teachable moments

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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