1 shuttle bracelet, beads all around.

I avoid Pinterest, even though I have an account. I pin in there only in some boards (my ideas to tat and the art board). I do not delete de other ones because this would cause to many broken links...
But this does not mean that I do not spend a good amount of time in front of the PC starring at patterns. I don't know you, but since some time I discovered how clever were the creators of the antique patterns. How they solved some problem, how they invented new methods or techniques. I cannot thank enough Sue for 2 excellent books, both teasing my curiosity.
And this is how I got to this idea: what if I can make a beaded chain with 1 shuttle? And then combine this element with rings. I experimentes with dead ends, (yes, they work with 1 shuttle only), chains in the middle of the work finishing where they want to (encapsulating, padding... you name it). There is nothing a shuttle with thread cannot do. Some solutions are simple, some come from riddles but what would be tatting without a bit of riddles?

The first attempt was this one. All rings. No chain at all. 

Pattern? I give it to you just to guide you, but it really depends on your thread and your beads. 

1 shuttle, all beads on the shuttle. Keep your crochet hook handy. 

Start with ring, 1 bead in the loop. 

16ds, bring 1 bead from the shuttle and make a small picot for a future join, 2 - 14. Close ring. The bead from the loop will remain at the base of the ring. 

Turn work. Bring 1 bead from the shuttle, prepare to work the first smal ring: 8-2, close. The bead will be trapped ar the base of the ring. 

Do not turn, bring one more bead, make small ring: 2+6-2, close, do not turn. Repeat this until you have 6 small rings. Make lock join to the picot on top of the bead on the core thread. 

Do not turn work. 

Take 1 bead, start another big ring: 2 + (to the picot from the small ring) 14, bring another bead on the core thread and let the picot for the next join, 16, close, turn work.   The bead from the loop remains at the base of the ring. 

Start to work the small rings as the previous ones. 

Not so difficult. 

But I did not like it , the beaded chains did not lay flat on the wrist and since I do not like to stiffen or to block, I changed some things: reduced the beads from 6 to 5 and gave up the beads from the bigger rings. 

Lot better. 

  

 I start to like these 1 shuttle patterns. This would be my third no-Ankars 1 shuttle pattern. But I really like the freedom one can have. Just as I said: 1 shuttle, thread, beads, a crochet hook. One of those projects you can tat while waiting for something or in a bus, with no fear for the ball of the second shuttle.
Have fun. Please let me know if I did write something wrong. It always hapen.

Swirly rosette

Emptying a shuttle, some time ago.

Just tatted to the end, just to see what it gives and to practice the pulled join of Nina Libin, but a lock join actually does the job.

It is 1 shuttle pattern, 49 beads on the shuttle (in my case!). You must have a sure hand to make a nice lock join, no knot, no bare thread left by mistake.

All is a base of 6 ds. With this count, some 11.0 Toho rocailles you will have a 7 petals rosette. At least this is what my Penny 30 (like a Lizbeth 40) did.

There will be no turn. All the beads will remain on the shuttle.

Symbols used:
- join picot.
+ join
vsp: very small picot
Red beads: you bring them from the shuttle and let a join picot, large enough to allow you to pass the crichet hook to make the join.
Green beads: their number depends on the size of your ring.
Blue beads: just bring them from the shuttle between the petals. In my case (my thread, my beads), 3 were ok. If you use less, you will have more petals, I assume.

Every R1: 6 - 6 red bead 6 - 6, close, do not turn.
Every R2: 6 + 6 vsp 12, close, do not turn.
Take the beads (marked green), place them bellow, pull the thread through the vsp, make lock join to fix them in place. Bring another bead (marked blue here), and start over.

For the last R1 there is a small trick to place the last bead on the core thread. Work 6 + 6. Bring the thread to make the join but before you pass the shuttle, bring the bead, keep it in place and finish the join.
The last R2: worked normally, male the lock join and after placing the last blue bead, you cut and hide the end.

I wish I could give you an exact pattern, ds, exact amount of beads and so on, this would be so elegant! But, in my opinion, it is better to pass you the way, to give you the weapons so you can be independent and, later, to play with this knowledge. This is the reason this kind of patterns, with small technical details, will always end up in the blog.
Have fun  with it. I know I will develop it. I already see it as a six point star with a second round. Snowflake anyone?

Rings'n beads

Thread. Not much of it. Some delicas (11, Toho) 1 bit bigger crystal or pearl, any bead you like. 2 shuttles. It is all you need to make this:

Some remarks are necessary. I wil explain the principle, but you must adjust the amount of beads according to your project. See the beads around the white bead? They are 3 or 4 depending on the size of the bead I used. Between and for every ring, you will use 2 beads. So multiply by 2 the split rings you want to make and you will have your seed beads for the split rings. Except 1. That one you will not use. 

Now fill the shuttle with all the seed beads for the split rings, add the seed beads for the pearl, place the pearl then finish with the seed beads for the other side of the pearl. You will use the the continuous thread method, so think about the thread for the second shuttle too. 

You should be ready. 

Main shuttle, the working one, is the one with the seed beads on it. We assume you need 3 seed beads for the pearl. 

Let 3 seed beads + the pearls + 3 seed beads fall on the second shuttle. 

Start R1 with the working shuttle, take 2 seed beads in the loop before starting to tat. 

R1 (SR with 2 seed beads in the loop) 16 / bead from the loop, 16ds, close. 

Work 16 ds. Drop shuttle 1, bring 1 seed bead at the base of the ring. Take shuttle 2, place the group of beads and the pearl in position and start to tat the second half of the split ring: 16 ds (yup, the unflipped ones). Close ring. The remaining seed bead will stay on top of the ring. 

Ring 2: Shuttle 1 (with 2 seed beads in the loop): work 14 ds. Drop shuttle. 

Shuttle 2: bring bead at the base (see the group of 2 seed beads is formed), tat the other 14 ds to finish the split ring. Close. Again the remaining bead stays on top of the ring. 

You just continue. 

For the earrings I used the proportion: R1: 16 ds, R2: 14ds, R3: 12ds, R4: 10ds. I finished with 1 bead in the loop, made a12 ds ring, closed, hid the ends. Added the earring wires. 

For the bracelet, I reduced by 1 ds, to have the lenght I wanted. Before I started, I placed all the seed beads on the shuttle, then passed the thread through the pearl, added again 3 seed beads. Filled the second shuttle with this end (so I have CTM). 

Have fun!

If you are in the search for fast projects, this can be on your list for sure. 

Tatted stud earrings and ring

Last week, I think, I posted a pair of earrings and a ring. I just made a test to see how a light grey silver thread will look with some honey gold beads I had (11 Toho Gold Line Jonquille). Simpliest pattern ever, but you know me... simple tatting it is not just simple tatting.
Reasons? More than one.
1. Being a small item, it has to be perfect. This means that is the beads are not even, you do not get the same result.
2. Tattig pattern may be simple, but even knots are required for a small item.
3. Tatting with beads may be mastered, until you must make your joins through the beads. Which is the case here.
4. Folded join through certain beads not for unpatient tatters, at least at the begining. Of course, you can make the alternative join to finish the rosette (the Riego join), but still...

Remember these babies?

1 shuttle project, a very fine crochet hook needed. You need a good amount of beads (48 for every rosette + 12 or 24 for each middle element). Pearls of your choice. 

Pattern for the base: 

Told you. Simple. Just careful. 

bp4: beaded picot with 4 beads (from the ones from the loop)

dp: diamond beaded picot (3 beads from the loop + 1 from the shuttle). 

R1 (with 11 beads on the loop): 8ds, bp4, 4ds, dp, 4ds, bp4, 8ds, close ring, do not turn work. 

R2 (with 7 beads on the loop): 8ds + to R1 (by letting 1 bead between the rings int he lower part) 4ds, dp, 4ds, bp4, 8ds, close ring, do not turn. 

Repeat until you have 5 rings. 

R6: (with 3 beads in the loop): 8 ds + to R5, 4ds, dp, 4ds, join (folded) 8 ds, close ring. 

Work now the central element.

Start ring with 6 beads in the loop. Work 1 ds make picot with 2 beads (1 from the loop, the other one from the shuttle) 2 ds. repeat until you finish the beads from the loop, finish with 1 ds, close. 

You can also change the amount of ds, depending on your beads. 

For the ring I just made diamond picots instead of these double beaded picots. 

I worked with 30 Penny thread (like a 40 Lizbeth thread) and 11 Toho rocailles. With a different thread size and other beads, the appearance may be different. 

Mount the elements together. If you have stud little pearls, they are perfect. You can even think about working more of these elements to make them as exchangeble sets, why not?

I hid the head of my stud with another small flower (3-6-3 petal) for a better finish. 

Have fun!

Stiffener tested

I do not like to stiffen my pieces. For more than one reasons. I do not deny that for some objects it is necessary, but they are not in my area of interests... Yet.
I believe that a good pattern  and a correct work should give a piece which needs minimal blocking (if not zero). This does not affect the 3D pieces, they simply need to be stiffened.
I work tatted jewelry and I try to make all my pieces that they are stable, lay flat by them selves,  no twist. This is maybe the reason I preffer not to make any decorative picots. I do not like to punish the ones wearing my pieces with long instructions how to wash, stiffen the bracelet or the earrings. It is not funny. A short "shower with a gentle soap, arrange the piece to lay flat and let dry it should be enough". And yes, I use a nano-spray, a non allergic one, to avoid that dirt gets into the fibers. It is working, the simple gesture of cleaning the piece with a humid cloth does miracles after this.
I am always asked what  I use. Nothing would be the answer.
But since I needed to make some roses, I searched for a solution to stiffen them. No one likes a wedding bouquet with tatted flowers to loose shape and get dull colours is also not something I want to have.
I tested some products.
One captured my attention: the Deco Festiger from Hobby Line. It smells like the white glue, but it has a different behaviour. I aplied it with no dilution, I loved what I got with my polyester thread: stiffness, perfect finish, no change of the colours.
Sue Hanson was wondering how it is working. There you go, Sue. This is just for you.
I used all the fibers I had in the house. I applied the stiffener on the right half only, so you can have the possibility to compare, no matter the angle or the light I have when I take the pictures. Please, do not criticize the pieces, they are tests taken from my flops box.

As I said, the stiffener was applied only on the right side of the pieces. 

For the pieces with beads, I cleaned immediatelly the beads with a humid clean cloth. I removed also with this cloth the excess. Except  one piece, the red and black flower, just to show you the effect. 

After 2 hours in the sun (wanted to rush the process), there you have the result: 

The Lizbeth 20 was a bit darker, but it might be not completelly dry. No dull colour. No change at all for the Lizbeth 40. The white thread got a better aspect, without loosing the texture. 

   

The Anchor thread with the beads looks pretty "healthy". And i assure you, the chains do not lay. 

The Polyester thread is perfect!

 

The Brildor 15, also a polyester thread got a beautiful body. 

No change at all for the metallic thread. 

And maybe you can see the shine of the film coating the pieces. 

They are rigid enough but yet, flexible. 

You can treat them with another coat of finish. I did not have it. For small pieces like earrings and pendants, it is perfect, in my humble opinion. 3D pieces, for sure. 

Hope it helps. 

Have fun. Tatting... 

Tatting and wire wrapping

Played with the idea of making ... tatted writing. I just love those initials, in French enluminures. Remember those monogramms with floral motifs around? They are perfect for tatting, in my eyes.
There are 2 ways to make them, I will show you the wired one, I like when they have a bot of body. But if you choose to sew them on a tissue, then you should consider making some changes, to make them lay perfectly.
Skills required? Padded tatting.. encapsulating, wrapping ... are some of the names of the technique used. All have their subtile differences (which I never remember). Guide for this here. Karen Cabrera has a video for the encapsulating technique, you should see before attacking this tutorial (talking to the ones who never did it before).  Sherry Pence (LadyShuttleMaker has a very good book for it with some sweet patterns).
This for the tatting part. Some wire wrapping skills would be also handy.

So I played before with an L. 2 times until I got the simpliest way.

All you need:

This initials require some preparation before. Finding a nice letter is smallest of your problems. Just search among the machine embroidery patterns... You will definitelly find some. Choose one model which is not complicated to form with the wire. You need only the letter, the other elements are just to help you get an idea. You print this initial 1:1 scale for the desired size. Mine was a 4 cm height C.
Now find a surface where you can place this printed letter and pin it. Take some thread (lighter colour better), and pin this thread on the contour of your initial. Then mark where you would like the have the leaves, flower budd. I draw (ha!) more or less my leaves... marked it on the thread. This will be very useful later.

Cut also some wire, be a bit generous, it sould lay nicely in your hand while working.

Now you can start.
I choose to work for this tutorial the more complicated element, the lower one.
Start by working a small bell. Mine is 3 yellow rings 4 - 8 - 4, so a 4 mm pearl fits in. You just adjust. Do not cut the thread from the shuttle, it will be needed later.
Work the flower. Mine: pink, 5 - 10 - 5, 5 rings. Before you make the folded join, just add the bell then work the last ds, close. If you think you cannot do it, just work the separatelly and place the smaller one on top of the flower through the last rings (for once this gap between the first and the last rings of a flower is useful). Keep the shuttle on the thread.

 

Now take the wire and place the pearl at one of the ends. 

 Pass this stem through the flower:

 

Secure this flower around the pearl as close as possible, just wrap the wire, make a knot, what you feel fit.

Now take the shuttle with the green thread.
Start to work the chalyx. Mine: 3 - 7 - 3, 5 times. Before you make the folded join, take the stem with the flower, place it in the middle of the flower, finish the chalyx.

 

Hold these 3 elements so close to each other as possible. Wrap the wire and the pink and yellow thread with the green one to form a bit the receptacle.

You can start now the encapsulating. Unflipped double stiches, like you would work the second half of a split rings. Since you have also the wire and the threads, the position of the hands should insure that you can work without stressing your hands. 

I made also a small picot and then 2 ds to anchor my first leaf:  

After you do this, flip the flower vertically. 

Work your leaf as close to the stem as possible (make the join to the stem). I worked a 2 - 14 ring. Take then another shuttle (pink) and work a smaller ring, as close to the wrapping as possible.   

Flip again the work and restart the encapsulating. 

This is why you will use the marked thread: to indicate you, more or less where the leaves and buds can be worked. 

 This bud is worked as follow: first the yellow ring, then the pink one, a bit larger, before closing the ping ring, just pass the yellow on through it.

 

You finished now your wire and you are ready to do the letter forming. I have hidden the pink and yellow threads in the last green ring. As you can see, I passed the gree ends through the pearl, along the wire. 

 

Wrap the wire around the pearl, fix it where you need it to be, make sure the pearl cannot slip out. If you prefer, just glue it. Hide the ends. 

I formed my C on the upper part with the help of a pencil tip. 

 

Remarks: 

- When you choose a letter, choose a letter you can write in 1 stroke, without passing 2 times along the same line. 

- I used pearls to hide the wire ends, but this is not the only solution. 

- Be brave: try to tat some small flowers, hearts, have fun with it. 

- While encapsulating, snug the ds and pull the inner threads. Like this you have no surprises when you must work the leaves and buds, no free tread getting out to ennoy you and to spoil your efforts.  

- Try not to manipulate to often the wire, especially if it is a maleable one. 

The principle is the same it you tat without the wire, but you must rethink how you will work the ends. 

Have fun with this one. You can use it as monogramm on a box, present bag, a hat, a brooch, you name it!

Pattern or guide for the blue beaded bracelet

I revisited a small piece I did some time ago, made some small changes and it is not that bad as a result. 

This time it seems complicated, it is not. 

2 shuttles project, you must string the beads before: shuttle 1: 32 beads, shuttle 2: 9 beads. This amount may vary, according to your needs, to your thread.
Basic pattern: start with the inner rings then make the chains. I told you: simple and easy.

bp : the diamond beaded picot.


Shuttle 1
R1: 10 bp 9 - 1, close, do not turn work.
R2: 1 + 9 bp 9 - 1, close, do not turn work.
R3: 1 + 9 bp 10, close turn work.
Start chain:
15 - 1 + 6 + 16 + 16 + 6 + 16 + 16 + 6 + 1 - 15.
All the lock joins will be done in between the beads, but this you saw already. And if you worked the beaded flower from last year, there is no secret anymore.

You take from the shuttle 1 the next 8 or 9 beads (depending on your thread, beads) and climb to make the next element. You work the inner round (shuttle 1) the same way as before. 

When you need to start the chain, take from shuttle 2 the same amount of beads you used and climb to start the chain. Before you make the first join, the one with the picot you worked before, make sure to give a twist to the beaded chains. When you are happy with the result, just make the join. The rest is just the same: chains, lock joins...

This is the result. 

The original (black and red one) was worked with no join in between the rings. It is ok, but what I did not like: not that stable as this second one.

And if you ask how I placed the seed bead ar the begining of the chain, no, it is not a picot. I just had the bead on the thread, passed the thread through the chain, passed it again through the bead (in the other direction), filled my shuttle and did my chain. 

I like it, it is a happy project, it requires a bit of attention  without being too difficult. 

Again, do not stick with the amount of ds I gave. They fitted my thread (the Penny 30 this time) and my beads (Toho 11.0 rocailles ), for a Lizbeth 20 and other beads you must definitely adjust! But the principle is there, and this is more important than a fixed pattern. 

Hope it helped a bit. Happy tatting.