decorating in August

Snowflake #7 in Land of Laces’ 25 Snowflake Project !

If there can be snowflakes in June/July, why not start with tree decorations in August?!

This Sunday I have 2 tiny stars and a Christmas tree motif for Dorota’s project.

Starlets and MatheMagical Tree  

click to download free Starlets pattern pdf

UPDATE : MatheMagical Tree pattern 

All 3 projects require only one single shuttle with ball.

The starlets are quick projects to empty shuttles.

Recognise the teal star? Yes, it is the centre from the Repetition Doily. Here are the starlets with the snipped off center. 

I had an idea to use a beaded circle on which this starlet could be anchored, but totally forgot to tat it. Any ring can also be used.

Starlet #1 is a chains-only pattern, starting with a mock ring (SCMR) and climbing out to work the other rounds in one pass. Notice that the outermost chains have their stitches facing inwards. I used a simple picot and folded chain to get the pointed tip.

Starlet #2 is a single round of inward-facing chains with long interlaced picots. In order to get the tip, a small seed bead is moved from the shuttle when required.

Care is required when interlacing so that they move over/under correctly.

Starlet #2 – Ice Drop Process for an ice drop variation is also provided in the pdf.

These make for quick inserts for greeting cards, or to embellish on top of a card. Or as tree ornaments, naturally :-)

Dancing with the stars, all starry-eyed !!!

download free Starlets pattern pdf

MatheMagical Tree  
click to download MatheMagical Tree pattern

It is clear from the name that this is a derivation of the snowflake. While tatting the flakes, a single arm looked like a conifer, so I included this in as my #7B, since the starlets are too tiny ;-P

Here, I used green in shuttle, and brown ball.

I made a slight alteration by adding unanchored rings along the center. (If desired, tat 2 rings, one for the front, and one larger behind, for an even fuller look.) 

And picots, of course! 

Picots caused a dilemma! With asymmetrical rings, how to join to the middle picot of each ring since one would have an odd & the other an even number of picots! I solved this by starting and finishing the 'even' rings with 1ds instead of the regular 2ds in the 'odd' rings. Thus I got the same number (odd) picots in both rings and could link in the middle.

Can you see a bell here with slight modification?!

Now here's the deal. pdf for the starlets is ready and link is shared. BUT presenting the tree pattern is posing a problem. I don't need a test-tatter, but can somebody volunteer to look at the draft and answer a couple of my questions and help to simplify it? That is if you think the pattern is even worth the trouble ;-D I

 need to sleep over it some more, yawn, the bell tolls !!!