starting with a SR pictorials

 We are well aware that split rings are not meant only to climb out/into the the next round. They form a design element in their own right and when 2 colours are used, there can be interesting 'splits' in the overall design. Then there are split ring braids that make beautiful bracelets and lanyards. Speaking of which, what if we wanted to start a split ring braid in 2 colours https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/search?q=sr+braid? 

I rarely if ever use a knot to start any lace (except occasionally for a tut). Same holds true for starting with a split ring. I use this simple knotless method (which also holds good for true rings, mock rings, etc.) - cross the tails from each shuttle in the manner depicted, and voila, we're ready to go!

These pics were taken in 2018 and I dug them out when someone asked a question. The pdf has a bit more notations.

How to Start a Split Ring Knotless - click for pictorial pdf - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lKYLoLFEhMycP4YFsemIEyk4TUjn69Q-/view

At the same time (2018) I had also taken pics for a related situation - what if the split ring braid had to be joined back in a circle? For instance in my Thorny Wreath Ornament - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2015/12/thorny-wreath-pattern.html where the foundation round is a series of 2-coloured split rings joined back to the start.

Obviously we need to have a picot in the very first SR. Initially I had made the picot on side 1 of the SR. However, it is not always easy to start any ring with a picot. Moreover that small picot has a tendency to close up when the core thread is pulled to close the ring. This is the reason I am not sharing pics I took at the time. Instead, I shot new pics where we start the split ring, knotless, with a picot on the 2nd side of the SR.

How to Start a Split Ring with a Picot, Knotless - click for pictorial pdf - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OS_9VdZSoWVSsOtQYT8UVb4nV6exmf2p/view

Both are one-page pdfs with minimal text.

Both links will be included in this huge collection of tutorials for how to start and finish covering all situations - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2016/11/beginning-or-ending.html

Do you remember my whimsical experiment to Hide tail ends in the last split ring without sewing? - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2017/08/hiding-on-whim.html This, too, was in response to a query.

And I used this same technique to hide the ends in a floating chain, with no sewing - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2019/12/open-treasures.html 

Hope some of these help when the situation arises.

My next post will be on the 3rd of Dec when I reach 2 milestones simultaneously. So do stick around ....

teachable moments

or learnable moments! 

 We are having a fun time playing games in our FB group, and surprisingly several teachable moments have arisen especially in our current event #tagmeEndrucks! Sharing tips, sharing resources, sharing options, ... There is even a hashtag #eptutorials in our FB group to locate them.

These short games are a good opportunity to learn and apply a 'new' technique, try something different, improve one's skills, experiment, find solutions.

#1. If you run out of thread in one shuttle before completing the project, simply do a shoelace trick (SLT) and switch threads if there is plenty of thread in the other shuttle. (SS - switch shuttle)
Or choose a convenient element further down the line to add new thread (false CTM).
Add new thread, knotless or with a knot, and hide ends simultaneously.
(a huge curated list of situations, options, tutorials - http://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2016/11/beginning-or-ending.html).

My resolve to never share the length of thread required in shuttles has strengthened after this project - my personal learning moment. Too many variables to factor in!

#2. We decided to use 2 colours to tat the model in order to clearly show which shuttle was in use. However, this meant the split rings were bi-colouted while their corresponding rings on the other side were a single colour, See the encircled areas.

Solution - Double core SSSR Karen Cabrera's lesson #43 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfILdiZ2C20&t=4s  

#3. Alternatives to Lock Join - Lock Join is needed when joining to a picot below our line of tatting or below the core thread. It is basic, convenient, and tiny. However it leaves a little dip and it also locks the core thread (the colour of the picot below is also more visible - see image below). For a smooth edge, there are alternatives such as Catherine Wheel Join, Anne Dyer's Join the Smooth Side, and the Slope and Roll Join, to name a few.

In the first pic, 3 white arrows indicate where the Lock Join was replaced with a Slope & Roll Join for an unbroken rows of stitches.

SLOPE & ROLL JOIN (SRJ)
[This was all meant to be part of the Joins in Shuttle Tatting series (2016!)... perhaps some day].

WHEN TO USE -
1. when the joining picot is below the line of tatting/below core thread.
2. when we want a smooth, unbroken line of stitches.

ADVANTAGES -
1. easier to accomplish than a CWJ
2. can be done with shuttle and ball
3. keeps the core thread sliding freely
4. can be used for ring or chain. Especially useful for Onion Rings or Concentric rings, hence also known as the Onion Ring Join
5. If the join is followed by the 2nd half-stitch, it resembles a double stitch. Hence it is a seamless or invisible join.
6. in 2-colour tatting, it creates a blipfree join.

DISADVANTAGES -
It is sometimes difficult to hold a picot space, especially a vsp, immediately before or after the SRJ since it appears to twist. After completing the 2nd half-stitch, ensure the space is intact and a slight tug with a hook/pick helps prop up the picot.

RESOURCES -
Debbie Arnold (coined the term SRJ)- https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=4089642167730639&set=a.3691414670886726
Karen Cabrera (video Lesson 25) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6o3RT4bb9
Ninetta Carusoo (diagrams Simple Joins) - https://www.flickr.com/photos/ninettacaruso/6896834805/
The Online Tatting Class - https://www.theonlinetattingclass.com/technique-tools


Teaching or Learning are interchangeable, just as we have tons of options to choose from our tatting kitty and can change when needed!

Tutorials to all terms and techniques mentioned in this post can be found here - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/p/tatting-resources.html

extractme roundup

My PIC (partner in crime), Ninetta introduces this post in her beautiful imagery –

“What does creativity mean? If you try to answer just using words, it's a difficult question. We need help from images and examples. Creativity is like a tiny round stone in the highest mountain, at the edge of the cliff, when a puff of breeze would be enough to change its destiny. Our Sept game #extractmeEndrucks has been that puff. Naively, Muskaan and I thought that the game would have remained in the 2D space, just to decorate cards! One more time, our wonderful tatters have taken us in the amazing multifaceted world of creativity, and surprised us with a bunch of beautiful tatted motifs.
Thank you very much, dear tatters, for your creativity!
Happy Endrucks' tatting!”

If you remember, our FB group Sep/Oct game was about extracting one or more motifs from Endrucks' pattern #25 (https://drive.google.com/file/d/19rR3fDG_ZHO9imf-EuPQO9dSd531UZl4/view), tatting and arranging them on a card. https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/game-of-extraction.html Following are the models and samplers/in-progress pics sent in. Let me start with the extractions that have patterns (alphabetically, not chronologically) - 

1. Daniela Galli adapted the same motif to create not just a 3D pumpkin but also the leaves. 

3D PUMPKIN / ZUCCA pattern by Daniela Galli - 

 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uCPVMB1wBxwSJyBlmFuSqv4bYRIB5_ie/view

2. Julie Myers also used the same motif but added layers around it for a 2D pumpkin. 

PUMPKIN pattern by Julie Myers -

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WKxGqijegF911nOvbmNjUuPVOQkHNZyF/view

3. Anna Bonelli worked her magic for a fairy door applique on denim.

4. Antonia Lai has started an edging with a much adapted 'partial' motif. Just these 2 repeats could  work well as dog or cat ears or adorned on an infant's headband.

5. Jiamrat Supapol extracted motifs from 2 different patterns 9 the pea motif in 2 colours from #25, and the happy hands motif from #1) and combined them beautifully for her applique. 

6. Margaret Davies worked 4 pea motifs into butterfly wings, adding a head.

7. Margaret Davies is a master card-maker and adorned her card with a bouquet of several extracted motifs. [https://margaretsdesignercards.blogspot.com/]

8. Muskaan adapted the pea motif into palm fronds and added a trunk with another extracted motif. A 3rd motif acts as the sun. This is a WIP. 

9. Ninetta Caruso used the motif as a leaf to enhance her flower card. [https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/]

10. Ninetta Caruso extracted another motif for a 2nd card. Now is this painter painting a large flower or is it a colour palette? 

11. Nona Litzelman amazed us with this clever arrangement of her adapted extractions! 

12. Pam Hemenway needle tatted Julie's pumpkin with a slight tweaking of stitch counts. 

13. Paola Emilia Rotuletti created this elegant flower bush for her card. 

14. Paola Emilia Rotuletti quickly tatted up Daniela's pumpkin and served it on a porcelain tray.

15.  Winnie Ho worked 2 pairs of beautiful earrings using the pea motif, inspired by the palm fronds and Stephanie W's comment that the pea motif could be used to create an entire harvest basket. (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/idea-in-progress.html) 

The pea motif appears to be the single most favourite motif among our participants. Yet it has been used with such clever diversity.

Our current game for November, #tagmeEndrucks, is well underway with lots of models already posted. We will need several roundup posts to showcase them all ;-D

A simple thanks seems so inadequate, yet it is sincere and heartfelt. 

Many many thanks to all our participants for your beautiful work and creativity

Endrucks 1920 Project pattern collection   https://docs.google.com/document/d/17LEVftXweztBIOWh4sL4BB7bX65ssoOsOn4oXIgCepY/view

Endrucks 1920 Project Facebook group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1235560633606162

Related Posts - 

https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/game-of-extraction.html

https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/game-of-extraction.html

https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/10/sunny-palms.html

lets play tag

 At the beginning of this month, I told you about our new game for November #tagmeEndrucks - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/11/tag-along.html
We've had a splendid response! And before we get into our new game in December, we're throwing this game open to all our non-FB tatters. 

Following are the 4 parts, each part shared every 2nd day. You can play it in parts and try to guess what each part is or what the ultimate model will become. If you are the curious cat, try to guess which of Endrucks' patterns this one has been derived from. 🔍 EP doc - https://docs.google.com/document/d/17LEVftXweztBIOWh4sL4BB7bX65ssoOsOn4oXIgCepY/view

There is a pdf link under each pic which has the written pattern, a tip, stepwise pics, the legend, and bead placement, etc. This was done deliberately to cater to every type of tatter.

Part 1 pdf link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1muyffntd2LD3U7JRM3ZZHg4_7SuJcaK-/view

Part 2 pdf link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ycV0ifafPJiBHdRg7d9H8lprfBTGNsBy/view

Part 3 pdf link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wbYNQjMo7w-z-sAyMHsrJBP2Y2zUY1vP/view

Part 4 pdf link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hQER_sy_z7_c2T3UCpN_-BAb8O5K2vuS/view

The model has been deliberately tatted using 2 colours only for the sake of clarity. You are free to use any thread, colour, beads, etc. 2 shuttles, continuous thread.

If you complete the model, do send me a pic so that it can be added to our album and roundup! And if you are a first-time Endrucks' tatter, you get a small gift!

I will share the complete pdf link and name of the designer in the next post.

There were also teachable moments that I will share in the next post.

Happy tatting 💖

aug roundup 4

When I did the 3 roundups for our August #prettymeEndrucks event, we had no idea more hearts would pour in within a few days! It has taken me some time to process them for sharing here, but finally, here they are in alphabetical order.

20. Anna Bonelli tatted Ninetta's coaster version but with 6 repeats instead of 5. We had tried it, but it did not lay flat. She managed this beauty by not joining the arms! 

21. Anna Pagliari has worked this black beauty coaster. 

22. Goh Hui Lian sent in her cute heart

23. Paola Bevilacqua followed her earrings with this gorgeous prretty me collar with cleverly arranged heart motifs and outlined with a 2-toned lock chain. 

24. Reiko Akamatsu converted her heart into a bookmark with a freeform tail. 

25. Sharada Rajan was inspired by Reiko's bookmark and after her earrings and key chain, she worked this bookmark using Margaret's enlarged heart pattern and a split ring tail.

It is so heartening to see inspiration flowing from one to the other, resulting in so many wonderful models! Ninetta and I are energized by this participation.

Many many thanks for playing along and sharing your models!

Related Posts -

game of the month details - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/08/pretty-me-heart-fun.html
Roundup 1 (offshoot patterns) - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/aug-roundup-1.html

Roundup 2 - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/aug-roundup-2.html

Roundup 3 - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/aug-roundup-3.html

Arrangements - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/playful-hearts.html 

stringing patterns

Our kitty of derived and adapted patterns in the Endrucks 1920 Project is growing faster than we can process them! 2 more patterns are shared by one of our most prolific members, Reiko! These can be used as standalones or as motifs to connect for a larger piece.

Reiko Akamatsu aka Tatting Musica enjoys playing with arrangements be it the strings of tatted lace or notes on a violin. Get to know her a bit more - https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/2021/08/love-for-lace-music-and-nature-driven.html

Reiko's Ninth Symphony -
pattern link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L-RLPsEhmCvsMHhNhQnNI1RUft53G-Hf/view

This central motif, with its sense of motion, is an original pattern by Reiko, and looks good as is.

But add to it a cleverly adapted pattern #5, and we have a possible flower, coaster, etc. 

Perfect to play around with!

Le Cirque - 

pattern link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EycJaFEyknRKhj4FoWkp30wcqjvp1JBD/view

 

This is an adapted arrangement of 2 of Endrucks'  patterns. 

In the center we have part of pattern #40 -  while it is constructed differently, the essence is maintained. 

The next round is pattern #1 with no changes.

This motif can be worked continuously if desired by exiting the last split ring at the appropriate point.

Incidentally, since there are 10 repeats, the rounds can be interchanged with the Happy Hands Sunflower (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/03/happy-sunflowers.html ) for more variety.

We hope to add complete diagrams and written pattern in the coming months. For now, Reiko has graciously shared her drawings and notes along with some close-ups.

Check out the burgeoning free patterns in our Endrucks 1920 Project document -https://docs.google.com/document/d/17LEVftXweztBIOWh4sL4BB7bX65ssoOsOn4oXIgCepY/view

Many many thanks, Reiko, for your generous participation and inspiration! 

Let the music continue 💖

on balance

I wanted to gift a couple of bookmarks and it was a good excuse to try out some of the threads Madhur had gifted (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/09/joy-of-succumbing.html)

Madhur will understand why I especially chose this book as a background. 'On Balance. An autobiography' by Leila Seth. 

But first a bit about the bookmark ...

Pattern is 'Overlapping Chains' by Jon Yusoff and can be found here for free -

https://tatsaway.blogspot.com/p/bookmarks.html

I enjoy overlapping elements and went for a flower and leaf kind of story (hence picots on the yellow 'flowers') surrounded by a trellis.

The first row became fiddly on the way back with a tendency to twist, till I wove it as I went. That kept it in place.

I chose Red Rose size 20, since it appeared to be the same size as Lizbeth size 20. Wrong. It was closer to Anchor size 20, which is thicker than its Lizbeth counterpart.

Hence too thick to gift, especially with the overlapping chains adding to the thickness.

Final measurement - 15cms x 4cms

However the threads were a pleasure to work with. Smooth and a bit soft. Very easy to handle, manage, close rings; even stitches. 

At one end, I placed a picot incorrectly and noticed much later. It was easy to pull up each half stitch till the picot was shifted to the correct position 3 ds away.

The final lace is not as crisp or 'stiff' as when done with Anchor. 

On balance, there's a place for every thread!

'On Balance' is Leila Seth's autobiography. It is a very simply written book and it is this simplicity and straightforwardness that I liked. No attempts at being an 'author'; merely a walk down memory lane. Somewhere somehow I kept sensing glimpses of my mother in her character, her approach, her strength and values. And this bound me at a deeper level. 

As the chapter title shows, Leila Seth became the 1st woman Chief Justice of our Supreme Court in 1991. She has other firsts to her name, too. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leila_Seth. I even chanced to meet her on my 50th birthday when we went to watch a movie and she was there with her husband. And as an achiever in her own right, she was later also known as Vikram Seth's mother.

Many thanks Jon and Madhur - an enjoyable journey!

what a fold can do

Barbara Arango's Square Motif is one of the coasters I use for my mug.
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2019/06/back-and-forth.html

This is how the original looks -

The other day I noticed one of the single thrown rings had folded inwards. Hmmm, I tried it with the other 3 and look, we have a new variation! 

It kind of changes the entire look - 

- compact and contained, with a bit of texture.

What do you think?

tag along

 So, our new game for November 2022 has begun!!!

Game of the Month - TAG ME NOV 2022

This time we have a short 4-part tat-along kind of format and tatters have started sending in their first part which was released on the 1st. Today Part 2 will be uploaded. You can find all the relevant details in our FB Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1235560633606162

If you are not on FB but would like to play along, please leave a comment and how to contact you, and we will send you the link(s). Have fun trying to guess what each part looks like and what the final model might be. And this is an adaptation of which Endrucks' pattern.

Scroll through the patterns in the EP doc for images and links to help your search  - https://docs.google.com/document/d/17LEVftXweztBIOWh4sL4BB7bX65ssoOsOn4oXIgCepY/view

What is even more fun is that you get 2 patterns in one! And we are confident that you will definitely tat it again!

Each pdf contains a diagram, short form written pattern, and stepwise pictures in an attempt to reach out to all tatters.

Please share your versions and use the hashtags #tagmeEndrucks and #Endrucks1920Project when you post on any platform. And don't forget to let us know - Ninetta or myself - so that we get a chance to admire your work. As a first-time tatter in the Endrucks Project, we also have a gift for you when you complete any E pattern!

I have tons more to share with you - models, versions, patterns, etc. Hoping to squeeze in some time to do it all ;-D

Looking forward to your participation