Unbelievable how time flies!  In the meantime we already had two Neurology Resident and Fellows Graduation parties.  This year I was very busy tatting six bookmarks for the graduating residents and three coasters for the graduating fellows. 

This bookmark is from a pattern by Edda Schneider.  I found the pattern on Edda Guastalla Bianchetti's website  http://digilander.libero.it/chiacchierino/news/segnalibroeddaschneider.html

Lavender is one of my favorite colors.

Happy New Year!

First of all I want to wish everybody a happy and healthy New Year!  I have been tatting and beading like crazy before Christmas but didn't get to take a picture of any of it before it was all given away.  Maybe my New Years resolution should be to post more regularly to my blog.  Time really does fly! 

I also need to take pictures of my county and state fair entries. 

Graduation Party

Hard to believe another year went by and and here we are at this year's Neurology Residents Graduation Party.  Our three graduates were very happy recipients of tatted bookmarks.

Motif # 7

I participated in Jane Eborall's TIAS 2012 that started in January (has it been that long ago?).  I had just bought this boysenberry Lizbeth Size 20 thread and was burning to try it out.  If I had known that we were tatting a goat I would have chosen a more goat-like color.  I love the way Jane keeps the excitement going!

Mother's Day Gift

My mom has received the Mother's Day card and gift I had enclosed.  She told me in an e-mail that she was very happy with both.  The pattern for the bracelet can be found in the June 2012 Bead and Button Magazine.  It is called Tila token and was designed by Marcia Balonis.  You can see the Tila beads in the center.  They are two hole, square beads which look like little tiles.  The pattern uses both ladder and herringbone stitches.  A really lovely pattern.
Happy Mother's Day!

Remembering Gina Brummett

Is is with a sad heart that I write this entry. Gina Brummett "The Tatting Goddess" passed away Monday. I didn't know her personally but I have been following her blog "Threads of a Tatting Goddess" for many years. She always amazed me with how much tatting she got done and how she posted about it on her blog just about every day. She was a constant source of inspiration to me. I loved her humor and insights and the way she would take antique patterns and modernized them. Rest in Peace, Gina!

Motif # 6

My Motif # 6 is from Judi Banashek's book "Advanced Tatting Patterns". I used white Lizbeth Size 20 thread. Judi is the founder of our Oklahoma Shuttle Bugs tatting group. She is a wonderful teacher and I learned so much from her. A few years ago she moved to Waxahachie, TX to be close to her daughters. Good news! Terry McGuffin gave me permission to post her pattern for the Windmill Snowflake. As soon as I locate it I'll try to figure out a way to post it here.

Motif # 5

Ta, da, here is Motif # 5. It is the windmill snowflake by Terry McGuffin from the tatted round robin website www.tattings.com which was hosted by Maus aka Etha Schuette. You can still access most of the website through the wayback machine. I think I used DMC Cebelia Size 20 thread. It was one of those UFO's that finally got finished which means I have two of my shuttle back. Yeah!

Annja's Earrings

Today is my colleague and walking buddy Annja's birthday. Last weekend I beaded these netted earrings. Then I brick stitched around the hoop and picked up the tip of the netted pieces in one round. I was going for a Native American flair because Annja is proud of her Cherokee heritage. She loved them.

Still tatting and beading

Hi everyone! I have been working two people's jobs for 2 1/2 months until last week. I have been so exhausted but still try to tat and bead at least on the weekends. I did very well in both the county and state fairs. It was so much fun to participate. As soon as I get a chance to scan I will show you some pictures of what I have been up to.

Motif # 4

I have been very busy finishing up my fair entries. I entered 11 items in the Canadian County Fair, nine of which received 1st place and two received 2nd place. I was very pleased.

In just four days I will drop off my fair entries at the Oklahoma State Fair. I am still in the process of finishing two items.

The edging is # 8902 from the Tatter's Treasure Chest. It will go onto the cuff of the denim shirt I am decorating with tatting. I used white Lizbeth Size 20 thread. This is a really fun pattern and I already started the edging for the other cuff.

Motif # 3

I rediscovered the few balls of Opera thread I have in my Size 20 stash. It is a softer thread and just as much fun to tat with as the Altin Basak. I made this rose cross designed by Lily Qualls Morales with a few alterations to make it in one round.

I didn't have a pattern per se for Motif # 2. I used 5 ds between joins or picots for the chains and 2 ds between joins or picots for the rings. I think 6 ds would also work for the chains.

I won!

A while ago I was the winner of Krystledawne's blogaversary give away. I can count the number of times I won anything in my entire life, in other words it is very seldom. Imagine my big surprise when I opened my mail and found these lovely tatted earrings, necklace and ring. Thank you so much Krystle for your overwhelming generosity! I truly love the jewelry and the shaded color. I have had lots of compliments already. The reason the picture is not that good is because I put the items on the scanner. I couldn't figure out a way to get the ring in the right position and still get the lid to close most of the way.

Motif # 2

Have you noticed that some patterns are nice and easy to work and some seem like such a struggle, where you have to retro tat over and over? Well this little bookmark is in the first category, nice and easy. It was such a joy to tat! I persume it is a variation of an antique edging pattern called "Basket Edge". I used Altin Basak 50 variegated on the shuttle and shaded green for the chains. This thread seems to be a size all of its own, somewhere between a Size 20 and 30. I would call it a Size 25. I love tatting with this Turkish thread and am so glad to have a nice stash of it.

Motif # 1

I have decided to do another 25 motif challenge since I had so much fun both times. This bookmark is my motif # 1 the third time around. I used Lizbeth Size 20 thread called Carousel and I did front side/back side tatting. I figured out that when I am working the directional ring if I put the shuttle through the loop before I close the ring it looks just like the opposite ring. This pattern was provided by Jane from South Africa who rewrote a pattern from an Anna Burda magazine. You can find it on Jane Eborall's blog. It's the March 11, 2009 entry.

Motif # 25

I finished the 25 motif challenge for the second time! I have truly enjoyed participating and would like to go for another 25.

This lovely Celtic cross is one of Jane Eborall's patterns. I used Size 20 Flora thread.

Rosette

This rosette is a design by Jon Yusoff. You can find the free pattern on her blog: http://tatsaway-patterns.blogspot.com/

Thanks again Jon for sharing yet another beautiful design. I used Altin Basak Size 50 thread that works up between a Size 20 and 30. It is a very nice thread to tat with and comes in many lovely colors. This is my motif # 24 the second time around.

Mothers Day

Today I had an e-mail from my mom that she received her Mothers Day card including her surprise. She was really happy with it. I believe the pattern is from a Bead and Button Magazine. The designer is Lisa Kan. It was incredibly easy and fun to follow the instructions for this netted piece. The fire polished rounds are very shiny and added just the right amount of bling.

I have to confess that with all those time consuming hobbies I have let the house slide more and more. But I found this awesome website that helps me break down cleaning and decluttering jobs into 15 minute increments. How wonderful is that? www.flylady.net I still have time to work on my hobbies and take care of the house in the evenings.

Cross Bookmark

My friend and Weight Watchers compadre invited me for Easter dinner. I wanted to give her this cross bookmark as a hostess gift but was only halfway done with it. I showed it to her anyway to see what she thought of it. She was thrilled. The thread is Lizbeth Size 20 and the color is called Springtime. The pattern is from Tatted Bookmarks Needle & Shuttle edited by Barbara Foster. It is one of my favorite tatting books. I have tatted at least half of the projects if not more. This is my motif # 23 the second time around.

Bracelet

Yesterday I wore black and white and for the first time my new beaded bracelet. It took me a while to find all the "ingredients"at different bead stores. I used beads in Size 11 black, silver lined crystal and gunmetal, Size 15 silver lined crystal, and clear and black 3 mm fire polished beads. The pattern is designed by Hatsumi Oshitani and is available at http://www.beadandbutton.com

as a free project. Her bracelet is a cuff, and this is my variation of her design. It is done in St. Petersburg chain, which is a really fun beading stitch.