A matter of sharing

Internet is a jungle with own rules. Sometimes this is depository of a huge amount of information. 80% of the users use it to find relevant information for them. Some others use it also to exchange information. We all searched for something, we found the info, we used it, moved on. Only later comes the habit to apreciate the source of information we found/received. And very late, sometimes too late or never, comes the good habit to organize this information, to put some order in this search quest.
I am new in this world of the crafters. I tat only since 2 years. I learned alone, with my nose glued on the screen, I swalowed my frustration in front of the monitor and continued to search for help. Yes. I used Internet for this. I have been in all the places, learned from all what I could. And I am thankful for what I found and for the help I got. I grew up, learning from a lot of good tatters.
Now I can help a bit the others sometimes. I share what I know always when this is necessary. And SHARING is actually the keyword.
I am educated never to touch something which does not belong to me. This is called robery in my country. I learned that it is true that my freedom stops when the freedom of the other ones is menaced by my acts. As a philologist I learned that, when you use the ideas of someone else, you MUST quote, otherwise your entire work is called plagiarism. Another word for robery. The intelectual level. Cruelly punished. There is no glory coming by imitating.

Now comes the "sharing" principle. I can share or offer something what I possess, something which is mine. I cannot just come into your house, pick up something I like and then offer it to my best friend, only because I want to be nice and to keep this good friend. Is it a good friend this one asking me to steal for him/her? an other issue here. Only because we interract through bits ans bytes does not make us less real.

Ask anyone and they would say the same: Me, steal? Never.
Why this answer comes so quickly for a physical object and not for an idea, it beats me. Maybe only because the first one is associated with police and trials? The fear of getting punished is bigger?

Please, when you "share" a pattern please reflect: is it really sharing? Does it belong to you?

When you "share" a document, a scanned book, take a second or two and think: does it harm someones rights?

When you "share" your knowledge and copy a pattern from a picture and then "share" the picture with the instructions to work it, step back: is this sharing?

Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, you name them, are full of images. Mostly are there illegal: not the author placed them there. Please, do not keep this bad habit alive. Some of the designers/photographers try to make a living from their skills. "Sharing" their work kills their chances to succeed.

Don't hide behind "I did not know", "I am new", "I just found it"... it is lame. Ignorance is never an excuse. When the picture has a watermark, a name on it, a blog, just follow, take your time and follow the source and contact the author. So simple.

When you notice that a picture is scanned (one can see this easily), that it is part of a book (yes, the page numbers are always a good sign), do not re-pin or re-share it. You become accomplice.

I did the same, I have a Pinterest account too. I stopped using it. I would not just delete the collections I have there and I must take my time to remove all the pages I know they should not be there. But I do not have the time yet. I just use the "Ideas to tat" collection.

Again sharing. I share in this blog what I know. I share patterns and I always answer any question. It might be that I want I keep some of my ideas for my own use, they will become patterns to sell. My right.

Beads and tools

This entry will not be so impressive, but it might be helpful.
It is about beads tatted withing the lace and the tools you need. For the ones already familiar with the tatting with beads, sorry, no new territory. But, if you have some more hints, please share them with the newbies.
These would be beads you might consider to tat at the same time as the lace. Again, sky is the limit, it is just to get an idea.

No, no bead in the middle of a ring, no big bead tatted in Ankars. Except the ones used already as a joining element. But it is safer te work the elements separatelly and to join them while decorating the foundation than hanging a heavy bead. Ankars tatting is about beauty, perfection as it can be and resistance at the same time, the tatting skills stay more with the technique to create a perfect base for the beads than to incorporate the beads into the lace.
Recommendation: the smaller the beads the better. Preferably: even beads, especially when included on the core thread. This is changing the proportion little by little. For 3 rocailles 11.0 you will change the dimension of a ring by 3 mm. Funny. This brings us always some frustration while adapting an existing pattern.
Small bead = tiny hole. A truism which can really hurt. 11.0 Miuki has a hole of 0,8 mm, A 15.0 has a 0,7 mm hole. This is huge! And this can create problems to work with the beads, to string them on the thread. Not to speak about the choice of the thread.
Normally, I  use what you can see here. Forgot the place a paperclip. Important that one too.

Beading needles. Not only to sew the beads on the lace, but also to string the beads. And yes, a 10 size beading needle can be used with a thread similar to the Lizbeth 40. I did it. Never forget when choosing the beads and the thread: when you use a needle, a beating tool, a threader, you will always have a strand of 2 when you string your beads.
How to skip it: apply glue to harden the end of thread and try to use it. Not my favorite choice, though.

My "tool". Done from broken guitar string. My son knows already: I receive all his broken strings.
I prefer an open end to the ready-to-buy variant. A lot more versatile.
How to make it? Take some 10 cm of a tiny wire, (from electrical cable, from craft copper wire, the 0,3 is perfect, a fishing wire), fold it 2. Done.
For what it serves? To string the beads, to place the beads on the picots, to make difficult joins, to place beads/elements the fine crochet hook cannot place.

  

Crochet hook. We know it. The finer, the better.
Perfect tool to string individual beads, to place beads on the picots.
Why finer? Not only because the holes are under 1 mm but also because sometimes the joins can be done in between the beads:

In these cases I tend to use my tool. 

Limits: cases like this one: 

 So you turn to the cheap wire tool: place it on the thread, place the bead, fix the paper clip.

 

 

The smart ones will make very long (gauged) picots. Viable solution when you work with regular beads. What about the irregular beads?
See the last picture? it is what comes next int he blog: placing the seed beads and using them not only as decorative elements.

Simple ROR earrings

Those ones were waiting to get a how to tat history... And since I would not like to tempt some tatters to try to estimate, I just rushed a bit with the pattern. Which I promissed anyway.

Skills required: shuttle tatting, tatting with beads, up and down joins. 

Small reminder for the ones liking a neat finish, no twisted picots. Never fight against the thread. This always can punish sooner or later. Better learn the right technique than making compromises to the quality of your lace. Not even when worked "for fun". Yes, I've been told this one too: "We do not work at an academic level, just for fun."

· Up join - marked with + in the pattern (the regular one, the one we learn at the beginning) will make that the ring you are working lay under the rings already worked. Reason: the thread you pull from the left hand to make the joining loop brings the worked ds from underneath the work. You will pass the shuttle also from down towards up.  

· Down join - marked with * in the written pattern: when you pull the thread to make the join, the worked ds are on top of the previous rings anyway and the shuttle passes from left to right ON TOP of the work, so this ring will remain on top. 

That  simple. 

There you go for the pattern. 

1 shuttle project. 

Material needed: thread of your choice (my Penny 30 gave me a 2,5 cm long earring), 28 seed beads (29 for the daring variant, with the tatted in crystal). Beads of your choice for the finish. 

Shuttle, beading threader, fine crochet hook, scrissors, needle (for the finish). Magic thread trick is beautiful, but maybe you would like to place 1 bead and then hide the thread. 

All the picots will be very small picots.

Basic pattern: 

8 rings worked in the given order. 

R1: 5 - 5 - 10, cl, dnt

R2: 10 + (to R1)  20 - 10, cl, dnt

R3: 10 + (to R2) 5 - 5, cl, dnt

R4: 5 + (to R3) 10 - 5, cl, dnt

R5: 5 + (to R4) 5 - 10, cl, dnt

R6: 10 + (to R5) 15  - 10, cl, dnt

R7: 10 * (up join to R6) 5 - 5, cl, dnt

R8: 5 + 10 + (folded join to R7) 5 cl, cut thread. 

The beaded variant requires the use of the beads. Known already: 3 beads in the loop for the ring, 1 from  the shuttle to form this diamond (marked dbp in the pattern).  All rings will start with those 3 beads in the left hand, except the ring 6. Feel free to change it if you prefer it. 

String on the shuttle 28 beads. 

R1: 5 - 5 dbd  1 - 11, cl, dnt

R2: 11 + (to R1) 10 dbp 10 - 11, cl, dnt

R3: 11 + (to R2) 1 dbp 5 - 5, cl, dnt

R4: 5 + (to R3) 5 dbp 5 - 5, cl, dnt

R5: 5 + (to R4) 5 dbp 1 - 11, cl, dnt

R6: 11 + (to R5) 15  - 11, cl, dnt

R7: 11 * (up join to R6) 1 dbp 5 - 5, cl, dnt

R8: 5 + 5 dbp 5 + (folded join to R7) 5 cl, cut thread. 

Now, you are ready to embellish your earring as it pleases you. 

For the daring ones, I tell how I worked my earring. Not a big thing, bit it requires a bit of patience during the work. I like challenges so I tatted in my crystal. I placed all my seed beads on the shuttle and also the crystal blocked with a seed bead, like for the free stamen for the Sakura patern. 

The beads sequence to fill the shuttle is: 25 seed beads, this crystal with the seed bead blocker, 3 seed beads. 

Start from the ring 2 with the 3 seed beads and the crystal + blocker in the loop. When the ring will be closed, the cristal will remain trapped at the base of the ring. Then you must tat  the ring 3... In this case you should not have any folded join. Only take care about the placement of the layered rings. 

Have fun. For any questions I am always around. 

Happy tatting.