Victorian Trellis

I don't know if any of you have joined in but I now have several videos relating to the Victorian Trellis Doily pattern (find them on my channel and specifically in this playlist).  I've often had questions about this design over the years so I thought it might be a good idea to make videos for the whole doily from start to finish.  Along the way, I'm covering other things like how to fix mistakes (since I made two that needed correcting in the first round!).

I've now started on the second round last night which is much simpler that the first.  So if you fancy lots of Victorian Sets, I hope you'll consider joining us in tatting this piece!

Best wishes,

Frivole

Still No Center... but here it is anyway

I've still not got fabric for the centre of this but I decided to show the finished tatted piece anyway which I completed sometime last week.

I enjoyed making this very much.  I would even consider making it again!

Working off the ball for the whole of the doily makes it an easier tat, not having to keep refilling shuttles.

I think this doily has an interesting and unique look with the criss-crossing of the trellis, the full and the more open rounds and of course, the victorian sets.

Best wishes,

Frivole

Victorian Trellis Doily - First Round Explained

Some people have expressed interest in this doily but are finding it difficult to decipher the pattern (written in the old-fashioned way).  As this pattern (the whole book in fact) is available on the internet, I  feel it is fine to re-write parts of it here, in modern tatting pattern terminology.

Start on a chain, leaving a small picot.  I use the method without paperclip (see in the techniques section, tab above).  Using these methods, the work is never reversed and you always tat with the front of the work facing you.

Chain with small starting picot

The Victorian sets are made as a chain and have four first halves of the double stitch followed by 4 second halves of the double stitch and are marked as vs4^4 (seems appropriate as the sets form little Vs).  I will be putting a C in front the vs4^4 as Victorian sets could also be worked in ring form so I'm trying to keep things as clear as possible.

Updated on 28.01.21 (there were some mistakes in this pattern which I have now corrected)

This is one whole repeat written out and there are plenty of photos below to illustrate each step.

Don't forget:  you never reverse work!

C: starting picot (as explained above) 4-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3 (11 picots)
Join back into your starting picot.

*C:vs4^4(x2), place paperclip on the core thread, vs4^4(x2), vsp, vs4^4(x2).
SCMR2-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-2 (8 picots), close the SCMR.
Continue with sets:
C:vs4^4(x2), vsp, vs4^4(x2), remove paperclip and join to that space, vs4^4(x2)

Continue with the same chain:

C4-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3 (11 picots)

Curl the last part of the chain onto itself with the working thread under the work and the core thread over the work, crossing between the 1st and 2nd double stitch (see photos below).
Repeat from *

When you have completed 36 large rings and are about to make the 36th small ring, then complete the round thus:

SCMR2-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-2 (8 picots), close the SCMR.
Continue with sets:
C:vs4^4(x2), join to vsp of first chain at the beginning of round, vs4^4(x2), remove paperclip and join to that space, vs4^4(x2), join back at base of very first large ring.

Cvsp4-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3 (11picots)

Join the chain back into the starting vsp

vs4^4(x2) are made and I used a bobby pin on my thread
which works well as it has a nice width and is easy
to put on and take off the thread.  A satefy pin
or a paperclip is fine too of course.

The first long chain of victorian sets is completed and I have made the SCMR.
I just need to pass my shuttle through the loop to close it.

vs4^4(x2), vsp, vs4^4(x2) are made after the SCMR
and I have removed the bobby pin and joined in that small space.

After the join, continue with 2 more vs4^4 and then
4-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3, curl this chain back on itself,
making sure the ball thread is under and the shuttle thread (core thread) is over.

Carry on making the Victorian sets, making sure the first stitch is tight
and made so that the join is
between the 1st and 2nd ds of the chain that
makes the large ring.

After the large ring, vs4^4(x2), place paperclip (or whatever else you are using)
vs4^4(x2), join to vsp of previous chain
vs4^4(x2)
then continue with the SCMR of the small flower

And so on, and so forth...

The original pattern does the join all around the Victorian sets chains but I wasn't finding that easy to do so that's why I used the paperclip and the vsp instead.  I find it give a precise joining point whereas when trying to do the join all around the chain, it was hard to get an accurate spot every time.

I hope this is useful to those who were interested in tackling this doily.  I have just finished the tatting of mine tonight and am now on the search for some nice fabric for the middle.  Hopefully I can show you the finished doily very soon.

Best wishes,
Frivole

More Victorian Trellis Doily - and New Video

I'm still enjoying working on this doily.  I'm now on the 7th round.  I particularly like the fact that it is entirely made of chains - so no reloading of the shuttle required!  And no winding and unwinding of the shuttle to move between chains and rings and vice-versa.  All this makes for quick tatting.

Actually, on row 6, the pattern did call for a small ring but I decided to carry on using mock rings instead so you always work with the right side of the tatting facing you and don't have to flip your whole piece backwards and forwards as you would to reverse work.

The 6th round was not blocked so it looks a bit uneven in the photo but as before, the large rings are now being stabilised by the 7th round which adds more Victorian sets and small flowers between the large rings.  

This last round looks a bit like hearts...

Since I was making Victorian sets and mock rings in this doily, I thought it would be a good opportunity for a new video.  This shows the 6th round.

The embedded video is small but if you click on the
bottom right-hand corner icon (the little arrows), it will
make the video full screen (though the picture will be slightly less clear).
Or if you click on the Youtube icon, 
it will take you over to Youtube to watch it in larger format also.

Best wishes,

Frivole

More on Vintage Patterns

I will still tat the square from the previous post again but (as is often the case) I was side-tracked by another vintage pattern from a book I've had a long time called "Tatting Patterns" by Julia Sanders.  Now I don't know what the link is with Julia Sanders (perhaps she's the editor?) because this is, in fact, an unabridged republication of "The Priscilla Tatting Book no. 2" (1915).

Luckily for all of us, this is now available for free on the web.  See this link.  The doily is on page 16.  This is a great book with many interesting patterns and well worth having in your collection I think.

I had seen this doily tatted before over at In Tatters and I thought it looked really pretty and unusual with its liberal use of Victorian sets.  In fact Victorian sets are used altogether a lot in the Priscilla Tatting book.

However, I was struggling to decipher the pattern.  I kept ending up with my chains facing the wrong way.  After a few false starts, I asked Monedido (the In Tatters member who had made this doily before and who tats beautifully) and she kindly gave me some help to get to grips with the nice lattice first round of this doily.  Thank you so much Monedido!

Here it is:

What's interesting is that this round is completely made of chains.  So although there is a lot of tatting, you don't even empty one shuttle as you are working with a shuttle and ball and nearly all the thread comes from the ball.  I like that.

The lattice is very stretchy but will be set into place by the next round which places more Victorian sets around the large rings.

I'm slightly tempted to throw some blue in there... or should I stick to the classic ecru?...

Victorian sets, for those who don't know, are a number of first halves of the double stitch followed by the same number of the second half of the double stitch.  For example, in this case, 4 first halves followed by 4 second halves which gives a "frilly" effect to the chain.

Best wishes,

Frivole