Tatting Tales ~ All things Tatting (It's an obsession)

TIAS Day 9

2012-02-03T09:38:00.004-07:00

TIAS DAy 9.
I'll have to go check out the other entries....I think my eye is a little wonky...not sure what happened there.

TIAS Day 8

2012-02-01T10:48:00.005-07:00

I am a day late in this portion of the TIAS. We are just getting over the flu in my household so things have been "off".

Here we go:

If it IS indeed a goat then I am definately going to be adding this to the ongoing "Farm Animal" scene that I am working on for Piccadilly!

Thank you Jane!

My Memories Suite V3 FREE software Giveaway

2012-01-31T00:00:00.000-07:00

A few months back I hosted a giveaway for a copy of this software. That was Version 2.
Now I am hosting a giveaway for Version 3!
This is a very exciting giveaway! The winner of this giveaway will receive a free copy of My Memories V3 software.
The creators of this software contacted me and asked if I would like to host a giveaway for them. (I think because I do so many giveaways on this blog).
I get a lot of offers from different people to cross promote products but I very rarely accept because most of the time I don't think it is relevant to my blog or my readers.
But this is an exception because I do think this is relevant and would interest you my readers.
So I accepted their offer and by doing so they gave me a copy of the software to see how I liked it.
And I have to say that it is actually pretty stikin' cool!
Here is an example of something I did literally within 15 minutes of downloading the software. It is very easy and user friendly.

It is a digital scrapbooking software but it does much more than just scrapbook. You can also add music and videos. You can learn more about it here.
Just imagine the cool things you could do with your tatting photos.

Please review the giveaway rules here. If you are new to my giveaways please make sure to sign up on THIS post.

I am going to keep this giveaway open for four weeks.
The winner will be announced on Tuesday February 28th 2012.

Please feel free to share this post on your blogs and with your friends and family. You do not have to be a tatter to win this giveaway. But you do have to sign up on this post.

Best of all, if you don't win this giveaway (or simply do not want to wait). You can use this code at any time STMMMS91823 to get $10 off the purchase price of this software AND wait for it.........another $10 coupon for the MyMemories store.

(Please copy and paste code into the PROMO code box)

This code is for my faithful readers, family, friends and their friends. Share the LOVE!!!!

I just want to reiterate...this code STMMMS91823 is worth $20

Whoo hoo!!!! Right?????
You may also share this code STMMMS91823 on your blogs, twitter, facebook.

HAPPY Tuesday!!!

Mondo Monday Giveaway Winner

2012-01-30T09:03:00.003-07:00

TIAS Day 7

2012-01-28T10:04:00.004-07:00

TIAS Day 7

I am intrigued. No guesses today but there does seem to be some kitty like qualities emerging.

Monday will be the drawing for my current giveaway. Don't forget to sign up here.

TIAS Day 6 and Piccadilly dances.

2012-01-25T12:45:00.004-07:00

Here is my TIAS Day 6. I didn't realize until too late that I neglected to tat the short chain between the (legs?).

My guess is a "WhirlyBird"...at least that is what my grandma calls these things that you stick in your front yard and they twirl with the wind.

This might bring another smile!

TIAS Day 5

2012-01-22T08:54:00.005-07:00

Well here it is and I am at a loss for guesses. However I am harboring a secret hope that this might somehow turn out to be an alpaca.

Did you know that once upon a time I hosted a TIAS? It was a lot of fun and if I do say so myself, I did a pretty good job of keeping people guessing right up till the end. The full pattern can be found here.

TIAS Day 4

2012-01-19T08:44:00.003-07:00

Here is my TIAS Day 4. It was fun to learn the new technique "Continuous Thread Join", it sure is easier than a split chain.

My guess for today is....... a fancy bikini top!?!

TIAS Day 3

2012-01-17T09:26:00.004-07:00

Here is day 3 of Janes TIAS. For a slight second there I almost forgot how to do SCMR's. I am grateful for the review.

I don't have any guesses as to what it might be today.

Giveaway Winner, NEW giveaway and contagious laughter

2012-01-16T08:45:00.012-07:00

I entered all participants of my Random Monday Mondo Giveaway into an Excel spread sheet. Everyone was assigned a different number and those who were eligible for two entries were assigned two numbers. I then used a random number generator to randomly pick the winning number and our winner is Margaret from Margaret's cards! Congratulations Margaret!

If you didn't win this time don't fret because we are having a BACK TO BACK giveaway!
Yep that's right! Right here on this post is a second chance to win!

Our prize is TWO issues from 1958 of The Workbasket craft magazine. This vintage magazine is chock full of really fun subjects like Knit, Crochet and of course tatting, recipes and gardening tips plus more. Check out the beautiful star doily on the cover of the first magazine and how can you not smile at the add for "How to get your dream figure?". Also there is a pattern for a cup and saucer. Whoo hoo!

Please review the giveaway rules here. If you are new to my giveaways please make sure to sign up on THIS post.

The winner will be announced on Monday January 30th 2012.

***A SPECIAL NOTE***Anyone and Everyone is welcome to enter my giveaways.
However, I can no longer afford to ship my giveaway prizes internationally.
If you live somewhere other than the U.S., PR, AK, HI, or Canada and you still want to enter, you must agree to pay the shipping charges.

Happy MLK Day!

Don't forget to sign up on THIS post for the new giveaway!

...and here is something sure to make you smile. My little Piccadilly laughing at a TV show.

Day 2 of TIAS

2012-01-13T08:21:00.002-07:00

Here is day 2 of Jane's TIAS.
For those who don't know, "TIAS" stands for "Tat it and See"....and it is awfully fun to participate!

I completely forgot that we are encouraged to make guesses as to what we are tatting so this is my guess for today! Could it be a wise old owl?

Wow! Thank you for the overwhelming response!!!

2012-01-12T08:18:00.003-07:00

You tatters never cease to amaze me! I woke up to an inbox full of volunteer test tatters. I have many many patterns that will need testing over the next few months so I may be able to use most everyone who has contacted me, if not immediately then in the not too distant future. Since I have a nice pool to draw from, I will close the call for testers.

For those who have volunteered, I will be contacting each of you individually over the next week or two.

Thank you again everyone!!!!

Call for test tattters

2012-01-11T17:59:00.004-07:00

Hey tatting friends, I need a small handful of test tatters for two upcoming books. I will be needing testers over the course of the next two months or so.
I need advanced tatters who are adept at encapsulation and split chains. If you are interested and have some extra time on your hands please email me privately at LadyShuttleMaker (at) hotmail (dot) com

TIAS, Shuttlebirds 2012, and "TAKE 3" on new Tatting book

2012-01-10T10:45:00.006-07:00

Today is Day one of Jane's TIAS. Since I am already up to my ears in tatting I have decided to participate. I encourage everyone to give it a go. Jane's patterns are always a delight and she is so generous to share her time and talents with us.

On another note: I will be teaching and vending once again at the 2012 Shuttlebirds Tatting Convention. I am very excited and I always look forward to this annual event.

So why am I to my ears in tatting you may ask? Well, I have had some pretty terrible luck this past year with my computer/s and believe it or not I lost all the work I had put into my fourth tatting book...AGAIN!
Yes, for the second time all my work completely lost in yet another catastrophic hard drive failure. I am not going to go into it any further because I am still pretty disgusted.

Moving on, I am now the proud owner of a much needed new computer and I back everything up on not one but TWO external hard drives. I'm even toying with the idea of adding a third external hard drive because I truly have THE worst luck on the planet. So with all that said I am back on the Ol' horse for the third time around, starting from scratch on my "Branching Encapsulation" book, which I hope to have completed by the time Shuttlebirds rolls around in April.

Don't forget to sign up on my giveaway.

Mondo Monday Giveaway XXIII HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

2012-01-02T00:00:00.003-07:00

Happy New Year everyone! Let's start the year right by having another giveaway.

Our prize is an issue from 1958 of The Workbasket craft magazine. This vintage magazine is chock full of really fun subjects like Knit, Crochet and of course tatting, recipes and gardening tips plus more.
Also included is a skein of my very special superior hand dyed tatting thread. Size 20, Six cord cotton "Tree Beard".

Please review the giveaway rules here. If you are new to my giveaways please make sure to sign up on THIS post.

The winner will be announced on Monday January 16th 2012.

***A SPECIAL NOTE***Anyone and Everyone is welcome to enter my giveaways.
However, I can no longer afford to ship my giveaway prizes internationally.
If you live somewhere other than the U.S., PR, AK, HI, or Canada and you still want to enter, you must agree to pay the shipping charges.

HAPPY MONDAY!!!

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas Tatting friends!

PURE silver shuttles discounted 12% to 17% OFF

2011-12-08T10:25:00.008-07:00

Hello tatting friends, just a short note to let you know that I have discounted a few of my pure 99.9% silver shuttles.
I know some people may look at the price of one of my silver shuttles and think, "Wow, that LadyShuttleMaker who does she think she is??? Does she think her shuttles are worth gold?!?!?
Well, not exactly gold but yes, silver indeed, is at an all time high.
Let me explain. It takes around 50g of Silver clay to make one shuttle. As of this blog post 50 grams of Silver costs $112 + shipping.
After tools, finishing supplies, and firing costs, I am already running at a loss. This does not even begin to take into account my years of expertise or the hours upon hours of craftsmanship that goes into each precious metal shuttle.

Yes, I know, this is not a very smart business venture on my part. I did this, in part, because I wanted to see if I could, and because I wanted to create some of the most beautiful and special shuttles on the planet... regardless of cost.

My hope was to at least break even but I have lost hope for that. And that is ok, not everything is about money. But it would be nice to minimize my losses.

Anyhow, I know there are some out there who have been secretly drooling over these shuttles for awhile so to you I say, "SALE SALE SALE"!

Up first we have:

This shuttle was $145 and is now $120. It is a little difficult to see in the photo but it has a lovely light green enameling in the recesses of the design.

Next we have:

This one used to be $125 and is now $110

And finally this shuttle used to be $140 and is now $120

And just to emphasize, these are NOT silver PLATED, nor or they STERLING silver...they are PURE PURE PURE SILVER!!!!!

With Christmas around the corner my heart is full of good cheer and I just want to share that!

Can you imagine what an awesome stocking stuffer one of these would make?

Another niece on the way....YAY!

2011-12-06T11:36:00.006-07:00

Every sibling's first child gets something extra special from me. My newest upcoming niece will be getting this baby afghan with tatting. Everything is carefully sewn on with invisible thread. I love that stuff but I have really started to notice that my eyesight is not what it used to be.
I have a tatting book somewhere that has tatted letters in it but I couldn't find it so I had to "wing" these letters on my own. Does anyone happen to know which tatting books contain letters and numbers?

My Memories Suite V3 coupon code STMMMS91823 Save $20

2011-12-02T00:00:00.002-07:00

I made the above using this software program. I love Chai tea...epecially the authentic thick and milky version. So I am sharing this recipe as a gift to you.
Click on photo to enlarge it and then you can save it. Enjoy!

MyMemories Suite Version 3 (BRAND NEW release November 2011)

The newest version of this fantastic software has just been released. Please use this coupon code for a discount of $10 off the software and another $10 coupon for their store! STMMMS91823
Just type or copy and paste the code into the PROMO CODE BOX upon check out.

You can try it before you buy it! CLICK HERE for Trial Version.

Don't forget to use THIS code STMMMS91823

For those who already own the software here is a nifty cardmaking tutorial.

I am currently tatting (((YAAAAAAYYY!!)))...sorry for the shouting but I am excited to be actually tatting again. I will be sharing soon!

Story Time V ...in Conclusion

2011-11-29T11:36:00.003-07:00

I recently had the opportunity to speak with a local artist who has had an admirable and successful career here in Idaho. We discussed at length what exactly makes an artist an artist? Are we born or are we made? It is a fascinating question to be sure.
This gentleman had a turbulent childhood in which his father abandoned him with an abusive mother. He grew up feeling completely unloved. The only time he feels truly free and happy is when he is creating. Even though he is now a grandfather, he still struggles with his inner pain.
It truly is the ol' chicken and egg question.
So, will I ever be free from my inner turmoil? Do I cause my own turmoil because I am too sensitive? Was I born this way or did life circumstances make me who I am today?
All I know, is that I certainly DO have an insatiable need to create beautiful things to ease my pain and bring me some semblance of peace.
Well, whatever the case, I am who I am, and for the first time in my life I am starting to accept myself, as is, warts and all.
After all this introspection I am ready to close the chapter on my past. As I write these words I am envisioning a vault whose contents are the painful memories of my childhood, previous disappointments, hardships, despair and hopelessness. I am closing the door and walking away. Far away. I hope to never revisit that vault again.
I cannot forget what is in that vault because those things are part of who I am ...but they are not ALL that I am and I will dwell there no longer. Can I get an Amen?
In my daughter I have been given the greatest, most unimaginably precious gift of my life...a clean slate. Through her, I get a second chance at childhood and I am so excited about that. She came into my life at just the right time and she is pure hope and joy!
So I am going forward from this point in my life fully aware of my limitations but now I will just view them in a different light.
I am calling a truce with my mental illness, until there is a cure for bipolar/depression, I will have to roll with the ups and downs as gracefully as I can. For the sake of myself and my loved ones I can no longer endure the battles of the past. Hopefully, those who care about me and want to be a part of my life will also extend grace to me when I am in those dark places, as those times will inevitably come.
The past several years have been so difficult in so many ways and as every New Year dons my wish has been that the next one will be better. This has not proven so. I now realize that I need to stop wishing for things to get better, and start MAKING things get better!
...and that is what this deeply personal blogging has been all about.
Thank you for being a part of my process and putting up with my rantings.

I wish all my readers a very happy holiday season. And Let us MAKE 2012 a better year!

Story Time IV

2011-11-14T07:21:00.001-07:00

I want to thank everyone for the comments and emails I have received. So many of you know exactly what I am talking about. I knew I couldn't be alone, maybe we tatters have even more in common than the love of knots.
I don't know why things like this are so hard to talk about. Maybe because mental illness is still not fully accepted by society, however, I know it is getting better all the time and that gives me a shred of hope. But I can't tell you how many times I've been in the company of someone talking negatively about a bipolar person they know. Of course they didn't know that I suffered from it also but I certainly wasn't going to trust them with any personal information after that.
I really envy people who wake up every day unencumbered by pain, hopelessness and/or despair. That is what I imagine "normal" to be. Now, I know everyone experiences all these things at some point in their lives, but I experience them every single day of my life to varying degrees, and sadly the bad days far outnumber the good ones. It is a constant battle to stay functional, even for the sake of my loved ones. I fight every day to be the very best mom and wife that I can be. It is exhausting and I often feel like I am behind the "power curve".
I have tried everything to "cure" myself. I've taken every supplement, exercised like a maniac, immersed myself in spiritual meditation and worship. I have volunteered my time, money and services to help those less fortunate than I. I eat well, I have never abused any substances, I don't even drink coffee or sodas. I've gone to therapy and faithfully taken prescription medications. I remind myself everyday of my blessings and have genuine gratitude in my heart. I try to get enough sleep. I honestly don't know what else I can do.
After all of these things, if this is the best I will ever be then I have to accept that but I am sad for myself.
I know for a fact that if I succumbed to substance abuse or other self medicating behaviors I would end up dead in a very short time.
The depression and pain that I constantly suffer from is holding me back from great things. On the rare days that I feel anything close to "normal" I accomplish SOOOO much. I really feel like I can take on the world, but as I said, those days are rare.
I guess I have finally gotten past denial about my condition and have (not so graciously) accepted that this will be a life long struggle for me. I will, however, keep searching for the thing that might give me some consistent and notable relief. I have even considered electric shock therapy.
This sharing of my thoughts and making myself vulnerable is my newest attempt and hopefully it won't blow up in my face. So far it has been positive.
My next installation will be surmises on cause and effect. That should prove to be pretty interesting.

Sweet P's first year

2011-11-12T21:53:00.004-07:00

The month by month stickers are all exactly the same size. What an amazing year!

I will be posting the next chapter of my story this coming week. Thank you for hanging in there with me!

I am now offering Gift Certificates in my Etsy Shop!

2011-11-11T21:32:00.005-07:00

Whoo hoo! What a wonderful stocking stuffer!!!

Would you like to give the gift of tatting to a special someone?
I am now offering gift certificates in $10 and $20 increments.

Here are the rules:
1.) To be used only in my Etsy shop: LadyShuttleMaker.Etsy.Com
2.) Never expires
3.) Must be used by one recipient in other words cannot be divided.
4.) No cash back. Any remaining balance will be a store credit.
5.) Cannot be combined with any other offers or discounts.

When checking out please leave instructions in the "note section" to whom you wish the certificate to go to. I can either email the lucky recipient myself with a special note from you or I can email the certificate in PDF form with a special code and instructions directly the purchaser to distribute at will.

Yay!

Winter Blues

2011-11-08T09:59:00.003-07:00

Added brand new batches of the very popular:
"Icicle" And
Helm's Deep"

This is what "Wild Flowers" looks like tatted up. This pattern from my first butterfly book, and it is one of my absolute favs!

Sorry for this commercial interruption. I need to get back on the marketing band wagon. We are getting ready to close on our home refinance. We are terribly upside down on our home and will have to pay a huge chunk of change to complete the process and all right before Christmas! Ugh!

Size 14 Hook Pens and Miss P's first birthday

2011-11-05T10:40:00.004-06:00

Just added a bunch of new hook pens to the shop. These are all in the very desirable size 14 hook.
And my sweet baby turned one yesterday. Can you believe it? Doesn't it seem like just the other day I was complaining about puking ALL the time? And now my baby is one?!?! This has been the best year of my life hands down! Happy Birthday little one!