And then there were....

Only Two More!!

Greetings to you all! I have been tatting away at these little buggers. After figuring out the right mix of space in relation to picot size...I've been tatting, tatting, tatting. Only two more of the small motifs and then I get to do the rounds which will attach them to the mother ship doily.



I'll keep you posted....until then, happy tatting!!
john

So, here is the blocked 'middle' doily. I realize I'll have to add more pins to the final blocking because there are several areas that are a bit wonky...



A couple more...






Now, for the outside 15 motifs. I've been trying to figure out the right combination of picot size and thread space...seems to be a bit tedious.



This morning I think I finally got it (not pictured here though). So, I'll start tatting this evening (if I have time).


I hope you all have a wonderful evening!
john

Tah-Dah...(sorta)

I did it. I spent some time this morning blocking the doily. I soak them in a Tupperware container using Oxyclean. I put them in hot water, seal the container and then every time I pass by I give it a good shake. Then, I rinse and rinse and rinse.

Here it is...



I tried to stretch the doily a bit to see if the thread space will look alright after it dries. The jury is still out on this.

Here's a close-up.



And,

I got a bit artsy with the camera...so, here are a few pics









I'll be posting again tomorrow to show the blocked project and show you the humorous journey I've been on to tat the Perfect medallion to attach to the outer round. It's been frustrating and humorous at the same time...so, until then, have a wonderful day!

John

Blocking Questions...

So, here it is: the Anne Orr 'Large Table Doily'. I'm working on the last full round and have gotten 1/2 way around. (still having trouble with the last split ring in each of the diamonds...they're getting better...just not as nice as I'd like)



I will probably soak and block the doily after this round and before the 15 small motifs are started. I have so many questions that I'm not sure where to begin.

To block:

1. Should I start in the center then alternate between the center and outer rounds?
2. What do I do with the unfinished thread space?
3. Do I direct all the unfinished thread space to march in file or can it find it's own way?

So, you get the picture. I need some suggestions as to how you might progress with a mess like this. I've got the pins. I've got the blocking foam. Now, two more days of tatting and then...it's off to blocking land.

Please, help bring the blocking anxiety into a manageable place.

Happy day!
John

A Few More Rounds

Happy Weekend to you all!

I'm still working on the large doily. Yesterday it was a hot mess because I have not blocked it yet. Here's yesterday's mess...



So, I started the next round connecting to the previous round. It really helped make sense of the pattern. Come to find out...you might have seen this in Rhona's hanky which I tatted several months ago.



And for a close-up



Oh...and one more thing. I'm tatting an Anne Orr pattern from the 1930's. It's the large table doily on the cover of Tatting with Anne Orr. I've got two more rows before the round motifs around the outside.

Have a wonderful day!
j.

1 & 2 & 3 &...AAaaarrrrrrGGGggghhhhh!!! pick & pick & pick & ...!

Well,
The pattern I'm working on calls for the next round to consist of twenty some motifs based on a four ring pattern....close, tie, and cut. I've chosen to use two shuttles and work with split rings and a mock picot to 'jump' to the next motif. You can see it here.



Problem is, I'm having a difficult time with the fourth ring in each motif. It's a split ring preparing to 'jump'. I'm twisting the stitches somehow. a couple questions: 1. do you do a down join for the second half of the ring, and 2. do you start with the second half of the double as you begin the second half of the split ring?...am I being clear here?

Look close and you'll see the mess...don't zoom in and maybe it'll look o.k. There is another round of these motifs later in the pattern..so, I've got practice ahead of me.

Also, I counted the picots in the previous round...guess what...not enough. WHAT?!!! How could that possibly be? I counted and counted and then looked close at the pattern....SHE fudged it!!...so, my perfectionist self must be content with the same.

Have a great day!!
john

Round and round we go!

Well, here's the latest installment.



I've completed the two rounds tatted completely with chains.



You can see from the shadow in the second picture how the inner motif is cupping...again, I'll worry about that later.