Playing with Sulky Thread

Pearls & Lace

Good afternoon, dear readers!

We had a fantastic weekend celebrating Jim's birthday!  And Jocelin thinks she did well on the ACT exam.  Saturday & Sunday were full of fun family activities.  The weather co-operated and was just gorgeous.

 

I did manage to get the thread cabinets cleaned out and the culled thread now has new homes.  I will be mailing the thread to the recipients later this week- when I head into town.

 

One of the main threads I'm keeping is Sulky 12 wt. quilting cotton.  The Blendables shades are lovely variegateds that tat up well.  The solids have a nice sheen and tat up equally as well.  Here is a small chocolate colored Sulky motif I tatted this morning:

 

 

This little motif will be expanded and a tiny button pearl center accent added.  So, what do you think?  Have any of you out there found any other neat threads you'd recommend?  I love to try new threads, but tend to go back to my favorites- Valdani Luxury Pearl Silks, Valdani Pearl Cottons & Sulky 12 wt.  Caron Wildflowers is nice, too, along with the Dinky Dyes pearl cottons.

 

Well, I am off to the Atelier to play with the Sulky 12 wt. thread until Jim comes home from work.  Have a great day & until tomorrow~

Happy Tatting!

 

 



Blogversary Celebration Giveaway!

Dear readers,

August 29th will be the one year anniversary of my blogging adventure.  Over this past year, I have learned to love my weekday blogging routine.  It was a bit scary at first, but now, I feel the need to blog each day before getting down to the nitty gritty work in the Atelier.  Many thanks to all who have encouraged me, commented on the blog and participated in previous blog events.  Thank you for sharing my creative adventure!  I look forward to sharing MANY more.

To celebrate this milestone, I have decided to host a Blogversary Giveaway with 3 prizes!!!

Here is prize package number 1 "Nautical Dreams":

This prize package consists of:  a nice small notebook with a seashell image on the pages, 3 cards of vintage buttons (one card is of pink scallop shell buttons), 1 square Czech art glass button, 1 ball of size 8 Valdani pearl cotton (color M24), 1 skein of size 5 DMC pearl cotton (color 4030), 1 skein Caron Wildflowers thread (color 067),  a small bar of Tokyo Milk soap, and a small tube of Lollia handcreme in the "Calm" fragrance.

Prize package number 2 is "Garden Delight":

This prize consists of a lovely floral themed notebook, 3 cards of pink vintage buttons, a Czech art glass button, 1 ball of size 12 Valdani pearl cotton (color M1002), 1 skein of DMC size 5 pearl cotton (color 4210), 1 skein of Caron Wildflowers Thread (color 066), a small bar of Tokyo Milk soap and a small tube of Lollia handcreme in the "Imagine" scent.

"Autumn Longings" is prize package number 3:

A small notebook with a Paris theme is included in this prize package along with: 3 cards of vintage buttons, a gorgeous Czech art glass button, 1 ball of size 12 Valdani pearl cotton (color M97), 1 skein of size 5 DMC pearl cotton (color 4130), 1 skein of Caron Wildflowers Thread (color 095), a small Tokyo Milk soap, and a small tube of Lollia handcreme in the "Classic Petal" scent.

AND...

I will also include a special tatted surprise with each package!!!

How to enter:

Leave a comment on this blogpost indicating which package you prefer and why.  One winner for each package will be selected via random number generator early on the morning of August 29th, 2012, and subsequently announced on that morning's blogpost.

I will try to post some detailed images of the goodies in some of this next week's posts as I'm rather pressed for time this weekend.  (LOTS to do before school starts!)

Good luck and thank you, again, for sharing my fiber art escapades!

Happy Tatting!



Summer Vacation Event

Are you ready for summer?  Have a few tatting projects lined up?  Whether you do or not, I have a solution to your summertime blues:

The Piney Woods Summer Vacation Giveaway Event!

Up for grabs this time:  1 full yard of hand-dyed batik fabric, 2 skeins of DMC perle cotton (899, 4025), 4 skeins of Caron Wildflowers thread (034, 148, 112, 227), 2 GORGEOUS Czech art glass buttons, an assortment of antique shell buttons, a small bag of lime green fancy rocaille seed beads, a few rose colored Czech fire polish beads, a few 6mm pink Swarovski pearls, and assortment of green and lavender freshwater pearls, and some purple baroque pearls.

Here is a closer look at the fabric.

Pearls, Czech art glass button & antique buttons.

And finally, a better view of the other Czech art glass button, fancy lime rocailles and baroque pearls.

Do you think you'll be able to keep yourself occupied with this assortment of goodies?

For your chance to win, leave a comment on this blog post and state what you would do with the winnings.

The winner will be selected via random number generator on Thursday, June 7th, and notified via blog announcement.  The winner must respond no later than Monday, June 11th, or another winner will be selected.

Good luck!

I'm off to work on dressing up another cameo brooch.  May you have a great day and until tomorrow~

Happy tatting!



Revised Packing Method

It is that time of year when we start escaping to the woods whenever possible.  The new tent is wonderful, but I am revising all of my packing methods as we have replaced older equpiment with newer, lighter pieces.  Also, we prefer to take my Jeep Wrangler for off-road playing.  The truck is nice, but my Jeep can get into places the truck can't.  As you can imagine, space is at a premium given the Jeep's small size.  The new hitchgate on the back helps with hauling things, but I really needed to rethink how to schlep my tatting and fiber art along with everything else.  This is what I have come up with:

This large burlap bag was purchased at a local boutique a couple of years ago and has been in the Atelier closet.  I re-discovered it this weekend while rummaging for something else.  It contains a "slim satchel" filled with my tatting necessities and a crochet project.

Here is a view of my fully stocked "slim satchel".  It has everything I require for tatting wherever the adventure takes me.  Oodles of Valdani Luxury Pearl Silk & Pearl Cotton, a selection of various DMC pearl cottons, Sulky Blendables, Caron WIldflowers thread, needles, a chatelaine, a couple pairs of scissors, emery cushion, findings, buttons, yoyos, beads & Swarovskis- all neatly and securely packed.  And it takes up a lot less space than the "super satchel" I had been using!  Although I will continue to use the "super satchel" for longer excursions.

This is the crochet project I have in the bag.  It will be a shawl when complete.  I am using the peacock fan motif my great-grandmother used a lot.  It was one of her favorites.  The yarn I'm using is Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool in "natural".

As you can see, the crochet rolls up neatly.  I have plenty of room in the burlap bag for my kindle, design journal, snacks and small blanket.

How do you take your tatting with you when you travel?  I am always looking for new ideas and methods of packing my tatting essentials.

To purchase your own "slim satchel", go to Nancy's Notions.  They also have other sizes of these "satchel" products that I really love!  I am sure they will have something that will be perfect for you, too.

Don't forget to leave a comment on the "Easter Event" blog post for your chance to win the goodies!!!  The winner will be selected on Wednesday, March 28th.  Good luck!

Well, I am off to wind some more thread for the slim satchel. Have a great day.

Until tomorrow~

Happy Tatting!

Last Call For St. Pat's Tats Event Entries!

I finished the pendant for the St. Pat's Tats Event:

This pendant is tatted with size 8 Valdani pearl cotton in M26 and is enhanced with an antique carved shell button and Czech fire polish beads.  It is Option 2 in the St. Pat's Tats Event.

And here is a reminder of the other goodies up for grabs:

Option 1 with various threads, buttons, beads, pearls and a "mystery" Celtic tatted piece.  For specific thread colors check out Monday's post.

Now for today's little "extra":  you may post a comment on Monday's post AND today's post, giving you TWO chances to enter the St. Pat's Tats Event!

Well, I am off to tat that "mystery" Celtic piece.  Have a marvelous day and good luck!

The winners will be selected tomorrow morning after I take the kid to school.

Until then~

Happy Tatting!



Goodies From Stitcher's Workshop

The Piney Woods are drenched this Saturday!  The rain has settled over Louisiana and it isn't moving out fast enough to suit me.  Oh, well... at least it slacked up enough for me to dash into the woods & take a couple of shots of the threads I got at the Stitcher's Workshop yesterday.

Pictured above in an antique Bavarian tea pot is the selection of Caron Wildflowers thread I had to have along with a few of my favorite Czech art glass buttons.  The Coral Blush is especially pretty, although the image does not do it justice.

There is a special St. Patrick's day project bouncing around in my head where I envision using the DMC pearl cotton threads & Czech button imaged above.  Pat had just the colors I needed in stock!

The rain is pouring down again.  Days like this make me want to curl up with a big mug of hot cocoa and watch old movies. 

 Don't know if I'll get much tatting done, but at least I gave you a hint of the wonderful goodies I found yesterday. 

 Have a wonderful weekend doing whatever makes your soul sing. 

Until Monday~

Happy Tatting!



Stitcher's Workshop Visit

As Jocelin is out of school for a few days, she and I decided to pay a visit to our favorite thread shop.  About an hour's drive north of us is the Stitcher's Workshop.  Pat Dugan has the most fabulous stitching store in our area!  She has kindly put up with us for a number of years and always has spectacular threads and other needle art goodies.

Here is an image of the Caron Wildflowers thread that I adore tatting with.  Pat has a fabulous selection of the entire Caron thread line along with  MANY other threads and fibers.

This is a portion of the DMC line.  Believe me, the Stitcher's Workshop is a fiber freak's heaven!

Aside from the sumptuous fibers, Pat carries hand-painted needlepoint canvases, fine needle art fabric (linens & evenweaves); charts for cross-stitch, canvaswork, embroidery; beads, notions, and she even offers a framing service.  Classes are available, too- just check her website and/or blog for details.  Yes, she does have an online store & ships worldwide! 

One upcoming event Pat hosts that you may find of interest, dear readers, is a Needlework Hideaway.  This weekend event will be held at the Red Apple Inn on Eden Isle just outside of beautiful Heber Springs, Arkansas.  For more information, click on the above link or get in touch with Pat via her website.

Jocelin and I had a great time this morning.  Many thanks to Ms. Pat for her gracious hospitality and fabulous shop!  We are already anticipating our next visit.

I'll be posting images of the goodies I bought later this weekend.  Hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend-  I certainly will.

Until next time~

Happy Tatting!