Linen Thread

I was surprisingly productive yesterday. As soon as schooling was over I was making sure the laundry was going, taking photos of the medallions turned into pendants and getting them listed in the shop along with a bunch of other small tasks. It was like a mini whirlwind until around noon.

After lunch, I worked on remaking a small pair of earrings that sold and then I was bored for a minute. I decided to get out a giant ball of organic linen thread and just play for awhile. When I first bought the linen thread I had high hopes of using it all the time, but it's just fiddly to work with. It's rough and can be quite uneven with occasional lumps. If I work it with the smaller, more appropriately sized needle, those bumps are impossible barriers to finishing a piece. I choose to work it with a needle a bit too large which leaves me with that padded looking lace that seems to be the reason folks find needle tatting inferior to the shuttle. All that aside though, I have tons of it so I decided to experiment a bit.

I worked up the new medallion and then added another round. I think initially, I was going to keep going and work it up into a doily of sorts, but I kind of liked it at this size even though it took away the hexagon shape of the original design. I thought maybe it would make a nice pair of big earrings. I made another and got them stiffened last night since the larger needle makes them floppier than I like for earrings. They should be ready for hardware this morning and I should get them in the shop. I also have this same linen thread in black and a darker gray, so maybe I'll do a couple more pairs if nothing else has presented itself to be done.