Heart, Booties, Bookmarks and Tulips

I began this update April 7 and I'm just getting ready to post it 2 days later. What can I say? Life's been busy. I am omitting the Round Robin entries so that I can post them when I get a minute on the Round Robin blog. So if your RR goodies are missing look for them to show up on the other blog.

Eva only managed a tiny bit of tatting on International Tatting Day, but it looks like there's some serious teaching going on here.

Sylvia posted her TIAS tulip in a lovely shade of blue. What's wrong with blue tulips? She has also posted a picture of her unique "Detach a Bobbin" shuttle.

Anne has passed her first Anniversary blogging and she shows us some pictures of the firsts doilies she tatted.

Jeff tatted the Spinning Wheel Glass Mat by Mary Konior in Altin Basak size 50 thread in colour number 3005. Jeff finds the thread nice to work with but a little soft and it doesn't like to be retro tatted very often. He also test tatted Ruth Perry's Celtic Angel in DMC Cordonnet size 20. It's such a wonderful angel.
Aileen got a David Reed Smith shuttle for her birthday and a beautiful inlaid shuttle. Aileen has started using a picot gauge, and she was wondering what she could use to make home made picot gauges. Wally was her exchange partner and sent her a doily tatted in a vibrant Egyptian thread along with a copy of the pattern. Wow, really pretty.
Bonnie tatted the TIAS tulip using Sherry's Spring Poppies colour and a Flora green.
Joy tried out a section of "crooked mile" edging from Mary Konior's book, Tatting with Visual Patterns in size 20 Manuela. Her doily is almost done and she's planning a dresser scarf with edging all around to enter in this year's farm show.
Carol L tatted Jane Eborall's earrings using Coats and Clark button craft thread, which is like a size 30 thread. Ellen has so many wonderful designs that she just tats and goes on to the next. She tatted her Periwinkle flowers again so that she had something to work from when the time comes to write out the pattern. I think it's a gorgeous design and exquisitely executed.
Ais is learning to tat and joins the challenge with Water Lily from Tatting Patterns by Lyn Morton. Ais tatted it in a viscose polyester blend silk type spun yarn. I haven't used that type of thread before, but it seems to me that it would be hard to work with. Congratulations on finishing the motif.
Diane's Mom learned to tat using a Tatsy shuttle and Diane finished off the thread on the shuttle tatting a length of Daisy Chain from Elgiva Nicholls' Tatting Techniques. Diane will have to think of a special use for this piece. Diane ordered a pair of shuttles the same size as the Tatsy shuttle from Grizzly Mountain Arts so the both she and her Mom could have one. This is her Mom's motif tatted using her new shuttle.Diane has received her matching shuttle as well as one of Sherry's ceramic shuttles and some lovely hand dyed thread. For some one with a gimpy hand, Diane sure is stocking up on tatting supplies.
Pamela tatted the bootees from the Rebecca Jones book. The first try using normal size picots turned out way too small. The second one was a better size but doing things inside out and upside down was a nightmare. The third one was just right.
Clyde is using Marilee's Fern size 80 HDT to tat a doily from Needlecraft, February 1925 that can be found at http://www.georgiaseitz.com/books/nc/ncfeb25pg20.jpg. A mistake on an earlier row meant a lot of retro tatting, so pictures had to wait. The doily will be about 18 inches across when done.
Snowy has tatted another square motif. This one is from Iris Neibach's Tatting Together, Square Motifs.
Marilee learned a new trick from Sherry Townsend and she shares the technique for adding a jump ring. Her new hand dyed thread colours are Nectarine, Golden Fleece. Dusty, and Knitty Gritty.
Laura has just received a new double shuttle from Sherry that she's eager to try out. Her old PC died and she hadn't transferred all of the contact information to her new computer before the old one quit. If you're one of her regular contacts send her a quick email so that she can add you to her new address book. Meanwhile Laure thinks she might have a new TIAS for everyone to try. This 3 Button Heart is a Judith Connors design done in size 20 Flora thread.
Sherry's in a mad dash down to the wire as she packs up stock for Shuttlebirds and packs up house for the move to Korea. Along the way her new hand dyed colour is "Goodness Grapcious" and her new shuttle styles are very interesting. Makes me wish I used post style shuttles.
Gina has pictures of Hector.