parallel tracks

Ninetta’s Rings !

Update : Ninetta has called her invention/technique Curled Rings, here

A pendant from a floral beginning !

Parallel tracks. Or maybe ‘multiple tracks’ would better describe the scenario.

I’ve been sidetracked by a “sidetrack” even as I was working towards an upcoming deadline, besides the stalled progress on the Wiosna doily and my Inkscape diagramming !!! Make sense ? Well, let’s unravel it a bit…focusing on 2 main tracks

Track 1

While I waited for the ‘survey’ results of my colour dilemma on Renulek’s Wiosna doily, here, I took up sewing as a means of distancing & distracting myself. Among various odds & ends, I needed to sew a nightie as part of an anniversary gift. Hence a deadline awaited. Almost 2 Years back, I had tatted a broad lace for sleeves, for myself. But now when I decided to use them for my MIL they needed one extra repeat each. So got down to it….

Track 2

But it’s never that simple, right ?! I admired Ninetta’s inventive folding of rings here, but got literally “sidetracked” by the edging here . I just Had to give the technique a go.

In my very first attempt, the yellow ‘flower’ is folded horizontally a là Ninetta. But I can never let things be. So for the green ‘leaf’, I tried to fold it vertically. Well, it didn’t turn out neat (some of it only showed up later in the photograph close-up, boohoo), but it is definitely do-able . Size 20 scrap pieces of threads used & finger-tatted.

 

Track 1

Went back to my sleeve lace & completed the flower motifs.

While the motifs are done, there is still a lot of finishing in terms of joining, adding & extending edgings, as well as bringing it all together for the nightie. Not to mention the actual cutting & sewing of fabric, then attaching all the tatting to it! More on that in the future ….

But before getting to the attachment & lace, my itching fingers & overactive brain got the better of me.

Track 2

This time I took up size 40 threads, intending to make a proper 3D flower, with a brown centre & yellow petals. (I still have limited colours in size 40, & didn’t have the ‘time’ for silk threads, especially in a learning trial).

But here, I did not fold each ring. Instead, made 3 brown rings & then pulled out the thread through all 3 picots, made a Lock join, & got them folded.

Similarly, for the yellow ‘petals’. Made 1 large ring (52 ds total), then one onion ring, then another large ring (where the picot was a bit offset, not in center). Again, I pulled out the thread through picots of all 3 rings together, secured them with a Lock Join to form folds.

Extremely difficult to photograph the minute 3D piece!

Each ring folds differently ! I tried various angles to capture that, but it does not come through.The camera lens may capture finer details (& all the errors!!), but the reading glass lens captures the wider, bigger picture.

Now it was time to finish off the piece. For this, I made 3 concentric/onion rings in 2 colours :

Folded them over. Hey, it looked like a pendant !!! Sewed on a bead (sorry, Jane ;-P. sewing a bead later works when it wasn’t preplanned or intended. Read her valuable input here ) , inserted a gold chain through the folded triple onion rings… (The yellow rings could've been larger still, or the brown ones a bit smaller) . 

I apologize for the not-perfect, not-professional depiction. My only excuse is that I like to share ideas ASAP & don’t have the finesse for either colours, or tatting. But I do hope that some ideas will strike up more ideas & some creative tatter will pick it up to create exquisite pieces …

I believe that there is Tremendous potential in these Curled / Folded rings 

for 3D tatting, freeform stylized work,  jewelery, etc.

Okay, now it definitely IS time to get back on track. The Wiosna, though will have to wait for another few days, till I get the lace tatting & nightie cutting & sewing done. (A whacky idea for the Wiosna is causing eddies in my brain. It's a fun idea, but will definitely hurt the sentiments of purists, hence I hesitate to share it ....)

Jumping Tracks

Oh, and I almost forgot of my earlier foray into another learning Track (jumped tracks from the Wiosna to this). Again, thanks to Ninetta’s diagrammatic pictorial that she so generously shared here . She applied modern tatting techniques to a vintage pattern.

It took some getting used to (both the diagram & the tatting) ; the 1^st 2 motifs were a bit fiddly & I made some error in following the directions in the diagrams. But the 3^rd one came out right & her diagrams are truly brilliant.

I also realized that picots on the Floating Ring should be made longer than normal for the centre to lift itself vertically.

Ninetta's Layered Rings

For the 4^th ring, I tried a Josephine Ring (JR) as a floating ring (FR). While it should’ve been larger to show the characteristic undulating effect of a JR, there is still a perceptible difference between a regular FR & a J-FR. The latter seems to curl inwards, & the former seems to stand up more.

 I hope to use this technique, too, someday

My sincerest thanks to Ninetta (((hugs)))

for sharing her tremendous talent & innovation

All the discrepancies & limitations are solely mine.

Happy tatting :-)

Motif #17/II for 25 Motif Challenge