I’ve still not decided what project I’m going to do next, so I keep doodling. I doodled around most of the weekend without accomplishing a lot. A little, but not a lot.
I doodled with the grey button I started last week.
2nd round on decorated grey button
I thought on this a while before doing the second round, then gave it a try. The picots that attach the first round to the button on a bit loose making it interesting to block. It is still a bit frilly, which will probably correct itself with a little bit of water and a flat surface.
I started a couple of other doodles but didn’t get to a good stopping point on any of them. Maybe later this week I’ll get one of those done.
Like other parts of the country right now it is cold and white here. For the first time in years the temperatures are supposed to stay below freezing for over a week. The snow makes for some pretty pictures, if you can see them while in a nice warm place.
Black Kettle Creek in the snow
While I can I will stay inside and enjoy the white landscape and the cold from inside where it is warm and maybe get some tatting done.
Is it cold and white where you are?
“The Eskimos had fifty-two names for snow because it was important to them: there ought to be as many for love.”Margaret Atwood
Since I finished the 10 point coaster I’ve not decided what I want to do next. I keep thinking I should keep a physical list, maybe digital, of things I want to tat, but I haven’t yet. When I’m in the middle of projects I think of all kinds of things I want to do when I’m done, but when I’m done I go blank. And that’s where I’m at now.
I’ve been seeing a lot of decorated buttons lately, and I have several buttons that would be good centers. I did work on one, without any pattern or plan. It doesn’t look bad but it didn’t turn out all that great.
Decorated button in greys
I miscalculated stitch counts so my (vague) idea didn’t come out as I thought it might. I’ve been debating with myself if I should do another round and see where that takes it, but I’ve not decided which side has won yet, to do it or not. It is made in Lizbeth #607 Charcoal Med and #190 Silver Ice, which did not come out well in the picture.
I also started a little something in a couple of the Lizbeth Metallic threads #311 Silver and #320 Steel Blue I recently got from Tatting Corner. I had another vague idea about what I wanted to do with these but very soon took a wrong turn.
Metallic doodle
When I realized my thoughts had gone astray, I went ahead and finished it, sewed in the ends. I might use this as an accent on a card or something, no reason to throw it out. This picture doesn’t do the metallic threads justice at all, they work well together. I’ll be using this combination again.
I like working with the Lizbeth Metallic threads but threading a needle with them to sew in the ends is somewhat problematic. You can see in the picture how they separate. Which makes me glad I have a Clover needle threader.
Clover needle threader
Using this makes threading a needle with the metallic threads easy. I keep it on my tatting tool keeper all the time even though I don’t use it often.
Tatting tool keeper
I use this tool keeper instead of a chatelaine. All the tools are on a badge reel, so I don’t have to take it off to use any given tool and it doesn’t hang in the way when I’m not using them. I also don’t drop anything on the floor and lose them, lol!
I do not make anything for mentioning Lizbeth threads of Clover tools.
“Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” Gloria Steinem
I like how this turned out! I also like how it was done in one pass. Much improved from the original.
When I finished the coaster I needed to empty a few shuttles of leftover thread. I’m not sure what the color is so I couldn’t get more thread for a chain thread or anything other than a small project. I pulled some thread off of the shuttle for the chain thread, which limited the size of whatever I finally made. I’ve been seeing a lot of decorated buttons on the Facebook page which inspired me to do a little something,
Decorated shank button
This came out very simple, but it didn’t take much thread. I’ve never used a shank button before and I didn’t do a great job on it. I know I’ve seen instructions on how to join to a shank button somewhere online but I didn’t take the time to look it over, I just gave it a try.
Speaking of buttons, when I recently visited my mother I got to go through a few of hers. I found a couple of cards with buttons that I like. I also recently got a shipment of thread from Tatting Corner, a couple of which I think will go well with one of the buttons.
A button and threads
I’m debating with myself about what I could do with this combination. What do you think?
“Every project is an opportunity to learn, to figure out problems and challenges, to invent and reinvent.” David Rockwell
Last week I shared a small 10-point coaster. The problem with it is it was made with 10 individual motifs, which means a lot of hiding ends. If I did this again I really wanted it in one pass. I did some thinking on it, and I came up with a way.
Path of 10 point coaster stitches
When I started making this I was doodling, then when I put them together I was putting multiple doodles together, and the doodle started at the top clover. This is why they are individual motifs instead of one pass to make the coaster. Why I didn’t stop and think of a better way at the time is unknown. Okay, I just wasn’t thinking it through, just tatting.
But I have tried another way that adds a couple of chains but still leaves the coaster with the same feel.
New path for the 10 point coaster
When I start with the bottom clover, go up and back down I can chain over to the next bottom clover. This makes the coaster in one pass, with minimal change in the overall design. I suppose I could have used a split ring to go from one clover to the other, but this is simple and only changes the look slightly.
10 point coaster improvement
I started the second coaster with two colors to see how I was using the two shuttles. I like how this looks. In the two colors it really brings out the center, doesn’t it?
I didn’t quite get the second coaster finished by post time, but it won’t take long. I’m much happier with doing it in one pass. The two colors look pretty good, too.
“Sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that can change your life forever.”Keri Russell
I mentioned last week that I was working on another project. I did finish it, and I like the look.
10 point coaster
When I started this I was just doodling. I had the gold thread on the shuttles and started something to use it up. The first piece was less than inspiring by itself. I thought it might look good with some others, and it turned out much better than I expected. But is it a motif? A small doily? It is so small I decided to call it a coaster.
This isn’t hard to do but rather tedious. Each point is a separate piece, which means there are a lot of ends to hide. When I decided to continue I went with how I started, but I keep looking at this wondering, could I do this in one pass? I’m just not seeing it right now.
Besides thinking about how to have fewer ends there are a few other places that I am thinking I might do better a wee bit different. But do I want to make another? Hmmm, I don’t know.
I made this with Lizbeth # 699 Harvest Gold in size 20. This might look good in one of the new threads that I just got. I’ll have to think about it.
“There’s more than one way to do things. There’s always different points of views.” Tim Hudson
