What to do with bracelets

While at a second-hand store a while back I found a bundle of bangle bracelets for a couple of dollars. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with them at the time, but I was sure I could come up with something. So I bought them.

Bangle bracelet on wandasknottythoughts
Bangle bracelet on wandasknottythoughts

They were all about the same diameter but different thicknesses. I washed them and then sprayed them with a clear sealer so they wouldn’t tarnish or discolor any threads I might use. I set them aside until I could think about what to do with them.

I have seen people make dream catchers out of almost anything that is round but that didn’t appeal to me at the moment. A few years ago I attached snowflakes in the center, however, I wanted to try something a bit different than that.

Ring of purple on wandasknottythoughts
Ring of purple

I like this idea of joined rings on the outside, though it is kind of tedious joining those rings together. Then I ran out of thread and can’t find the ball. Okaaay, so on to something else.

Ring with spokes in the middle on wandasknottythoughts
Ring with spokes in the middle

How about rings and chains on the inside? I tatted on the ring with size 10 thread and added the first round of chains in 10 also. The rings and chains on the next round are in size 20. These two rounds were done multiple times as I tried getting a stitch count that didn’t buckle and crowd each other. Then what was I going to do in the middle? The spokes hold it tight and give it an interesting look.

Ring of flowers on wandasknottythoughts
Ring of flowers and butterflies

The idea of putting flowers on the ring was something that kept coming back to me, but what flowers and how to attach them to the ring? I covered the ring and did the chain on the outside while I thought about it. Then I played around with leaf ideas while I thought about it. The flowers and butterflies were made with the shuttle leftovers from other projects, so I just chose the colors I thought would work. I laid them on the ring with the leaves several ways before I attached them. I used fabric glue instead of trying to sew them on. Much easier than trying to sew them on.

3 Rings on wandasknottythoughts
3 Rings

So what do I do with these rings now? I will finish the purple one whenever I find the thread, but then what? This one and the one with flowers could be picture frames I suppose. Or just hang all of them up as is as decorations the way they are? Hmmm, I’ll have to think about that.

This weekend, after many delays and postponements, I was finally able to meet up with Sherry Ashberger, a fellow Kansas tatter. She contacted me years ago through my blog with the suggestion of meeting her somewhere halfway between where we live. That never worked out because of our schedules at the time. A few months ago she emailed me again with the suggestion of getting together. Things beyond our control kept us postponing a meet until at last this last weekend it worked out!

Sherry and I on wandasknottythoughts
Me and Sherry

Sherry has skills with drawing programs and she thinks she might be able to assist me with diagramming my patterns. What a great idea! We met up at a local Freddy’s and visited for several hours. It was so wonderful to finally, finally get to meet! I think we’ll be seeing more of each other.

I get no compensation for mentioning Freddy’s

My apple tree bloomed from the last week or so of March through the beginning of April. I thought I’d lose all chance at apples with a late frost, but I had a lot of blooms after, so I’ll probably have a few. Whether I’ll get any apples or the birds and bugs will get them all is yet to be seen. But the blossoms were gorgeous!

Apple blossoms on wandasknottythoughts
Apple blossoms

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Design is knowing which ones to keep.” —Scott Adams

Off to the Races!

We were invited to go with my husband’s family to a local Catholic school auction fundraiser this last Saturday. It’s a pretty big deal and they go all out for it. The theme was ‘Off to the Races’, as in, the horse races.

Off to the races on wandasknottythoughts
Off to the races, ready for the crowd

You don’t have to dress up with the theme, but where’s the fun if you don’t?

Jack and I all dressed for the races on wandasknottythoughts
Jack and I all dressed for the races

When I think of horse racing I think of the Kentucky Derby, where I’ve seen (in pictures and on TV) the ladies dress up in fancy hats and outfits, and the guys wear bowties. For us ladies, my sister-in-law and I went to my mother’s house where she graciously allowed us to choose from her many hats. We chose a couple of hats and one for her friend that was also going to be there. We had a lot of fun, almost like playing dress-up just choosing them.

That was the easy part. Now for the bowties. My mother had one bow tie, a clip-on, that my husband wore, but I needed four more (I volunteered). I had hoped that it being prom season there would be someplace local that would have inexpensive (cheap) bowties, but I couldn’t find any place at all that carried any bow ties. My next choice was to make some. I checked out Pinterest and found a few places that had patterns and ideas, so it was off to the store for some material and the findings I’d need.

I chose to get materials in black and white with a mix of small patterns. I know I can use leftovers for other things, at some point. I had a list of items I thought I needed, so that was quick. It wasn’t until I got home that I realized I was getting too complicated. I’d be lucky if the guys would put them on in the first place, let alone wear them the entire evening. I ended up just folding the material, ironing it to shape, and hand stitching a few stitches to hold them together.

Bow ties in black and white on wandasknottythoughts
Bow ties in black and white

I didn’t find any of the clips to hold them to the collars so I used black strips of material with velcro on the ends. I ironed interfacing to the material and folded the edges in. By the time Saturday came around and I needed to finish them, I realized the band around the neck would be hidden so they didn’t have to be that finished. I think they came out very well.

Two guys in bow ties on wandasknottythoughts
Two guys in bow ties

My husband’s brother came to the dinner in a Hawaiin shirt, shorts, and sandals but he let me help him put on one of the ties. He wore it all night! My husband was the only one of the five guys at our table who even tried to dress up for the theme, but all of them wore the bow ties all night. I was very surprised – and pleased. They didn’t even put up much of a fight, LOL.

Family in hats and bow ties on wandasknottythoughts
Family in hat and bow tie

There were some people, men and women, that really got into dressing up. There were others, like us, that kind of dressed up, and a few that didn’t. It was a lot of fun watching the crowd.

The school has done fundraising auctions every year for years, with a different theme each year. This is the first time my husband and I have gone. The school had both a silent auction, which was online before dinner and a live auction after dinner. I won several items in the silent auction I didn’t expect to. We didn’t even try to win anything in the live auction, the items were bid up pretty high pretty fast. It was fun to watch, though.

Besides making the bow ties for the dinner this last week was very busy, with no time to tat. The grandkids have had several track meets each and I’ve helped at my mom’s house. I’m hoping this week is a bit quieter.

We’ve also had some severe weather close by in the last few days. Friday was the first time I’d ever gotten a dust storm warning. When the cold front came through there was a dramatic drop in temperature and with it came the dust. Down the road visibility dropped to zero due to dust.

Dust storm on wandasknottythoughts
Dust storm

The camera cleaned up this picture a bit, it was much worse than it shows. If you were outside it immediately became harder to breathe. The front carried this dust a long way. We didn’t have a tornado, but you may have heard that the town of Anderdover was hit by one the same day we had the dust storm. That is south of us, and just east of my daughter’s house. The threat of severe weather was close enough that we stayed ready to head for the storm shelter all evening but the wind and the dust were the worst we experienced that night.

We have threats of severe weather again tonight. For the next several hours we’ll be watching the weather, ready for whatever comes – or doesn’t. But what should I expect, I live in Kansas and it’s spring.

Thank you to everyone that expressed their condolences about my family. It is greatly appreciated.

“To its devotees the bowtie suggests iconoclasm of an Old World sort, a fusty adherence to a contrarian point of view. The bowtie hints at intellectualism, real or feigned, and sometimes suggests technical acumen, perhaps because it is so hard to tie. BowTies are worn by magicians, country doctors, lawyers and professors and by people hoping to look like the above. But perhaps most of all, wearing a bow tie is a way of broadcasting an aggressive lack of concern for what other people think.” Warren St. John

Sympathy Tatting

Since the last time I posted, we have had two deaths in the family. Neither was unexpected, but it still means many things have to be done in a short amount of time including the viewings, the funerals, the dinners, and the family visits. In one case there was taking care of bills and property and other associated issues after. Sad times with a lot of family get-togethers with many happy memories shared.

During all this, I have done quite a bit of tatting but without a lot of computer time to share them. Things may be slowing down a bit, finally, with other, more normal, happenings to take up my time now. Grandkid sports for one thing – or two, or three. I’ve been able to get tatting done but again, not a lot of computer time.

Something I’ve been making a lot of lately is my newest cross. I call it March SR Cross because I’m so ‘good’ at coming up with cool and memorable names for my tatting.

March SR Cross on wandasknottythoughts
March SR Cross

Those of you familiar with my August SR Cross may notice some similarities with this one. The March one is based on the August SR cross but the center is different. The center on this one is layered over the main body, which is pretty, though I don’t know that I’d want to keep it in the center of my Bible.

I made it in several colors, mostly two shades of green, and pink and blue.

March SR Cross in green on wandasknottythoughts
March SR Cross in green

I made them to give out in the sympathy cards, and to other family members.

Cross with card on wandasknottythoghts
March SR Cross with card

I usually add a bit of tatting to the card as well, mostly butterflies and single-ring flowers aroundd the words. This time I added a bit more.

Additions to the sympathy card on wandasknottythoughts
Additions to the sympathy card

The card had plenty of open space and I had a few minutes. It’s nice that a small amount of thread can add that little bit extra to make a card personal.

I’ve been working on the pattern for the new cross in fits and starts. I think it’s about ready, I just need to tat through it to see if it works. It helps that most of it has been done already with the August cross, but that different middle is a bit tricky to re-diagram.

There are several more things I’ve been tatting that are only partially done and I have several more patterns that I’d like to write out. Plus the grandkids will be keeping me busy with sports and visits. This is the kind of busy I enjoy.

“No matter how prepared you think you are for the death of a loved one, it still comes as a shock, and it still hurts very deeply.” Billy Graham

Decorated Eggs

It is spring! At least the calendar shows that, though lately, it’s been hard to tell. One morning you get up and there’s snow on the ground, the next day it’s 70 degrees. The grass and the trees are greening up, so I hope the cold weather is done. A little rain would be nice. The only thing consistent seems to be the wind. Tomorrow is another day of high wind gusts and very high fire danger, not just here but from Arizona and New Mexico all the way up to South Dakota. Hang on to your hats!

I’ve been doing a lot of tatting the last few weeks. Not necessarily a lot to show, but putting knots in thread steadily. Some things have worked out, some have not. Being the Easter season I have done a little egg decorating and that has worked out – mostly.

Decorated eggs on wandasknottythoughts
This year’s decorated eggs

I did the egg in purple first. It has a mistake that shall remain hidden on the back of the egg. I did not do enough repeats on the bottom tatting to match the top so the bare thread stitching does not match up correctly. The bottom would have looked much better if I had done it right. As I made it just to be making it, it is just fine the way it is. I used Lizbeth # 632 Purple Med in size 20.

I made the pink one next. I used a thread I was given by a neighbor that his wife had used. It is DMC #224 Shell Pink – Very Light in size 10. I wouldn’t usually use size 10 on eggs of this size, but it was handy and I was feeling a bit nostalgic. I had taught my neighbor’s wife how to tat years ago and still feel her loss. I used the medallion pattern that I designed five years ago for Palmetto Tat Days. Figuring out how to hold these to the egg proved interesting.

The light blue egg is done in Lizbeth # 651 Med Blue in size 20. I had been using this for something else I was working on and had some left on the shuttles. I used the same medallion pattern, but it fits much differently when done in size 20 than it does in size 10. I like how the bottom part came out but the top part not so much. I might need to come up with something different – next year.

The eggs I used were some I bought from Joann’s. Back in February when they put out the Easter things I found a bag of 18. They are the size of chicken eggs, nicer to work with than the plastic ones that come apart for candy, and much less fragile than real eggs. I have decided that I must find a better way to hold the two ends on the egg while finishing them. It was a pain to keep them in place while trying to stitch them together with the bare thread. And that is an issue I will address next year.

“The difference between involvement and commitment is like ham and eggs. The chicken is involved; the pig is committed. Martina Navratilova”

International Tatting Day 2022

International Tatting Day eggs on wandasknottythoughts
International Tatting Day

Today, April 1st is International Tatting Day. Traditionally, we celebrate by tatting, in public if we can, eat chocolate, and drink a beverage of choice. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

Let’s celebrate!

Wishbone Thimble Holder

My sister’s birthday was a few weeks ago. My present to her was a turkey wishbone thimble holder that she had requested to replace the one I had given to her years ago which had broken recently. I mentioned in a previous post that I had started it but run into a bit of a problem. I started again and had another problem.

Broken wishbone on wandasknottythoughts
Broken wishbone

I can’t blame the dog this time. I sat on it. I had been sooooo careful and then I lost track of it for just a minute! That’s all it took. So I had to start over.

Turkey wishbone thimble holder on wandasknottythjoughts
Turkey wishbone thimble holder

Even after having to start it three times, I got it done in time for her birthday! My sister loved it! I was thinking of making another change that morning but talked myself out of it. I can make those changes on the next one! This is done in Lizbeth size 20 # 663 Bright Turquoise Dark and # 632 Purple Medium. I’m disappointed that I didn’t get a better picture, this one does not show the true colors, it’s washed out.

I got the idea of doing this from a thimble holder I received from my husband’s grandmother a long time ago. I understood her sister made it.

Great aunt's thimble holder on wandasknottythoughts
Great aunt’s thimble holder

You can see that the basket is crocheted with the tatting on the outside. The ribbon was already this threadbare when I got it.

Back of great aunt's thimble holder on wandasknottythoughts
Back of great aunt’s thimble holder

The wishbone is much smaller than the ones I’ve been getting. Looking at it I thought it might be a chicken wishbone, but I think it was from a much smaller turkey. It looks like the tatting was done separately, then added to the crochet that was done around the bone. The thread is at least a size 10. I’m not sure if this is the original color or it has been discolored with age. I’m not about to try washing it, I’m worried it might start coming apart. It has been hanging in one of the bedrooms in our house for years.

I had never seen or heard of something like this before being given this one. Since then I saw one in an antique store. I should have bought it when I saw it, but I didn’t. I’m sure I make these a bit differently than my husband’s great aunt did, as I spray mine with a sealer before adding the thread. I’ve made a few of them over the years, but this is the first time I’ve broken the bone in the process. I’ll have to be more careful next time!

“To succeed in life, you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone and a funny bone.” Reba McEntire

Pattern and Pie Day

So many things are going on right now that have created delays in my tatting life, including posting. If it’s not one thing it’s two others. But the good news is that I finally finished the pattern for the Isla Snowflake! Yay! It is listed on the My Patterns page.

Isla Snowflake on wandasknottythoughts
Isla Snowflake

I have done some tatting in the last two weeks I just don’t have pictures ready. I’ve been doing a lot of cooking and taking meals to family. Now I know why I didn’t cook like this when I was working – it takes a lot of time! And the cleanup isn’t pretty, LOL! I find I use a lot of dishes – as well as knives, cutting boards, pans, and measuring devices. I’m glad I can do it and they appreciate it, but my, the time it takes!

I did remember that yesterday was pi day, did you? I even made a pie! It was a pudding pie and it was yummy! I did take a picture –

Pi day on wandasknottythoughts
A pie for pi day 3.14

but I forgot until we had eaten most of it! Everyone enjoyed it though most didn’t know what I was talking about when I said it was pi day. It doesn’t matter, it was just an excuse to have pie.

“We must have a pie. Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie.” David Mamet

1920’s Shuttle

1920's Boye shuttle on wandasknottythouhts
1920’s Boye shuttle

In my previous post, I talked about a shuttle that was a gift to me by my brother-in-law. I also shared it on my blog FaceBook page where Sharon Tabor shared some history of Boye shuttles. She was gracious enough to allow me to share the information that she had about them. The following is her comment on the FB post.

“The tipped curve was made by a former user. I have a complete set of Boye metal shuttles from 1915-1992. The first Boye shuttles were pinched in the middle. The shuttle you were gifted is from about 1920. The shape was changed after the 1917 patent and was made in 2 sizes 3″ and 3 1/2”

Pre-WWII, the shuttles were nickel or zinc plated brass. The one your brother-in-law gifted you is a brass shuttle with a zinc coating (it is dull) During WWII all metal was diverted to the war effort and hence the invention of celluloid ( an early but flammable plastic). The 3 1/2″ shuttles were discontinued in 1947.

Since I documented my Boye collection, I have found the 1917 shuttle I was missing. The last Boye shuttles made in the USA were only printed on one side and the back was blank.

Your shuttle is circa 1920-1923.

A great reference book is Tatting Shuttles of American Collectors by Heidi Nakayama” Sharon Tabor

Shuttle collection by Sharon Tabor on wandasknottythoughts
Shuttle collection by Sharon Tabor

Thank you, Sharon, for the wonderful information and for allowing me to share it on my blog. Isn’t this a great collection of shuttles?

On a different note, I am still working on the pattern for the Isla Snowflake. I’m hoping to have it done in a few days.

Twosday

Today is Tuesday, 2/22/22 or 22/2/22, depending on how it’s written in your part of the world. Either way, it is a palindrome, meaning it reads the same backward as it does forward. This type of ‘Twosday’ is so special that it won’t happen again for another 400 years. I’ve heard that a lot of people have chosen today to get married. I guess you’d never forget your anniversary!

I meant to post much earlier in the day today but have met with ‘two’ many issues that I didn’t expect, which put me way behind on everything I did plan to do. So I better get on it while it is still Tuesday, I mean ‘Twosday’.

My sweet brother-in-law remembered me when he found a tatting shuttle at a flea market recently and bought it for me.

Boye shuttle with whistle on wandasknottythoughts
Boye shuttle with whistle

You can see this was a well-used shuttle by how the finish is worn off. There is still enough left to see it is a Boye shuttle. It still has a variegated pink thread on the bobbin, which looks to be size 80.

I’m not sure how old the shuttle is but looks to be from before 1923. I have another metal Boye shuttle I compared it to. Notice in the center of the top shuttle it says “PAT APR.17.’23”. The center of the bottom shuttle, the one I was just given, says “PAT APL’D FOR”

Two Boye shuttles

The older one (bottom) is longer and the body is wider than the newer one. You can see that the top shuttle has the bobbin peeking out on both sides of the body, while the bottom one is as wide as the bobbin. The pick at the tip is different, also.

Different tips on the shuttles on wandasknottythoughts
Different tips on the shuttles

The older one (right) has the tip curving up compared to the body instead of to the side like the newer one (left). All the metal Boye shuttles I’ve seen before have the pick curved to the side. Maybe this was a change before the patten went through?

One of the things that delayed me writing my post today was an event I attended. Newton, Kansas, the town that I used to live in is celebrating the sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary of its incorporation. They threw a party where the mayor gave a proclamation and had local organizations put on the entertainment for the evening in the form of local music groups and a dance troupe. I stopped to check it out and stayed longer than expected.

The City was selling souvenirs at the party in the form of t-shirts and wooden train whistles, of which I had to indulge. Trains have been a major part of Newton from the beginning, when it was the trailhead of the Chisholm Trail. The railroad basically cuts the town in half. If you spend any time in Newton, Kansas, even today, you understand the t-shirt.

Newton t-shirt and whistle on wandasknottythoughts
Newton t-shirt and whistle
Whistle and shuttles on wandasknottythoughts
Whistle and shuttles

I didn’t really need the wooden train whistle (or the t-shirts!) but, hey, it’s cute.

I’m still working on the pattern for the Isla snowflake. I think I’ve got the stitch count down where I’m happy with it. Now I have to start diagramming it, the most un-fun part of sharing my patterns. I’ve also realized I should document the pattern for the doily I have in the background, one I made in 2014. I think I would like to make it again. That makes two patterns to work on. There’s that two again.

“Today is the day to celebrate Newton! 150 years ago on February 22, 1872, Newton, ‘the wickedest city in the West” made up of businessmen, gamblers and cowboys with 27 saloons and the AT& SF railroad tracks running right through the middle of it all, was incorporated as a city.” Harvey County Historical Society

Dragons and Snowflakes

Jane Eborall has given us the complete pattern now for her 2022 TIAS. It became a very cute critter, Doris the Dragon!

Here be dragons!

It’s always a surprise to what Jane’s TIAS will end up being, but never a surprise at how much fun it is. I love this little dragon! I did have a few issues with it, that’s why there are two instead of one. I don’t know if it was a bad ball of thread, if it was stored badly and developed a problem, or what, but the thread kept splitting and I broke it several times. I also wasn’t careful enough when following the pattern and made several mistakes of one sort or another on each of these. A couple of times I backed up, took out the stitches, and fixed the problem. There was one mistake where that wasn’t an option, which is why I made a second dragon. But they came out so cute in Lizbeth #130 Island Breeze in size 20, mistakes and all! If you are interested in making one yourself, check out Jane’s Tat It And See blog.

I love Doris so much I’m already trying to make up my mind what threads I want to use on my next one. The completed ones are going to be on one of my shirts, I just have to decide how to position them.

Dragons on my shirt on wandasknottythoughts
Dragons on my shirt

When not tatting the dragons I’ve been tatting the Isla Snowflake trying to decide on the stitch counts. Several elements on the original had one stitch count in one place and a different stitch count in others, and I need to figure out which ones work best before I write out the pattern. I also tried something a bit different on the spikes. Which do you like better, the original or the newer version?

Isla original on wandasknottythoughts
Isla original
Isla with different points on wandasknottythoughts
Isla with different points

Today we are experiencing some real snowflakes and lots of wind. We have been fortunate to not have as much ice or snow as places to the south and east of us have. We had to make an emergency run to get coffee this morning and just a few miles from us it was a lot worse. We can use the moisture but that doesn’t mean I like what comes with it. But it gives me a good excuse to stay inside and tat!

Do you have (or need) an excuse to tat?

“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.” J. R. R. Tolkien