dual-faced

The very night I blogged about this first poker attempt, I completed tatting it. I decided to make it an earring or a pendant. My earlier idea was to create a kind of garden of blooms for a greeting card. Making a whole bunch in size 80 was no joke – I was working blind! One can only bluff to an extent ;-P

Added a pearl bead with spiral ring to hold the appropriate findings.

Mulberry Earrings / Pendant pattern

Here’s the pattern, if interested.

2 shuttles with different colours. Tie threads.

CATKIN :

All are picot flowers, meaning each ring is made of picots separated by 1ds. There are 3 sizes :

1. large, with 7 picots : 2±1-1-1-1-1-1-2
2. medium, with 5 picots : 1±1-1-1-1-2 or 2±1-1-1-1-1
3. small, with 3 picots : 1±1-1-1.

Tat 3 large rings, 2 medium, 3 small, 2 medium, and 3 large rings.

Leave bare thread between rings, and join to previous ring.

TIP: If you wish to have some green thread show up like I did, here’s how –

After the first 6 rings, tat the 7^th (small ring) But before closing the ring, pass green thread through it, then close.

From 8^th ring onwards, make a lock join to corresponding bare thread, trapping the doubled green thread within.

STEM & LEAF :

Josephine chain : 15 long picot 15.

Chain : Insert paper clip on core thread to hold inward picot. 3-3-3-2 fold 2-3-3-3, join to inward picot.

Josephine chain : 15 long picot 15.

This is one sprig. One can tat a ring for findings and continue for the 2^nd sprig.

TIP: In order to change the direction of Josephine chain, switch to the other half stitch. So, if 1^st stem is tatted with 1^st half-stitches, tat the 2^nd stem with 2^nd half-stitches. It creates a sharp turn.

For 2^nd sprig, repeat the first or alter the number of picot flowers.

So how’d the cards stack up?

Card #1 for stem

Card #2 for large picot flowers

Card #3 for leaves

Card #4 for small flowers

Card #5 for medium flowers

Natalie thought the first part looked like a hyacinth, while hubby thought it looked like yummy mulberries! Your deal ;-D

I can’t even remember all the little ideas and off-shoots that came to my head while playing this game! A few I sketched out for later, but most have since evaporated.

Here’s my trial of one of them. It has fancy onion rings, thrown rings, and picot flowers. Could be an edging or return back for a bookmark or insertion. But I’m done playing for the present ….

I fold.

Many many thanks to Natalie Rogers 

for sharing & organising this creatively fun  game!

It is a semi-structured designing process. It is a great way to start a design and tweak for perfection. Add more types of cards such as techniques or effects or perhaps colour combos, etc. and we can spread our imagination further.

To see what was on other players’ cards, check out this facebook page and do visit Natalie’s blog for her previous games and details.