productive designs

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I don’t post pics of my buys. There’s always so much else to share ….

But here are 2 things I’ve been very happy to have bought – it is their Product Design that I’d like to talk about.

A handy bead box and a hooked needle threader
Placed alongside a Pony shuttle for size comparison.

Old & New Needle Threaders

I recently saw this needle threader in my old craft shop (it’s been 4 years since I stepped into that shop!). I liked the unusual shape & instantly bought 4 – one in each available colour. A very happy & useful buy in more ways than one !!!

Hooked Needle Threader as Beader

The hook at the end is ideal for size 30 & finer threads. It works for size 20 and 10 too but one has to be careful to hook the thread completely before pulling through.

The shaft is flat. So inserting into the tiniest or thinnest needle hole is pretty easy.

But an additional advantage I realized was that it could act as a beader too !!!! I’ve been using it since to load beads onto a picot, with great results.

The black lace in above pic is Anchor size 20 (almost double the thickness of Lizbeth 20) & this threader was used for the blue & green beads.

The old-style threaders are of no use when it comes to loading beads on a picot (my preferred method - LBP without beads), and crochet hooks may cause a mismatch between thread & bead size.

Bead box with rotating slotted lid

You might remember this bead box from an earlier post. Bought it on Amazon.in . 

It has a rotating lid with a triangular opening that stays on the white part when not in use; thus locking the beads in their respective compartments.

Rotate to the colour one wants and work with the beads. Or tilt to remove those beads on to a tray – the others stay in their place.

Once locked into default position, the box can be upended without fear!

And it is so portable (see 1st pic for size comparison) and reuseable !

This came with size 15/0 seed beads. I like the colours, weight & gloss, but the hole and width is not consistent :-(

Earlier I had bought transparent beads for their elegance. But they don’t photograph well ;-P Hence opted for these opaque ones.

Product design and practicality matters just as much as the pattern design.

Increase the fun & comfort quotient with the right tools !

happy tatting always :-)

off to The Pentagon !

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I totally forgot to post the pentagon trials in my previous post! These were accomplished before I started on the triangles.

I realize you may be getting bored seeing the same stuff in the same colours. 
No, I do Not like pink! Which is why I chose it for trials – trying to finish off the ball ;-P

However, I think it goes fairly well with the ecru.

I’ve made 5 of these with slight tweaks in stitch count. Arranged in a semi-circle they make a lovely collar. Or continue around to complete the circle fore a lacy edging.

The best part – it can be tatted in one pass !!!! Easy to trace the path, if you enjoy a bit of a puzzle :-)

I'll have to consult my sketchy notes to determine the details here & that is all boring stuff. (In fact I stopped writing notes early into the project, shhhh!)

The size 20 one is ready, so that's what matters.

I've found that size of picots makes a difference in these shapes lying flat. 
The placement of joining picots in inner rings also makes a difference.
And where the ring is split causes the shape to widen/spread out or remain closely packed. 
Fun to experiment with these factors, especially since all rings are 24ds each. And working it in 2 colours adds to the fun factor.

With Wimbledon over, I’ll be able to get back into this pattern-writing and diagramming stuff more seriously & diligently now.

I’m thinking of sharing all 4 shapes in one pdf.

Next I’ll do the bookmark in a separate pdf.

After that I hope to tat these one-pass magic shapes and share as I go. And I promise to use different colours, but in size 40 - it's the size I enjoy working with.

I’ve added ‘quatrefoil’ to the Labels’ list on the right panel. Click or use the search engine to scroll through my previous posts.

 happy tatting always - whatever the shape/size of the building :-)))

tatting in my pocket !

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Yesterday I came across this thread on Craftree, started by Grace. She shared this link to a global compilation of tatting-related verses. Here’s what she says :

It was on e-tatters, and it grew for quite a while, with more and more people adding verses. Maybe we can add some more verses? The only rule is, the third line must include "tatting in my pocket".

There were already some excellent verses there and I jumped right in. All through the morning verses kept popping into my head. I’m just relieved it didn’t lead to any sugar/salt mix-up in the kitchen ;-P

Meant to be stand-alone, I’m sharing them all together here and would love to see you pick up the gauntlet :-)

No pocket, yet a pocketful of verses –

None the worse for want of a pocket ;-)

Okay cheesy, but I can't resist puns :-D

Except for the 1^st and last verse, all the rest have at least one tatting technique or term in it. I have edited a couple of lines to fit into the meter. Hope you enjoy ...

Tatting In My Pocket !

Chores are physically stressing
Global news is so depressing
But the tatting in my pocket

Is always very refreshing ! 

My head is in a swirl
Shuttles ‘n’ threads are in a twirl
And the tatting in my pocket
Is full of rings in a Curl

Non-crafters may think I'm daft
They might call me a loony
But with tatting in my pocket
I won't just stop at a Cluny !

'I'm going through a designers block'
One often hears this talk.
Use the tatting in your pocket
To unlock with a Block !

The hegemony of a Trefoil
I fully intend to spoil
Since the tatting in my pocket
Is creating shapes from a Quatrefoil !

Husband rrrrrolls his eyes hiding his smiles

When I ask for more supplies
He Knows the tatting in my pocket
Will make lace for miles and miles !

                            - ©muskaan  July 14 2017

With exciting Center Court matches, not much tatting accomplished. But here's a glimpse ...

Four shapes derived from the initial design hack ! Tatted in size 40.

I’ve now tatted all 4 shapes in size 20 to determine picot size before I present the final pattern. Will share those pics with the pattern.

These are the various Quatrefoil Triangle trials. I was too lazy to block them for a proper pic, but these generally lay flat.

Arranging the triangles into a hexagon – it makes a nice coaster in size 40 and can be tatted in one pass. Magic Triangle, you say ?! Hardly ;-P

Why waste, right ?

Retrieved #4-6 from the hexagonal scrapyard – sewn in layers, added a bead, etc. I didn’t spend time shaping or curling the ‘petals’.

Noticed the 3 leaf rings enclosing the stem ? Kinda cute, no ? I'm going to use this in future!

That’s all from me for the present …

Have a great weekend

and

let there always be tatting in your pocket !