Friday 29 December 2023

oversew and so on

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For the longest time since (mid-1980s) I have wondered what ‘oversew’ meant when hiding tails at the end of a tatting project. I came across it in my Anchor and Coats books. Tried my own methods (including overcast stitch as in embroidery) but none worked out – knotting was the only way I knew and continued with it despite the 'ugliness'. 

Two decades later, on the net, I asked around, to no avail, but I switched to whip stitch some years ago.  Until a few months back when Jean Inglis used the term in her FB post! At my request, she explained and also uploaded a WIP pic. It got me thinking and I obviously had to try it out to compare and contrast with other sewing methods of hiding ends/tails as compiled here -. https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2016/11/beginning-or-ending.html

In my current study, I found two main methods that are commonly used to sew in the ends. Please excuse my shoddy samplers below (the sewing thread/tail should not be visible once it is pulled tight). I have used a contrasting blue thread as tails or ends for the purpose of clarity.

The first is what I will now refer to as OVERSEW

Here, we sew the tail Under the cap or waist band of the double stitch, and weave between the legs of the ds - under and over the half-stitches.  Hence a 10 ds count segment will give you 10 stitches front and behind. This method is diagrammed clearly by Jennifer Williamshttps://www.cariad-tatting.com/techniques.  

A variation of this method is shared by Lily Morales where we weave between the double stitches. Hence if there are 10 ds, you have 5 stitches under the caps in front, and 5 behind. [the link from The Online Tatting Class is currently unavailable]. 

The second method is WHIP STITCH. Here we sew the tail across the Top of the caps, weaving in between the double stitches. You can clearly see the tail (blue thread) moving over the top of the stitches instead of through the sides. This is my go-to method for 7 years now, when Carollyn Brown uploaded her video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Q-JloBBdIM and it just clicked with me.

Jean Inglis'  Mom taught her to tat in 1980 and to sew in her ends as above. She used the term 'oversew'. She unravels the tail and uses the thinner thread to sew and hide, thus leaving a tinier footprint. But look closely, and you realise it is actually the whip stitch! Yet, this unraveling of thread can be used for the oversew methods described above, too.

In conclusion, I'd say traditionally 'oversew' would simply have meant to sew in the tails whether you wove the tail under or over the caps; between double or half-stitches. However, if we wish to fine tune it, we can differentiate oversew from whip stitch as explained above.

Feel free to share your own thoughts and experience; no need to hide them!


For an annotated and frequently updated listing of the many ways to start, add, or hide ends, mostly knotless: https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2016/11/beginning-or-ending.html

Many thanks to all mentioned above, and those not mentioned, who constantly help us improve our knowledge, understanding, and skills.

Tuesday 26 December 2023

lighting up

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The 2nd candle motif is complete, with pattern. As mentioned here (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/12/the-power-of-15.html) I used treble tatting stitch chains alternating with regular double stitch chains to block tat this textured candle. 

While I wasn't successful in obtaining the intended spiral effect, I have since found a solution and even tried out a very quick trial. I believe it should work. No pics yet.

E15 Candle Motif version 2 pattern pdf - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1r3SXvBp6bTwrHxU0Y6veyl2M5lnqA1uv/view

The flame is slightly different from version 1, both derived and adapted from a motif of pattern #15 from Endrucks' ‘Die Schiffchen-Spitszen’,1920.

The flame is tatted separately first. When we start the candle body, the first ring is joined to the final ring of the flame in onion ring style/join.

And the base or candle stand is also different. 

I'm not at all happy with my tatting, especially the stand. I need a change of glasses to see more clearly! And working under a magnifier limits the fun. Hmmm, come to think of it, I could easily have re-tatted the stand from scratch! Perhaps I will.

If you tat it, please do share your improved versions! May these candles brighten up the new year as well. Happy tatting! 

Thursday 21 December 2023

lets flourish

Pin It now! Symbolism of leaves can vary from culture to culture, yet there are some common themes such as  'fertility, hope, abundance, growth, peace, victory, death, and rebirth'.  To me, green especially sap green leaves signify spring season - freshness, hope, life. But it will mean waiting for a few months and I am eager to share the patterns. As we near the turn of the year, it seems as good a time to remember the positivity of greenery. 

Earlier this month I had shared pics of these three leaves derived from part of a motif of pattern #15 from Endrucks' ‘Die Schiffchen-Spitszen’,1920 (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/12/the-power-of-15.html). I finally have the patterns ready to share, too.


E15 Leaf Doodle #1

It curls a bit which I like, but can be flattened easily ....


E15 Leaf Doodle #2

I used both kinds of twisted picots here.


E15 Leaf Doodle #3

A tiny leaf, but adorned with dot picot and lock chains. 

All three leaves are worked in one pass in size 10 thread and can be worked with ball and shuttle if we use a mock ring for the ring at the tip. They are quick to tat, too. Each of the pdfs consists of only 1 page.

Hope you like these and will enjoy a few moments to tat them up and create your own variations and flourishes!

Saturday 16 December 2023

snowflake me roundup 2

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 Continuing our journey from part 1 (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/12/snowflake-me-roundup-1.html) where we showcased the works of 12 participants along with links to the #SnowflakeMeEndrucks Nov2023 game, here are more ....


13. Margaret Davies - has been a regular participant despite life getting in the way frequently, and we truly appreciate all her work! You can read her post here - https://margaretsdesignercards.blogspot.com/2023/12/endrucks-projects-october-and-november.html

14. Maria Renee C de Andretta - was happy to have accomplished her 'challenge'.

15. Mariola Siwek - was also full of joy with her "antique blue snowflake". She used thread Kaja/15 from Ariadna company.

16. Martina Reinhold - promised this was her "first flock and many more to come"! We'll be waiting.

17. Meenakshi (Muskaan) Jain - These are two of my completed flakes. I had started the designprocess back in March (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/03/antics.html) as an offshoot idea from the Feb game. 

This is actually a pale lavender Olympus size 40 (more clearly visible here - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/11/flaky-antics.html) but the background changed it to almost white.
This one is in Lizbeth size 20. Interestingly both threads are the same size despite the labels.

18. Ninetta Caruso - graciously worked the flake for a stepwise pictorial and also uploaded a video for split chain! Details shared here - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/11/game-antics.html 

19. Pam Bray - also learned a few techniques through this flake and was satisfied with her first trial.

20. Paola Bevilacqua - tatted her's in silver metallic and ....
... then added blue & white beads and suspended it within a wreath...

Spectacular!

21. Paola Emilia Rotuletti - is arguably the Fastest Shuttler in our group, usually belting out multiple versions in several of our games! She won the contest in December last year, too.
Her first which she wasn't satisfied with, 

and then went on to make FIVE more, each in a different shade! The top right is worked in 2 colours.

22. Pina Barone - "Inspiring reason to learn new execution techniques."

23. Riva Nudelman - a golden beauty .... 
"For H I tried ring on ring technique instead of SCMR. It worked for me better."
We are spoiled for choices! Tatting techniques offer a wide range of options and we can choose to apply whichever we prefer without altering the pattern in any way.

24. Silvana Buonvino - created a lovely Christmassy effect with the addition of red berry-like crystal beads!

25. Sophie Ecru - "Its such a joy and fun to make these for my preparation of the coming Xmas! Absolutely recommend tatting lovers to make one. ...... Threads: @gaeul_toto ETTE HDT#60&#30, @alloyoung Lizbeth HDT#40"

Such a beautiful display!!!
Honestly, like I said in my previous post, it is so difficult to choose only one as the lead pic for each post! Making a collage doesn't help, with the images miniaturized. 

And as I post this, Melanie Cervi has already started her flake, and Jane McLellan has it in her to-tat-again list! (http://picotsnkeys.blogspot.com/2023/12/another-interruption.html). I will update accordingly - in fact there is a lineup of late arrivals for various other games and these will all be posted together in a roundup of roundups ;-D

For the present, though we have 25 'known' participants and 42 models/versions!

As always, Ninetta joins me in thanking each of our participants, not just for tatting and showing at least one snowflake, but in many cases for learning something new so that they could work the motif!  

Many many thanks to each and every participant for all the wonderful work!

Wednesday 13 December 2023

snowflake me roundup 1

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It is so difficult to choose just one lead pic as you will see scrolling down!

And so the roundup for our November event is ready, although tatters are still uploading pics from time to time - the latest being just a couple of hours back! 

Pattern by Muskaan: Antiks Snowflake with an adapted E42 center: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1U5J5sjuAA7D0qGPOGnK9RJ83MKdNkWSZ/view
Supplement with stepwise pictorial and other tips, options, and tutorials: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VFk4ZnBT9ObJxnEKgI6hUkk2wtd_gOD4/view 
It gives us immense pleasure to see that several of our participants took the time and effort to learn 'new-to-them' techniques through our Supplement!

Join Ninetta and me as we share the talents of our participants -

1. Ada Marie Diaz - chose to tat the flake in individual rounds using different colours for each! A Christmasy effect.

2. Amanda S Lohnes - her first attempt at split chains and mock rings!

3. Anita Barry - test tatted the snowflake several months back (https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2023/11/flaky-antics.html). 
She wrote -
Loved tatting this project in HH Lizbeth and Handy Hands metallic thread (although I had to pull hard to get the rings to close using the metallic thread).
And this is her 8-arm version. As I had said in the above post, I forgot to change the 8-point repeat (as in original Endrucks' #42) to 6 repeats in my written instructions and she went ahead and worked this beautiful version.

4. Anna Bonelli - pristine tatting as usual!

5. Anna Tedesco - always the multiplier, with a beautiful triplet in different colours.

6. Antonia Lai - a regular and enthusiastic participant learned split chains from Ninetta's video (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hKfqa3LHnUor9UAen7sdqPgzZe0elU2I/view) and her first attempt at ANKARS, too.

7. Catia Lemmetti - pleasantly surprised us with this beautiful bounty today!
The two trees are from our Dec game. 

8. Debra F Cox - wrote - 
...what a fun motif to make! ANKARS technique is new to me and I am still mastering split chains. All in all so fun to learn. I am told no 2 snowflakes are alike lol and mine is extra special with 7 points. Thank you for your patience and helping me learn new techniques on my tatting journey!
The small stars are designed by Ellen Lai. All motifs worked in Lizbeth color 190 silver thread size 20.

9. Jane McLellan - tatted this back in June when I had gifted her the pattern, and wrote about it in her blog - https://janemactats.blogspot.com/2023/06/in-which-there-is-tatting.html

10. Jiamrat Supapol - has quick shuttles, too! She tatted two flakes in different colourways.
Beautiful colourway - like a pond with reflections.
This one reminds me of corn fields!

11. Katie Verna - worked her cheerful magic using AltinBasak, #50, color 3053.

12. Krystyna Mura - worked two models in her pristine style ...
She used beads in the center and around the central ring.

And wowed everybody with this spectacular rendition in several different shades of metallic threads and strategically placed beads!

Hungry to see more? Join us again in part 2 of the #SnowflakeMeEndrucks roundup.
...to be continued

Many many thanks to all our wonderful participants! You make us want to do more!

Sunday 10 December 2023

about Helix Tatting and more

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In late October, while working on the Dictionary part of ‘The Six Ts of Shuttle Tatting’, Anita introduced me to the term Helix Tatting and the developer of the technique, Richard Embrey. We worked on a definition or description to include in the dictionary and I also tried my hand at a quick trial to get a feel for it.
My very first trial (with mistakes) without shuttles

While I don’t want to reveal the definition, I will certainly do a sort of comparison to put things in perspective. Richard came up with this technique in 2019 while trying to make an I-cord in tatting when he couldn’t find a tatted equivalent. It started out as a tatted tube or cord but has since evolved and diversified into many more shapes, including a coronation cord and a fish! As always, it is our imagination that gets us soaring into new skies.

Let me list down the major characteristics of Helix tatting (HT) as well as include links to visually similar techniques. Please note that a lot of these are my own thoughts and notes. Feel free to critique or suggest.

1. It is basically a 3D hollow cord or structure, made solely of chains, using multiple shuttles (4 or more). The outward appearance is like a spiral, especially visible when different colours are used.

2. Each shuttle alternately and sequentially acts as an active shuttle to become the core thread, and then  as a ball thread to form the stitches.

3. It is NOT bauble tatting, though it can be considered to be a variation. No separate ‘ribs’ are added for a scaffolding. Instead, each shuttle, in turn, acts as a core thread and provides the necessary stability to the structure. It also 'locks in' the previous segment when shuttles are switched.

4. It is NOT a continuous spiraling chain since short segments are made with a sequential change of shuttles. Each segment can consist of merely 1 stitch or as many stitches as one desires to create a broader shape. Two or more stitches give a more distinctive spiraling of the colours. The spiral is directional and there are ways to determine beforehand which direction one wants the spiral to run.

For instance this 3D Pond Reed prototype I had made back in 2014 using 2 shuttles– it is a continuous chain spiraling around itself, where I used the slope and roll joins to hold the shape. Clearly it is very different from HT.

5. It is NOT block tatting, though chain segments are apparently ‘stacked’ over each other. No lock joins are used. However the outward appearance can be confused with tatted ropes, with or without beads. Ninetta has done a wonderful study of various ways in which these 3D tatted ropes can be made, with links to respective tutorials. A couple of them even create a spiral effect! https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/search/label/stacking

6. HT is not limited to merely spiraling chains. With so many shuttles in play, it is easy to throw off rings and chains, use beads, add picots, and so on. Versatile.

7. There is another tatted tube example where we use stacked or layered split rings. No chains involved, only rings. And if the picots are shortened, the stacking will be that much closer. Clearly this is not HT in any sense of the term, except that it is also a form of continuous tatting for a 3D hollow tube.

tatted beaded rope made with stacked or layered split rings https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2019/10/tat-beaded-rope.html

See Ninetta's version of a spiraling tatted rope made with interlocking rings - https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/2020/08/gold-rope-chain.html 

8. BUT, there is something that definitely follows the same principle and concept as HT, and also gives a directional spiral! It is called Mac-Tatting (MT) and was first developed by Usha Kota in an attempt to imitate a crochet braid in tatting – it was a flat braid, worked too and fro. However, when I understood what HT was, it immediately crossed my mind that MT could be similar if worked continuously. And YES, it is the same, except that we work with unflipped or reverse stitches rather than flipped or double stitches! And you get a spiral, though the stitches face down while in progress. 

Helix tatting & Mac-tatting trials, together
In my first attempts, I found it easier to work the Mac-tatting version - I had a better control of the threads and there was no tension issue. Helix tatting is fine once you get into a rhythm, but it requires more finesse. And managing all those shuttles can of course be an issue.


A couple of weeks back, Richard was invited to TOTC as a guest teacher to demonstrate the Helix Tatting technique. You can watch the video here - https://youtube.com/live/DXO9Pm0fq1U
Bonnie Swank shared her notes on how to do HT with needles. Richard also shared a practice pattern called Watermelon Dreams, with the class. https://www.theonlinetattingclass.com/patterns
Creative members have already shared a couple of clever ways to organize their shuttles to avoid tangling. I simply laid them down spread-eagled, on my bed. I did find that it is better to leave a longish length of thread to avoid frequent winding/unwinding; and since it is only 1 or 2 stitches each, the long length is not a bother. 

I am test-tatting a pattern for Richard for his upcoming book. It is called Watermelon Dreams Beaded Helix Embellished Earrings
It took me a few hours to find and empty all my shuttles, glue the numbers (I did it on both sides, LOL), string beads and wind the shuttles. 
In progress.
I've completed Round 7. My version is a Caps In spiral where the double stitch faces inside the cord and tatting progresses in a clockwise circle. 

That’s it from me for now ….. Welcome your thoughts.

Many thanks to Richard, Anita, and all the creative minds mentioned above!