Tropical wonders : Motif #7

While perusing Jane's pattern page and her doodles, I spied the Turtle doodle and immediately thought of my cousin Peter.  Now Peter likes to tease the rest of us cousins with photos of his home and job.  He is a caretaker on a private tropical island in  Nth Queensland.  We get photos of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets , as well as snakes, scorpions, turtles and all the fish he catches .  So I have tatted the following doodles for him and his 10year old son. I added the sea horse for fun. Thanks Jane for the doodles.

Jane Eborall's Doodles.
Scorpion, Seahorse, Fish, Turtle and Snake

Motifs #5 and #6 and on being inspired by other tatters.

In the last two weeks, while avoiding housework and paperwork, I have been blog surfing and reading on facebook about the stuff other tatters want to know and how to do them.  The next two motifs are from a facebook group that I follow.  The May challenge was to do Anika's doily from her blog Tattingitup.  I did mine in Lizbeth #155 Ocean sunset size 40 and I love how it turned out.  I gave this to my sister for her birthday this week.

#5 Anika's Easy and Acient Doily

Then on another day two tatter were talking about a pattern for Flowers of Life and posted the pattern which I couldn't resist.  So I completed it this weekend using size 10 white thread and it measures about 9cm, a nice coaster size.  I did learn that the centres need to be tighter and the edge looser, to stop it from cupping.  Otherwise I like it and I think that I see it in the Ocean Sunset as well after I finish the last of the birthday presents I have started.

#6 Shannon's Flowers of Life

Till next time keep tatting.

FOUND

Back in August I was working on split rings and had WIP of a Daisy chain, which I was doing on several plane flights to Melbourne and back that we did last year.  In September when I began the 25 motif challenge I went looking for that piece of lace and it had disappeared.  So I have been looking for it for the last six months as I knew that I had not left it on the plane or in Melbourne.  Today I found it in the back of my desk draw from when I moved my desk to another room.  This is such a relief as it contained two of my original shuttles which I now have back.
YEAH!!!
 I really like these two shuttles, an original clover and my second milward shuttle from my set of two.

Now I can add more thread and continue the chain.

Today is a great day.



Where Did April go???? Motif #2, #3 and #4

Well here we are in May and I need to update my blog again (I really should do this more often).  After tatting the ring a ring a rosies from my last post I picked up Tatting Hearts by Teri Dusenbury and started tatting.  I have completed 8 of the 12 hearts from that ball of thread and have enough for maybe two or three more (will post their pictures when I have finished them all).

I also completed the Tardis Pattern by Ann Brovold for my nephews hand towel set, he is a massive Doctor Who fan, he will receive his set in early June for his birthday.

#2 Tardis by Ann Brovold

  His sister is getting this butterfly edging from Tatting doilies and edgings, Rita Weiss  p38 #6, both sets done in Milford Satin 2ply, which works well for towels and edgings.

#3 Butterfly edging

I made another dragon for my SIL for her birthday, they like dragons in their home. Her son got the other one from the previous post.

#4 Flying Minor Norweigen Dragon in Lizbeth Ocean Sunset #40

 Now three more sets of towels before the end of May, as well as the rest of the hearts now that I have another ball of thread.  I am also waiting for my Birthday present ordered from Jane, I hope it gets here soon as I can't wait to try it out.

Happy International Tatting Day and motif #1 2nd round

Yesterday on internation Tatting Day, I did all things tatting.
First I updated my blog, ate chocolate, and then I finished the hand towels
I am doing for presents for my nieces and nephews .
Then I tatted a piece just for me, and finished it today.
This is Ring of Rosies from Mary Konior's Tatting with Visual Patterns
in Milford Satin 2ply Red.  I even challenged myself to learn catherine
wheel joins and joined all the chains in the rings by this method.  After
the first flower I had learned it and didn't have to think too hard, so it was
relaxing to tat as I sat under the tree in our backyard on a beautiful autumn day.
The chains in the centre could have been a bit tighter and the centre
picot a bit bigger. Otherwise I really like it.

Ring of Rosies by Mary Konior

Motifs #24 and #25, challenge completed

Well here they are my final two motifs.

Motif#24 is an edging pratice piece for a hand towel.  I modified edging no3 p21 from 'Tatting Edgings and Doilys by Rita Weiss', by removing a ring as I didn't want the edging to be too deep.  It was too crowded, so made it into two hearts, and used another for the towel.

Purple Hearts

 Motif #25 is this guitar pattern which I constructed from other edgings and insertions.

Guitar

Construction instructions:
1: 2x twelve ring medalions joined at two chains.  Join/sew the inner ring of one medalion together to make the bottom bar. (could also use the 12ring medalion for the base and a 8 ring medation for the top, make the centre ring large enough the guitar hole, as I think the proportions would be better.)
2: 8 split ring insertion from 'Tatting with Ann Orr' p27 no33 (4picots on sides not 5 and one on each end) with 2 more split rings joined at top, at right angles using a split ring to climb up just change the location of the join  (Join to medalions at two chains when tatting first ring)
3: Then chain around the outside to bring it into shape (I used 3 dbs with the occasional 4dbs where needed) place 6 josephine picots at the top for tuning pins.
4: Add strings securing where necessary.

Ta Da  One Guitar

This is now attached to a hand towel for my guitar mad nephew who plays beautifully.

So 25 motifs took me 6 months. What have I learned.
 I have renewed my love of tatting, met some lovely people through their blogs. Played TAIS and learned lots of new techniques.  Played with designing elements and love the challenge of it.  Found more patterns than I could ever tat, and want to buy all the pattern books I read about (one day).
thank you  for the challenge, and I will be back with more soon.

Motifs #21, #22 and #23

Have been busy tatting if not posting.  I have completed edgings for hand towels for my nieces as presents which will have to wait till after their birthdays.
Motif #21 is Daisy Picot Snowflake by Jon Yousoff.  This was a nice pattern to learn daisy picots by and turn out quite well.

Daisy Picot Snowflake by Jon Yousoff

 Motif #22 in my first Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon by Ann Brovold.  Still need practice for the wings other wise I am happy how it turned out.  Will use this one on a hand towel for my nephew who loves dragons.

Flying Minor Norwegian Dragon by Ann Brovold

Motif #23 is a small mat that I free tatted.  Started with a centre ring and used a split ring to climb out, tatted a row of rings and chains, split ring to start 3rd row then clovers and chains.

Pink Mat

It was nice to just tat and not think too much about it, apart from how many dbs to use.  I was going to join the outter chains but after I did the first one I realised that it should have had more dbs so left them unjoined.  This was tatted with one bobbin wound CTM in Milford satin 2ply Lipstick in one pass as an experiment on how may rows I could tat with only one bobbin.  I tatted this piece in 2 hours in the car on the way to Brisbane for lunch at a friends place.  While at lunch I tatted 3 little flower motifs for hair clips for her daughters and another friends daughters. I still need to do one more flower and post it.