph well and I agree, it really is much neater in person. Hopefully I get them listed today, but it's unlikely that I'll make anything else with the thread unless requested. Maybe once they release it in size 10, I'll play some more.

I'm afraid I might spend more time cleaning today. It's a sad realization that as much as I don't like cleaning, I much prefer it when my house is clean. Barring any orders that take precedence over much of anything, I'm probably cleaning. So here's to a great big order for today, so I can tat all day with purpose and without guilt!

Tweedy

I spent much of the early afternoon working on the two orders that needed to be done and being frustrated over the basketball takeover of my favorite afternoon shows. I feel a bit like I should have said 'my programs' there and made some mention of bon bons or something, but I digress.

I did manage to remember that I wanted to list the twirlz bracelet and actually did so. As someone referred to the look it creates as 'tweedy', that's what I called it as well. I thought about getting something else made with the thread and then I got distracted by something else and I can't even recall what that was. Some days I'm just a crow.

I don't think I managed to do anything else of significance the rest of the day and since I'm down to just two, rather large pieces that need remaking, I'm in extreme stall mode. Hopefully today will bring motivation, a new task, or a new idea. Otherwise it's cat pictures on Monday. Here's to motivation.

New Thread

I spent the morning on remaking a couple of sold pieces. I was feeling pretty good about the amount of work I was getting done. Of course that was all up until I finished the choker I was working on and realized that the next one on my list was a really big piece. That's when the stalling began. I guess it was really only a couple of hours and I am allowed to take a break, but I still felt a bit guilty over it. So I decided to play with the ball of Lizbeth Twirlz thread I bought when I had to make an order last.

The color is called Midnight Mist and it is size 20, which I don't prefer working in, but I was curious. It seems a much softer thread than their usual solid colors and I noted that the end unraveled a bit more than usual as well. The softness made it easier for me to work with the smaller thread, but it was still high quality. I guess it's all just my own opinion, but I do hope that they do the Twirlz in size 10 sometime and then I'm likely to get more because it does leave behind an interesting mottled design.

Then as I was deciding to buckle under again, I got an order and an email for a custom piece all in the space of a few minutes. So everything else was put down and I got back to work on things that have homes. I still have the custom piece to finish today and if I'm not feeling too lazy, I should get the bracelet in the new thread listed. I'm not sure what else to do with the thread. I mostly use size 20 for earrings, so I might do that as well. I guess we'll just have to see how the day goes.

Productive Stalling

So I spent most of the day remaking sold pieces for the shop and I, of course, have no new tatting to show you, even in super tease, unrecognizable, format. So here's a picture of cat faces. I know, they looked as thrilled as you probably are.

Well, my patterns are already off to a couple of test tatters. Thank you to everyone else that offered to do that as well. I may send it round to another person or two once the first round is done, just to check any edits I will most assuredly have to make. Still I'm quite on schedule to release it next month.

That is about all I have to share though. I still have a few more pieces to remake, but they are larger ones and I have the habit of stalling for a while when I have to remake larger pieces. It takes me twice as long as it should because I just keep finding other things to distract me. I also spend quite a bit of time hoping that a new order will come in to save me from having to remake them. Then when one doesn't, I give in and finally do it. It's a pattern. So, here's to a day with new orders, interesting tasks and productive stalling.

Productive

If nothing else, it was a productive day. Not only did I finish the order I had in queue, but I also managed to remake one sold piece, do the final edit on the first tatting pattern, and finish the first draft of the set of patterns. Of course this took all day, but I'm feeling pretty good about it.

Now I just need to send this one off for test tatting and proofreading, do the final edit after that, then it will be ready for release on the 1st as well. I feel like I'm actually on top of a project, for once. Usually I'm scrambling at the last minute. I do have the feeling that my attention to this one, might be distracting me from other things I ought to be getting ready for though.

I sold a few more pieces yesterday, business has certainly been picking up a bit, so I have plenty of things that need remaking for the shop. That should keep me busy tatting wise for a few days at least. Though it won't produce any good photo opportunities, so expect cats. Well I'm off to it then, plenty to do.

Patterns Forth Coming...Eventually

Happy Monday world. As usual, the weekend seemed much longer than it actually was . It all started on Friday when I decided it was time to buckle under and write up the patterns I have planned for April. I have been lucky in the past to have lovely people turn my pathetic attempts into professional looking pattern pages, but stubborn old me, wanted to be able to do that part myself. Not that it is in any way bad to lean on people with certain skill sets you don't have. I was just fairly certain that if I wanted to figure it out, I could.

I'm happy to say that one pattern got done, save for a couple of edits suggested by those same lovely
people, and it looks pretty good. Though all can show you is the most abstract of teases as I want it to be a surprise. I'm still hard at work on the other pattern. This one is for three pieces that work together as a set, so it's much longer and more involved. I'm currently stressing out on how to price it and if I should also release each pattern separately as well. Any opinions on either point would be well received.

The rest of the weekend was family adventuring and yard work. The weather was lovely, so the husband decided to mow the lawns. This meant it was about time to tackle the weeds and plant some new flowers. Of course when I woke this morning, my shoulder gave me much grief. I imagine it will continue to do so all day, it's an old injury that likes to visit from time to time.

As far as actually tatting, I was lucky to get in a couple of orders over the weekend with pieces I could remake fairly quickly. Along with those, I also got one yesterday with changes requested that  add up to me making a whole new custom piece. That kept me busy when I had time and will be my main task for today, followed by more pattern work.

Congrats!

Good Friday morning all! First, a little business to get out of the way. The WINNERS of the 3000 sales giveaway. I will be emailing you as well, but a public announcement is needed. The winner of the Dark Doily necklace, as chosen by random number generator, is SharpTeethOfLove and the winner of the barefoot sandals is Janis Wakeley. I'll announce the winner of the Facebook necklace over there. Thank you to everyone who entered for the lovely comments and for reading and supporting my work. Hopefully the next 1000 sales will come faster!

Now back to usual business. It was another busy day and a few unexpected things occurred. First, one of my fancy masks, the Metropolis, was sent off to a new home. I had to overnight it so it would arrive in time for a Masquerade. It's always bittersweet to send these away. They take so much time, and a little blood sacrifice to make that they feel like children. Seriously, all the sewing of crystals and sequins always results in more than a few pricked fingers. I'm inclined to try to make a new one soon to replace it. I suppose that's not like children.

Other than sending off the mask, I got in the other thread I ordered in and worked double fast to finish everything in queue, save for remaking the things that had sold. The most recent custom order was in another variegated thread. This time, Lizbeth, Caribbean. It's quite a bright combination. To avoid just ordering that one thread, I also picked up one ball of the new twirlz thread and a couple other variegated ones. I don't use them often, but I suppose a little color now and again is a good thing. So many you'll see something in those colors soon.

I should have all my recent orders in the post today and hopefully relax just a bit before tackling the sold pieces over the weekend. Though I wouldn't complain in the least, if a few more orders rolled in. I really am enjoying being busier than I've been in a couple of months. I feel useful again.

Always Busy

Another day with my nose to the grindstone, though not literally. Mostly it was my hands and needle and seemingly flying thread all day. I do adore these kinds of days though not too many in a row. I mean I love busy, but I also love it when it comes in manageable waves. I do not do well when I'm too overwhelmed.

So, I was working on the same custom order I was the day before. It is just about ready to go out and then it's time to go on to the next one. I'm not expecting my next order of thread until Friday, so I should be ready for the order that needs it just as it arrives.

That then is the whole of my life yesterday and today, save for schooling and errands of course. This is also your last reminder to enter my giveaway as winner will be chosen tomorrow morning when I blog. Comment on yesterday's post here and/or pop by the Facebook fan page here.

Rainbow Splash

It's always strange to hold a giveaway. It's the only time that I get comments in droves. Now, I don't blame you, I can hardly remember the last time I commented on a blog. I'm a drive-by reader, but it's always nice to get the occasional and loud reminder that there are folk out there. Speaking of the giveaway though, if you haven't entered yet, comment on yesterday's post here and/or pop by the Facebook fan page here. I'm not choosing winners until Friday, so you have some time.

So, back to yesterday when I was really busy. When I have custom orders to work on, or even when I have a nice queue of pieces that need remaking, I tend to put my nose to the grindstone and pretty much ignore everything else around me. Yesterday it was rainbow splash colored dream catchers. Making these does a number on my hands. So much so that I have to wear those cute anti-fatigue gloves while making them. Even then, I tend to take a few more breaks while making them just to stretch out my hands. I should have bothered to stretch my arms and shoulders too, but I didn't and I'm a bit sore this morning as a result.

I still have more pieces in this custom order and I have two others waiting in queue. One of them required me making yet another thread order so they should put themselves in line nicely. Hopefully I'll wrap this one up today and get to the next in line. If the fates are with me I'll finish that one just as I get the thread for the other. If the fates are against me, well they can be creative, so who knows?

3000+ Giveaway

Yesterday afternoon I passed the 3000 sales mark in my etsy shop. Unfortunately the sale that put me over was for two items and so I never got the pretty round number to photograph, but I'm not complaining at all. I said that I'd do a giveaway when I got here and so I am, two of them actually.

You may enter the one here as well as the one I'm posting on my Facebook fan page, or you can enter one or the other, or I suppose neither. The point is there are two places to play. What can you win? One of my tatted pieces of course.

Leave a comment here on the blog to enter to win one of two pieces, the Dark Doily Necklace or a pair of Vine barefoot sandals in yellow with turquoise beads. You are free to tell which you'd prefer should you win. Winners will be chosen by random number on Friday morning. Your comment must also include a way to a way to contact you should you win, email, etsy link, etc, or I just move on to the next random number.

Thank you to everyone who has ever made a purchase in my shop, whether it was some of my tatted work or a pattern. I really so appreciate the support!

Weekend Recap

Anytime my routine is altered, I am reminded how much of a creature of habit I really am. I mean, honestly I'm pretty flexible and I can go with the flow, but I am just so much more comfortable when things go as I supposed. While we did manage to get a few of the usual errands in and a couple of family walks, it was mostly just me and girls. I'm actually surprised that I didn't go mad after all the Lego battles/arguments and the lack of anything too pressing to get tatting. I did remake a couple of pieces and we watched Pushing Daisies, but that was pretty much it.

As for tatting, I worked on adjusting my dream catcher design for a custom order and that's the only slightly original work I did. The customer requested just 9 petals, so I did math to work out how to make that happen. It's always a little more fiddly when you have a solid object involved so the stitch count must stay within a very small range to work. Luckily it worked out with very little stress. Though when I went to purchase more rings, I was disappointed to learn that the same ones I have been getting, changed. They had always been closed or soldered together and now they are open rings, so I spent some time sealing them together myself. I can work around them the other way, but it 's much more delicate work to make certain the stitches don't slip though at the break.

The thread to make this custom order should, theoretically be in today some time. Once it arrives, I expect this work to take me at least a few days as there are many pieces involved. This makes me very happy.

In other news I woke up to a sale of two pieces which means just one more sale until that magical number 3000. I'm crossing my fingers that it occurs soon, so I can bask in it for a little while. Oh, and when it does occur, I'll be posting a giveaway post. I have several pieces to give away, so it should be a good time for all.

So Much Thread

Okay, let's see, what did I get up to yesterday. After schooling we headed out for a walk, though I'm starting to think I should do so with a face mask or something so I don't spend the rest of the day miserable. My point is, it was well into the afternoon before I managed to get any tatting done. I did get the order I needed to do done and also some color variations for April's forthcoming pendant.

The biggest project I tackled was the organization and counting of all my Lizbeth thread. I had a custom order I was fielding that required some thread in size 20 that I knew I didn't have. So since I was making an order for that I wanted to see what else I needed. Luckily after all the sorting, counting and logging, it turned out I needed very little really. Good thing too, because my supply budget is pretty much non existent with my current level of sales.

I won't be able to work on the order until the thread arrives, so until then I'm not really certain what I'll get up to. This weekend is bound to be rough as the husband is overseeing a great migration project at work and it will likely command all his attention. Here's hoping I get a project of my own to keep me distracted for the next few days.

What a Day

I had quite the action packed day. Mostly because things kept breaking and needing immediate repair.Right after schooling I managed to break the garage door. No, don't ask how. The point is I did it and then had to undo it. Luckily I'm pretty handy with tools, so I worked it out. Then after running errands, that kept getting longer, it was pointed out that in breaking the door I had also scrapped paint off the trim of the house. Of course then I had to find the touch up paint, clean the wall wound and paint that. These tasks were added the ones that kept popping up inside the house too. All the while the dust kicked up from looking for things along with the pollen outside turned me into a heap of allergy suffering even though I had taken a pill in the morning. All that sounds fun right?

I did however manage to get some interesting photos while I took a break and walked out with the kids. Of course in retrospect, that just exacerbated the allergies, but at least there was nothing that needed fixing on the walk. I got a photo of the same mushroom from yesterday because it bloomed further. Though I'm not sure that's what the process is call in fungi. We also got very close to two Turkey Vultures than we ever had before. They are incredibly big birds that live near us in large amounts, but you rarely see them on the ground unless they've found something dead and are feeding. I'll spare you the details about what they are eating here, but they are actually quite beautiful close up and enormous. We got the stink eye from one bird, but it just stayed there as we watched and walked on.

So, no I didn't get much tatting in. I did manage to finish a pair of ankle corsets for the shop though. I just got an order in this morning so I have at least one small thing to make today. Hopefully the allergy medicine can win today and nothing else needs fixing, because I just want to sit and tat today.

Blossoming Ideas

Let's see, well first there's have been no sales in the shop, so the great countdown to 3000 is currently holding steady. However, I did get a hint of an idea yesterday morning for my yearly International Tatting Day pendant. Yes, I am aware it's not until April 1st, but I want to be able to get the pendant designed and the pattern written up as it will most likely be available as well, but I'll get back to that in a minute.

First the morning and early afternoon were pretty busy, but ended with a lovely walk with the kids. All the recent rain may not have pulled us out of the drought, but it gave us lawn mushrooms of unusual size. The mushroom inspired me to take my camera along on our walk and I think all the Spring and photographs inspired my creative side. Well that and I think it also triggered my allergies because I am rocking quite a sore throat this morning.

When we got back I turned my earlier idea into the pendant. I can't show you where I ended up because I want to save it for the holiday, but it was inspired by 8 years of selling lace and by necessity, it is nice and small. I can show you one of the places I started though, mostly because it changed so much from this that it really doesn't give much away. I need to make a few more in color variants and then work on writing up the pattern. I do also plan on releasing another pattern, from an existing design, for sale at the same time, so that needs writing up as well. You know I'm gonna stall on that though. I'm rubbish at writing up the patterns. At least I know I have projects, however small, waiting for me. It gives me something to look forward to.

The Next 1000

It was another odd day around these parts. School took all the time before lunch and there were other concerns for the day, so I just didn't focus on working like I should have. I did finish what I needed to for the only order in queue, but that was about it. I have a pair of ankle corset to remake for the shop, but I am almost done with those as well.

Since I was going to a doctor's appointment with the husband, the kids were with their grandparents in the afternoon and when we got back they were at our house with our nieces and dinner. So the evening was family visiting. I really feel like I got absolutely nothing done.

Wait, I just remembered one thing.  I was checking my shop stats on etsy and I am just 5 sales shy of 3000. I joked that it's only taken me nearly 8 years to get them, but it's not a joke, it was a slow build to get sales there and this last year has been an uncomfortable downward slide in them as well. Still, I am steadily creeping to such a nice big number and I feel like I should celebrate it. So to that end, I'll be doing a giveaway just as soon as I hit that number. I was going to do it on Facebook, but I think I'll have it here instead. So keep your eye out. Hopefully it will happen soon, but with the slow sales it could possibly be awhile. At the very least it is something to look forward to, the next 1000 will be a long time coming.

Weekend Recap

It was a bit of an odd duck weekend. Many things occurred that were outside our usual routine, but I won't go into all of that. On Friday evening we entertained a friend we haven't really spent time with in years which was lovely. Then I was tasked by my mother-in-law to make 4 more snowflakes as memorial gifts and she needed them quickly, so that was my Friday and Saturday morning tatting task.

Even our Saturday was a bit off because of a time sensitive computer project the husband is doing at work, that he had to continue working on all weekend at home. We still managed to run our usual Saturday errand, but quicker and with fewer side trips. Luckily I had one order to remake giving me some tatting to do with all of the extra downtime as I introduced the kids to the, cancelled too soon show, Pushing Daisies.

Sunday was much the same, only we also spent copious amounts of time catching up on shows that had been piling up on our dvr. Then I got a nice big order to work on. Not big enough for me to throw a party or anything, but big enough to give me tasks for a few days at least. After I get that all taken care of I will start to seriously work on a new small piece for April as well as the patterns I'm hoping to get ready for release. Of course I have no real idea on what that small piece will be, but I'm starting to feel the urge to design again, so it won't be too long. Of course it's design will have to remain secret until revealed, you know, for the drama. That means no pictures. I'll find something to share soon, I hope. If not, there's always cat pictures.