a little something for me

All my tatting seems to be done with someone else in mind.  I have made jewellery for birthday presents and a bridal set for a wedding (including the bridesmaids) hearts for valentines day, bits and bobs for exchanges and now a baby bonnet.  This may not sound like a lot but I have only been tatting for a year so really I have been quite busy.

With this in mind I thought it was about time I made something just for me.  I bought Judith Connors contemprary tatting book becuase I loved the image on the front cover so I decided to make a bracelet out of the choker design on the front.  Here is the finished piece:

I modified it ever so slightly so that I could attach magnet clasps as both ends, this way I didn't have to worry about getting the exact right length around my wrist, I could just adjust the length of the chain as needed.

Making something for me was not the only first with this project. it was also the first time I have covered rings, the first time I have done split rings with shuttles and the first time I have used glue instead of hiding the ends using the magic thread trick.

I played about with a different ideas for joining elements together and in the end I did it as follow:

• I covered the first ring and made a small picot using a 5mm jump ring 4ds before the ring was completely covered.

•  the first ring was completed covered I took the second ring and holding it below the first ring and continued with the same thread to cover the second ring.  After the first 4ds I jointed it to the picot of the first ring and then continued round till it was covered.  

• Now the starting tail on the first ring and the finishing tail on the second ring are right next to each other so I simply tied them together using a square stitch.  making sure the knot was on the back of the rings I used a tiny blob of super glue over the knot and then cut the tails once it dried.

• I then tatted the outer motif of the centre design, making the picots that were to be attached to the rings as small as possible.

• Next I used invisible thread and a fine beading needle and starting at the point the two rings touch I ran the thread under the stitches of the ring, only bringing it out at the point where I wanted the outer motif to be attached.  Again I tied the ends of the thread at the back of the rings and used a tiny dob of glue to fix it in place.

• I tatted the band section till it was long enough to come round the back of my wrist.  (For me this was 14 rings but I have quite small arms).

• I inserted the band section through the double rings and positioned it so the bead between the centre rings of the band was directly over the middle of the covered rings. 
  I then took another length of invisible thread and from the back of the band ran the thread though the centre bead.  I then fed each tail though each adjacent plastic ring and tied the tails at the back of the rings and glue them in place.

The book didn’t tell me to fasten the band to the plastic rings but this keeps the band in the correct place so the overall visual effect of the piece is symmetrical and as shown in the illustration.  

I wore it to work yesterday and I got several admirers.  So much so that ive started makeing a second one, this time all black.  this one I might make into a choker and wear it on Saturday as we have a birthday dinner to go to.

Until next time...

Cat.x