Day Two

Day two of the year and at least one thing is stunningly clear. I will not be attempting any sort of 365 project. Sure, I thought of a few things I could do, but I had so little motivation to start any of them yesterday that the window for a successful project closed right up. It's a good thing really. Instead maybe I'll modify one of the ideas to be born later as a less than rigidly timed project. It's always so easy to think big on New Year's Day.

I did, however, manage to get back to tatting once a bit of schooling had been accomplished. I had gotten a couple of orders that contained the only tatted keys I have on hand. I knew that if I didn't at least remake one before I shipped them away this morning I'd be back in the same, awkwardly making from a photo drama, that I was in the other day. So I made the keys. Then after they were done I made a few more small pieces. I still have some bigger ones in the queue, but it felt like a pretty good start to the day.

The rest of the day was finishing the crochet legwarmers, though I think I might make them a tad longer, going on a couple of family walks to break up the Twilight Zone marathon and generally sitting about. It was as close to routine as I expect a holiday to get.

Though there was still an ant incursion and a few other minor annoyances, it was definitely better than the last day of the year and included an early morning sale in the shop, so I'm going to go ahead and take that as a sign of things to come and then work really hard at making that happen. Today will be more remaking for the shop and perhaps that last bit of crochet I mentioned. By next week I should be fiending for some design time and the year will really start rolling by.

The Key

Yikes, yesterday was full off odd moments. I started the day with absolutely no direction, than as I was walking about doing normal morning things, I thought about making an escutcheon. I know, weird thought and it was the negative space that was giving me pause. Then I thought, why the hell haven't I made a tatted key yet? I love keys, but up until just that moment I was happy adding real ones to my work. So I spent the morning working this out. This is actually the third incarnation. Most of the work on the prototypes was making the handle clover more elaborate while still the right basic size. I went with the double picots, mostly because I had never had occasion to use them before. Oh and there's also the inward facing picot to give the top ring a little more shape.

When I posted this to Facebook, or more accurately, the first prototype, there were a few requests for a pad lock to go along with it. Since that's just a few steps away from the key hole I was already thinking about and would likely require a much more simple hole in the center to convey it's identity, I said I'd try. This is the point in the day when things got odd. In the space of ten minutes I received three different orders. This has never happened before. Three in one day, sure, though still rare, but I'd no sooner sent a confirmation email to one customer when the next order rolled in. It was surreal. I had to stop all work on the padlock to take care of a few custom bits and remake the other pieces. Oh, and just to be difficult one sold piece refused to be found and I had only enough supplies to make one more. When I searched online for the filigree bits, they were nowhere to be found, so I guess it's the last of that pendant.

After that all settled down I got back to work on the padlock idea. This is what I came up with after one other attempt late yesterday. There is still more work to be done on the design, some tightening of picots and whatnot, but I think the shape works. I still might flesh out the more complex escutcheon design, but I think this will make a nice necklace.

Oh, that reminds me I also listed a new necklace yesterday made for a bit of lace that I did not intend to make. I was distracted and started the wrong pattern and turned it into a square. I've got a few more of the square filigree bits I used here so if it sells, I'll make it again. Well, I think that's everything for me today. Here's to another weird one today!