Leaves and Snowflakes

Here is a leaf from Tammy Roger's pattern and Yarnplayer's hdt "Sugar Maple" thread in a size 10.

(Left)

The snowflake is from Jon Yusoff's "Tatted Snowflake Collection"using size 10 Flora thread.

It is hard to have lovely fall colors and snowflurries at the same time, but welcome to Illinois in November!

Did I mention how much I like Yarnplayer's hdt!? There is such a difference in working. ( Marilee's tats like a dream Flora twists alot).

Here it is 2 weeks from turkey day and Christmas music has been playing since the 1st. Is it me or are we being pushed into one big money holiday to the next? I like Christmas music but AFTER Thanksgiving. As I drive around people are putting up and lighting Christmas decorations. True now is the time to do lights(before snow) and to tat the tree decorations ( several new one every year), but please leave the commercializm out of Christmas and bring back why we have the reason for the season.

Becki has made plans to go to Juneau for Thanksgiving to her new friends. She says she misses cooking for large groups of people. OK she doesn't know how to cook for only one- she wasn't taught that way. You can only eat homemade potatoe soup so many days in a row. (No one in the family makes single serving batches). So she is excited to have someone else to do holiday cooking for. Met kind of becomes deserted at holidays. There are so many who have family elsewhere they all kind of leave the Island for the weekend. I think it really is they have Island fever and just can't stay on one Island without going to the Main land.

While in Juneau she will be seeing how other schools do their program and get to meet all the people that are there that can help her with her job. I enjoy listening to her adventures.

On another note- I have had a special time talking to my daughter-in-law about parenthood. Her family has told her all these horror stories about birth and I have tried to reassure her that there is nothing to be afraid of. Pain passes quickly as soon as you how that precious bundle in your arms.

Well time to go back to my tatting. I am working with another Marilee color "morning glory" and I love the look. I'll have to scan it as soon as I finish and share. TaTa for now!

Dragons, Becki and other mythylogical pursuits

Yeah I finally got a ok picture of my tatted dragon. This is from Anne Bruvold's pattern Flying Norwegian Dragons. This is the third one I needle tatted and I did make a couple of mistakes-but I am not telling where.
Becki has returned from her adventures - voiceless but no worse for the wear. Her student and her were the only school that didn't stay in a hotel and had to sleep at the school. Also they were the only ones who where not allowed a eating out budget. They had to prepare all their food at the school microwave-yum. This lead to a very limited menu. They did have purchase orders they could use at a store-1 1/2 miles away. No car, 2 days of rain and snow don't make for adventuring to go shopping.
It probably wouldn't have been the end of her very-awful-very-bad-week if it hadn't have been the fact the school talked her into becoming a volleyball referee. How to have hate mail without really trying. No one "likes" the ref. and when you are on a small island with no real way to quickly get off you have to have a death wish for this job. Lucky for her Met won or they might have burned her at the stake. Someones got to wise this girl up.
So life continues. I am going to try some of the snowflakes from Jon Yusoff's book "Tatted Snowflake Collection". She sent me a lovely tatted snowflake to go with it. Thanks Jon!
I've read alot of different views on shuttle and needle tatting-I do both . The secret to make needle look like shuttle is to use as small of needle as possible to tat with. I can do just about all the different tatting techniques with needle tatting there is, but wasn't that gifted with then shuttle. Pinched nerves cause me to drop the shuttle(alot) so to keep doing what I love I have become more proficient on the needle. Today I figured out how to do split rings on the shuttle and I am relearning how to hold my shuttle so maybe I won't loose feelings in my fingers as quickly. I have been seeing a massage therapist and it is helping. Healing take time.
Well it is time to go , but for anyone who thinks they can't do something I say- suck it up and give it a try! All you can do is have to try again! TaTa for now.