TAST Challenge Completed and more

At last I can post the final TAST Challenge stitches. They have been completed about a week but this is the first opportunity that my son could photograph my latest stitcheries (is that a word?) At any rate, week 51 was the Chained Bar and I used 14ct Aida for my fabric choice. The top sample foundation is three rows of DMC #3 perle cotton in a pale green and the Chained Bar was worked with DMC #5 perle in a gold. The bottom sample has a six row foundation again in the pale green with the chain worked in DMC #8 blue. A very interesting stitch.

For week 52 I decided to use up a couple of odds and ends in fabric for the Spanish Feather Stitch or sometimes known as Spanish Knotted Feather Stitch. The first sample worked on blue #14 Aida with DMC #5 deep burgandy is not stitched correctly as to me it looks more like a rope ladder .... but I found it very interesting to stitch. The second sample is stitched on my favorite fabric throughout this challenge year .... 18ct Aida. I used DMC #8 perle and just totally relaxed with it not trying for any particular design or rhythm. A truly fun stitch. My stitch journal is bursting at the seam with all the wonderful ideas that have developed from this challenge year. Thank you Sharon of inaminuteago for a year of fun and hard work. Some of the stitches proved to be difficult but I managed to do all of them.

Back in September of this year I purchased some vintage silk threads at an antique mall and on the HBT tatting list I belong to quite a few members have turned out some absolutely gorgeous pieces tatted with silk thread. So I decided to give it a try. An open skein had been wound onto one of the larger old wooden spools so that was the thread I used. Although the color might not look it in the photo it is a gorgeous amber. The little piece at the top is one of my favorites as an earring pattern but since I'm working on a 25 motif challenge with this group I figured I needed something a little bigger so I picked up one of my favorite books Tatting Patterns and Designs by Blomqvist and Persson and chose one of the "star" patterns ..... I think it looks more like a snowflake than a star but then I didn't design it LOL The middle pattern is not according to the directions ..... what I did was look at the picture, then read the directions once and started. Oh, my, I forgot to keep checking the directions and when I finally decided it was time to check the pattern .... well, it wasn't coming out quite like it should so I stopped and decided that somewhere it will fit into a bit of crazy quilting. The bottom motif is the one being submitted as #11 of my 25 motifs so I'm almost halfway.

A recent discussion on the Here-Be-Tatters group has involved a shuttle called the "pumpkin seed" shuttle. I had never heard this term but the description fit the one that my grandmother had given me. There are two antique celluloid shuttles in the photo above and the top shuttle is the one known as the pumpkin seed shuttle. It was purchased by my grandmother prior to my mother's birth in 1913. It is not the oldest shuttle I have but it is the first of my antique collection and I do use it. As you can see the lower shuttle is thinner and longer and I purchased it from an antique dealer and I am working a project with that one. The only one of my antique or otherwise shuttles that I do not use is a tortoise shell one that is very fragile.

A few years back I became interested in Enterlac knitting .... it looks like weaving using two colors. So I knitted me a "Christmas" cap. Okay, it has three colors, but only two are used in the weaving LOL Everyone loves my "Christmas" cap and always ask where I bought it .... they seem genuinely surprised when I tell them I knitted it.

This was supposed to be a year in which to finish WISPs (works in slow progress) but because I took several classes from Sharon B as well as the TAST Challenge I really didn't get many of my WISPs finished. This is one I did just complete. I used the eyelash yarn, single strand on a #6 circular needle and knitted me a very soft scarf. Have already started on another WISP.

My last post for 2007 ....... HAPPY, HEALTHY NEW YEAR 2008!