New Pattern - Viola

It was a friend's birthday last week.  I was just going to send her a card... then felt I needed to enclose something with the card.  I didn't have a lot of time as I wanted to send her the card straight away.  So I came up with this necklace (the one in the main photo), and off it went in the post.

The second version, in the oval insert, is one I made afterwards and which I modified slightly from the first.  You can add a pendant to it or not.  In the second version, I added beads on each side instead of a pendant because I find that tatted lace does required a bit of weighting down to stay in place as it is so light.

Then I had another idea and thought it would look nice if the motif was repeated all around but I wanted to find a way of making it in one pass - definitely didn't want to cut, tie and hide ends on each repeat, that would spoil the fun! - so I beavered away some more and here's the third version of this necklace:

I liked the look of it so much that I carried on and made earrings... and then found that it also looks great as a hanky edging.  Because of the way it's constructed, the edging "bends" around easily, making it a very versatile edging which can be used on squares, ovals or rounds.  You can turn the corner on the motif as I've done below or even in between motifs works too.  Here's a small sample which I tatted in size 80 thread:

The shape reminded me of violas...

But wait, wait!  That's not all.  Just when I thought I was about good to go with the pattern, I found I could also make a great little square with this design.  And you know how I love squares!  So I've been frantically working away the last few days at writing this new pattern with all its variations.

I'm just not happy yet with the centre of the square... it feels just a bit too big to have nothing but all the variations I've tried so far were not quite right either...  This latest pink one has a little circlet of tiny flowers; thought it would look like a little wreath to go with the violas...  mmmmm....  I'm thinking some more...

All five (six even!) versions of this design will be available on the pattern.

I hope you like it!

Best wishes,

Frivole

A Brooch, Earrings, and Some Rolled Tatting

A tatting friend generously sent me a sample of two of Karey Solomon's threads for me to try after I had been admiring the original colourway on her blog - Thank you so much! - I was delighted to finally be able to try her threads.  I thought about it for a while wondering what to make with it, not wanting to waste any and keen to make something I would enjoy.  I started with a pair of earrings but then looking at the first earring inspired me to make a brooch based on the same layered flower idea.  This will be going to my Mother.  I hope she'll like it.

Motif 21 of 25-motif challenge

Tatted in Karey Solomon's "County Fair"
with Lizbeth in "Natural"

After making the main flower part, I felt it needed a bit "more"... so I gradually added the dangly pearls at different lengths and with different size freshwater pearls.  They are attached with tiny Josephine knots to give added texture and interest.

And here are the earrings I made for myself.  Karey's threads really are lovely and unusual, unlike any other HDTs I've used so far.  I hope to be able to get my hands on some more in the future!

I also played a bit more with the interlocking rings of the previous post.  In fact this two-tone neutral colours rosette was going to be the brooch for my Mother but I wasn't satisfied with it.  Though looking at it now in photo, it does look pretty (should I send her both?).  I added the tiny pearls on my shuttle thread so I could put one on the top picot of every other ring.  I like them nestled in the centre like that.  Another idea that I might elaborate on.

Motif 22 of 25-motif challenge

Tatted in Lizbeth Mocha Light and Natural

Here is another small project I've been working on (wow, this is going to be a long post!).  Edwige Renaudin teasingly put a picture of this motif in her book saying the method would be in the next book... now that's a bit mean!  So of course, I couldn't resist having a go at working it out.  She calls them "noeuds roulottés", incompletely closed.  So that's what I did.  And I think it looks like what's in the book.  It's rolled tatting really so I'm sure many of you will have tried it before but I only tried it once in the past, not very successfully.  My technique is not perfect so they are not quite evenly worked but I'm getting there.  I still wanted to show you because I liked the different look this creates.  I also didn't think to tie back after the first trefoil so there is an unsightly gap there, at 11 o'clock in the picture (this is done with one shuttle only so the trefoil is not naturally closed at the bottom by changing back to a chain.  Because it's a rolled ring which isn't pulled closed, the bit of bare thread that remains twists itself around the roll and I like the effect that results.  Something else I'll be playing with whilst on holiday.

Motif 23 of 25-motif challenge

To finish, here is Mary's Butterfly

tatted in Jess's hand-dyed thread called "Havana".

Motif 24 of 25-motif challenge

This is going to be it from me for a few weeks as we are going to be away in a couple of days.  I wish you all a wonderful summer.  Back again early September.

Best wishes,

Tourmaline Flower Necklace

To give you some relief from the interlocking rings of the last few posts (and to give me a break too!), here is a necklace I've been working on based on the layered flowers from Edwige Renaudin's book.

Yarnplayer's Tourmaline thread is one of my favourite ever so I thought I would use it to make a necklace.  I happened to have some nice green semi-precious rhyolite which matched the thread very well.  I like adding stones to tatting for jewellery as I find it gives the lace just a nice bit of weight to keep it in place.

Motif 17 of 25-motif challenge

I'm very pleased with how this turned out.

Best wishes,