Dream big

I haven't been quiet lately because I haven't been doing anything.  I've been quiet because I just bought a house and I've been spending just about every free minute moving and trying to bring some sort of order out of a highly landscaped yard that's been allowed to run wild for 11 months.

As I've been moving over and putting things on the wall, one space has been challenging me.

It's over the mantle.  As you can see, I have a large clock there right now.  I have put off hanging it because I've had a plan to do a piece of bobbin lace to go in that spot.  At first I was going to work on the fan I've been planning to work for a little over a year but last month, I had a thought. 

 

I really wanted to have a representation of my time in Scotland somewhere in the house.  I've got a few things like the bear you see sitting on the side of the mantle.  That's Robert the Bear.  I'm not a teddy bear sort of person but this bear was given to me by one of my favorite people in Glasgow (named Robert, of course).  He's the father of my oldest friends there and he and I always had such a ball.  He also gave me a fridge magnet that plays "you take the high road and I'll take the low road and I'll be in Scotland afore ye..." and a mini paint pot.  Long story about the paint pot but it made me laugh every time I saw it and makes me giggle even now.

 

So back to my point.  A centerpiece for my mantle.  Glasgow's motto is, "Let Glasgow Flourish."  Originally it was "Let Glasgow flourish by the preaching of Your Word and the praising of Your Name" but was later shortened to just "Let Glasgow Flourish."  There is a story that explains the  elements of the city's coat of arms:

 

The saint, the ring, the bird, the tree, the fish, the bell.  If you want to read more about the legends that make up the coat of arms, have a look here. 

When I was looking at the article above, I saw the photo of the street light.  That would be the perfect format for my special bobbin lace piece!  Around the bottom, I will add the motto.  I've started drawing it out and I've been thinking through what stitches I'm going to use to get the best effect for each of the elements.

I think this will be the perfect nod to my true home.  I can't wait to get started on it!



Rings and Rings

Right now at the Illinois State Museum, there is a display of Civil War era quilts and other textiles.  In one of the cases are several socks, mittens and doilies that have been knitted and crocheted.  My friend, Jane, brought it to my attention and she had the idea of seeing if they will let us try to reproduce the socks after the show is over. 

We had a discussion about one of the pairs of socks that has a mixture of patterns, one of which looks very much like tatting:

It had been a while since I'd seen them so I went last week to see if I could get some better photos like the one here.  See the little circles?  I knew I'd seen this pattern before and found it in the "Victorian Lace Today" book by Jane Sowerby.  It was from an 1860s shawl pattern from Mlle. de le Branchardiere's book, "The Abergeldie Winter Book."

I know that in all the patterns and books Jane and I have studied, this was the only time I'd seen this type of spider pattern.  The only thing we're going to have to figure out is how to intersperse the rings with the triangles (although I do have an idea about that).

It's a pretty tricky pattern and after 4-5 goes with black lace weight wool yarn, I decided I would try it with size 8 perle cotton.  Besides I have a new house that needs some curtains.  What better way to test it out!

I think this is going to do us very well with the sock pattern and I think it's going to be a very pretty curtain valance, don't you?  Although I think I've got the rhythm of it now, I did have to rip out about 3 times on the 2nd and 3rd rows.  But I still have to pay VERY close attention.  So if you hear someone walking around Springfield muttering, "ONE, two, three, FOUR, five, six...ONE, two, three, FOUR, five, six...One, two..." that'll be me.

Perennial Workbasket

I never paid too much attention to Workbasket magazines before I learned to tat.  Oh, I knew about them and knew my Grannie kept them and used them from time to time.  But my notice never went beyond that.

That is until I learned to tat.  All of a sudden, Workbasket became my favorite publication.  There is at least one tatting pattern in every Workbasket, almost from the beginning of publication in the 1940s.  This most recent pattern was published in the October 1967 issue.  I kind of stumbled across this pattern the other day when I needed a new pattern to start.  I think it's the prettiest tatted doily I've ever made.

And it's been spoken for.  I was at lunch with friends the other day tatting away when one of them happened to mention that they would love to have a tatted doily.  Wasn't that good timing?  Me with a doily to finish and her needing a doily?!



Oddity

My friend, Karen, of Karen Poulakos Studios, was showing me the wooden-handled Chinese "crochet hook" yesterday.  I don't know what this Chinese company has against crocheters, but I'm sure you wouldn't be able to carry this crochet hook on an airplane!

Have a look at that hook.  Trust me.  It's just as deadly as it appears!

We were trying to figure out yesterday what you could actually use this implement for.  With fiber, that is.  Rug hooking? An awl for poking holes in linen?  Stabbing.  Oops, I mean, um, canvas work.  Hehe.

 

And tatting again

I just can't stop.  After finishing the last doily, I dove into my Workbasket stash and came across a quintessential tatting doily pattern in the October 1967 issue.  Here's the start of it along with another project I'm working on with the bobbin lace.

It's been quite a journey

I'm FINALLY finished with this doily.  It took me 4 full days just to get around the next to last round.  But it's completely worth it, don't you think?

I don't know where I'll use it but I'm thrilled at how it came out.  I can't wait to start a new project.  The thread I used was Aunt Lydia's Crochet Thread in Extra Fine size 30.  It's the first time I've used it and it worked great for tatting.  Not all crochet thread is great for tatting because it's not always plied tightly enough but this worked great.  It's a nice size and feels great.

 

On the big next to last round, it took 4 full bobbins to get all the way around.  The easiest thing to do was to wind the bobbins from a second ball and keep the first ball attached.  That way I only had the one end to work in as I went.  This is definitely the largest tatting project I've ever attempted.  Now I'm going to my Work Basket magazines for another!

5th times the charm...apparently

Tatting is beautiful.  I love tatting.  I love to look at tatting.  Tatting is pretty hard - at least when you're distracted while you're tatting.  At least when you're me and you're distracted while you're tatting.

I took on this beautiful oval tatted doily from The DMC Book of Charted Tatting Designs.  Absolutely nothing wrong with the instructions, clear as a bell.  Nothing wrong with the photo accompanying said instructions.  Ditto.  But with the round I just finished, I've had re-start it 3 times, cut out about 4 repeats, redo rings 3-6 times.  I finally thought I'd finished the round last night when my spidey senses warned me to lay it out and double check before I close up that last ring and finish.  Here's what I saw on the last repeat of this brutal round:

On the last repeat of the round, I discovered that I'd attached the ring to the wrong place.  Fortunately, I had not closed the ring so, once again, I took the stitches out, poked myself with the sharp end of the tatting shuttle twice and fixed it.  Now it looks like this:

Very satisfying.

Until I look at the pattern.  I have to finish this easy round and do one more round like this, simple ring/chain.  Then I have another round of the killer pattern.  The previous round had 20 repeats, the next one has 40 repeats.  I may be here yet awhile.