Trees and Angels

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas! We did. Christmas Eve I finally got a few Christmas decorations put up and decorated a tree.

My 2020 Christmas tree

This isn’t exactly a tree, it is several branches from some evergreens that we took out of the yard a couple of days ago wire-tied together. The shape is not quite right, but it brought the scent of a real tree indoors, didn’t cost anything, and, when decorated, looked festive. The only ornaments on it that I made this year are the music angel and the round paper ornament. All the others are ones I randomly found as I got my Christmas decorations out. I found quite a few more tatted ornaments and hung them around the house.

The little time I’ve had to tat I’ve been making the Small Angel. Which isn’t hard, but that left wing! Making it look like the right is a bit of a challenge. It’s all in the picot size and the chains. And maybe the join for that longest picot.

Three small angels

As you can see, neither of the red angels have wings quite like the original gold one. And they don’t even look like each other! I think the wings on the red angels look more like leaves than wings, but they still look okay. I must be holding my mouth wrong as I tat to make them so different! I’d love to see how they turn out for anyone that makes them.

Usually, between Christmas and New Years’ things for us slow down a bit, but this year it’s not that way. There are several things that need to be done before the new year, so many that we don’t have much time to do as we’d like. I have tatting plans that will have to wait a little bit more.

What are your plans for the New Year?

“If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.” Woody Allen https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/woody_allen_136686

Christmas 2020

Can you believe it is only three days to Christmas? The year has gone so fast and the last three weeks must faster (it seems to me!). I have been so busy I haven’t gotten as much tatting done as I would have liked, but, looking back, I’ve gotten more done than I thought.

Christmas tatting 2020

Looking back, there was more tatting done for Christmas than I thought. I’m not sure how many of the music ornaments I finished this year, but everyone I had planned to send cards to received one, so it was several lol! It’s amazing how much time can be spent on such small tatting!. The angel wings came out great, and the angels were well received by the few that got them. I didn’t give anyone the small angel, but that was designed and tatted as well. Not bad!

Speaking of the small angel, the pattern is done and available! Please email me a request.

Small angel Christmas tatting

Now I’m on to more Christmas things, namely getting the house cleaned up and decorated so it looks Christmas-y!

Merry Christmas to all of you.

“Christmas is the day that holds all time together.” Alexander Smith https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/alexander_smith_379476?src=t_christmas

Ornaments and Angels

I was on vacation last week, which was a good thing. I spent a lot of time making the ornaments to send out as Christmas cards. I would never have gotten as many made if I hadn’t had the week off.

Ornament cards for Christmas

Another batch of cards done except for the hangers.

More ornament cards for Christmas

These all have hangers now. There are still a few that need tatting as well as the hangers.

The good news, most recipients have theirs. Some were to be mailed yesterday but didn’t get picked up. I don’t know if the mail came early or we didn’t have a postman come by, so I’ll drop them at the post office today.

While I was tatting small things for these ornaments, I took a bit of a detour and did a small angel.

Small tatted angel

This is one of the few times I jotted down some ideas and a drawing before starting to tat. I had to make an adjustment due to a slight miscalculation, but it came out like I wanted it to. I even jotted down the stitch counts – amazing! I might get the pattern out later this week, though maybe not the nice drawing. We’ll see.

I was very busy last week with more than just the Christmas cards. There were so many things that had to be finished before this last weekend. The good news is that those things did get done. Now I can do a few of the other things that didn’t get done yet. Like putting up decorations in my house. But I have to clean a bit before that. Christmas is how many days away??

Are you ready for Christmas?

“It’s true, Christmas can feel like a lot of work, particularly for mothers. But when you look back on all the Christmases in your life, you’ll find you’ve created family traditions and lasting memories. Those memories, good and bad, are really what help to keep a family together over the long haul.” Caroline Kennedy

Christmas Cards

Have you sent your Christmas cards yet? I have not. Have you received any yet? I have not. And when you receive them, how do you display them?

Displaying Christmas cards is a conundrum for me every year. Every year I receive such beautiful cards and I don’t have a way to display them. Some years I’ve had a string where they can be clipped to and be seen. Some years I don’t have a place to do that. One year I had a cute basket I put them in, but they did not display well. Then when the season is over I hate to throw them away because they are so beautiful and some have wonderful messages or greetings. I keep a lot of them, but really, then what?

This year I decided to make them. Now, I’m not much of a card maker. I have a cousin who does that sort of thing beautifully, and tattingmargaret at Margarets Designer Cards does lovely cards. But I thought I’d do my own cards this year, at least to the few that I’m sending them.

My first try at an ornament card

This is my first try at making a card that is an ornament as well. It can be hung as an ornament on the tree, or where-ever, and saved for another year, too. It incorporates some of the hymnal pages and a little bit of tatting. I was pleased with the first one, so a made a few more.

Ornament #2

Ornament #3

I suppose they are not really cards, though I put our Christmas greetings, the year, and our names on the back. Does that make them cards?

One of my daughters was over and I drafted her to help me cut out the paper. That made things go a lot faster.

Ornament #4

Ornament #5

Some I like better than others. Some worked, color and tatting wise, better than others. But the over-all look of them came out better than I was thinking they would.

Ornament #6

Ornament #7

I even incorporated a decorated button on one. Right now on Facebook the wonderful Lace-lovin’ Librarian Diane Cademartoi has started another group, this time with decorated button ornaments. I’ve done a lot of decorated buttons before, but the group inspired me to do a few more. This decorated button decorates an ornament.

All seven Christmas ornaments I’ve made so far

I gave out five of these already and they were well received. But I’m going to need a few more. Good thing I have the circles cut out already! But, wait! I don’t have enough tatted parts yet. I’d better get on it!

How about you? Do you have your cards done?

“The Church knew what the psalmist knew: Music praises God. Music is well or better able to praise him than the building of the church and all its decoration; it is the Church’s greatest ornament.” Igor Stravinsky

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