Category: Colorado

Autumn Earrings

While working with all the threads in autumn shades, I thought it would be great to make some earrings. I have some really cute owl beads I wanted to use, so I tried a few different things in an attempt at earrings I like. Most didn’t work out as I envisioned but what I ended with looks okay.

Owl bead earrings on wandasknottythoughts
Owl bead earrings

The split rings have a tendency to twist, but that’s the nature of split rings. They are fun to wear.

When you think of fall, Halloween, or Thanksgiving, pumpkins come to mind. I came up with these earrings.

Orange pumpkin earrings on wandasknottythoughts
Orange pumpkin earrings

I think I’ve seen patterns for pumpkins similar to these, but this is my take on them. I gave them to one of my daughters, who was thrilled to get them. She has a sweater that they look great with. Sometimes I get things right!

I’ve been working on several other tatted things, but I’m not quite ready to share them yet. So I’ll share a few pictures of our most recent vacation.

We spent the last week of September in Colorado with another couple. We rented a house together in Grand Lake, an area we’ve been to several times, but the first time in town. It was a terrific house with beautiful views.

The view south from the deck on wandasknottythoughts
The view south from the deck

This is the view south from the deck of the house, overlooking Shadow Mountain Lake. The colors were wonderful! I took pictures from this vantage every day so I can look back and see the changes in the trees. We loved the time we spent on the deck.

A magpie on the post on wandasknottythoughts
A magpie on the post

We had several magpies that came around the house daily and entertained us with their antics. Between the cost of gas and eating out, we spent a lot of time at the house instead of traveling around the area as we usually do. This was not a hardship. We took turns cooking which somehow is not so much of a burden when shared with friends. We also enjoy playing cards together, something we do every year on vacation with them. This year we just played a lot more.

I didn’t get much chance to tat while we were at the house but I took advantage of the chances I did have.

Tatting with a view on wandasknottythoughts
Tatting with a view

I sat by the big picture window to tat so I could enjoy the view and the light. It did rain a few times while we were there as you can see by the drops on the window.

Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park on wandasknottythoughts
Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park on wandasknottythoughts

One of the reasons we like the area around Grand Lake is how close it is to Rocky Mountain National Park. This gives us a chance to go into the park to see the wildlife, mostly the elk. We go in the fall so we can hear the elk bugle during the rut. It is exciting to hear!

On our way home from Grand Lake, we caught sight of a herd of bighorn sheep. Amazingly, they were on the outskirts of the Colorado town of Empire. They were obviously used to traffic, just keeping an eye on us but not running away.

Big horn sheep in Colorado on wandasknottythoughts
Big horn sheep in Colorado

FYI, we do not approach too close to wildlife. We keep a safe distance from the animals to take pictures, usually staying in the vehicle. These sheep were very close, but we never got out of the truck.

We’ve had a hot and dry summer here, and most of the state is in extreme or exceptional drought. This morning we awoke to rain! It was not heavy and not much of it, but the right kind. If it had been much heavier it would have just run off instead of sinking into the ground. We’re hoping for more, but we will take what we can get. Sunday we had high winds with a lot of blowing dust and temperatures in the upper 80’s. Today the highs are supposed to be about 55° F with much less wind. Maybe autumn is finally here!

“Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.” Anthony J. D’Angelo

A tatting observer

This year on our vacation we stayed at the same cabin we did two years ago, beside Lake Granby, Colorado. The colors were changing, showing us a lot of fall colors in the trees and brush. We did have to detour both coming and going due to the forest fires around the state, but we were never in danger from them. The air was smoky causing the mountain views to look hazy most of the time. This did not stop us from enjoying our stay.

View from the porch on wandasknottythougths
View from the porch

The view from the porch was still mostly green, but very inviting. We drove around to see the colors but spent a lot of our time at the cabin or fishing in Lake Monarch. I had a bit more time to tat and watch the wildlife. Do you see the two Stellar’s jays in the tree?

Some of the wild life was more friendly than others. The jays and the nuthatch liked checking us out to see if we left anything for them, but the ground squirrels and chipmunks were braver.

Curious ground squirrel checking out my tatting on wandasknottythoughts
Curious ground squirrel checking out my tatting

This ground squirrel wasn’t sure just what I was doing while I was tatting, so came to check out the situation.

Curious ground squirrel What are you doing? on wandasknottythoughts
“Do you have something for me?”

I kept telling him I didn’t have any food, but he didn’t believe me.

Curious ground squirrel 3 on wandasknottythoughts
He kept on getting closer to see what I was doing

Do you see those cheeks of his? He would get seeds and stuff himself, but was so greedy he kept coming back to see if I had anything.

Curious ground squirrel 4 on wandasknottythoughts
He really wanted to know if I had something for him

I know he was looking for food but he really, really wanted to see what I was doing. I love sharing tatting and showing others how it’s done, but I’m pretty sure the squirrel wasn’t getting it.

This guy and several other ground squirrels and a handful of chipmunks kept us entertained the entire week with their antics and curiosity. These little guys were friendly from the time we got there. One of our friends fed them with critter food (nuts and seeds) so they became more and more friendly as the week went on.

Two years ago we saw a lot of moose and a fox at the cabin, this year we saw neither. We were sad that we didn’t see the fox this time, though it didn’t look young then. There were also a lot more people at the lake this year. A lot more. With the dry weather and wind, we also dealt with a lot more dust. This doesn’t mean we didn’t enjoy our stay – we did!

I always look forward to our getting away for vacation, and seeing the wildlife is a bonus. And even more so when they are up close and personal!

“I have great instincts, like the instincts of a squirrel. You know, like when you’re driving and a squirrel stops in the middle of the road.” Simon Helberg

What to tat while on vacation

Every year before vacation I start thinking about what I will take to tat while we are away. What thread, what patterns, what findings if necessary, and how many shuttles. And every year, when it’s actually time to leave, my mind goes blank. Maybe because there are so many other things to think about, but whatever the cause, it happens. This year I had thought I would be working on my china hutch edgings. Surprisingly, I had them all done before we left. The unfortunate part is that now I had to think of something else to take with me.

I checked what threads I had on shuttles, to see if any would inspire me to finish off those threads. It would be a handy way to empty them, right? I looked through my thread collection to see if any of them would spark an idea to create a new project. I tried to think back on my wish list of patterns I wanted to try (I wish I wrote them down!). I really didn’t want to take half of my thread or shuttle stash with me this time.

I finally settled on the green I had used for my recent ice drop, as both shuttles still had thread on them; a ball of Lizbeth 129, Purple Splender, because it looked fun; and a few others that tickled my fancy at the time. I also brought a small selection of findings in case I wanted to make earrings.

Vacation purple doodle on wandasknottythoughts
Vacation purple doodle

Just to get the juices flowing, I started with a little doodle in Purple Splender. The finding in the center I had recently picked up at JoAnn’s thinking they would be good for earrings. Not a bad doodle, but I only made one. So I put it on my billfold.

vac purple doodle on billfold on wandasknottythoughts
Vacation purple doodle on my billfold

Then I doodled a bit more. I’m thinking I might try and put this on my billfold as well.

Vacation doodle 2 wandaknottythougthts
The second vacation doodle

Then I picked up the shuttles with the green thread from the ice drop. And then I added just a little more thread because it got bigger. And then I added just a little bit more thread again because I thought I was almost done. Then I wasn’t, so added thread one more time.

Vacation snowflake 2020 on wandasknottythoughts
Vacation snowflake 2020

This snowflake is the end result. I noticed that it has some kind of stain in the center after I had gone on to the second round. Not sure what it is, but it doesn’t want to come out. As this was tatted by a lake and while on a pontoon boat day trip, I didn’t get it cleaned and didn’t worry about it. I have no pictures of the individual rounds as I did them, just this one is as finished. Not bad for doodling.

I enjoyed some beautiful scenery while on vacation this year. We like to go in September to see the Aspens while they change into their fall colors and we were not disappointed this year.

Colorado River from Lake Granby on wandasknottythoughts
View from a pontoon

Though the water levels of Lake Granby and the Colorado River were down a long way, it was still fun to mosey up the river while the guys fished and relax in the quiet and beauty of a pontoon trip.

Tatting at Lake Monarch on wandasknottythoughts
Tatting at Lake Monarch

This is the view I enjoyed while tatting beside Monarch Lake.

Hiking trail by Monarch Lake on wandasknottythoughts
Hiking trail by Monarch Lake

I did not take my tatting along when I hiked a little ways up this trail. The colors were so splendid and changed a little bit every day I could have gone back daily while we were there.

I have a lot more vacation photos I’d love to share, and I will share a few next week. Including one of an interested observer of my tatting.

“Perhaps the truth depends on a walk around the lake.” Wallace Stevens

Pink vacation doily

Pink vacation doily start on wandaasknottythoughts
Pink vacation doily start

I started this doily on the trip home from our Colorado vacation this year. The thread is size 10 Lizbeth #621 Dusty Rose Light. I hadn’t realized it was size 10 when I grabbed the ball before the vacation, but I was glad it was. It made it much easier to see and work with while traveling, as it was cloudy and rainy almost all the way home causing the light to be a bit uncertain. The larger size thread and the light color were great to work with in those conditions.

I came up with this center, not certain it was just a center. When I got this far I decided I’d try another round, see where it went.

Pink vacation doily round 4 on wandasknottythoughts
Pink vacation doily round 4

My aim while tatting this was to keep it simple, something to keep my hands busy and still see some of the passing scenery without having to think too hard. I know that the scenery along I80 in western Nebraska isn’t all that interesting, but you never know what you might see when traveling. This fourth round fit the bill of not having to think too much.

Then it was a question of “is this done?” I decided the answer was “no” and tried another round.

Pink vacation doily 5th round on wandasknottythoughts
Pink vacation doily 5th round

This round was easy also, the most complicated part – besides keeping the count right – was the Josephine rings and they aren’t hard.  I think this last round gives it a nice finished look. The size 10 thread leaves it at about 5 1/2 inches across.

I want to do this in size 20 though that will make the overall size smaller. I suppose it can be a coaster instead of a doily.

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

I resemble this remark 🙂

Colorado tatting

The last week of September my husband and I joined some friends of ours for a week in a cabin in Colorado. We have vacationed with this couple multiple times, they are very long time friends. Like all the other times we’ve vacationed with them, we had a fantastic time.

During the eight hour drive from our place to Fort Collins, Colorado where we spent our first night, I did a little tatting.

Blue thread medallion with finding center on wandasknottythoughts
Blue thread medallion with finding center

For all that I try to have a variety of tatting threads and miscellaneous items with me when we travel, I’m never sure what I’m going to work on after we leave the house.  Once we were on the road and I delved into my travel stash I found this finding and a shuttle that had this size 20 blue Lizbeth thread. I had thought to bring the ball with me so was able to tat this piece. I finished it the first evening.

After we started through the mountains I didn’t tat much due to the marvelous view. I had been afraid all the aspens and willows would have already changed colors and possibly dropped all their leaves before we got there this year – we are two to three weeks later in the year than usual – but there was plenty of fall colors still showing. We were so busy that I barely touched my tatting for several days.

Dark purple medallion on wandasknottythoughts
Dark purple medallion

The next time I picked up my shuttles I made this small medallion in purple size 20. This was not a good choice to tat with. It is such a dark color it was hard to see the stitches while in the cabin, especially when I made a mistake and had to untat. I did finally get it done.

Pink vacation doily in size 10 on wandasknottythoughts
Pink vacation doily in size 10

The next time I started a project I chose the lightest color thread I had with me, size 10 light pink. I hadn’t realized it was size 10 at first, but it was a good choice. I started this on the way home and didn’t finish it until after we got home. This picture is not of the finished doily, I’ll share that later.

The cabin we stayed at had several chipmunks that were extremely friendly. We could see right away that had been fed before. My friend immediately decided to buy a bag of critter food (seeds, peanuts, corn). These little critters kept us entertained the whole week with their antics.

Chipmunk advice on wandasknottythoughts
Chipmunk advice

I had one chipmunk come to check out my tatting. When he saw it wasn’t anything to eat he abandoned me in search of more tasteful things.

Curious fox on wandasknottythoughts
Curious fox

We had another visitor. This fox would come by twice a day. He would pose for us and gave us time to admire him through the cabin windows.

Bull elk in Rocky Mountain National Park on wandasknottythoughts
Bull elk in Rocky Mountain National Park

Our cabin is on one end of Grand Lake, just down the road from the west entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park. We bought a seven-day pass, which we used every day. There is a campground about 10 miles inside the par where it is very common to see elk, usually in the evening. One evening this magnificent bull elk was there keeping an eye on his harem. At one point he and one of his ladies ran past our truck so close he almost scratched the paint with his horns.

The trail to Cascade Falls on wandasknottythoughts
The trail to Cascade Falls

My husband and I took a hike one day on the trail to Cascade Falls. Did I mention that there was still a lot of fall color to be seen?

Colorado River west of Grand Lake on wandasknottythoughts
Colorado River west of Grand Lake

This is the Colorado River just before it enters Shadow Mountain Lake. My husband stopped the truck in the middle of the road so we could get this picture. The only thing I did to this picture is crop it to get rid of the window frame. I can hardly believe these gorgeous colors are real.

The timing for our vacation was right on. We caught the color change when we thought we would miss it. The weather was pretty warm for the end of September, but not hot. One week after we got home Trail Ridge Road, the highway through RMNP over the continental divide, closed due to snow.

It was such a wonderful vacation. But like all good things, it had to come to an end. We are now back to work with only memories – and a lot of pictures – to remind us of our beautiful week in the mountains.

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree.” Emily Bronte

Vacation tatting

We had a little change in scenery last week – a whole week in the Colorado mountains. I took advantage of the beautiful weather to tat outside last Tatting Tea Tuesday. Here I’m enjoying a glass of grape/peach juice while tatting on the porch of the cabin we lived in for a week at Rainbow Lake Resort, a few miles west of Buena Vista, Colorado, on the road to Cottonwood Pass. The cabins over look a lake surrounded by mountains covered in pine and aspen. The trees were turning while we were there, every day bringing new fall color to our temporary home.
I was pretty busy enjoying the novelty of being in the mountains but still managed to tat a bit. The white piece was actually made while my husband drove us out here. It’s made with Lizbeth size 10 in 602 Natural (almost white) with red glass beads. It was just to be tatting as I was too busy thinking about where we were going to have much thought of what I was tatting. The other piece is Lizbeth size 20 in 122 Caribbean and 658 Ocean Turquoise Light with red glass beads. I was practicing looped tatted rings through the beads, which I think I have the hang of, at least for now.
But most of the time we were busy enjoying the change of scenery. This is my husband and I enjoying the view on our way up to Saint Elmo.
This is an easy part of Lost Canyon Road. We rented a Jeep to go up this road, which got a bit rougher higher up.
These beautiful trees are a short walk up the creek from our cabin. I took this about 7:00 AM on my morning walk while everyone else in the cabin was still sleeping.
Looking west over Rainbow Lake at sunset. We had a whole week of this.
Today for Tatting Tea Tuesday I’m enjoying a cup of Country Peach tea and looking over pictures from last week, trying to decide which pictures to share – there are so many! It was very hard to come home! The weather was great, and the company was better. We shared a cabin with some old friends of ours and had the most wonderful time. We’re all looking forward to another vacation together.
“If you come home as happy as you leave, you have had a good vacation.”

A Try at a Butterfly and other things

I see a lot of beautiful tatting done with beads as I surf through blogs. Now I don’t do much with beads for several reasons, the foremost being that it’s not very portable, at least for me. But a friend asked me to make a butterfly and an idea came to mind that would look pretty with beads. This is the result, what I had mentioned I was working on last week. This is made in Lizbeth size 20, black for the body and Caribbean for the wings, with 10/0 seed beads. I’m counting this as #11 of my second 25 Motif Challenge – it certainly was a challenge for me!

A mini vacation
My husband and I took a long weekend and went to Colorado this last week. Our timing was great as the aspens are in the midst of changing their colors for fall. It was gorgeous in the mountains! We stayed in a Bed and Breakfast called The Ice Palace. We had a wonderful stay there. I highly recommend it if you ever want to spent the night in Leadville.
Leadville’s elevation is recorded as being 10,152 feet, which took us a little while to get used to. We also went up to Independence Pass, which is a little bit higher : )

We enjoyed a guided horseback ride from Mega Mountain Magic that had some pretty magical views. We don’t ride much so at the end of our two and a half hour ride I was glad to be done, but sad at the same time. You know the views are wonderful when your guide stops to take pictures, too!
We drove up to Weston pass and stopped once in awhile to enjoy the colorful roadsides.

The road did get kind of rough. But it was worth every mile!

It was a wonderful, long weekend with just the two of us this time. Quite a difference from the trip we made to Washington, DC earlier in the year. Each trip was great in it’s own way and I’m fortunate to be able to have done both this year.

Rooibos was the tea for today. I sipped several cups this morning as I finished off a bookmark and went through vacation pictures. A wonderful start to the day even though I have to go back to work this afternoon.

May all of you have a wonderful week and enjoy a little tea and tatting if you can.