Three More Rounds

First, I want to thank everyone who answered my shuttle tatting query. I am so glad to know that the pattern can easily be worked by all, no matter how they make their knots. I also got introduced to the Celtic tatting shuttle, what a neat little tool for getting the shuttle into places as easily as the needle.

Yesterday's outings and meetings did use up a good portion of the day, but I still managed to get a few more rounds done on the sample doily. I'm finding it interesting that the look of the piece is completely different when worked in three colors. I am also so glad that I chose to work this from the written pattern instead of my usual way, which is working from the prototype itself. I've found scads of mistakes in my pattern and I feel pretty confident that once I finish this, I'll be able to publish the pattern without error. Of course now that I've said that it's going to be a proofreading nightmare. I am also getting ahead of myself as I still have a few more rounds and they are long ones.

Today should be pretty productive as we have no extra things to do. I'll have time to work and maybe even time to clean. I even started the third and final circle cardigan gift. It's good to work on while i do other things as I've pretty much got the pattern memorized. It turns crochet into that meditative state of my hands moving without my brain having to focus at all. So again, even without sales in the shop, I have many things to keep me busy.

Progress and Crochet a Necklace

Yesterday's teacher meeting took a good chunk of the morning, but was far less stressful that I built it up to be. This means I had the time and inclination to get working on all sorts of things. I finished up the second circle cardigan gift and I finished writing up the pattern for the Gothic doily.

I grabbed a few different colors that I had an excess of so that I could start making it using the written pattern. I figured I can be my own test tatter first. At least I can try while I work on the pictures for the pattern. If you hadn't guess by now I can't be bothered to learn how to diagram patterns, so photos are my thing. I'm only on round 3 now, not counting the center, so it might still be awhile before it's ready for prime time. I did already find a mistake in my written pattern, so it really is serving two purposes.

While I have some eyes though, I have a question for any shuttle tatters out there. It's quite simple to work the woven rings with the needle, can they be worked as easily with the shuttle? I just don't know and I'd like to answer the question of whether this pattern can be worked both ways correctly. I've always assumed everything that can be done with one, can be done with the other, but since me and the shuttle are in a lifelong battle, I don't actually know that that is true. So please straighten me out here!

In other creating news I used some of the leftover yarn from the circle cardigan to make an additional gift and I thought it look pretty neat. I just had fun making it and it was so easy that I thought I'd give a little tutorial on it.

Crochet Necklace

It's a medium weight yarn and I used a size F hook to crochet a tight chain 125" long. Then I joined to the beginning chain and formed one long loop.
I wrapped it into 5 loops and then using a J hook I crocheted about 7 single stitches around the whole bundle and finished by slip stitching through the tops of those stitches just to give it a little more decoration.

Distracted

I was distracted much of the day yesterday. I'm not entirely certain why, but I think I was just, well, overthinking. It's a busy week ahead and I just couldn't concentrate on making anything for too long. All I managed to work on was another circle cardigan and even that didn't get finished even though I really should have had time enough to do so.

Today's prospects aren't much better as the first real distraction of the week is today's teacher meeting for one of the kids. The next one is tomorrow, followed by an outing. I know it's suppose to be the kids being evaluated, but I always get a bit nervous myself. After all, if they aren't doing well, that's on me, right?

Hopefully, I'll relax enough to work on something today. I did just wake up to a sale in my shop. It's just a simple necklace, so I should be able to handle getting another made for the shop after I get one shipped out. I'm just crossing my fingers that this whole week goes well and I get a minute to relax before the holidays are upon us.

Done

On Friday, after the pumpkin patch, I gave another round one last try on what has clearly become a doily. I really wasn't sure I was going to be able to pull off any more rounds, but this one came out just fine. It's so fine in fact, that I proclaim the motif all grown up. That's right, this is it, I'm done. The completed pieces is about 8.5 inches across at the widest points.

In other good news, I actually started writing up the pattern on Saturday. I stopped about halfway through as it was hurting my head, but I do plan on finishing and eventually getting it listed as a pattern in my shop. I'll need to remake it one more time to test the pattern once I write it and I might do that in multiple colors just to help show the chain weaving rounds. This week might be too busy for it though. There are teacher meetings, another outing, and I've got to prepare for Halloween,which is also my mother's 60th birthday. That means hosting a get together here as well, which means cleaning. I'm just tired thinking about this week.

I did also get to some of the gift cardigans over the weekend. I ever so slightly redesigned the center motif so that each of the girls don't have the exact same one. The all picked different colors as well, but I thought I'd do just a little more. I still have two more of these to make, so I will have plenty to keep my hands busy anytime I have any free time. Of course I'm not expecting a whole lot of that this week. Well, guess I'll get to it then.

Two More Rounds

Despite a doctor's appointment, I managed to be fairly productive yesterday. We sped through schooling, so once lunch was over, I got to sit right down and get to work. Of course at this point the work is just, well nobody's paying me for it, so it's just, well let's go with art. Anyway, I got two more round worked up over the course of the day. This first one here is pretty open because I assumed that I would try another round of woven threads next which is what I ended up doing.

Weaving these longer round is getting harder though. Since I have to cut off the working thread so I can pull it through the tatting, I'm dragging a longer and longer piece of thread. Those long pieces love to tangle up and I'm having to stop more often and undo the mess. I suppose that's one argument for a motif round at some point. I can weave those all I want without the mess.


I started another round after this one, but it was a complete mess. I got almost halfway around before I scrapped it and cut the whole thing off. I think I'll just have to stare at it some more and see if it actually wants to be any bigger at all. It's about 8 inches across at the widest point right now. I'm not sure if that's a good size to stop at or not. What do you think?

We have a pumpkin patch outing today after schooling, so I will likely not get anymore tatting in today, maybe over the weekend though. I was hoping the last batch of sales in the shop signaled a sea change for the season, but it appears it was just a strange fluke. So I'll keep working on this and maybe I'll get some yarn to start the holiday circle cardigan presents. All while crossing my fingers for sales.