Little Bit 'o Tatting

I did a bit of tatting this weekend while driving (passenger seat of course) in the car. The container is an old plastic one that had lotion from the body shop- perfect size for four balls of pearl cotton in sized 8 and 12 and a tatting shuttle. When I do a motif in each color I switch the balls out with four different colors and do four more motifs. I am not the greatest tatter- can only do simple patterns and don't fancy to doing strips or long pieces. I seem to work better 'in the round'.

Kindness from Cher

Cher and I have been in many round robins together and what a surprise it was to me when I found a package in the mail from her. The customs form said lace and I was confounded why she would send it to me. When I opened the package it said 'Just Because'. =) Here is a pic of the vintage crochet and bobbin laces she sent. She really made my day. =) Isn't that sweet?

Squishie for Debbie

Thank You Debbie! =) Debbie has so kindly did some shopping for me in the States and sent me some goodies that I am in need of. In return, I have gone shopping for her and am sending her these CQ goodies that I have purchased in Taegu. What I really like about many of the strip laces is that they can be cut apart and used as motifs or used as a strip lace. I know I went haywire on the colored strip laces but they look different when you place them on top of different colored fabrics. The butterflies can be used as a strip lace or cut up for motifs and they dye up great. (Just in time for the butterfly round robin, eh?)

Hope you like these my friend... I coudn't get everything in the pics so this will have to suffice until you recieve these in the mail. =)

Class Block with Sharon

A few months back I took an online class with Sharon B. What an experience that was and I look forward to doing it again when she offers stumpwork and seam embroidery! With Sharon's background in art and theory she gave us guidelines on how to put a block together, motif placement, making the eye wander around the block, and it was a great experience. If you want to look at Sharon's work I am including links-

http://inaminuteago.com/crazyquilting/cq-samplerquilt/quiltindex.html

http://inaminuteago.com/crazyquilting/buttonquilt/buttonboxgallery.html

I want to share my class block today. The focus fabric was the orangey fabric in the center. It has metallic running through it and little flowers of pink and lavender. What a combination! Who wouldda thunk?=)

I haven't completely finished it yet, but someday will... =)

Hand Dyed Motifs and Button Bucket

I dyed some of the motifs that I bought at the market using the Ribbonsmyth dyes for silk ribbon and am pretty pleased with the results. It is recomended that you dampen the motifs with a bit of water, but I used it straight on the motifs and I am pleased with the results.

Here is the link for Ribbonsmyth by the way-
http://www.ribbonsmyth.com/ You can also buy white dyers ribbon and save a bundle of money! Dyeing your own silk ribbon only takes about five minutes and you heat set it in the microwave.

The Button Bucket! I first saw one of these on Louanne Sassone's blog, and knew since that day, that I HAD TO HAVE ONE! =) I had found one without a lid on ebay but wanted a complete set including the cord handle. Yesterday, on a whim, I did another search and there it was. I woke up at 4 am this morning- yes I am a glutton for punishment- and won the auction! Yippee!