stringing patterns

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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 💖

just for kicks and koels

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 I find myself mired, happily enough, in several tasks and commitments some with a definite deadline. It means that even though I've  been taking pics to share, and collecting patterns to share, blogging might have to take a backseat for a few weeks. I certainly hope there will be a few hours to spare once in a while to publish a post.

Pausing with a few quick shots ....

I don't like to throw away pruned twigs. This morning, when I snipped off a few overgrown shoots from our ficus plant, I put them in a little pot of water. Let's see how long they last.

And I stuck the Happy Hands Daffodil to brighten the greens 😄

Remember I told you how hubby has taken to displaying my lacework? These are a few on the dining table. There are a few more under the bowls. I took this pic over a week back, without proper lighting.

Same day same time, but a slightly different angle. I'm sure you can identify a few of them? 

Over a week back, while exercising in the morning, a female Koel alighted on the tree in front of our balcony. The plumage and beautiful mottled grey feathers were on full display and quite majestic. Unfortunately by the time I went in and brought out the phone, she had shifted. However, she was joined by a male.

I tried to take a good pic, but my skills are sorely lacking.

And in this video, my hands were shaking. 

Last year, we enjoyed the antics of a courting couple! The female would call, the male would approach, the female would hop on to another branch! This ritualistic dance step repeated several times and finally the female flew away leaving a desolate male behind. 

💗💖💗

vanity takes a fall

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This is the completed Gooseberry Tree pattern from Erika Tashiro's 'Tatting Lace, Marmelo'.

The last time I showed you, 3 rounds had been completed - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2022/05/indulging-my-vanity.html

This is after 6 rounds. The 6th round was a doozy to control! the little rings and chains kept twisting. The black colour didn't help. I had to block it before continuing to the last round.

Adding a 4th colour - brown - was an afterthought otherwise I might've used it for the center round instead of black. I noticed how beautiful the combo of light and dark green in Erika's coloured version looked. The clovers could be distinguished yet the apposite clovers and chains created an elegant dense curvaceous circle, which I sought to replicate with the brown. However, I should've used a much darker shade to blend with the black clovers.

In the final round I substituted thrown rings with regular picots since I intend to use this as a hair bun net. I don't think it has altered the appearance much.

All those tiny rings are not Josephine Rings. They are small rings or dots.

The doily uses simple techniques - rings, chains, thrown rings, and dots. And several rounds can be worked with a ball and shuttle.

Erika works the 4th round in 3 colours. However, I stuck with black and yellow.

In Anchor Pearl Cotton size 8, the diameter is 8 inches, a tad larger than what I need. Hence I will string it through the rings. I wish I'd worked it in size 40 for a more delicate lace.

Lesson learned - never be vain! And try not to indulge too much in anything, LOL.

Friends have asked me to show the net in action. I am a bit tied up at present to undertake posing and modeling, but will try to definitely post all my 4 current nets. 😁

indulging my vanity

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 I've taken a mini break from Endrucks' tatting to work on another hair net bun for myself. This time I've chosen warm colours and Erika Tashiro's Gooseberry tree doily. The pattern is from her book "Tatting Lace, Marmelo".

These are the first 3 rounds, in Anchor Pearl Cotton size 8. I am following Erika's colour placement, however instead of green I chose black to match my dress. 

The diameter so far is 9.5cms. I have already started round 4.

I truly wish my stitches and overall look were as perfect as the designer's. Nevertheless, my enjoyment and the usefulness of this piece far outweigh any small regrets, LOL.

continuous paths

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There are some lovely doilies in Endrucks' book, all worked in one pass. What I find, though, is that unlike her straight lace patterns, the circular doilies tend to either ruffle or cup, and some tweaking of count is required. I think it is a matter of individual tatting tension?

Another thing I've noticed is that perle cotton (as in the one above) is more forgiving than mercerised cotton which makes sense due to the difference in their twist. The tight twist of mercerised cotton thread tends to keep the lace stiffer and less flexible. 

Despite all the colours in the mandala, false CTM gave me a sense of continuous tatting. However, for the Endrucks 1920 Project, I needed to tat a model that could be more easily shared in modern style which is why I chose this pistachio green in Anchor size 20. It is tatted in one pass using mock picots, split chains, and split rings to climb out. 

Above I have traced the 'modern' path of climbing out of rounds (in blue). For this to work smoothly, I had to work a couple of rounds counterclockwise. The orange path shows how Frau Endrucks moved to the next round - simply add another chain(s) till you reach the point where you can climb out! 

UPDATE: I  have coined the term 'SHADOW CHAIN' for this extra chain(s) used to climb out to the next round, row, or motif, thus enabling continuous tatting.

No need to learn any techniques, and the direction of each round remains unchanged. But as seen above, it does add extra chains along the path....something which 21st century tatters may not like. Although in fine threads, it may pass inspection, and clearly speed up tatting.

UPDATE: Pattern for this doily is uploaded, showing both methods of climbing out - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vG2g0JCVsy8cy2DfGKHEhxleq_7Rveba/view

 

Since the first few rounds can be worked off a shuttle and ball, I used my earlier tip about extending the thread between 2 shuttles. All the extra thread in left pic was wound on to the ball temporarily, till it got used up and the 2nd shuttle was needed.

Of course, one can simply keep shuttle 1 and ball thread continuous and tat till the 2nd shuttle is needed. At that point, pull out the length required, cut from ball, and wind up shuttle2.

There was a lot of ruffling in the green model, despite adding a few stitches to a later round. So I started another in tinted Anchor size 20, with modified stitch count. Worked beautifully and lay flat. The 3rd round does ruffle till the 4th round is added, but this is a structural problem.

Ran out of thread after 5 rounds, hence added a bold violet shade to add a spot of colour. I kinda like it - what do you think?

I am busy with pattern #17, hence this pattern pdf will have to wait a bit. However, for those who'd like to try it right away, you can find the written instructions and tips by Georgia here.

This is Pattern #28 from Schiffchen-Spitzen 1920 by Eleonore Endrucks-Leichtenstern. You can find all the links in the Endrucks 1920 Project doc here along with all other patterns in modern format. We are hoping to have all of Endrucks' patterns in modern format by this November - a year from when we started. 

waltzing home

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Carin Jansen’s Angel Choir doily TAL 

pattern - http://handwerk-fee.blogspot.com/2020/11/engelenkoor.html

tatting completed by ANITA  BARRY

As the final strains of the angelic melody dies down, the waltz comes to an end. It was an exhilarating and learning experience that will be treasured for years to come. We didn't just tat lace, we built memories, which is what tat-alongs are all about.

Ah, but it was not an easy romp home for Anita Barry, but no means! You remember her fixation anecdotes here and here? She wasn't wearing 6 inch heels while tatting, so why did more missteps and stumbling follow, despite having the finishing line in sight?!

Round 6 struck again, this time with 2 of the 3 rings in a trefoil missing (arrow in pic above).

Some colourful language followed when she noticed the miss! And who can blame her ;-P

Where there's a mistake, there's a fix!

Anita shared her tools of the trade...I like to call it tools of our craft ;-D

 

The strange looking pick top left is a thorn from the Agave Cactus! Cool, right?!

And on the right is the needle as picot gauge in action.

' The above are "self-threading" sewing needles used for sewing in thread ends. There is a slot above the eye of the needle to slide the thread down into the eye of the needle. '

' And my fabric Ort Bag (scrap bag) for my thread ends. It's a tiny trash bag.'

Round 7 in progress. She followed my example of making the picot at tip longer.

Whoop Whoop waltzing home finally ... 

' The angels are helping me learn more ways to improvise and showing others I Tat like they do with 'do overs'. '

One would think her doily is riddled with fixes. But look what emerged from it - 

We have her husband to thank for this inspiration - he wanted the angel from Carin's doily to have "More Heart"!

I think this quote sums it up nicely since Anita will be sharing this experience in a speech titled "Fear Knot" at the IOLI Convention this year, showcasing the international cooperation this doily embodies, as well as 'bumps and grinds Tatters get themselves into'. 

        Don’t carry your mistakes around with you. 

        Instead, place them under your feet and use them as stepping stones to rise above them. 

                – Anonymous © Source: quotespedia.org

It was Anita's idea early last year, to tat a doily together. We had zeroed in on the Mystery doily whenever we could. On seeing this doily, I just felt we could all use some angels in our lives during these weird times, and Anita graciously accepted. Who knew this doily would come to create so many personal memories for her, besides the ones we made mutually!

And we had the added pleasure of several other tatters tatting along. Use hashtag #AngelChoirTAL to find the doilies on facebook as well as in Just Tatting group. If you type 'Angel Choir' in the Just Tatting search engine, it will throw up more versions by tatters who uploaded their finished doilies. Do take a look at their beautiful work if you are a member there.

Many many thanks to my buddy Anita and all my other tatting friends who joined us in our journey!

Perhaps we can plan another joyful journey next year!

Thanks once again to Carin for sharing her lovely pattern.

All related posts, with joint notes on this doily tat along - 
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/two-to-tango.html 

https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/a-quadrille-or-more.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/dance-nonstop.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/dancing-continuously.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-dance-continues.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/01/fixtrot-to-foxtrot.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/02/treading-lightly.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/02/all-song-and-dance.html
https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/2021/02/waltzing-home.html

all song and dance

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 Ta-Da !!! Doily completed.... 

Carin Jansen’s Angel Choir doily TAL – Round 7 (final round) 

pattern - http://handwerk-fee.blogspot.com/2020/11/engelenkoor.html

I love it and hope you do, too. I enjoyed tatting it very much especially with a few more friends joining in!

Worked all from the front, clockwise. Chain-only round, hence I used a ball and shuttle, ctm. All joins are lock/shuttle joins.

For continuous tatting, you might have exited Round 6 with an 8ds split chain. Climb into this final round with a tiny mock picot and 2ds connecting chain and work clockwise. 

Easy to remember count with a picot after every 2 stitches almost throughout. I found it easier to remember that there are 5 picots on the 4 side chains and only 3 picots on the topmost arch.

Despite her instructions, I did not use a picot gauge - nothing new there ;-P

I used graduated picots on the topmost arch with the center picot especially long for a slight point. I  forgot to mention in my earlier post - I had made joining picot small in round 6 so it was easier to keep track of where to join. Besides, a small picot would mean a more pronounced/rounded chain arch.

Although this colourway had been my original plan at the start of doily, at this final stage I felt it might be too overbearing. So I started the round in green, which looked too understated, and had to be unraveled. Went back to this autumnal variegate and am very happy with the result. Hubby was part of the entire decision-making process for this round. 

Appears almost as if angels are merrily singing and dancing in the center of a large flower – very summery, too. We had wonderful sun after almost a month when I took this pic.

Materials/tools used : Lizbeth size 80 threads in #100, #138, #180, #186. 2 shuttles (or shuttle and ball). #11 crochet hook for joining through very small picots. Size 28 tapestry needles to whip stitch ends; I always start knotless, tatting over tails. Scissors. Occasionally a magnifier or a book light.

It measures 17.5 cms finally.

In her coloured version, Carin used 2 colours, one in each shuttle, and used a SLT in the middle of the short 2ds connecting chain to switch colours. It has a nice framing and dimensional effect since in the previous round she had used the same 2 colours alternately.

Many many thanks to Carin Jansen for sharing her delightful pattern. Her presentation is excellent – with clear diagrams, written notations, along with thread lengths and other tips. RW and SS were the only 2 notations missing in the instructions (for tatters with limited pattern-reading skills). 

It is a lovely pattern to practice and perfect long chain tatting! Some rounds can be worked continuously while some can be worked from a shuttle and ball. Mostly employs basic techniques. 

I found the entire pattern engaging and learned a few tricks to design and present! 

Join us on Facebook using the tag #AngelChoirTAL on your timeline and/or the group Just Tatting. 
All tutorials can be found here - https://tipsaroundthehome.blogspot.com/p/tatting-resources.html

Related Posts :
Notes/thoughts on Round 1 ; Round 2 ; Round 3 ; Round 4 ; Round 5 ; more on Round 5 & Round 6 ; more on Round 6 ; Round 7.