Spiders!

While I was determined to make yesterday a 'tatting day', I just couldn't get any fresh ideas. Instead I fell back on old ones, with a bit of a twist. I made spiders, lots of spiders. This time, I used some of the vast collection of beads I have acquired through buying grab bags. I figured they would never get used otherwise, so the kids picked out the ones they liked with the right size and I tatted the day away.

It took me a bit longer to decide on how to sell them. I mean they don't take long to make and the beads are from a grab bag so they're all different. It would take forever to list them one at a time, plus it wouldn't be very cost effective to do so since I didn't want to charge much for them. I finally opted to sell them as inexpensively as possible as a random set of six spiders with the option of adding metal jump rings to make them charms if desired.

I also noted in the listing that you may request colors and I will try to accommodate those requests, but it is on a first come first served basis. I did already sell one set so some of those pictured are gone, but they're are plenty of creepy crawlers left. If you can't buy any, but you have an overwhelming desire to add tatted spiders to your life, I did do an instructable for their creation last year. Just a note, I did have to adjust stitch counts to fit each bead better since they vary so widely, but it's fairly easy to do with a little trial and error. Just share your spider creations with me if you make some!

I'm not sure what else I'll get up to today. I thought about making more spiders, but I really ought to wait until some more sell or I will be overrun with the things. Of course I could always give away the left overs on Halloween so maybe I will spend the day with my new growing arachnid family.

Weekend Recap

Back at Monday again, huh? I'm afraid the weekend consisted mostly of adventuring with the family and having other family over to chat and whatnot. Sure, I did some tatting, but nothing new to share. I thought about it on Friday, but I just couldn't settle on an idea. I asked the Internet for some and came to a sad realization. I've made, at one point or another, all the things they requested and they didn't know that those things were in fact sitting in the shop already. There seems to be a large disconnect between what people want to see me make and what they would actually like to own. Oh, well. I guess it's up to me to rely on my own imagination.

I did take a few pictures over the weekend. The camera on the new phone is orders better than the last one. I should really test it with some colored thread though. That was where the last phone camera was the weakest. Anyway here's the fake pumpkin I attempted to carve last week. The drill got away from me a few times and it wasn't until the last few bits that I really got a handle on the right amount of control and the angle and whatnot. I plan on touching up some of the worst spots with paint and sanding some others before this goes on display, but now I don't have to carve a "real" pumpkin if I don't want to.

This is Shade, our oldest cat. He has drool issues, but the new camera made him look so very regal that I had to share the photo.

I've got yet another eye appointment today, hopefully it's the last before I can pick up new contacts. In between that and the morning schooling I think I really will work on either something new for the shop or something old that hasn't been remade in a while. Or I could just end up tatting spiders. October does start tomorrow and I do like to give those little things away in orders. I guess we'll just have to see where the wind blows me.

A Mask Returns

Yes, I did spend a little too much time playing with the new phone. I swear I waiting until after schooling to do it. Then the children went of with Grandma for the afternoon and I wondered what to do with my time.

I thought on working on something new, but decided to instead work on something that I haven't remade is probably a year. I loved this mask, but since I stiffen it, there is an extra step involved in its creation. Apparently that was all I needed to put off remaking it until I couldn't even remember how to do it.

So I pulled up all the pictures I had on hand and tried to work out the pattern again. Yes, I am aware none of this would happen if I would just write down the damn patterns when I create them. You know that's not happening anytime soon, so why bring it up.

There were a couple of false starts, but they it all came back to me and I whipped though the piece. It does help when the kids are out and there's nothing too interesting on the television to distract me.

It should be all dry from the stiffening stuff this morning, but I did list it last night. I really didn't think it would sell overnight and it didn't. I might dig though my sold pieces and see if there is anything else I can get remade that I've been putting off. I've been getting lots of questions and wholesale inquires yesterday, but since I don't do wholesale and the small discount I can offer a bulk sale is apparently not so appealing, none of them has led to sales. Somehow it's hard for folks to grasps that making more of something individually handmade doesn't make it easier or faster to create, so why would I want to do more work and make half per piece so someone else can make some money on it, especially if they just sell online, potentially creating competition for myself. Oh well, at least I get nice compliments when they ask.

Curly

You'll be relieved to know that I did not clean at all yesterday, save for a load of laundry, but nothing stops laundry. Like usual the morning was mostly schooling. Once that was done I busied myself carving a sugar skull face into a faux black pumpkin with my Dremel tool. I'm sure I will eventually get a picture of the result to show you, but it was my first try and it was less than completely successful. While I understand that one is not suppose to be perfect at everything the first go round, the perfectionist gene is strong in me and it's hard to share when it isn't quite right.

After that I busied myself with a little tatted doodling. I've always loved the curly-q tatting that is sewn to netting, so I tried to make some up myself. Of course I have no netting, so I'm not certain what if anything will become of this, but at least it was tatting and I took a picture of it, so I'm calling it a win.

There were so sales in the shop and I didn't have any more bright ideas over the course of the day like I hoped. This was partly because I was staked out near the front door waiting for the UPS man to bring me our new phones. They have a nasty habit of not knocking and they needed to be signed for, so I hovered until they arrived. The rest of the evening was setting up new phone, having issues getting it activated, calling to get it activated and waiting forever on the line because apparently everyone else and their dog was doing the same thing. Customer service was however a complete pleasure to work with. It's just yet another reason it took 3 years before we finally upgraded.

Today I imagine I'll be playing with the new phone more than I should, but I'll still be hoping for some new sales to keep me tatting. Maybe I'll come up with something to use the curly-q for. I'm just worried about the stability of the curls. Oh, I'll figured something out and hopefully it will be a great day for everyone.

I Blame The Weather

Apparently it was still not possible to go a whole day without cleaning something. This time it was just a few odds and ends though. Walls, it was walls I cleaned. You see our house was painted with flat white paint because apparently it's the cheapest. Personally, I think it's a creation of evil as it picks up all dirt and refuses to give it back unless you want to take the paint with it too. A gentle hand, a magic eraser, and I was able to take the edge off of a couple of rooms though. One day we'll repaint this place...not anytime soon of course, but one day.

We've been spending more time schooling lately so I generally only have time for tatting well after lunch. I did get one necklace remade though that still leaves another in queue. I just kept getting distracted by other things. I can't even seem to list what they were at this point, but they were very distracting yesterday. I think it might be the change in weather messing with my concentration. It's finally started to really cool down at least at night and I'm so looking forward to the cozy days ahead. Not the bitter cold ones after those though. I could definitely do without those, but cool and cozy I'm ready for. It's like I feel as though I need to get ready by cleaning or something because soon the light will be gone.

Well here's hoping I at least take a picture of something interesting for tomorrow's post. Heck, while I'm hoping, lets' go for many sales, lot's of new ideas and maybe today I can avoid any major cleaning. It could happen, you don't know, the world is full of surprises.