In several of my recent posts I’ve talked about using a SSSCh to make points in chains (LWML Logo, Practice points, and Still on Point). I’ve shared the motifs and earrings I’ve made with them both here and on Facebook and had a lot of requests about how I did them. Ninetta Caruso has done a photo example on her blog ninettacaruso.blogspot.com from 7 June 2019 about making them, which is where I went to learn how to do them.
In light of all the requests, I’ve decided I’ll try something new and do a video of how I’ve done them. In the video I use a second shuttle to make the SSSCh but it can be done with finger tatting if you’d rather.
This video has no audio except for the click of the shuttle, so no sound is needed. I’d love to hear from any who watch it on how it played, if there were any problems, and if it was helpful. This is my first try at this and I’m hoping it goes well.
This is also the first time I’ve tried anything on Youtube. Look at me, doing something new and scary, LOL!
It wasn’t intentional, really. I was making a thread sample for a friend to take with her to look for material and ended up with some of the thread left on the shuttle. On a whim, I decided to do another small motif and ended up with points again.
Another 12 point medallion
I made the center and thought it was too small so did the next round. It was okay but I still had thread left so I played with different ideas for another round. Several were cut off as I didn’t like them before this one.
If this was blocked with pins instead of just dampened and laid flat the outside round would look more even. As this was just for fun I haven’t done that yet. If ever. I like the look the way it looks just as it is.
I have gone from having no real plans on what to tat next to having several. This is a good thing, as I’ve been a bit in limbo on what I want to work on. One of these days I may take my own advice and make a list of things I want to make so I don’t forget. Then I’d always have an idea for the next project. Right?
My mother is going through a lot of things with the thought of selling her house and my sister and I are helping. We have come across so many things that bring back many memories. We are also taking items to second hand stores, keeping some things we can use or want to save, or disposing of them in other manners, as dictated by their use or sentimental value. But some things are a surprise.
Box of miscellaneous laces
Somewhere, probably some garage sale, my mother found this box of miscellaneous laces. I took it first to see if there was anything I might want and them I’ll give it to my sister. She does a lot of sewing and can probably use most of them. I like lace but have no need for nearly this much. But I found some interesting things while looking through the box.
Crocheted lace found
I don’t crochet myself, but I’m pretty sure that’s handmade crochet mixed in with the machine-made lace.
19 crocheted lace 2
It looks like the lace is attached to the blue ribbon, but it’s not. I haven’t unwrapped any of them so I don’t know how much is there. But a lot of work and time are wrapped around these pieces of cardboard.
There was also some tatting in the box.
Tatting found in the box of laceCloseup of the tatting from the box of lace
There are 54 inches of the red, single-shuttle tatting, maybe made for an insert? The doily is 7 1/2 inches across with a material center of 3 inches across. The picture makes it look very stained, but it is still damp from a quick blocking done so I could see what it looks like. The doily center seems a bit too big for the tatting, but if properly blocked it might be better.
I don’t know if my mom knew about the tatting or not, but I doubt it. She would have mentioned it to me I’m sure. A nice surprise to find it.
I also found the earring wires that Marie sent me! They were on different earrings than I thought they were, and if they had been a snake I would have been bitten several times while looking for them.
Angel wing earrings on
These are my Angle Wing pattern made in Lizbeth Metallic #HN20325 Gem Stone. These are bigger earrings than I usually wear and the color does not show up well with my hair color. But they were fun to do, so why not? And the earring wires make it easy to change out with other things.
It’s fun finding things you weren’t looking for. And in those you are.
I’ve been busy with many things other than tatting over the last few months as you can probably tell by my lack of blogging. I’ve thought about trying to post more often, then something else comes up. Then I lost the habit. So let’s see if I can find it again.
I had planned to go to the zone meeting of our LWML and was working on the earrings of the logo. I didn’t get to go to the meeting but I still like the earrings. Marie, from West Pine Creations, was so sweet and sent me earring wires that are easy to change out so I can wear them.
LWML logo with changeable earring wires
You might notice that the two earrings are not quite the same. I had a pair with the gold wires Marie sent me, which I wore, then put in a safe place. So safe I don’t remember where I put them. I know they didn’t go far. These two are my practice pieces, working out what stitch count I liked best. I would have made me another pair but ran into a bit of a setback.
A bit of a setback
The ball of Lizbeth #HH20641 Lilac Dk thread somehow got tangled badly. It might have something to do with being put in my purse and it getting out of the bag it was in… I wasn’t about to cut off and toss if I could untangle it, but that did put me off of working with it for a bit. So I started something else.
I still can’t get the points of the hearts to look the same every time so thought I would practice the SSSCh (suspended chain). You have to have a chain to practice it, so I made something with chains.
12-point SSSCh practice
I had a shuttle with Lizbeth Twirlz HH20403 Winter Ice that was left over from something or other so I used it. I came to the conclusion this wasn’t the best choice for this type of practice. It isn’t always easy to see the stitch count with this type of thread. But once I started I finished it. I do see an improvement.
When this was finished I liked the look so much I thought I’d do it again. It reminds me of a flower so the next one was made to look more like one.
12-pt SSSCh flower
As you might notice, I did get the Lilac Dark untangled. I didn’t spend a lot of time blocking this, just enough to have it lay flat. The petals are a bit uneven-looking that might be alleviated with better blocking though it looks good the way it is. The yellow thread is Lizbeth #HH20616 Daffodil Med.
(Has anyone else noted that Lizbeth thread numbers now indicated the size? The balls of thread I have don’t have the HHxx before the color number but I like how it is in the catalog. Makes it easy to know you have the size you want.)
Our life has maybe slowed back down a bit but I can’t say it’s back to normal. My husband has just changed shifts at work. We used to be able to drive together and see each other a lot. Now, it’s just in passing most days. This is a temporary change, at least for now. We’ll see how things go. And I’ll see if I get more or less things done with more personal time on my hands, LOL.
‘Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.‘ Anton Chekhov on brainyquote.com
The Zone meeting for my local LWML group is coming up at the end of April and I am wanting to wear a tatted version of the LWML logo. I am revisiting the one I made back in June of 2019, which I posted about on my wandasknottythoughts Facebook page but never here.
Tatted LWML logo
This logo was adopted by the LWML (Lutheran Women in Mission) in 2017. While coming back on the bus from the 2019 convention in Mobile, Alabama I came up with how to tat it but haven’t done it since. I wanted to do this again for the meeting but I forgot how I did the point of the heart.
When I posted the first version of this on Facebook back in June of 2019 Ninetta Caruso of Chiacchierino facilissimo suggested I check out her post on different ways to turn corners. Great post on how to do a suspended chain, or SSSCh (June 7, 2019). I went back to her post this week to remind myself how to do this.
Practice of suspended chain
When using size 10 thread I had no problem with the SSSCh technique. I made quite a few corners and most came out very well. So I went on to make the heart of the logo in size 20 thread and ran into problems. Whether it is the difference in thread size or that I was actually making something I’m not sure, but I had a lot of trouble getting it to come out looking nice. I threw all those examples away and tried again.
What size should they be?
I think I’ve finally gotten the hang of the SSSCh for the hearts, now I need to determine how big should each element be. I’m still working on that. I haven’t decided how to wear this either, on what backing should it be? I’ll figure it out, I still have a couple of weeks.
“The symbol was created with this in mind; one that represents the members of both the LWML and the church. A heart to represent the love and giving nature of the members; a drop to symbolize the blood of Christ and a tear of compassion, and a cross above all else to proudly show purpose behind the efforts of the LWML.” LWML.org
On April 1 I was able to tat in public. It isn’t always easy to get out this year to do so, but much easier than last year. I would have like to be in a slightly better spot, but being out was better than not going at all.
Tatting in public on ITD 2021
I invited my sister to go with me to a local coffee shop called Norm’s. The place was pretty busy so my choice of sitting was limited. Though no-one stopped to talk, my sister and I enjoyed a lovely visit.
My sister’s birthday was several weeks ago. She found out she had been exposed to a confirmed case of COVID 19 the day before, so instead of taking her out to celebrate then, she was quarantined. The good news is she didn’t didn’t get it! So we celebrated it on International Tatting Day.
After visiting at Norm’s for a while I took her to lunch. With the last year the way it’s been, we haven’t had the opportunity to get together much. The time flew by, making the morning seem very short.
For her birthday I gave her a bracelet I made of Liz Metallic # 319 Turquoise Blue.
Bracelet in Turquoise Blue Liz Metallic
I like this thread but it does tat a bit different than cotton thread. I notice this a lot on the chains, especially when they are long chains. It still came out well, and she was excited to get it. This is one of her favorite colors. It is a simple pattern but the metallic thread gives it a fancy look.
We had a wonderful time and I got to tat in public. Not a bad way to spend International Tatting Day. And there was chocolate.
‘Frequent conversations will fill your heart with joy.’ From a fortune cookie
Saying ‘bookmark and scissors’ together gives the impression of something bad happening, but that’s not what happened. It’s all good!
I’ve been thinking of what I might do for International Tatting Day and came up with the idea of making a few tatted buttons that I might give away. They are quick and fun and look pretty, a fun way to introduce or expose people to tatting. While looking through my thread, and different places I’ve put thread, I found a bag with a mess of threads in it – as in a terrible tangle. While de-tangling all of them, I found an almost finished cross bookmark.
Cross bookmark on Grandma’s Bible
After finishing the bookmark all it needed was a spritz of water to flatten it back out. It was a bit curled up, but it came out great. Just in time for Easter. I’d been thinking about making one for my mother, and there it was!
The scissors were found by my wonderful husband. He randomly will look for things he thinks I might like and found this lovely pair for sale on-line.
Scissors with crosses
Aren’t these an interesting pair of scissors? I don’t know much about them except they look like they have been used a lot. I didn’t find any makers marks on them. They are not exactly thread scissors as they are too large. I tried cutting some thread scraps and they cut very cleanly. A bit stiff but that might be remedied.
I didn’t know I had a scissors collection, but I must have. This isn’t the first pair he’s bought me. He’s such a sweety! Now I need a way to display them, right?
I’m hoping things go well for Thursday, April 1, ITD. If all goes as planned I will tat in public, sip on a tasty beverage, and share chocolates.
Let everything you do be done in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14
Last week I thought I wouldn’t be decorating any Easter eggs with tatting. But during the week I found the box that had the fake eggs I bought several years ago. Then I decorated them with just a touch of tatting, not encasing them. This year I was inspired by so many people encasing the eggs with tatting that I decided to give it a try.
Decorated egg for Easter 2021
This is tatted with Lizbeth # 662, Turquoise Lt., a ball that was in a box of miscellaneous tatting things I found in my craft room, one of many such boxes. This color was found in one of the first boxes I went through that day and goes well with the pink egg.
More of the top of the egg
This egg is the size of a real hen’s egg. Doesn’t it look real? It is light but not fragile like a real egg; I didn’t have to worry about dropping it. (Drop it? Me?!) If I did this pattern again I would definitely change the very top, so that each ring of the next round could attach to it. The second round does stay up okay, but I think it would look better joined to the top. This is my pattern, made in four rounds plus the bare thread used to sew the top and the bottom together.
When this one was finished, I tried something else on a much smaller, wooden egg.
Small decorated wooden egg
This one is made with only two rounds, a bottom round with the top added next, then a thread going through each of the picots of the top to enclose the egg. I don’t use a picot gauge very often but I did while making this. Did you notice that the egg isn’t painted? I thought about painting it, but decided I’d rather just leave it as is.
The two eggs side by side
I used the same thread on both. It looks about right on the larger egg but a smaller thread would have been better on the small one, don’t you think? Give it a more delicate look.
Easter egg size difference
I have these eggs hanging from the bottom of the light shade next to my computer. Other than that I don’t have any Easter or spring decorations out. As I have the decorated eggs from 2016, maybe I’ll put those out as well. Will I decorate any more? I’m not sure.
International tatting day is coming up on April 1st, just over a week away. I’m still trying to decide if I’m going to do anything special for it, or just make sure I have chocolate and time to tat. How about you? Any plans?
