Tatting tea tuesday!

Ok, not really. As I stated before, I don't do tea.

But alas, I have a little tin of wannabe coffee!

So what have I been doing on this TTT? Here is a picture of tat corner (which seems to have experienced some sort of seismic event of late). In the picture you can see my Hand dyed thread stash. Isdihara posted a challenge a few says back to post your HDT..... And I am more of a user than a stasher. I admire the thread in skein form for a few days, but most often I immediately wind them onto floss cards, and then they all go on this big ring so they all stay together.

Also in the pic, you can see the bracelet I was working on this morning as I sipped my coffee. Below is one of the finished pics that went on etsy.

I also found a little time to get some new listings up. I had done some resin pieces last week, but I waited until after the little craft show I did to get them pic'd and listed. below is something new, I've done some rings. They are really cute, I have four colors right now. It's a great way to wear tatting and not have to worry about it being fragile. Feel free to peek around the etsy shop and see the other things I've been working on lately.

Here is a bracelet. Believe it or not, the thread is actually Tatskool's Rainbow Brite! It looks so different in the resin.

So I've been enjoying this tatting tea Tuesday. Right now I need to go fold some laundry, feed some kids, and decipher some loan documents. So have a great day!

I guess it's official...

We are buying a house.

Yes. It is true.


Some of you might remember my lamentations over the several house deals gone bad that we have dealt with this summer. Well, I'm pleased to announce that we have "mutual acceptance" on our contract, which makes it officially official, as opposed to unofficially official like the last few deals we got hammered on. Our closing date is set for Jan, 12th. The loan docs are rolling, the appraisals are going forward.... but somehow I'm less enthused than I expected myself to be. Perhaps it's a conditioned response to all the heartache from this summer. And all that heartache is actually a testimony, because God is bigger than the real estate market, and he knew that we needed to sit on our hands all summer on these other houses, until this one was ready to hit the market. It's cheaper, and needs less repair than any of the others. There is a beautiful play toy in the back for the girls, enough bedrooms and whatnot, and there is a "family room" in back for the desk and toys and craft stuff. We went back today to look around and see if there were any glaring issues that needed dealing with before we went forward, so we got to measure and poke around and dream. It still doesn't feel real yet somehow lol.

Anyway, it will be a busy week for us as we are visiting multiple families this year for the holiday. I'm thinking of running a special in the etsy shop this weekend for black friday, but I don't really have any great ideas yet, so if you have a suggestion let me know! I did take my things to a friends house this weekend and sold a few pieces, so hopefully I can get some more jewelry made. which reminds me, I need to go order some supplies! Ta ta y'all!

Lizbeth is here!

Two new colors of thread are available in my shop! And I am pleased to tell you that I'm now offering Hand dyed Lizbeth threads. I can't get enough of Lizbeth.....it's super smooth and shiny. Right now my colors are available in size 20 and 40. Size 80 will be available as soon as it is available to me, Handy Hands says it should be available sometime early next year I think.

Let's meet my new colorways!

Ivria's Afternoon

Named for my daughter and the walks we enjoy together.....looking at plants and flowers, splashing in her favorite pink rainboots, with a healthy dose of sunshine.

Windbreaker
This color makes me think of a Kite, or an '80s track suit.....really anything made of ripstop nylon.


These lovely threads are currently listed in the shop. I'm still learning so much about the process, so to fund my continuing education in dye, I'll be selling these for $6 per skein. The average price for premium dyed thread seems to be around $7 to $7.50, but my technique does not yet warrant that price. So take advantage of my learning journey and enjoy some great thread.

Please feel free to comment, tell me what you like or don't like. I love to hear from you!

The DR. is in

After hearing much lamentation over the speed (or lack thereof ) of Fed-Ex ground shipping, I was relieved to find Dr. Von Threadmore's much awaited package on the doorstep. That girl has no patience.

Our first order of business was swatching the new colors.
The DR. was too caught up in her "moment" after the swatches were dry, (I heard her say something about "The Precious".... I dunno.) so I put together a recipe box to hold her dye formulas and color cards. And while the kids were napping we did some teamwork and painted a new batch of thread which is curing for the next 24 hours.



You know, I like the Dr and all, but she is a little eccentric. And she does things I find out about later.......like she pretended she was me and told my husband that I required....I mean requested....a skein winder for Christmas. Crazy, right? And you should have seen her when Diane posted about the spinning wheel pattern she is working on. "I've been Featured!" she exclaimed while doing a ridiculous happy dance of sorts. She may be good with color, but the girl can't dance.

Unloading of the shuttles.

This week I came to the same realization that Gina did.

No empty shuttles!

Not a single one. So, this of course means that some UFO's need finishing. First up to bat, a doily pattern from This book.

Ok, I will admit to having left off the last round. I like it better this way. Or I'm lazy. Who cares right? I like the finished product.

The thread is by Heather Johnston, called Ruths Irish. I thought the black background made it stand out better.

I also finished a pair of earrings and listed them in the shop. Hark. It's tuesday and I tatted!

The question of the day....

Do I want to make another one?

I think Dr. VT has gotten the best of me. She is a creativity junkie. So I've spent all my tatting time today trying out new design ideas. This one I'm not sure if I like enough to make another one (although yes it needs a solid blocking). It started as an earring, but then it grew and now it would be almost 3" long with hooks. That's some major earring to be wearin. I wear monstrous earrings every now and again.... But anyway.... If I don't make it a mate, I guess it could be a pendant. I thought of making it a bookmark charm, but it has the wrong jump ring worked into the top. All of my bookmark findings are silver. For now I think I'm going back to the drawing board. Or perhaps the winding board....there is a pile of white Lizbeth on the counter just crying out to be skiened. Dye comes in monday's mail.

(P.s. the thread used is one of my HDTs.)

HDT in action.

Here are some of the recently dyed threads in action. On top is a pair of Marilee's Quadrille earrings. I must say that I like cebelia more when it's had a dye job. Something about the texture chainges.


Next is a little heart, in first-batch experimental color, this time it's lizbeth. The sheen on it is teriffic when dyed!

Sorry I don't have anything inspirational to say tonight. Just got home from "work" (Band rehearsal) and I had to play guitar with a 15lb baby strapped to my back. Little darling decided she needed mommie time right when rehearsal started :-), so I'm a little worn tonight.

I hope to let poor Dr. Von Threadmore out to play early next week. We've sold all but like 4 skiens of our good batch of thread, and there is only two or three of the seconds left as well. I have a plan for a holiday thread, so I hope to have that realized early enough for this season.


G'night!

Opinions?

In light of recent sales, I'm needing to order some more packaging supplies, which of course got me thinking. I wonder if I should get some earring cards because I will possibly be doing a small craft show this year. So, that got me thinking some more. What if I made some!

You see, I dabble in many a craft. And my absolute favorite thing is when supplies or equipment from one craft transfer to another.....thus further justifying the purchase of said item. My large clipboard that I use in doing calligraphy is the perfect size for wrapping skeins of thread. And now, my precious Cricut has earned it's place in tatting significance! As well as my modest selection of scrapbooking papers.

I've cut some four inch tall tag-thingies and made them into fancy earring cards. Previously I had been packing the earrings in those small cotton filled jewelry boxes, and I decorated each one. I really want a personal touch added to each order, and I like the items to arrive giftable. So I think this idea might work-- if I pack these small cards in a bubble mailer or a photo mailer they should fare well through the postal service. The problem I was having with the little boxes was that I either had to drive to Seattle or wait for an order to make it to me when I ran out. This way I have the materials available and I can still tailor each to coordinate with the item inside.

So, your opinions are requested on the new packaging concept. Dr. V is just happy to have something to work on while waiting for her laboratory supplies to arrive.

It's gone to her head

Well, Dr Von Threadmore has a few sales under her belt.

Now she thinks she's all that and a bag of chips.

There'll be no living with her after this.

I personally think she feels jilted because I didn't add her to the new business card.

Pshhh. Prima donna.

Live in the shop!

Just a quick note to let you know that I've listed the thread I have available in my etsy shop. There are two sections for thread, one for the second quality skeins that didn't do exactly what I wanted ( I wouldn't normally sell these, but I am offering them at pretty close to cost so I can recover some funds to keep dying.) and all of the other first quality skeins are listed at an introductory price. The next batches will be higher in price because I will be dying Lizbeth which is significantly higher cost per skien.

And the winner is.......

Drum roll puhleeese!

The winner of my Blog reader appreciation giveaway is.......

JEZZE!

She is a fabulous artist in South Africa, who recently learned to tat. I adore the beautiful fabric printing she does, and I look forward to her blog updates. So, Congrats Jezze! I'll be sending you an email so I can get your prize off to you shortly. Dr. Von Threadmore requested that I send a little something extra as well.

I feel happy. Oh so happy.

Batch number two!
I must admit that I feel more successful with this batch than the previous. I was actually being intentional about the color and it turned out encouragingly well. A few of the skeins had some small whitish spots but all in all I think I did OK.

The light outside is gone so I'll be trying for better pictures tomorrow.

Also, as I am out of thread, out of dyes, and out of funds, I'll be listing some thread on ETSY tomorrow to raise some resources so I can keep going. It will be cheap, just because it's my first couple batches and I'll also be listing a few "seconds"..... some skeins that aren't quite perfect, and I wouldn't charge much more than cost on those.

Please note my disclaimer. ----> I have no intention of trying to go after Yarnplayer, Ladyshuttlemaker, or Heather's business on etsy. I'm not here to compete. The inevitable result of my process is more thread than I'll ever use lol, so I'd just like to offer it so I can fund my hobbies. Also, to differentiate myself from the other dyers, I will only be offering dyed Lizbeth in the future. These first batches are just what I happen to have lying around to play with.