My mother always says: Actions speak louder than words! So, when several people asked me how to wind thread onto flat tatting shuttles, I thought… rather than trying to describe it, I will just make a video!
Hurrah for
technology!
How amazing
to be able to do this!
I grabbed a
handful of
tatting shuttles
and then,
showed how to
make a Lark’s
Head Knot
through the arms
of the Great Mother
tatting shuttle,
so it can be worn as a
pendant.
This is a handy trick to know,
as you can easily do this
with a key or scissors or other
tools, and wear them around
your neck, too.
I made the cord in the video with one of my Cordelia …read more

I always say that I am a dyed in the wool shuttle tatter.  I love love love tatting shuttles.
I love how they look, I love how they feel, and  I love MAKING tatting shuttles…..
Because I am a tatting shuttle afficianado, I will often look at things and think:
Wow…that looks like a tatting shuttle!
So, the other day, I noticed that a plastic paper clip on my desk looked like it could be a pseudo-tatting shuttle….
Of course, I had to give it a try!
And, yep!
You can indeed, upcycle and re-purpose a plastic paper clip and tat with it!
And, that’s mystery thread that …read more

I hope that you had a lovely Easter, or Passover or whatever it is that you celebrate.
Ours was lovely, although we are all so exhausted we are walking into walls……
it’s been moving week for our daughter and her husband, so we’ve been scrubbing,
sanding, priming, painting, packing, moving moving moving…. yargle………
Anyhow…. we had a lovely supper with the whole family, and afterwards,  my daughter-in-law and son brought out a special little Easter treat….
the chocolate bunny was delightful, but even better…..
The lovely tin box it came in has become the home for some of my crochet hooks and tatting shuttles.
I have a …read more

Any month that starts with with a day of foolishness deserves to have a celebration of playfulness, doesn’t it?
I’ve been reading up on ‘play’ (click the link to read what wikipedia has to say about play)
and playfulness.
Expert after expert has talked about the importance of being playful
for our entire lives.
There was a wonderful conference about Serious Play last year.
All the experts agree:
Play is essential to our well being, in body, mind and spirit – as individuals and as communities.
Being playful can alleviate all kinds of stress.
Playfulness increases resiliency and flexibility….and, whew… do we ever need to be flexible these days!
Because …read more

Recently, I was given a copy of a wonderful old book: Spool Knitting by Mary McCormack.
It is a treasure. It’s 100 years old and has delightful photos.
I find it interesting that Mary McCormack consistently calls the spool knitted cords, ‘webs’, rather than cords.
I think that this is probably because she likens a child (she always uses ‘he’ as the supposed spool knitting  child, never ’she’, sigh) to a spider spinning a web.
Her projects all involve spool knitting yards of cord, mostly on 2 peg spool knitters, and then stitching them into shapes that are then assembled for the finished project.
To …read more

Knitting the Threads of Time: Casting Back to the Heart of Our Craft by Nora Murphy  (published by  New World Library)

Nora Murphy weaves together the story of knitting her young son a sweater with stories about her life, as well as historical explorations of women’s connections to the making of yarn and clothing.
Reading the book is a lot like subscribing to a favorite blog and getting to know a very pleasant and intelligent person. Her style is very intimate and accessible.
Ms Murphy speaks passionately about the lives of women from ancient times right up to the present.
She talks from the …read more

Last October, because of a number of factors, I decided that I would leave Hankering for Yarn. I grieved it and missed Hankering for Yarn, and the community of readers, terribly! So, when recently, I was invited to return to b5 media and begin writing Hankering for Yarn again, I was delighted.

There have been a heap of changes and I am soooooooooooo excited to be part of the new direction !
One of the biggest changes is that Hankering for Yarn will soon be part of Bliss Tree, which is an oh so nifty website/community.  I am looking forward to seeing …read more

I LOVE Celtic interlaces, so was delighted to see this neat website:
Celtic Interlace
Celtic Interlaces translate so beautifully to needlework of all descriptions…. knitting, crochet, tatting, embroidery…. you name it!