This is also from Crochet Memories and you can find the free pattern here.  It's done as the Crinoline Lady in Altin Basak #10 baby pink.  It's smaller than the lady so I'm thinking in adding this one to the face towel and the lady to the regular towel.  I'm thinking what to make for the hand towel.  May be a smaller lady but in tatting.  I have a pattern for one and if I use the same thread will be the perfect size for the hand towel.

I also need to make some flowers and buy ribbon for the decoration.

I have always love the crinoline ladies.  They're so elegant!  Yesterday I found a link (I think Enid posted it) for Crochet Memories.  They have gorgeous patterns and some of the patterns are Crinoline Ladies.  I couldn't resist this one!

I still need to get some silk or sating ribbons and I'm planning to make some tatted small flowers to make the decoration.  Then will be sew into a towel for mom's bathroom which is pink.

The thread is Altin Basak #10 and baby pink (tho the scan looks dark).

A few weeks ago someone post in a blog (Blogger site) this pattern that she found but didn't dare to make because it looks very complicated.  Today I was looking something to make and remember the pattern, which I saved.

The pattern is really simple.  The only "tricky" part is the last round because is a little ackward the joining of the chains to make the overlay petal.  The original pattern has 1 ring only, the one in the center.  The rest of the motif is worked on chains.  I changed it a little and instead of making the "petals" as chains I made them as rings.  Also I made like 3 rounds less because the threads on the shuttles where finishing.

I used Altin Basak #10 in white and pink and measures like 3 inches.

Here is the pattern if you want to give it a try.  Click on it so see it bigger.

Last night on the Online Tatting class the discussion was about if it was possible to make a ric rac ribbon tatted.  It was a very interesting challenge.  Ruth Perry came with an ideaand was explaining it on the classroom.  I was at the same time tatting and didn't understood really well Ruth's explanations and after the class finished I sent the piece I tatted to her; thinking that it was what she was explaining.  Well, it was something totally different!  Here Ruth's Ric Rac method:


It looks like a real Ric Rac ribbon.  She got the inspiration from the crocheted ripples patterns.  It's made in 3 rounds.  Now here is mine:

My version are small blocks with a tiny chain between them.  I used 2 colors because that was the 1st thing I had near the computer. I think that the use of 2 colors gives a very interesting effect to the braid.

Then someone (I think it was Ruth) mentioned about adding beads.  Oh!!!  Another rush....  I had to try my Ric Rac with beads!  It looks amazing!!!  I made it short because the thread was finishing on the shuttle and was too lazy to get up and find the thread I was using.












But the thread was enough to finish a quick bookmark:
















It's a little stumpy-chubby bookmark.  But the idea is there...  So, this morning, after sleeping like 6 hours I woke up and had to work with the idea again.  I tried to make the Ric Rac bookmark I made several years ago but using the tatted ric rac instead of the fabric.  Anyway, I don't have ric rac here in Egypt.  It worked again so beautiful! 


I think I'm in love with this technique!!!

Now I'll try the same but with Ruth's version. 

I was thinking now...  This kind of block can substitute clunny leaves. 

I have to write the instructions for what I did, but you can find Ruth's version here and on her blog.  For my original Ric Rac bookmark you can go to my site.

I have been working in this doily for almost 2 weeks. It's a free pattern from Coats and Clark.  You can download it from them or the PDF attachment in this post.  I like the design.  Mantilla is Spanish for "veil" and it resemblance the old veils that women used to go to church.  The thread I used is a new one for me.  It's Helwan, a 100% Egyptian cotton.  The thickness is a little bit more than the regular #10 we use to crochet but not quite the #5.  It's very soft to work and I liked the result.  I took so long to make it because I'm having problems with my eyesight and I was able to crochet only a few hours per day using the natural sunlight.  Also the pattern is written in a confusing way in some parts and I had to "frog" several rounds twice or thrice.  But yesterday afternoon I finished it.

I need to wash it to see if the dye wash-off,, but while working with it my hands didn't get black so I think it's okay.  Also I need to steam it 'cause it's a little ruffled.  This pattern is definitively for an intermediate to advance crocheter.  The total size of the doily is 18" and I used a 2.50mm hook.



Detail of the center

What I do when I have a lot of tension and stress?  Tat, of course!  I haven't feel well during the week but I tat like a mad woman!  lol

This motif is just something I tat without following any patterns.  The thread is white and has green seed beads.













This one is from Jane Eborall.  The pattern is here.  It uses a cabone (plastic ring) on the center but I don't have those.  I got from Al Ahzar the other days packages of this big sequin with the big hole in the center and I thought to use them instead of plastic rings.  The results are great.  The only thing is that the big hole is not centered, but that doesn't affect the design.  I change the pattern a little.  The threads are white and baby pink.  It has milky white beads and pink beads.  The center sequin is pearly white.






This little cutie is from Tatskool (Pamela Myers).  Again using the big sequin.  This one is a very light green.  But looks great with the white thread and the green beads.  The pattern can be found here.















It was so much fun that I made the more simplified version.  I forgot to add the bead over the ring on these ones.  The top one is white and pink threads and beads with a white sequin.  The ones at the bottom are green and white threads with red and green beads and one has a green sequin and the other is red.

All the color threads are cotton perle #8 El Beida (Egyptian) and the white thead is the last of the Miquita (Peru) in white.  I hope I can get more of it when I go to PR because is my favorite thread!

I'm still stressed so I'm going to tat some more.    I have been crocheting a black doily but yesterday I had to frog several times 3 rounds and now the doily is tossed into the corner until I get my head clear and can follow the instructions of the pattern.

Today I was looking for some links about how to make split rings for a person that wants to learn and I came across this pattern at Bella Online. 

It's pretty simple and a great exercice for those that are learning split rings. 

I made several changes.  First the central flower is suppose to have 8 petals, but the thread on the shuttle was finishing and I made 7.  I didn't want to add thread for just one ring.    Also I added beads to the picots on the flower and the picots on the split rings. 

I think this pattern will be now in my "Favorites" list.  So easy and quick to make.  Lovely!

Monday I couldn't enter to the chatroom of the Tatting Class but I went to the side and made my home work.  This heart was designed by Sue Hanson and she kindly shared the pattern with the class.  It's a heart with 3 blocks.  You can find the pattern here.

I made some mistakes but nothing big that affect the design.  Just that I got a little confuse with the directions of the chains (what looks like stems under the 2 white rings).  The curve of them should be to the other side of what I did.


I used "El Beida"  (Egyptian perle #8) in burgandy and Miquita (Peruvian mercericed #20) in white.  I love the color combination and the pattern is so cool.

I don't share too often because I really don't have a lot of material.  I lost everything a couple of years ago.  But when I get something, I like to share. 

This is an antique Finnish book of Tatting and Macrame.  It was on the Antique Pattern Library or the Arizona Univ Textile soruces but now it's not listed.  Anyway, I uploaded it to Esnips and you can download it if you like.  It's almost 20 Mb, so will take a while to download.

http://www.esnips.com/doc/2b6be616-1878-4ed1-a180-8f17e91744ee/fin_tatt

The book has text in Finnish but at the end of the book most of the patterns are diagramed and anyway the notation the book uses is pretty easy to decifer so you can work the patterns even if you don't speak Finnish.  In the personal this is one of my favorite books.  It has a lot of designs very pretty and covers several techniques.  I think it's a must for any tatter.

This lovely heart is a design by Teresa Wood and she kindly shared it with the Online Tatting Class on Monday.  This semester the main topic will be Block Tatting.  You can find the information about how to make this technique here.  The pattern of the heart can be found at the Class site and on Teresa's blog.  The long threads I left them so mom can sew it to a bag or shirt.



In combination with the heart I made mom's name using Teri Dusenbury's pattern of the alphabet with a butterfly.  I also left long ends so it's easier to sew but I did a little of PSP and erased the ends.    Just for fun.  lol  They're n ot very big, under 2 inches each one.


The thread is El Beida #12 is a very bright pink, almost fushia.

I haven't been online a lot in the last couple of days.  Feeling very crappy plus there was problem on Egypt with the net access.  But I have been tatting while awake.  Hubby got me a cough medicine that in 30 minutes knocks me up!  And if you know me I don't easily sleep!

Anyway.  Today I wrote the pattern for this one.  It's attached here as a PDF and later I'll translate in Spanish and publish in the web sites.  BTW...  I have been working on my web site, after more than 2 years of abandonment...  I have to write all the patterns again and will do it slowly.  Also will publish a couple of Galleries with my work photos and the shop will reopen.   Also needs a Guestbook.  I think I'll add a Shoutbox instead...  The address is http://needles-n-shuttles.com  if you want to visit. 

There were some minor corrections on the Pattern.  If you printed it fom the blog or Esnip please do it again.

Sorry for the mistakes.  This flu clouds my mind and though I wrote the pattern over and over, tatted it like 4 times and Stephanie corrected it I still got the mistakes. 

Thanks for the nice comments!

The Esnips links are:

http://www.esnips.com/doc/18edcf39-51f3-4f10-a83c-dc6332f9089c/TainaFlowerSnowflake  (Pattern in English)

http://www.esnips.com/doc/d91387f6-55b0-43b5-b30e-6df6cb9c9d8b/TainaFlorCopo  (Patron es Espanol)

For the last 5 years I have been posting a pattern on my BD.  This is like a thanks you to all my tatting friends who put with my frantic design boosts and strange ideas and challenges.    This year pattern is the Taina Flower and Snowflake.  Hope you all enjoy it!  It's also attached as a PDF for easier printing.

   





















Taina Flower & Snowflake
©2008 Wally Sosa


Materials:
1 Shuttle (Round 1-2)
2 Shuttles (Round 3)

Instructions:


Round 1: (1 Shuttle)
R: 6 ± 3 - 3 - 6.

Repeat until 6 petals are made.  Remember to join petal 6 to the first one.

Cut.














Round 2: (1 Shuttle)
Join to middle picot on ring.
R: 5 ± 3 - 5.  Join to the same picot and to the picot between the rings.
R: 6 + 6 (- 6) x 5.  Join to the same picot and to the next picot.

Repeat from beginning around, until 6 big rings and 6 small rings are made.  Remember to join the last big ring to the first small ring.

Cut.






Round 3: (2 Shuttles)
R:  6 - 3 ± 3 - 3 - 3 - 6.
*  Ch: 5.
R: 6 + (to the last picot of previous ring) 3 - 3 - 3 - 6.
R: 6 - 3 - 3 - 3 - 6.
Ch: 5.
SCMR: 6 + (to the last picot of previous ring) 3 - 3 [R: 3 - 3 - 3 - 3 - 3] 3 + (to the last picot of ring) 3 - 6.
CH: 6 + (to 3rd free picot of big ring) 8.
TOR: 3 + (to last picot of same ring) 6 + (to 1st picot of next big ring) 3.
CH: 8 + (to next picot on big ring) 6.
R: 6 - 3 + (to 1st free picot in small ring on SCMR) 3 + (to same ring) 3 - 3 - 6.

Repeat from * around.

Cut.

This is a classic 1-shuttle flower.  This motif is used a lot in different patterns and in different ways.  I used Miquita in the light ecru I have been using lately.  It measures around 1 inch.  Here is the pattern:

Center Ring:  2 (- 2) x 7.  Mock Picot.
R:  5 - 5 - 5 - 5.  Join to the next picot.
*  R:  5 + (to previous ring) 5 - 5 - 5.  Join to the next picot.
Repeat * until 7 rings are made in total.
Last Ring:  5 + (to previous ring) 5 - 5 + (to the 1st ring) 5.  Join to the Mock Picot and cut.

This is not your common tatter. Is Bob the biker!!! lol A gentleman from London that is a great tatter also. He shares some original patterns in his blog.

Shuttles were calling me.  They were angry because I have been spending too much time on the digital world.  So I got them and after soothing them with a lullaby I made this itty snowflake.  Well, it's not a snowflake because I made a mistake and made 5 points instead of 6.  But it's pretty none the less.  The pattern is from Julie Patterson and was shared with the Online Class.  I'm attaching the PDF here.  The thread is Miquita in light ecru, but I think the thread is a bit old and have lost the luster of the mercerized thread and worked too fuzzy.     The motif is around 1 1/2", so yes, it's a itty bitty tatting.  So may be if I make it in #80 it will be perfect for earrings.  She also made a variation of the pattern to put a bell in the center and looks like a suncatcher.  The pattern is also attached here.

Here is my hubby modeling his scarf and hat set I crocheted for him a couple of weeks ago.  I forgot to take the photo when I finished and he took them with him so I didn't take a photo until now.  The hat is too big but he's using it anyway.  lol  The scarf is a simple pattern I got at Lion Yarns.  I added tassels at the ends.  I'm attaching the PDF pattern here.  The hat I was trying to make it from memory from a hat I made like 6-7 years ago and I made an increasing round too much.  I think next time I'll make a correct one. 

Digital Archive of Tatting Articles

This is a heart pattern by Susan Taliaferro and uses only one shuttle.  It's cute and also easy to do.  Took me like 15 minutes because I was watching TV and playing Scrabulous with my sister.  I know...  Crazy doing 3 things at the same time.  The thread is also Miquita in a periwinkle blue.  Miquita is a Peruvian thread roughly size #20 and is a soft mercerized cotton.

The pattern for this heart can be found here.