Author: wandasknottythoughts@gmail.com

Thread ends

When a project is finished I have three choices for thread left on a shuttle: 1. Figure out something to tat with it until it’s gone; 2. Leave it on the shuttle and use another shuttle for the next project; or 3. Unwind it, putting the thread on a card or bobbin.

Of these choices, I like to do #1 the most, #2 if I’m lazy and have other shuttles available, and #3 only if I have to. With the left-over thread from the goat, I chose to do #1.

thread ends on wandasknottythoughts
Thread ends from the thank-you goat

The doodles I did in Lizbeth River Blue Dark in size 10 to finish off the thread from the shuttles.

Normally, any doodles I do from thread ends are put in a jar. When I want to add a little something to a letter or note I can usually find something in this jar that works. This time, I added a couple of these doodles to the goat before I mailed it off.

Thank-you goat for the Pushy Goat on wandasknottythoughts
Thank-you goat for the Pushy Goat with a couple of doodles

I like how this turned out. I hope my message therapist likes it, too.

This post was supposed to go up last week, but I didn’t do something quite right. We were on vacation last week and I didn’t check to make sure if it posted or not. The good news is I have pictures to share next week!

“A close family member once offered his opinion that I exhibit the phone manners of a goat, then promptly withdrew the charge – out of fairness to goats.“

Jeffrey Kluger

A Thank-you Goat

For Mother’s Day one of my daughters gave me a gift certificate for a massage at a place called ‘The Pushy Goat’. We were going to plan a day for us to go together, making a day of it, with lunch and shopping. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, we didn’t have a chance to use it until August.

When we did get my massage set up we ran into all kinds of setbacks, one thing after another. Amazingly, things worked out well, we got our day out and had a wonderful time.

I wore a pair of tatted earrings to my appointment, which started a conversation about tatting with my therapist and her boss. After getting home I started thinking about sending my therapist a thank-you note with a bit of tatting in it. And what better example of tatting than a goat to a business named ‘The Pushy Goat’?

A goat for a thank-you note on wandasknottythoughts
A Thank-you goat

The pattern is Jane Eborall’s goat pattern, made in Lizbeth River Blue Dark in size 10. I’ve made this pattern before, back when Jane did it as a Tat It And See. This came out well, but I didn’t make the chin picots long enough. In fact, my granddaughter thought it was a dog. I added some thread to the chin and combed it out, making it more recognizable as a goat.

I finished the goat then had to come up with the card to put it on. I want it to be easy to mail but of a size that, if she wants, my therapist could frame it. I cut the paper to fit in a 5×7 frame. I’m going to put the thank-you message in the upper left corner and glue the goat down about where it’s at. I’m pleased with how it turned out.

I did not get any compensation from The Pushy Goat for this post. I just had a good experience there.

“Don’t approach a goat from the front, a horse from the back, or a fool from any side”

PROVERBS

Read more: https://www.wiseoldsayings.com/goat-quotes/#ixzz6Y59HCAPw

Ice Drop Done

A few weeks ago I started an ice drop to verify the pattern, to see what, and where I did something wrong in my Larissa pattern. In the course of tatting it, I miscalculated the size of the gem center. But I found another that would work.

Two sizes of ice drop gems on wandasknottythoughts
I found a smaller gem

The gem is smaller but black instead of green. I like the green better, but using the black let me keep going on the ice drop instead of starting over. (Do you see my reflection in the gems?)

Black gem for Larissa center on wandasknottythoughts
The black gem fits the center better

Yep, it worked. It has been a while since I made an ice drop and I felt a bit awkward trying to put the gem in the center. And I’m not used to that much weight hanging around while tatting the rest.

Larissa Ice Drop 20200908 on wandasknottythoughts
Larissa Ice Drop with a black gem

Ta-da! It is finished! Made with, I think, a DMC size 20 thread, of which the label has been lost for years.

I did make a mistake with one of the chains. I forgot it! I was fortunate that 1) I caught it, and 2) it wasn’t too hard to fix. I’m not telling where the problem child is, because if you weren’t looking for it, (and you don’t know much about tatting) you wouldn’t see it. This one was only made for me, anyway, and I’m happy with it.

I did find that I have some work to do on the pattern. I know I went through it before I published it, but man, did I find a few mistakes. But now I have to take the time to fix it!

This post was almost finished yesterday, and then, Poof! it was gone! Not sure what happened. At least I have time to do it again today.

“There are no mistakes, only happy accidents.” Bob Ross

Third China Hutch Edging Done!

It’s done! I can hardly believe that I finished the edgings I wanted for my china hutch.

3rd china hutch edging done on wandasknottythoughts
The 3rd china hutch done and on the shelf

I started making these edgings on May 30, 2020. It only took 93 days from starting to mounting the third edging on the last shelf. I’m delighted with how they came out.

3rd shelf china hutch edging with doors shut on wandasknottythoughts
All three edgings on with the china hutch doors closed

I’m pleased with the look of the china hutch with the doors closed. Though trying to get a good picture of it with the glass reflecting everything is not easy. This was the best I could do this time around.

This project is one I’ve thought about for a long time but was never motivated enough to start until this year. This china hutch belonged to my grandfather and was given to him by his parents. He was a bare-bones guy, never one for frills. Once I got it I always thought edgings would be a nice finishing touch. Thirty years later I finally added the tatting, and I was right.

“Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.” Earl Nightingale

Miscalculations

I have finished tatting the third china hutch edging! I’ve even finished blocking it, but I haven’t got it in the cabinet yet.

I noticed on the first two shelf edgings that they might be just a bit shorter than I planned. So I made the 3rd edging a bit longer. Maybe too long. I’ll find out soon.

China hutch edging edges on wandasknottythoughts
The edges of the first two edgings might not really be long enough

For a bit of a change and to answer a question I was asked about making one, I decided to make an Ice Drop, specifically Diane Cademartori’s Basic Ice Drop. (You can check out all of her adventures on her blog Lace-Lovin’ Librarian.) I’ve made it before, but this time I goofed.

Ice Drop mistake on wandasknottythoughts
The center isn’t quite right

This gem is the same size I’ve used before, but this time I didn’t do something quite right. Maybe the joining picots are too short. Or maybe the gem is just bigger than the one I used before, even though they came out of the same package. Whatever I did, or didn’t do, I’ll have to find a different center if I want to finish this ice drop.

I can’t say that either of these miscalculations are mistakes. With the china hutch doors closed, which they are most of the time, you can’t see either end of the edgings, so I’m not unhappy with them. The Ice Drop can be saved, I just have to find a different center. Let’s just call them learning experiences.

“Trust your own instinct. Your mistakes might as well be your own, instead of someone else’s.” Billy Wilder

Gifted Crosses

In between working on the china hutch edgings I’ve made several cross bookmarks as gifts

This one is April’s Cross that I gifted as a wedding gift. The bride sent me a picture of it as I did not remember to take one of the finished bookmark before I gave it away. It came out nicely.

April's Cross wedding gift on wandasknottytoughts
The finished wedding bookmark April’s Cross

I also made one to celebrate a baptism. Well, I made two, as I wasn’t happy with the first one. The pattern is my take on a traditional cross.

Traditional cross bookmarks as gifts on wandasknottythoughts
Two cross bookmarks in my version of a traditional pattern

Both of these are made in size 20 Lizbeth thread #605, Silver. I wasn’t thrilled about the length of the long arm of the top one, it didn’t look proportionally correct with the other arms. So I’ll keep the first one for me.

Both recipients were pleased with their gifts, which also makes me happy.

Now I need to stay on task and finish the third edging for the china hutch.

“The person born with a talent they are meant to use will find their greatest happiness in using it.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Second Edging Complete!

Yes, it’s true. I’ve completed the second china hutch edging AND put it on the shelf!

Second china hutch edging on wandasknottythoughts
China hutch 2 shelves done

The top one is the first one, the bottom one is the second. It looks like I should have made one more repeat for the length, but I’m not going back. It doesn’t have as many repeats as the first one due to picot length. The second one is a bit more consistent with the length of the joining picot in the first row. I might be able to adjust the way it lays on the shelf to fit the width a bit better.

Second china hutch edging w/doors on wandasknottythoughts
Two edgings are done on the china hutch

With the doors closed, the way they are most of the time, you can’t see that the edging does’t quite reach the sides. The first edging needs to be straightened just a bit, LOL! I’ll get to that later.

I am still working on the third shelf edging.

Third china hutch edging not quite done on wandasknottythoughts
Still working on the third edging

I’m on the second row of it, too. I just keep running into things that need to be done that are more time sensitive than the edging, both tatting related and otherwise.

In the otherwise category, I’ve taken care of a couple of the grandchildren several times that I hadn’t planned on. Whether at their house or our house there are other things to do than tat. My granddaughter likes watching videos that show how to make Barbie accessories, so we’ve made a few of those. Good thing I have a bunch of crafty things handy!

“You don’t have to get things done all the time to be productive.” David Harsanyi

Split rings and beads

One of my daughters had a birthday recently. We took her and her family as well as our other daughter and her family out to lunch to celebrate. The day before her birthday I thought about tatting her something (I always leave it to the last minute.) Earrings can be quick and easy – relatively speaking – so I decided to make her a pair.

Split ring and bead earrings on wandasknottythoughts
Split ring dragonfly earrings

The dragonfly wing beads I bought last year from JoAnn’s, the same time I bought the beads for these earrings. I used Lizbeth metallic thread #311 for the finished earrings, but, I didn’t start with that thread. I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to make them so I practiced with cotton thread first.

Three tries for dragonflies on wandasknottythoughts
Trial and error for the dragonfly earrings

My first try was with cotton thread and single shuttle split rings. I was not happy with them at all. They might be good after a bit more refresher practice, but there was a time limit for getting them made. I like the look of the split rings in the middle one, but they looked a bit too big. So I made the split rings a bit smaller, which resulted in a happy tatter and a pretty set of earrings.

I used a few other beads bought at the same time for my Christmas gift ornaments this last year. They were made almost the same way as the earrings but with different stitch counts.

Beaded split ring Christmas ornaments on wandasknottythoughts
Beaded split ring Christmas ornaments

The biggest issue I had with these ornaments was I couldn’t put them in my Christmas cards to send them! Which in a way was good, as I didn’t have enough beads to make as many ornaments as I usually do. But those that received them were thrilled with them.

I don’t tat with beads often, usually because I make messes with them. I tat a lot in the car, so beads end up on the floor, between the seats, or lost. Okay, I’m also impatient with how much slower I tat with beads than tatting without. But once in a while beads are fun to work with, and usually turn out pretty good.

“The greatest gifts you can give your children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence.” Denis Waitley

Patriotic Earrings

Patriotic earrings on wandasknottythoughts
Red, white, and blue earrings made for Independence Day 2020

One of the things I enjoy about tatting is making something on the spur of the moment and it comes out just as I envisioned it. Or maybe even better! Once in a while it all just comes together and, bingo!, there it is.

These earrings are like that. For the 4th of July, we were going to our daughter’s to enjoy family, food, and fireworks in the evening. In the morning I finished a little piece in red, white, and blue, something I try to do every year when I noticed how much of those threads I still had on my shuttles. I wanted to free those shuttles up, but what to make? Earrings for the evening sounded like a great idea.

Patriotic earrings for the 4th on wandasknottythoughts
Patriotic earrings for the 4th

For all that they came out well, they still had their moments. Hiding the ends and finishing off all three colors on such small pieces was interesting. And why I decided to use a picot that had to be joined with a twist (the second side of the ring to a facing ring) I’m not sure. I mostly try to avoid those if possible. And adding the jewelry findings, for me, is problematic. Sometimes everything goes smoothly, sometimes not so much. These went relatively smoothly.

Every time I tat with red, white, and blue thread together I notice how hard it is to find a good background to take pictures. Most of my background choices wash out one color or the other. I tried eight or nine backgrounds to get a decent picture or two of these earrings. So even if the picture doesn’t come out as well as I hope, I am happy with the subject of it.

I happily wore my new patriotic earrings that evening. We had a wonderful time! And now I have a cute pair of earrings to wear, to be patriotic whenever I want to be.

“Alfred Hitchcock once told me, when I was analyzing a lot of things about his pictures, ‘Clint, you must remember, it’s only a movie.'” Clint Eastwood

Third edging started

Start of 3rd china hutch edging on wandasknottythoughts
Starting the third shelf edging

I’ve started on the edging for the third shelf of the china hutch! Yippee!

I finished tatting the second shelf edging yesterday and am now blocking it. Then I have to stitch it to the lace to hold it to the shelf. I’m hoping to have it done by the end of the week.

I did a bit of other tatting this weekend or I might have been a bit farther on this edging. That I’m this far after waiting all these years is pretty amazing. From where I sit typing this post I’m looking right at the china hutch with it’s one edging done. It is inspiring me to continue as nothing else could do.

“Indeed it is better to postpone, lest either we complete too little by hurrying, or wander too long in completing it.”

Tertullian