The Countess Was Victorious

So, I had intended on making this piece's debut here today, but I got antsy and listed the necklace at etsy yesterday. I would still love to share with you the evolution of it though. It all started when I saw this booklet on sale at etsy. The seller, ButtonEmpire, posted a few pics from the booklet and when I saw this collar I audibly shrieked. It was perfect and I couldn't wait to make it. Of course I had to wait...a whole week for the book to arrive from Canada complete with another little booklet of doily patterns for another day.

The first step was following the pattern as written and making a prototype piece so I could see what needed to be changed. I actually needed to make a couple of changes along the way as the pattern has the whole top edge of the collar tatted together and that clearly wasn't going to work. The whole piece needed to be pressed as well before success was clear. Then I lay out the piece and work out any changes that are needed, in this case I added a small ring on the top center as well as changed some stitch and picot counts so it would lay better. You might have noticed that the fill-in motif is exactly the same as the one in my Portrait necklaces. That made construction a snap for me, though the clover clusters take a bit more time to tat up.

The final step was working out where to embellish the piece and load on the beads. I decided that I wanted this piece to be very familiar so I went with the same basic beads as the Portrait necklace though I did add some seed beads this time. Next was the name, this took me forever. I wanted to make sure that the name was based on the original patterns name, Victory, but I also wanted it to fit in with the Portrait name as well. I settled on The Countess Was Victorious and took some quick photos. I hope that you like it!
This is certainly not my last piece from this booklet and I'll be sure to share them as they evolve from their original forms into Neo-Victorian tatted goodness.

What A Lovely Lampshade!

You might remember Lamplighter from my tatting challenge. She took home second place for this amazing lampshade. With her winnings she commissioned me to make two large heart motifs for a future project. I was quite pleased with the motifs and wrote about them myself. They were my first large non-jewelry design project and I hoped that they would be exactly what she needed to create something new and amazing.

Guess what, they were and here is that incredible lampshade. What is even more incredible is the amount of sheer skill it takes to create these Victorian beauties. I can't even imagine the hours of hand stitching these must demand.

I will be making a couple more of these hearts for her in the near future as I knock out a few more projects I have in the pipeline. I will be certain to share those lovelies when they are made as well.

I'd also like to point out that this is one of the single best things that etsy has done for me. It has given me the opportunity to not only meet amazing artists all over the world, but has given me the chance to work with them as well. While not all of my collaborations have worked out for the best the vast majority have and it seem that every month or so a new opportunity arrives. I am truly grateful for each one of these projects and so glad to have met each one of these artists.

I also have a new project in the works that I'll wait until tomorrow to share with you.

Treasuries

It's been a while since I've made a treasury, but I've been luck enough to be featured in a few. I thought I'd take a moment to show off a couple and say thanks to those wonderful curators that have featured my work recently.

First we have a lovely mix of SteamTeam and the Freethinkers team from ClockworkCrow she called Venus Adorned. It's always nice to be featured, but it's nicer to be featured amongst other amazing pieces!









The second one is a whimsical little collection of fairies, mask and other fantastic pieces called Whimsy. This one by RoseWorksJewelry. While I know ClockworkCrow from steamteam, this one is made by someone I don't know and that make the include special for me. Another plus is that both of these treasuries include my tatted masks. I never in a million years thought that the crazy idea of making tatted masks would create one of my favorite and currently most popular pieces.

So thanks for the treasuries and keep them coming. I swear I'll get my timing mojo back soon and make a few myself, but for now I'll leave you with these.

Here Comes The Bride

I was not what you would call a traditional bride. My bridesmaids and my flower girls wore black and I wore a silver gown that my mother made for me. The wedding was small and there was no dancing at all. Ironically I was a dancer for years, but our taste in music does not lend itself to this sort of thing. Even though I don't regret having a very inexpensive wedding that put no one into debt, I still imagine the fairytale wedding that I would have had if money was no object. Luckily I can live vicariously through other brides as I have had the great pleasure of making pieces for a few weddings over the years.

The most recent creation, completed yesterday is a very pretty bridal headband. When asked to create a piece, I was directed to Jennifer Behr's site and I was amazed at the prices people will pay for these elegant, but simple designs. To create my own design, I used the basic design on my quadra bracelet adding a few extra picots and some glass pearl beads. I had intended on weaving a ribbon through the lace itself, but instead I sewed a crisscross pattern on the back of the lace and weaved a pair of ribbon through it. It is meant to be tied in the back and the ribbon will drape down for a little added pretty.

The piece did take most of the day to create but only because it was nearly 20 inches long. The pattern itself is quite simple and I think that adds to the appeal of the design as it's meant to enhance a wedding ensemble not take center stage. So after finishing this piece, I now have a couple of different wedding neck pieces, a bracelet and now a headpiece. I guess I just need some earrings and I have a complete wedding line. I think I may offer them through the future lollishop venue, or maybe both places. I think I'm getting ahead of myself again, but I am quite pleased with the way this piece came out and I hope that other folk like it too.

The Tatted Eye Patch

I wish I could tell you that I am a creative genius and that all of my designs were born of my own imagination, but it's simply no true. Sure, I've come up with quite a lot of ideas all by my lonesome, but some of my most interesting pieces have been the ideas of others. My tatted mask were only designed after someone asked for a lace mask. My tatted cuffs were a gentle suggestion for Belle Armoire. Just yesterday, I had perhaps one of the oddest requests I've had in a while. I was asked if I could create an eye patch which I did.

I think the reason that I get such wonderfully different ideas from others is they have no idea what the process of tatting actually is. This allows them to assume that anything can be created with it. They can think outside the box because they have no idea what the box really is. When I get one of these suggestions, I have to step outside my comfort zone and imagine the end result without thinking of the how. If I can see the resulting object, then I can start to suss out how I will go about creating it . Sometimes it turns out to be simple and sometimes it turns out to be harder than it's worth. Whatever the process the result of these suggestions is always unique and something I am proud of.

I guess I just wanted to publicly thank all those idea makers. Every idea you have placed in my hands has made me think and grow as an artist. Every idea that has grown far beyond a simple suggestion and has fueled other ideas and started a snowball effect. I hope that I continue to get outlandish and sometimes bizarre ideas for my tatting. I certainly would have bored of this craft long ago had I never moved beyond the traditional edgings and doilies. So, thanks and keep the ideas coming!