I Am Dreamcatcher Four

Now this dreamcatcher is really cool.

Done in size 20 Lizbeth. Colors 656 (Wedgewood Dk) and 657 (Ocean Turquoise Dk).

Now you might be wondering why I think this one is cool. Well, that's because it is the first piece of tatting I've made that gets to call the state of New York home!
It was made for a friend of the family, as something for him to give his wife for Christmas.

Lots of chains were tatted in this pattern. And look, split chains! That are not extremely noticeable!

The pattern for the main body is a slightly edited version of the Basket of Clover pattern from Janet Carroll's book Elegant Tatting Patterns. The last two rows of the pattern were omitted, while the sixth row was repeated once. The reasoning for this was so that the doily pattern would fit within the seven inch dreamcatcher hoop; as the full pattern would have been too large.
The bit of tatting to hang the dreamcatcher by was based off of the cloverleaf in the second row (near the center of the main body, it is the three rings connected to each other).

Chicken feathers again. From three different hens.

The hanging motif was also based off of the cloverleaf used in the pattern.
I did four split chains in this motif! I'm excited about that because before this project I did not really know how to successfully tat a split chain. It was a weird technique I couldn't quite grasp. But not anymore! I have finally figured out the split chain!

Now that I've abused the exclamation point a bit, let get to the reason why I'm posting this now, instead of waiting until after Christmas. When the package containing this dreamcatcher arrived to the family friend, his wife was wearing a shirt with similar colors to the thread I had tatted this with. So he decided to give it to her as an early present.
Suffice it to say, they both liked the dreamcatcher.
Which was something that I was very happy to hear.

Could someone pass me a birthday?

Happy birthday to my cousin!
As you might have figured out, most of the projects I complete are birthday gifts. Today we have a lovely handkerchief edging out of The Tatter's Treasure Chest by Mary Carolyn Waldrep. The pattern is number 8132, which is a cool number name.

That isn't marble, but tissue paper. Done in size 20 Lizbeth #142.

I consider handkerchiefs to be a good present for guys. It allows me to give them something dainty without wounding their masculinity too much. I wouldn't want to give one of my guy cousins a doily and have him think: "Gee, thanks. What am I suppose to do with this frilly thing?"
So I try to keep the decorative picots small whenever I make something for a guy.

But whenever a pattern has three picots right next to each other, I can't resist making the middle one the tallest.

I really like a cloverleaf edging for guys. It allows for some cuteness without being overwhelmingly frilly or intricate. I like having both rings and chains. It makes the edging much more interesting.


For any tatters out there, what are your opinions when it comes to tatting something for a guy?

Let me mark that birthday for you

Well, here is another birthday!

Look, size 80! It is such a nice, thin thread size. I really like it for bookmarks and dainty things. 

This lovely bookmark is from the book Christmas Angels and Other Tatting Patterns by Monica Hahn. The pattern is called the Filigree bookmark. It was done in size 80 Christmas Green Lizbeth thread.

The top has a fancy cloverleaf appearance.

Now, I might have just been reading the pattern incorrectly, but it seemed like the written pattern wasn't quiet the same as the picture of the pattern. I followed the written pattern up until the end, where I decided to leave off the fancy point that is at the top of the bookmark and just leave the bottom flat.

While the bottom is nice and flat. Well, except for the slight curve. Just call it a creative flair.

Now, some people I know have suggested that I stiffen the bookmarks I make. But I kind of like them fresh off the shuttle. If the book I'm reading is shorter then the bookmark, I don't have to worry about the stiff bookmark catching on something and flying out of my book!

But that is just my opinion. If I really wanted to read a book that was shorter then my bookmark, I'll just use something else to mark my place.

Anyway, my sister really liked the bookmark. She commented that I'm getting better with my tatting.

It is as the saying goes:

"Practice makes perfect."