Iced Gems from The Yarn Yard

Just a quick post to show you my progress on working with Natalie of The Yarn Yard's 'Iced Gems' that I purchased earlier in the week before her new Etsy Shop was cleared out of HDT...

From this:

to this:

UK has a new HDT Supplier!

OK Natalie is not exactly new to the dying game as she's been successfully running 'The Yarn Yard' for several years now supplying knitters and crocheters with beautiful colour combinations of yarns in solids, semi-solids and variegated colourways.

Anyway she rang me last week about her venture into the 'embroidery' market with HDT as I've sold Oliver Twists for several years anyway we talked and she would send me a sample. We talked some more and due to my new found interest of tatting I said we're short of HDT supplier in the UK so I suggested some base threads and suggested she got in touch with Jane Eborall of 'Tatting and not a lot Else' who is one of the UK's foremost & prolific tatters. Natalie also sent Jane a skein to try and this is what she said about the 100% Swiss silk thread.

I tatted a small motif called 'Starchic' by Jon Yusoff with the silk thread and this is what it turned out like:

The thread was nice to tat with but as a new tatter I did find untatting I had to be careful not to pluck the thread. While it tats up nice I have to confess to saying I prefer 100% cotton to tat with - I love to see those crisp little stitches that have such great definition you get with 100% cotton. I know Jane felt the same in regards to what makes a good thread for tatting - but it does boils down to the individual tatters taste, but Jane and I seem to like the same base threads of 100% cotton and especially Lizbeth 20.

Anyway we reported back to Natalie, by which time she'd bought in some Lizbeth 20 and was under way in dying some HDT for her new Etsy shop. Here's were you can read about it and see some of the glorious colours she created with evocative names like 'Passionate', 'Iced Gems' and 'Gunmetal'.

Anway you got to support a new venture haven't you? so I ordered two skeins one each of 'Iced Gems' and 'Gunmetal' - they arrived today (Tuesday) and here they are, glorious aren't they?

Now I know Jane has already tried her thread she bought yesterday so go back and check her blog out on Wednesday to see what she did with 'Birthday' ;o)

Now does anyone know where I can buy 'time' so I can try out Natalie's new thread sigh...



Eye Candy

Yarnplayer updated her shop last Wednesday... who am I to refuse her offerings... Have to say can't get over the USPS & Royal Mail when posted on 22nd September the postman handed over the goodies this morning (27th)

From top to bottom in size #20: Knitty Gritty, Solid Gold, Sugar Maple, Solid Green & A Leaf Falls

carrying on down from there in size #10: Stardate, Sugar Maple & A Leaf Falls

No projects in mind but the size #10 will probably be used for motifs on my little pots as the size allows to do a reasonbly small, uncomplicated motif which will when embellished nicely fill the lid.

I also received in the post last week my first purchase from Krystledawne a trio threads entitled 'Vineyard at Dusk' which consists of the variegated 'Vineyard at Dusk' and two solids 'Light Withered Vine' & 'Twilight Grape'

And last but not least I plunged and bought a 'pimped' shuttle from La Cossette - well could I resist with a shuttle called 'Autumn Berries' and looks like this ;o)

I learned to Tat

I know it's been over 12 months since I blogged but somehow just couldn't get round to it and then I didn't feel like it and life has gotten hectic as well especially more so since the end of June when 'Dexta' our then 9 week GSD came to live with us we sadly lost Cara our 11 year old GSD 5th November 2010.

He is 5 months old next week and if anyone would like to see various photos of him over the time we've had him you can go here and see an assortment of photos of him....

Anyway since I taught myself to tat a month ago I thought I'd share what I've been doing with you. I haven't been dormant since my last blog post plenty of crocheting of garments and shawls but as most of you are on Ravelry yo can just go to my projects and wander through what I've done.

I decided rather than try and catch up as I never manage to do that I just decided that I would try and blog and keep my posts short and sweet then I don't feel like everything else is being sacrificed or precious crochet, knitting, spinning & now tatting time is eaten up IYKWIM?

Anyway I'll not bore you with the pictures of the bag of trials that were my 1st attempts but here's a selection of motifs I've been tatting adding beads and attaching to felt and then adhering onto the lids of pots that once came from 'The Bodyshop' and contained Body Butter.

3D Flower from Rosemarie Peel's Book - Tatting Basic Patterns in Anchor Freccia #12

Maggie from Rosemarie Peel's Book - Tatting Basic Patterns in Anchor Freccia #12

Yarnplayer's Easy Tatted Butterfly in Oliver Twists Pearl Cotton #5

Yarnplayer's Easy Tatted Flower in Anchor Freccia #12

My own improvised design in Yarnplayer's HDT 'Knitty Gritty' #10

6 Petal Motif from これならわかるタティングレースの本 in Coats Mercer #20

 ISBN: 978-4-52904967-2

I have also completed 'Adiratna' from Jon Yusoff aka Tat-a-Renda in DMC Cebelia #10 although not sure what I'm going to do with it but as it was my first 'proper' tatting achievement I'm going to keep it for myself...

So after seeing these if anyone is interested in learning to tat you can do no better than go to Tatted Treasures blog and follow her very excellent 'Absolute Beginner' series on learning to tat.

That's enough for now don't you think?

Apart from perhaps I should rename my blog as Littleberry rarely does much knitting these days apart from socks, what do you think?