I don’t have too much to show you today – I am working on a project that I hope to submit as a lesson for Palmetto Tat Days this coming September, but it’s not nearly ready.  Instead, here is a Merry Wreath I’ve started with a lovely Christmas-y thread (yes, it’s Lizbeth – color 116).  Hmm… now that I’m looking at it here, why didn’t I put beads on the thread before I started tatting??

 The cute little scissors are a gift from my honey – and they’re razor sharp, too!  They fit in almost any of my tins that I use for purse-size tatting kits, and that’s a huge plus.  I have a couple of those tiny nippers and they’re handy, but they don’t hold an edge like regular scissors, IMHO.  We did have a local scissors grinder who would set up shop at our local Hancock Fabrics several times a year and do a “scissors sharpening event” which was always well attended.  People brought in all kinds of blades to be sharpened – scissors, knives, cleavers – over the years, he’s sharpened all of my older scissors and even my pocket knife (it has a pair of scissors on it).  Sadly, he has retired now; I don’t think he does any sharpening anymore. 

 

Change of subject: the New Year is just around the corner!  Have you made your resolutions yet?

Down to the Wire!

...or maybe thread?

Maybe we could just set the
tree on top of the gifts!

With just two days to go until Christmas, I’ve decided that I’m semi-ready.  I’ve also decided that I’m not going to worry about it!  On the plus side:

• Gifts for DH on order…may not be here until after Christmas, but they are going to get here…at some point.
•  Money to DD to order DVD she’s wanted.
• Money to DSIL to get whatever he wants (same amount as DD…got to stay fair, after all!).
• Helmet, knee pads, and fingerless gloves to DGD (Santa Claus is bringing her a bicycle).

·        I’ll be out and about today and tomorrow and can get a few stocking stuffers to round things out. 

I might have been better prepared had I not been working quite so much this fall, but everyone at my office has had very little time for anything other than work since mid-September (so it’s not just me, y’all, we’re all in this together).  DH has grocery shopped, and we have a lovely ham for Christmas Day dinner plus some sweet potatoes and green beans. 

I didn’t get the office giveaways made – didn’t even get started!  Nobody was expecting them this year, though, as busy as we’ve all been, so nobody was disappointed.  I do have a few ideas to work on, for lessons to submit for Palmetto Tat Days, and there is a small window of opportunity to get them shaped up before the submission deadline – so I feel I can get that done on time.

I’m on vacation until New Year’s Eve!  Of course, there’s a “gotcha” – I’m on call, and if I’m needed, I’ll have to go in.  They’ve all said they will try really hard to not need me, though! 

Shuttles, bobbins, doodads - just add thread! 

Oh, the possibilities!

Today is play day – and I have a few new goodies to play with!  Kathy Niklewicz put me on to the location of the doodads at HobLob, and with the link to show the item itself (originally provided by God’s Kid, passed on to me by Kathy), I had no trouble finding them!  I also picked up a packet of little cogs and gears (maybe something a little…steampunk?).

So…on to tatting!  I’ve already been asked about an angel for this year, and I have a few ideas, so I’ll be working on how to get them from my head and into the thread.  I’ve also got an idea for a snowflake, and maybe can work in one of the doodads…or gears.  Then…who knows?  

Finished!

Perseverance pays off – tatting like mad during my lunch breaks and what few minutes I had when I finally got home from work in the dark of night, I completed three Christmas ornaments for the exchange at the December meeting of the Palmetto Tatters Guild!

I had said last week that I wanted to do a couple of wreaths, a snowflake, and maybe an angel – well, the “maybe an angel” didn’t get done, but the snowflake and wreaths did.  I had some fun with the wreaths – I used two different sizes of beads, and I really like the look!  I also put the bow at the top of one wreath and at the bottom of the other. 

Some tat stats:  the snowflake was tatted in size 20 Lizbeth “Blue Ice” and doesn’t have any beads, because when I wrote the pattern originally, I didn’t include beads and at this point, I was in too big a hurry to figure out how many and where they should go.  Both wreaths are the same, the only difference is the bow placement.  Altin-Basik thread size 50 (between a 20 and a 30 in Lizbeth), metallic green.  The filament is more of a light gold than a silver, and is very sparkly when tatted up.  Beads used were size 6 (8 of them) and size 10 (22 of them).

Now I have to consider whether I have time to do ornaments for my co-workers; with reorganization and transfers, there are seven now in my department.  I’m supposed to be on vacation starting this Friday, and at least one of my co-workers is taking vacation time earlier.  The question is: can I tat like mad again and finish by Wednesday morning to give them out?  Can I do it??

A Work in Progress!

 …my blog pictures, that is!  Having learned that my free Picasa space was virtually used up and I couldn’t put any more pictures in my blog unless I (pick one)

·         Deleted pictures from the albums to free up some space (n-o-o-o-o-o-o!!)

·         Paid Picasa for more space (eeeeeeeeeeeeek!)

·         Wrote blog posts that were devoid of pictures (unthinkable!)

Jane Eborall to the rescue!  Jane kindly explained how to re-size the pictures already in the Picasa album so as to free up needed space.  She also posted her very easy instructions on her blog, in this post.  That has now become one of my hobbies – re-sizing pictures.  I don’t devote much time to it, as I don’t have much time for it, so it will be an ongoing venture.  I find that, since I wake up the sun every morning, it’s early enough to perform certain necessary tasks to get me ready for another day at work (read the funnies – on three different sites; read Dear Abby on yet another different site; check my email; check out friends’ blogs; have a look at Facebook; and play a game of Spider or Freecell), I can squeeze in re-sizing some pictures.  I've dropped it to nearly half of what it was, and I’m only about 1/3 of the way through all the pictures!

It’s been a rough fall – we’re through the software conversion, but there is still plenty of work to keep us very busy; I’m still getting 50-70 hours per week.  I’m hoping that after the end of the year, it will have leveled out to where we’re all keeping normal hours and having evenings and weekends for ourselves and families.  Then I can (hopefully!) get back on track with my tatting.

Lately, I have been able to:

It took some squeezing, but this is a lot of it!

(1)     Tidy up my big thread box (little thread boxes…just don’t ask).  No loose thread, no abandoned starts, no pieces with errors – just neatly arranged with a nice pair of scissors handy for when I wind a shuttle or bobbin.  The scissors are a Big Lots find - $2 and they’re a name brand (Fiskars), so I have high hopes of them staying nice and sharp!

Merry Wreath in progress.  How do you like
my new Sequoia Pop-A-Bobbin shuttle?

(2)    Work on ornaments for our yearly Ornament Exchange at the December PTG meeting.  Usually by now I have several done, in case we have one or more visitors who didn’t know about the exchange but would like to play (there are several of us who do this – not just me).  This is the first one, and it’s not finished yet.  It will be – it’s a grey, drizzly day here in sunny (?) South Carolina, so I’ll definitely be tatting this afternoon.

(3)    Think about patterns for submission for PTG Tat Days 2013, as I hope to teach again this year.  In a normal Fall, I’d have two or three finished and test-tatted already, but this has not been a normal Fall…at all.

Well, back to work on the first Merry Wreath.  My goal is to tat a couple of these, plus a snowflake, and maybe an angel.  That’s my hope, anyway!!

Taking the Weekend OFF!

I didn't do a blessed thing yesterday - and today looks to be a rerun of yesterday, so far!  Well, that's not entirely accurate - I did a little tatting, I did a little reading, and I did a little thinking about what to do about class proposals for Palmetto Tat Days 2013 - "Tatting Takes Wing."

Today I've straightened out my thread box after an >ahem< unfortunate (but funny) accident wherein my better half picked up the thread box, not noticing that one end was not securely fastened, and when he turned it on end to stand up against the shelf, the thread cascaded out.  He was upset, I was trying not to laugh (too loudly), and he gathered it all up and stuffed it back in the box.  A lot of the balls unwound varying  yardage, and it all tangled together.  It's been waiting patiently for my attention for several weeks; today I was in the mood to tackle it, and it really wasn't nearly as bad as it had looked.

I had a nearly-finished ball of Wildflower Garden, and thought I could wind it all off onto a Starlit - save space and easily tat with it, besides - but after the first 10-or so yards, I encountered a knot.  Drat!  I snipped out the knot and set aside the shorter yardage, and started winding thread onto the Starlit again.  Filled that one, and plenty left on the cardboard core - no way I could squeeze that onto the Starlit!

I filled a Viking bobbin (the kind used in Gr8 shuttles) and dropped it into the smaller box I carry with me.  I managed to find a larger EZ Bob (I think it's actually a size medium), and it took care of the rest of the Wildflower Garden.  Now I have a full large shuttle and the rest on an EZ Bob!  The few yards that had the knot fit nicely on my new fish shuttle, and everything is tidy again.

Why can't the HOUSE be as easy to tidy up??

Note:  I had two pictures to pop in here, but Google rather nastily informed me that I was out of picture space unless I BUY some more.  My first post was just over 2 years ago - Sept. 2, 2010.  I have 406 pictures for the blog which are stored in Picasa.  Does this make any sense to anybody???

Overtime Work Pays Off!

I've heard all my life that “hard work is its own reward”… and most of the time, I’m inclined to agree.  However, the last six or seven weeks of software conversion at work have been long and exhausting.  I'd feel rewarded if I got some much-needed sleep!  I don’t think I’m scheduled to work this weekend, but I am on call if needed; so if I don’t work again until Monday, I've got 71 hours and 6 minutes on the time clock.  Last week was longer, as it included the weekend – 83 hours and 9 minutes!

Pink Cocoa, Green Coral Sea, Pink Marble;
Sea Island Citrus, Medium Daffodil.

Knowing I would have some really good paychecks coming in, I treated myself to a Handy Hands order.  I got two new Lizbeth threads and three favorites.  I also indulged my love of neat tatting tools by ordering the rest of the Aerlit shuttle collection, some extra Aerlit bobbins, and a Starlit shuttle!

I also made a bid on an appealing artisan shuttle on eBay – and to my delight (astonishment), I won!  Carollyn (Jitterbug62) sent the most darling little fish shuttle, some lovely Oren Bayan thread, and a selection of clippings from magazines – tatting patterns!

A lot of the patterns aren’t dated, which is a shame, as I’m curious and I’ll probably never know how old they are.  Others, though, have not only the date but also the name of the magazine – and some even have the designer’s name!  There are at least two by Myrtle Hamilton, and there are several in a plastic binder sleeve, ready to slip into my notebook.

The fish is a delight!  Handmade from a single piece of wood, it’s a flat shuttle measuring roughly ½” wide by 2” long.  It has two slits, on either end, to allow you to wind the thread.  David examined it and remarked that it was a happy fish – it was smiling!  I love his sense of humor – it’s one of the first things that attracted me to him.

I've slept most of today - and didn't attend the Palmetto Tatters Guild meeting, at which I was supposed to teach.  Joanie said she'd send pictures, though, so I could see the wreaths they made!  

Hoping for a Break!

Nothing... but nothing new to report!  We are ever closer to finishing up all the chores that are such a huge part of a merger, and my working life has taken on a life of its own!

When I went to work today, I had already logged over 60 hours for this work week, which started Monday.    By the end of the workday tomorrow, I'll have at least 80.  The pay will be most welcome - property taxes are coming up, on both houses - and our savings won't have to take a big hit.

BUT - I don't even have time to tat at lunchtime these days, so I have nothing to show you.  I haven't even had time to finish the lovely maple leaf I started back in October!  I will get it done, though - I haven't misplaced either of the shuttles or the book (or the leaf in progress!), so there is hope.

Things should start slowing back down this week, and I should have some tatting time again, as well as weekends off from work.  Next Saturday is the Palmetto Tatters Guild meeting in Lexington (SC), and I should have some pictures to show next Sunday.  Stay tuned...

Inventory!

And this isn't even the bulk of it!!

Even though I haven't worked in a retail estab-lishment in over eight years, I'm still taking inventory.  Why?  Because I have a tendency to buy thread I've already got at home, that's why!

I love storage boxes - and I'm always on the lookout for ones that might work for tatting supplies and materials.  I think I've written about these before, but so far, I've not found any that are better - - so these are still da bomb.

I'm (slowly) getting my threads organized.  My goal is to have all the size 20s together, all the size 30s together, etc. so I can find the color(s) I want just by selecting the right box.

I'm also finding treasures!  I have tried to get a pair of each of the commemorative Palmetto Tat Days shuttles each year; here are the 2010 "Fall Into Tatting" pair.

These are the 2011 shuttles; curiously, the one without the point is the same on both sides, whereas the one with the point has "Tatting in a Winter Wonderland" on one side and the large snowflake on the other.  I don't know if anyone else's are like this or not, but I wonder!

I do use my commemoratives, but I haven't yet used these - I'm not sure why, at least with the latest ones.  The first two pairs were tucked into a plastic box that used to house a backup tape (I rescued it from a trip to the trash, and recycled it into a handy box for shuttles and whatnot!),


These are from this year; even though it was the first weekend in September, it feels like ages ago!  This lovely design commemorated our 10th Annual Tat Days, and, sadly, we were told that these are the last laser-cut commemoratives we'll have from The Shuttle Shop as they won't be making them anymore.  I hate that - I love their shuttles, and there are still so many designs I wanted to buy!

Work is still overtime, overtime, overtime.  We've already been told we'll be working next weekend, but that by the end of this month, things will have settled down.  I hope so!  I need some time to tat, to think about tatting, and to design.  I hope to apply to teach at Palmetto Tat Days again this year, and I'll need something to teach if I'm selected!

Oh, and last week's title - about the light at the end of the tunnel?  False alarm; maybe next month!

I See Light at the End of the Tunnel!

I figure I've logged quite a few overtime hours in the last three weeks - and this past week was the hardest!  Hopefully, we'll have a better week this coming week - then another tough week with a possible working Saturday - then things should start to even out. 

I have gotten online every morning and some in the evenings, and at some point noticed on someone's blog (just don't remember whose, but it was a Jim-Dandy one!) a beautiful maple leaf.  The blogger mentioned that it was included as one of the patterns in Karey Solomon's Tatting Turns Over a New Leaf, and I happily remembered that I have that book!  I was able to locate it, and this is the progress I had made earlier this afternoon when I took the picture (it's a bit further along now).  I bet you'll recognize the Lizbeth thread!

Speaking of Lizbeth, I got a free sample of their newest size Lizbeth - size 3, and it's enormous when you've been tatting size 40 - when I renewed my Handy Hands newsletter subscription.  I believe it's "Ocean Sunset" which I also have in size 20, and which tats up beautifully.  I haven't decided what to make - anybody know the yardage on the sample?  

I've also been playing on eBay, and won the Lael shuttle.  I think I'll use it with the Lizbeth sample!

The mushrooms (toadstools?) are from earlier in the Fall - I kept forgetting I had them to show you.  David took the pictures for me one day while I was at work.  None of them really captures the color - fluorescent orange!  Screaming fluorescent orange!  They were in a neighbor's yard, and I swear, you could find them in the dark.  Although they lasted a good long while (for mushrooms/toadstools), they have now been reduced to sodden lumps of decay - just right for Hallowe'en, which is right around the corner!

 Got to go - need to lay out clothes for tomorrow and go over my planner.  If you are (or if you know who) the blogger who posted the lovely maple leaf from Karey's pattern, please let me know so I can update this post.  Thanks muchly and have a wonderful week!

UPDATE:  Thanks to Jeanne Lugert, who remembered that it's Tatting Fool who posted the lovely maple leaf pendant!  Thanks, Jeanne!

New Toys from eBay!

I was surprised, but very pleased, that I won the bid and got two …count ‘em… two Milford shuttles and two packs of Milford needles!  Best of all, one of the original Milford hooks that came with the shuttles was included in the deal!

The ribbon that once adorned the hook is long gone, but I have attached a 9/16” metal split ring and a lovely floral fob, made by the talented Marie Smith, to help me keep track of it.  I like to use the tatting tools I win!  Some, I admit, get more use than others, but I've tatted something with every shuttle.

Here they are – resting on a beautifully-tatted doily, a gift from Stephanie Wilson.  Both the doily and the fob were gifts given to me at Palmetto Tat Days.  Weren't these ladies generous!

Day 14 of The Never-Ending Monday!

I’ve had to work the last couple of weekends – last Saturday I worked all day, and part of the day on Sunday.  Monday was a Federal holiday here, so that was my one day off for the week.  I worked yesterday, but don’t have to go in today.  Yay!

I was too tired to go to the Online Class last week, but did download and print the lesson.  Here is my homework – both colors are Lizbeth; Wildflower Garden and Medium Antique Violet.   I like these colors together!

I’ve started (and now nearly finished) a second medallion, done in Lizbeth Spring Fling.  Other than a maple leaf in fall colors, that’s all the tatting I’ve had time (and energy) for.  All this overtime takes a lot out of a person!

 

 

Shopping!

Saturday!  Isn't that a lovely word?  For those of use who work the standard Monday through Friday work week, it's gold.  We breakfasted this morning at Emerald Baptist Church, as they were hosting the Annual Pancake Breakfast benefiting Meg's House (a non-profit, non-denominational shelter for victims of domestic abuse).  It was a very worthy cause, and the pancakes were delicious!

We had a short ride afterwords; most of our friends and family didn't appear to be up and stirring yet, so we headed over to Hobby Lobby as I hadn't been in over a month.  Eek! I think I was having withdrawal symptoms!  

Here are some of our interesting purchases - more about the antique bronze butterfly string and lobster-claw clasps later (much later); today I want to focus on the Bobino Cord Wrap.  The bright pink against the stark black-and-white attracted my attention - then David said, "Hey, I bet you could tat with that!"  So we bought it - and he is so right! 

Here it is off the card, then wound with about five yards of Aunt Lydia's Classic 10 thread; I don't usually buy Aunt Lydia's thread, and certainly not in size 10, but I love the antique tones in these colors, so I indulged my inner child ("Pretty!  Want it!").  Do notice the little knot above the Bobino, though - and please note that I didn't put it there.  It came from the factory like that.  

I clipped it off and I'll let it go for now, but if I find more than three in a single ball, regardless of the brand, I notify the manufacturer with the label information as well as the date purchased and where purchased.

I also had a brainstorm when I dropped it and it started unwinding.  I have a lot of binder clips in various sizes, and actually had this 15mm silver one on a chatelaine.  I clipped it on the thread, and how about that - it works like a charm!

It doesn't matter whether you clip it ON the thread or AROUND the thread - it's just too wide to go between the arms of the flat shuttle, so it stops it completely.

Here's the first little ring - I have since kept at it, and now have four, and will do the fifth (and possibly sixth) when I finish this post.

I'm happy with today's purchases!  I can tat with this, or use it as a thread winder, or I can always return it to its original purpose, and wind up some of the electronics cords that always seem to multiply around here!

Organized!

 Have you ever heard of a company named Thirty-One?  They sell bags – purses, totes, lunch bags, etc.  You can get them monogrammed (for a fee) or have a name or phrase instead of a monogram (again, for a fee), or plain.  They run a special every month, and it’s tough to say no when it’s such a good deal and …it’s a friend who’s selling them.  Yep, they have a catalog, just like Avon, only theirs is bigger and it doesn’t smell funny.

There's still enough room to slip in my camera case!

I have several Thirty-One bags – some purchased from the catalogs of friends, some from the secondary market (eBay), and one from a friend who was cleaning out her closet and being ruthless with her discards (bought her skirt purse for $15, and she included both skirts!).

A friend was having a catalog party – these are great if you don’t live close by – and we don’t; she’s in NC while I’m in SC.  I decided I really needed the All-In-One Organizer.  It was $20, which could come out of my savings for Tat Days, and it was something I could use and enjoy for several years.  I ordered it in the fabric “Best Tweets,” which, if you look closely, you can see is birds on branches.  Not much room for embellishing with tatting, but then I’m really busy with work just now, anyway.

The two balls of thread at the back are from Gina's thread
stash; I'm grateful to her family for sharing with us!

I have discovered that the Sterlite plastic pencil boxes sold at Big Lots fit nicely in this tote – five of them, in fact, and that will hold a lot of tatting supplies!  Here is one open; I’ve still got room for more thread in this one.   Oh, and the pencil boxes are a steal at 88¢; and they’re recyclable if/when they break.

Clusters of these tiny mushroom have sprouted in our
backyard - there's a fallen pecan for size comparison!

Autumn spiders have become bolder - this gigantic web
completely covers what used to be the entrance to the
garage!  It's amazing what beautiful webs they make!

Not much other news from here; it’s officially fall, so we have a break from the summer heat.  I’m looking forward to getting out sweaters and warm socks, making big pots of homemade soup, and baking biscuits.  Mmmmm.  Hopefully I’ll have some more time this fall – we are working on 

a software conversion at work, and overtime is now a way of life.  The extra money is very welcome (the upstairs water closet had to be rebuilt as it had developed a nasty leak which was becoming increasingly more expensive), but it leaves me with very little free time before and after work.  I can usually tat just a bit on my lunch break – about 25-30 minutes’ worth – but it’s better than no time to tat at all!

Palmetto Tatters Guild!

 Our regularly scheduled meeting was yesterday, with an extra-special attraction - Riet Surtel-Smeulders, Jane Eborall, and Sally Kerson (Jane's sister)!  Jane and Riet taught at Tat Days.  This was Sally's first trip to the US, and we all hope she'll come back again – soon!

Jane taught the lesson, which was her lovely new "Walled Garden Motif."  Her lesson featured a terrific new way to start a motif with a self-closing mock ring without tying the two shuttle threads together.  I didn't get mine finished, but several others did!  Here are some pictures from yesterday - enjoy!

Serendipity!

We were told, Friday evening towards the end of class, to please bring a ball of our favorite thread to the banquet.    A whole ball of thread??  I hadn’t brought any – just a few 10-yard samples of a few different colors in case I wanted to experiment or swap.  Oh well, I thought, I’ll swing into the Vending Room after class and buy a ball of thread.  This one called out to me – bright and cheerful, and I didn’t have it already at home.  I bought it, dropped it into my bag, and went on my way.

After the banquet, all I had to do with the thread was hold it up at the appropriate time – discussing the rainbow of tatting we create with our threads of various colors.  I still liked the color, though, and wasn’t sorry I’d bought it.   I added it to my stash when we got back to our room.

Later that evening, while chatting in the lobby with Connie Angeline, my cell phone rang (I always had service at the Conference Center) – it was The Crazy Mom, inviting us to their room (she was rooming with IsDihara) to sit and chat.  We all went up – and shortly after we got there, The Crazy Mom gifted me with this lovely origami bag.  I was thrilled to get it – I love bags, especially handmade ones – and happily took it with me when we left.

Saturday morning, I was up early (as usual) and after dressing and opening the blinds to let in the morning sun, I started going through my stash and noticed something interesting – look how beautifully the new thread matches the new bag!  The Crazy Mom wasn’t with me, nor even in the Vending Room when I bought the thread – so she didn’t know it would match the bag she’d brought for me.  How’s that for serendipity!

We Had a Blast (From the Past)!

And now we are home – most of us – from Palmetto Tat Days 2012.  What a wonderful experience!  So many friends of many years’ standing and almost as many new friends!

Attendees received a terrific “Welcome” bag, emblazoned with the Tat Days 2012 logo, and just chock-full of goodies!  Many hands contributed wonderful, useful, and thoughtful items – and I would like to mention just a few of them here:

• The Southern Belles Tatting Society of Columbia, TN
• The Belles spent countless hours this past year collecting all sorts of items for the welcome bags, and what they couldn't find, they made.  We found drawstring bags, needle books, tatting tools - treasures abounded!

Wow!  The only purchased item is the ball of coral thread!
The bag it's sitting on was a gift from The Crazy Mom!
The silver angel was given to me by Sally Kerson; the quilted
print bag below it by Beth Sims; the dental floss threaders
were from Lynne Gillies; the tatted name pin from
Kathy Hodge; the flower clip from Marie Smith.  Wow!!

• Barbara Foster, owner/operator of Handy Hands
• Miss Barbara is a long-time supporter of the art of tatting, as evidenced by her never-ending quest for newer and better tools and threads for tatters.  She has also been a long-time supporter of Palmetto Tat Days, donating threads and shuttles each year.  This year she really went the distance - each attendee found in her (or his) Welcome bag a ball of one of the new Lizbeth colorways, a Starlit shuttle, and - *gasp* - a sample of the new Aerlit shuttles to be available for retail this coming Fall!!

Goodies from Barbara Foster - check out the NEW Aerlit
shuttle,  front and center, along with a Starlit shuttle and thread!

• Kathy Hodge
• A long-time attendee and very giving person, Kathy also went "all-out" for the 10th anniversary of Palmetto Tat Days.  She compiled a commemorative booklet highlighting the first nine Tat Days!  She also included a wee little shuttle - and it does work!  We tatted with one in the Try-It  session!



Below the Clover shuttle is the fairy shuttle
given by Kathy Hodge.  It really works!

 Teacher gifts were also numerous and mind-boggling - we received, courtesy of Miss Barbara, a Lizbeth ball holder with a ball of thread included; a skein of lovely HDT from Marilee Rockley; tatting tools; a hand-made tatting bag; hand cream; artisan soap; hand-made earrings; and so many other goodies, that my brain is hurting from trying to name them all after the marathon that is Tat Days!

Shuttles I purchased from the Vending Room - three Gr8
bobbin shuttles from Randy Houtz, and two post shuttles
from the one and only Georgia Seitz!

I only won one of the Silent Auctions this
time - but it's a dandy!  Here are four packs
of HDT by Tat-ilicious in a lovely tin!

I was up at 5.30 as usual this morning, but I actually got drowsy while I was online, and had to shut down and go back to sleep!  I may also have to have a nap this afternoon so I'll be ready for work tomorrow morning!

Coming Down to the Wire!

What to take to Toccoa…what to take…don’t want to over-pack, but what if I really need _______________ (fill in the blank) and discover I’ve left it at home?

But I really need all this stuff!!!

Plastic pencil boxes from Big Lots
hold so many items for safe travel!

Decisions, decisions!

OK, let’s step back and look at this rationally.  What do I absolutely, positively HAVE to take to Tat Days?

1.     The models I’ve tatted for the classes I’m teaching.  All the angels, butterflies, and keys go into a tin which goes into my satchel. 

      2.       Large shuttles with big thread for demonstrating.  OK, both you big shuttles wound with size-3 pearl cotton, you’re next.  Into my satchel you go!

      3.       The 156 red plastic bows for the Wreath drop-in lesson Saturday night.  Oh, yeah.  Don’t leave home without them!  They go into the boxes, too!

      4.       My tatting box with tools and equipment.  Already in the satchel, ready to go!

      5.       Portable battery-powered light and power cord.  Yep, they’re also in the satchel. 

      6.       Show-and-tell.  Some very special shuttles that several friends have asked to see in person.

      7.       Camera.  Definitely a must-have; I have a brand-new card for it and rechargeable batteries, too!

Believe me, this is as tidy as it gets!

8.   Battery charger for camera batteries.  Oh, yes, and since it also works with the batteries that are in the battery-powered light, it’s a must-have.

      9.       Money.  Hmm…that should actually be #1, probably.  Hmm…definitely need to visit the ATM sometime this week!

What do I NOT need to take to Tat Days?  

1.    40 bajillion shuttles.  I have a few in my tatting tool box, and that should be plenty… of course, Hope has been hard at work decorating shuttles for weeks, and it’s very unlikely (like impossible, even) she’d not have at least one that really appeals to me, so as long as I take some extra money  I’ll be OK.  

Tatted models for classes, plus my
blue goat from Jane's TIAS game!

2.    50 balls of thread.  Oh, please – there WILL be at least one vendor selling thread, right?!  Karey is coming – she always brings gorgeous hand-painted threads and they’re very reasonably priced.  Just need to remember to take some extra money.  

3.    Pattern books.  Uh, NO – this is Tat Days, remember?  There will be a wonderful pattern CD available as well as a vendor who most likely sells books.  Extra money is a must-have.

Well, heck – I really just need to take money!!

Prepping for Tat Days!

Hobby Lobby in Greenwood is out of the little red plastic bows - like the one I put on my wreath.  Know why?  'Cause I bought 'em all, that's why!!

They are going to Tat Days with us in less than two weeks.

In other news, I recently celebrated another year and my sweet David gave me something I've wanted for a long time - an end-of-day shuttle!  Ain't it purty!!