Monday, December 6, 2010

Black Sparkle Cowl!

Whew, finally done with this gorgeous extra large cowl. Yes, cowl! A tube for your head! ha, ha...
I created this on circular needles

So I started this lovely in early fall. Made a huge mistakes, ripped it out, made another huge mistake and ripped it out completely again. Finally, I got it finished up. It is super soft and has a nice band of contrasting yarn with a bit of sparkle on each end of the cowl. Adds that little extra fun.

Close up of detail yarn added for sparkle
I love cowls! They are the most fun. You can wear them around your neck as a super warm scarf or you can pull them up on your head as well as a hood/scarf. So very versatile and adds that extra to a simple dress or basic coat.

Black Sparkle Cowl!
I created this by alternating 4 pearled stitched rows with 4 knit rows. I noticed this keeps it from curling up on itself.
It really is a tube!
I am very glad I hung in there with this project. I think I made the mistakes I did because of the dark yarn I was working with. It is harder to see than a lighter yarn. So I learned to move into really good working light. It made all the difference. And I just keep on going! Now I have a fun project to sell and I have lots of new ideas in mind to try for the next few cowls I am planning to create!




Rat-A-Tat-Tat

I have had the best time learning to tat over this past summer. Now I am working on creating lace for garments and some holiday snowflakes to either be worked into an outfit, used as jewelry or simply an ornament.
Double Five Spoke Tatted Snowflake
I got into this because my great grandmothers use to tat long ago. When they both passed away I inherited their tools and over the years it added up to a lot! So, I decided I would take it upon myself to give it a whirl. It was not easy! It took me basically a week following detailed instructions from books and only 1 or 2 videos on You Tube were helpful.

Close-up
At first, as typical when I am learning something new in fibers, I was so tense I made the double stitches very tight! And I did not figure out "The Flip" for a while. "The Flip" is the KEY to tatting.

Look here to get a pretty good instruction on how to tat:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as2gXQ-RYeQ&feature=related


Detail of a lace pattern I am creating.
After I learned & mastered "The Flip" for the double stitches and then how to make a picot I was on my way. I loosened up and it is such a comfortable relaxing activity now. It's slow going and really does take a long time, but for me it is very rewarding.

I am going to quit writing for now and go sit down in my favorite rose chair by the window, watch the snow fall and work on a custom order for snowflakes I need to get done by the 14th! Happy Tatting!