Cleaning Up Leftovers

 I'm cleaning up my shuttles, tatting small things to get leftover thread off of them. I rarely measure when I add thread to a shuttle, just add until it's full. I'd rather do this than have to add thread in the middle of a project if I possibly can. This does lead to small amounts left on shuttles when the projects are done. Periodically I try and find small things to tat with the leftovers. 

This snowflake was done in a waiting room while my mother had an appointment. 

Snowflake doodle

When tatting while out and about I expect to find mistakes later. You never know when you will be interrupted, or where in the piece you'll have to stop. If you are fortunate, it will be at a good stopping point. If you're not, you might forget what you were doing when you got interrupted. You can't see it in this not-so-wonderful picture, but the thrown rings are upside down. This isn't a problem unless you do front side-back side tatting - which I do. I'll probably keep this and put it on my Christmas tree next year.

Two-tone doodle

There was still thread on both shuttles when I finished the snowflake, so I tried something else. I can see this as another snowflake, though it will need modification if I don't want to cut and tie every two arms. Maybe ears? Wings? I might give it more thought, I might not.

Key paperclip bookmark

I started this a while back and forgot about it. This paperclip bookmark is a one shuttle with ball pattern. There was still thread on the shuttle when I was done so I'll have to find something else to do with it.

Caribbean paperclip

This paperclip bookmark is made with Lizbeth Caribbean HH20122. I love this color in any size! But this particular ball of thread must be old, because it was awful to work with. Closing rings was mostly impossible if they had more than a few stitches. I finished the project I started with this but wanted something that used more chains than rings. I was watching TV when I tatted this one. There are a lot of boo boos in this, but I will still use it at home. 

Now there more shuttles ready for other projects. I have a list.

What do you do with leftovers?

"The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found."

Calvin Trillin

Miscellaneous Tatting and Update on Luther's Rose Pattern

I’ve done it again, haven’t I? It’s been several weeks since I last posted. It’s not that I don’t have things to post about, it’s just getting time and pictures to do it.

I’ll start with the Luther’s Rose pattern I promised. Do you know how much harder it is to diagram and write out a pattern than it is to just tat it? I’ve been working on it and it seems to keep getting longer and longer. I even took my computer with me on a trip just so I could work on this pattern. And it still isn’t done! It didn’t help that I had a bad attack of allergies while we were gone, making it hard to concentrate. Now that we are home again I’ve made a lot of progress but still have a bit to go. And I have not reviewed it to find mistakes! I have the cross, the heart, and the white rose parts diagrammed and, I think, tat-able. If anyone would like to get started on it to have it done by Reformation, and don’t mind taking a chance on the pattern, email me. (wandasknottythoughts (at) gmail.com) Update 10/24/2024: pattern can be found on the My Patters page.

We’ve been traveling quite a bit lately. My last post was right after we got back from Branson, Missouri. A week after we got home from there we went to Colorado to visit our daughter and take her dog back. They moved at the start of September and it was easier for us to keep her dog until they got into their house. After a month we took the dog to their new home and stayed a week with them. This is where I had the allergy attack. I am allergic to their male cat. I don’t have much trouble unless I pet him and then don’t wash my hands right away. The good news is that I had time to tat in the car on the drive, which is about nine hours each way, as well as the trip to and from Branson.

Bookmarks

My other daughter, who still lives close by, requested more bookmarks. These paperclip bookmarks are easy to do while riding in the car. I don’t have to try and keep track of where I am in a pattern, which is great. My daughter still wants more, but this was a great start.

I also started on snowflakes for Christmas while we were traveling. I’m not fond of tatting with white while not at home due to the chances of it getting dirty, but I did it anyway. I have plans for small snowflakes this year and need quite a few. I wasn’t following any patterns, just making easy ones.

On a more serious note, have you read Jane Eborall’s post of October 14, 2024, on her ‘Tatting and Not a Lot Else’ blog? She found several “tatting” books that are awful. I’ve been hearing about a lot of fakes out there that are possibly made with AI or people stealing other’s work. I highly recommend that you use caution when buying any new craft books of any kind.

Besides hoping to get the pattern finished, I hope to have pictures of some of the other tatting that I’ve been doing ready soon. And to post faster!

“The family is one of nature’s masterpieces.” George Santayana

More Bookmarks and a Trip

I’m still on a bookmark kick. They are quick and easy to make and are great to have on hand for a last-minute gift. And a not-so-last-minute gift.

More paperclip bookmarks

These bookmarks are also great to do while traveling. Since I have no set pattern for any of these it’s easy to do in the car or a hotel room. And we happened to take an impromptu trip last week to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Sunday, on the way home from church, my husband asked if I wanted to go. We left early Monday morning for a week in New Mexico.

We didn’t have any plans of things to do while in Santa Fe, but we found plenty to do, a couple of hikes, and several wonderful places for food and beverages.

La Cieneguilla petroglyphs

Not too far outside of Santa Fe are the La Cieneguilla petroglyphs. It is a short hike, about a half mile, but some of it’s uphill over rocks. We hadn’t thought to bring our hiking boots, so we wore our tennis shoes. We made it, but next time…! It was worth the climb. I understand there are many more petroglyphs than what we saw, but we saw enough to appreciate them.

View on the road up to Ski Santa Fe

We did take a much easier trip up to Ski Santa Fe ski area. No hiking is required, it’s just a beautiful drive with a few lovely views.

A few places where we ate in Santa Fe were Herve’s Wine Bar for lunch and a cocktail, Rowley’s Farmhouse Ales for lunch and beverages, and The Flying Tortilla for several meals. The Flying Tortilla is close to the hotel we stayed at and we took advantage of their good food several times. All three of these restaurants have patios that allow dogs, which is great as we took our dog with us.

I do not get any compensation for mentioning any of these establishments.

Tsankawi Prehistorial site

We also hiked the Tsankawi Loop, which was probably not very smart. It’s 1.5 miles long with ladders. We went at 8:30 a.m. when it opened but it still got hot. We took plenty of water, but we aren’t in as good of shape as we should be for this. We made it, but we were feeling it before we finished. Our dog did great, even going up ladders, but going down was another matter altogether. My husband carried her down the one we didn’t go around. This is an amazing hike, but I’d not take her if we do something like this again. And be in better shape! We didn’t do much the rest of the day.

Wheat harvest started while we were gone. I’m somewhat disappointed that I missed them cutting the field in front of our house. Around the area we live wheat is a major part of most of the farms. Harvest means a lot of slow-moving vehicles as farmers move from one field to another, lots of trucks hauling wheat to the elevators, and lots of dust in the air. It’s good that it only lasts about three weeks.

Now that I’m home I’m gearing up for Tatting Corner’s Tat Days in July. Another trip, this one planned, that I’m looking forward to.

“Travel becomes a strategy for accumulating photographs.” Susan Sontag