Fake maltese chain?

Yesterday Joanna Joyce Posey presented us a tatting riddle. I do not know if it was her intention, but it made us think. And test. And tat. Late in the night we got to a solution, Sherill Hare got it! The thread is in the Tatting Designers group and one blog entry will be done with my solution. Pretty interesting to be used in some projects. This one comes later. 

 

But the reason of this blog entry is that I played (again) yesterday. I got frustrated because I did not get the effect right so I distracted myself. I had in my hands 3 threads, one of them a shuttle, so I amused myself and made the first ds, then the next ones, then I filled a shuttle and gave the idea a body: 

No, it is not maltese chain (or pearl tatting). For this one you have to use 3 threads: 2 shuttles and a thread to support the ds done with the shuttles. First ds with shuttle 1 flipped, then take the second shuttle and make unflipped ds around the third thread. This would be my resumee of the maltese ring technique. 

My thing is closer to this except I did it with the shuttle: 

Responses I got: 

1. Maltese ring. 

2. The Shuttle Brothers (Alternating thread technique, thank you Martha Ess, this one I did not know).

3. Encapsulating technique from Sherry Pence (Fiona Trapana)

4. Jane Eborall pointed me her butterfly. 

5. Mary Lena send me a link close to it. 

Might be something Martha said. 

So: 

What you need: 1 shuttle, 2 balls (or 2 other shuttles, if you prefer). I go for 1 shuttle and 1 ball (CTM) and the other one for the contrast colour). Too lazzy to fill the other shuttle CTM method. 

 

I hid the end of the red thread while making the ring. I let a longer end not to have surprises while working, this thread has no knot what so ever (I really don't like them). I will cut it clean AFTER I make the first ds with this thread. 

Now comes the fun part. 

Wrap the threads like this: the one you want in front of your work on the index finger and the other one on the middle finger. Maintain this order for the whole piece. Remember (no insulting the advanced tatters intented), this side is the back side of your work. IF you did not worked the ring as a back side... 

Make 2 ds with blue, snug. 

Don't change anything with the threads. Use now the red thread. Let some thread for the picot (I let 2 mm), make the 2 ds, snug. 

 

Change to blue... same procedure as previous. 

Take the red... 

This is the result. 

 

As you see, not really pearl tatting, no encapsulating. Closer might be the Shuttle Brothers technique wich I never saw, because I never have seen a book from them. And I do not do it with a G8. 

You can play with the ds amount, with differents lenghts of the picots beads on the smaller picots, beads hanging on the longer ones. You can even think about using the picots for funny joins (letting the the other coloured picot on top of the join, why not?). Sky is the limit. 

You can make also rings with the same technique, you will have always a continuous core thread. 

It is a bit unconfortable at the begining working with 2 threads on the left hand, I admit. I for sure not recommend to use a shuttle with a hook. 

As you see, my balls have the thread blocked with paper clips. Like this I have less problems while working. They behave just like shuttles, I can let the balls unwind as they want. 

I ask you again, if you identify the technique, please let me know it. 

Have fun testing it. I know you will. 

Addendum: I found this one looking like mine. It is inspired from Gary and Randy Houtz. It has to be done with3 threads.