nuntium duodeseptuagesimum (68th post) What I learned

motif #17

Here is the another handkerchief for another former student who is getting married in June.

Bridesmaids by Mary Konior

Here's what I learned.
1.  I don't like to crochet, not a bit.
2.  Crocheting with tiny thread is even worse.
3.  Vintage thread while lovely can be a trick to work with.
4.  A pattern with just rings can still consume a LOT of thread.
5.  The possibility that one doesn't have enough of said vintage thread can be nerve-wracking.
6.  Nerve-wracking can have a -w- or not.
7.  Dark blue isn't nearly as pleasing on the handkerchief as the lighter blue.
8.  My eyes aren't what they used to be. Not even close...
9.  An ironing board cover which looks clean can still make mysterious brown spots on white handkerchiefs which then have to be "woolited" out.  Twice. Because I didn't catch on that it was the cover, not the iron.

Now I move on to Sulky thread which Diane the Lace-Lovin' Librarian has so graciously sent me.  Wahoo!!  She is so generous and this thread is FUN!

Latin for today:  nullam theam hodie habui!  = I didn't have any tea today!

nuntium sexagesimum septimum (67th post) success!

Well, pictures speak louder than words...

 

I'm pretty well pleased with myself!

tee hee.

nuntium sexagesimum sextum (66th post) Blatt blahs

Tatting- I love it and sometimes hate it.  I've been doing some- yay!  But I've had some weird luck.

First the edging, Mary Konior's Bridesmaids.  I was so pleased because I'd tried that SCMR for the corner and it worked.  Yay!  Here's the first round:

Then I started the second round:

And realized this:

Clearly not enough thread...

What to do?  How about white?  It's going on a white hanky, why not?
Here's why not:

It just doesn't look right.

So I rustled around the Aunt Rose-E thread and found another ball but I don't think it's the same manufacturer.  Why am I not sure?  Because the first (very full) ball didn't have the paper in it!
What do you think?

Even in direct daylight, we think it's okay.  (Yes, I've asked everyone in the house and others, even poor Cindy Bluebird.)  But there's a problem.  It's very old thread  (the tag says 15 cents) and somewhat brittle, I can close three or four rings but then it usually breaks.  I'm open to wisdom on this- please!!!

So why the title of this post?  Because I've also been working on the Tat-along TischBand.  Long ago, I'd made similar flowers because of Aunt Rose-E so I did those just fine- mostly.

But that leaf!  The LEAF.  First I read where others had difficulty, then where someone like Frivole was struggling with putting it together so I delayed.  Then Cindy and I had a bonus tat-together last weekend and we tried it.  The leaf was just okay but maybe... good enough.

experimenting and using BIG thread to see it.

 Then we swtiched gears because for some reason I really wanted to learn to tat on a ring, so we tried that.  Success!

same giant thread, no pattern but it's still cute.

Then Frivole posted a video about how to do the leaf - isn't she wonderful?  So I watched at school (shame!) and then yesterday Cindy, my daughter and I got together for our usual Twin Cities Tatters.  We watched the videos again but strangely my ipad wouldn't show the text from the video.  (Good thing, I'd watched it the day before).  And the leaf made sense!  So I tried it.  But in my excitement, forgot where I was.

So - start over.

Perfect going.

Then I ran out of thread on the shuttle:

grrr.

Reloaded the shuttles and tried it again last night.

By now I was way over-confident.  Goofed up at the end with too many chains.  Tried to take it out and the thread split.

double grrrrr

Now grades are due tomorrow and  there's ironing.  Tatting to the back burner. 

I might get to it tonight.  sigh.  I love tatting-mostly.

Latin for today:  ad astra per aspera - to the stars through adversity.  : )
(Good thing this is my idea of adversity- pretty good life if you ask me!)