Yesterday, I posted a  pattern that I made from a vintage handmade inkle weaving shuttle.
Today, I thought… I should use that pattern to make a shuttle!
Then I remembered that I had a piece of an old ruler from my husband’s Dad in the studio.
I don’t know what he used the other half for, but I am pleased as can be to have this half!
I traced the pattern onto the ruler.
Because I promised my friend, William, that I wouldn’t use power tools until my eye is completely healed, I used simple hand tools.
My eye is really not there yet, so power …read more

Of course, I couldn’t stop at just one bracelet…
so I made a second one:

Because I had a plan…. bangle bracelets look better when there are more than one….
(BTW, the flash does nasty things to the bracelets…. in real life, they look smooth and kind of irridescent. The flash seems to expose their undies. How rude!)
AND, because I love Furoshiki.
What’s  Furoshiki?
It’s an ancient and elegant Japanese solution to carrying things in the greenest possible way.
Here’s a link: FUROSHIKI
I’ve impressed the heck out of all kinds of people by whipping a headscarf out of my purse and tying a couple of knots …read more

My husband started it all. He bought me a bag of mystery synthetic cheap and cheerful thread at our favourite second hand store, and then magically made it appear in my studio.  (He’s such a romantic! He knows that I am addicted to thread in all it’s manifestations – even cheap and cheerful mystery thread! LOL)

Part 1- upcycling a bag of funky mystery thread
So, I got out some of the tatting shuttles that I love to carve and filled them up with multiple strands of the threads:
Part 2 – Choosing colors and loading tatting shuttles
Now, some folks might say that …read more

In Part 3, the tatting finally began!
This is a rather unique approach to tatting…. there are no lacy bits, no loops, picots, chains, just plain Josephine Knots over a simple flat wooden bracelet with upcycled funky thread.
(Feel free to do this with gorgeous thread! It will be – well….. gorgeous!)
Now…..
What if you want to change colors?
Easy peasy….
1 choice is to cut the first color, leaving a few inches to spare.
Just pick up the next color, and hold the thread end from it together with the last  thread end, and carry on as if you were in your right mind.
When …read more

Once I had all the tatting shuttles full of the mystery thread, I started working on the bracelet:

I didn’t tie the thread to the bracelet (by the way, this would work on any bangle bracelet).
I just took the thread through, and pinched it to the bracelet with my left thumb.
Then, I started making Josephine knots over the bracelet. What’s a Josephine knot?
Basically, it’s the blanket stitch.
∞The tatting shuttle goes through the bracelet, from the front to the back, and a loop of thread goes over your left index finger.
The shuttle comes up through the loop and then is pulled …read more

My lovely husband, Jim, brought me home a goodie bag of mystery thread from the Sally Ann.
Not primo for sewing… so what to do, what to do….
Hmmmm…. good for spinning… yes! Will set some aside to use when spinning ‘designer yarn’.
Wait a minute…. this is T H R E A D, right?
T H R E A D !
Thread = tatting……yessssssssssssssssssssss………..
And, then I HAD it!
I decided I would  finally get around to finishing some wooden bracelets that I made last summer.
My plan was, cut out plain wooden circle bracelets and crochet yarn around them.
Good plan…. but – I have a …read more

The other day, this treasure magically appeared in the studio.  Woohoo! Obviously my Hunnybunny had paid a visit to our fave 2nd hand store. Mmmmmmmm yum! a bag full of fun…… now what to do with it….Obviously, it’s super cheap and cheerful mystery synthetic thread – and I don’t trust it to hold together anything vital. Visions of dissolving garment or accessory being lifted out of washing machine in pieces after cheap and cheerful thread goes ‘boink’.
(You weren’t supposed to WASH me, human! I no hold together when wet!)
Loved the colors, tho’, so had a little think about it……

(image source: …read more

 Bloggy giveaway carnival time is over…..

The other day, I posted about the Hedgehog Tatting Shuttles that I have just designed and am now making.

Well……
I  offered one of my  Hedgehog Tatting Shuttles (one of a kind, handmade by me) as a prize in the bloggy giveaway carnival!
ANd the winner is #60, Nicole – congratulations! Hope you will enjoy it!
and make sure you leave a valid email address. 
The Contest  is now closed.

Image Source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright
Please note: I am no longer writing hankering for yarn. You can catch up with me at www.tottietalkscrafts.com

I have always found hedgehogs to be charming.
But, we have a greyhound, so we could never have a pet hedgehog. (’Mmmm, tasty’, I can imagine him saying….)
So, recently, when one of my readers asked me if I would make a teardrop shaped tatting shuttle, I did some sketches, and played with it, and came up with:

I am VERY pleased with it!
It tats like a dream, not at all spikey like it’s real life inspiration.
I love it when fun things evolve out of conversations with my hankering for yarn buddies!
Image  Source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

 
Tatting Chic won the Lady Hoare tatting shuttle that I gave away recently on my blog.
She wrote about it: Tatting Chic and the new Lady Hoare shuttle
She was disappointed to find it slow and difficult to work with.
The Lady Hoare tatting shuttles are slower to work with, but you can move along with them at a fair clip, once you get used to them.
AND, there is a secret to working with them comfortably.
Pinch lightly on one of the openings, and have the rest of the tatting shuttle ‘float’ out in front of your fingers.   A closed shuttle will sit mostly …read more