Christmas Decor Video

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas 2010

Hello friends, fellow tatters and other followers...

It is a cold, gray morning here in battatterland. But, it is also Christmas Eve! We are supposed to get just a little snow, which will make the day more lovely, and also give it the 'feel' of Christmas. I love snow, and don't even mind shovelling it too much. I have all of my Christmas shopping and decorating finished, as of a couple of days ago, and since then it has been a time of relaxation. I actually did NOTHING (well except the normal cleaning and cooking) work related. I did some tatting, and some knitting.. nice day.

Today, I may make some fudge. As I write this, I am listening to favorite Christmas albums. Right now, it is Gene Autry.. Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer! Earlier, it was the Elvis Christmas album. Later, it will be the Kingston Trio.  I have a bunch of really old albums from my childhood, and I have transfered them onto my computer, so I can listen anytime I wish. I sort of like them better this way, with the bit of record scratching on them as compared to redone perfect cds. It sounds more real, and the way I remember it.
So, here is my wish for all of you..
Have a very relaxing, wonderful and fun Christmas from Rebel and me!

                                  

Rebel ornament

For some reason, 'blogger' wouldn't let me edit the last post, so,

here is an updated photo of the ornament.

I also have been working on a super secret pattern. I just got it finished, but have to test it a bit more.

Here's a clue, anyone like the Princess Bride?

New ornament.. not tatted

I just finished this ornament of Rebel! I had a hard time getting him glued on, but finally did it. Though I thought it was finished, I now want to give him a little Santa hat or something else Christmasy. But, until then... cute huh?

Oh Christmas Tree, oh Christmas Tree..

 Here it is! I finally put up my tree with all my Christmas Challenge ornaments on it. I added three more, a snowflake, a Tardis, and another bear to make the 30 I decided on. Also, to make it different, I only put antique, or at least pretty old, ornaments on it.

And, of course, what would Christmas be with out a visit to Santa? Rebel finally got to have his

picture taken with Santa this year. Our local Humane Society set it up, and I just love it! 

Albino bat... more finished

Here she is as she looks this morning. I have to do the beaded webbing and find her some proper red eyes. I just temporarily added these eyes. They are too big, and I wanted red. She is coming along very nicely. I was surprised at how quickly, then, duh, I realized.. it is because she is so much smaller than Bellaluna!   I am going to make her her own perch, too, as I did for Bella.  The plan is to hang her with Bella on Bella's perch, but, if I enter her in the fair next year (which I probably will), she will need her own.

Better go find that perfect limb....

Michelle's giveaway

Just found this.. what great looking bears! and such an awesome giveaway..
check it out.
http://michelles-bears.blogspot.com/2010/11/its-time-its-finally-time.html?spref=fb

Albino baby bat.. so far

Here are the beginnings of my albino baby bat. She is much smaller than Bellaluna, as she is meant
to be her baby. I tatted the body first, then the head. It took me 4 tries to get the face and head small enough for her little body. I need to find some very small red animal eyes or round top buttons to put in as her eyes.
 I am now working on her arms and finger frames. This is the part I attach the beaded webbing to. The legs and then the wing webbing is next. I have one wing frame almost finished, and I will show a picture of that when it is done.

tatting today

I had a headache all day, so I didn't do much except tat. I have had this little albino baby bat in my head for a few days.. just poking at my brain, so I thought I would tat her to get her out. She is going to be Bellaluna's baby, and albino, a whole lot smaller, 'cos she's a baby. I tried to make her face about 4 times before I got it the way I wanted it. It was hard to make it look cute, small and still like Bella. Her body was pretty easy. I am now working on her wings.This will take time, as I have to solid tat the fingers, then put in the webbing, like I did for Bella. I will post pics later.

the Doctor is in...

Doctor Who that is!
Here is the wonderful T.A.R.D.I.S. bookmark my Anne Bruvold over at Nuperelle. I have had the pattern a while, and since I have friends who love Doctor Who, I thought I would make them an ornament/bookmark for Christmas. So, I guess this could also count as one of my Ornament Challenge ornaments. I added the little white beads to the top to look like the white 'Police Box" writing on the actual T.A.R.D.I.S.

 I really think it adds some umph to it. I also am going to join a Doctor Who swap over on Ravelry next year, so, might as well make one for that, too.  Great pattern Anne, thanks!!

Christmas Ornament Challenge...fail...

Alright, I will admit defeat. I am so very far behind in my ornament challenge, only on week 27 out of 44...that I have decided to make 3 more ornaments and call it a 'day'. Thirty ornaments will be great on my tree, and I have to face it, I will not catch up. Tatting is supposed to be about fun, and worrying about it is not fun. I have been learning to knit, ( please visit my other blog, dog-goneknit on the sidebar) and being in swaps, and the fair, thus I had gotten behind in the challenge.  So, with the holidays coming up, I have decided to end my challenge on a high note.
I have so many other things I want to make. One being a baby albino bat to go with Bellaluna. Another, being a spider in the same vein.. large, beaded, gorgeous (haha)... I just thought of that this evening, and now it is stuck in my brain.  I am also planning a Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer vignette, you have seen the Dolly if you have looked on this blog before.
These plus knitting I really want to do... well, I shall be busy!  Come back sometime and see what I come up with!

Follow up to contest

oh, sorry, I should have mentioned the tatted chocolate contest is here!!!
http://www.ambitatterous.blogspot.com/

Chocolate box

Ok, so, there is this decorate a chocolate box with tatting.
Well, what better way to decorate than with 'actual' chocolate!
Here is my Whitman's sampler of tatted chocolates. Yes, each piece of chocolate is actually
tatted. And, I if you were here, you could smell that I put chocolate scented oil on the stuffing, so
they really smell like chocolate, too.
Hope they like my entry.

been busy...on the COC

Weeks 25, 26 and 27 coming your way!
                                             Becky Dempsey bat... made into a Batcicle...

From Tatting Times Newsletter... Earth Angel..

I found one little typo in the pattern, but it is a really cute angel made with a cabone ring.

                                                       And a little green cockatoo-cicle..

Still behind.. but catching up!

Week 24..Polar Bear!

I saw this bear online. It is a pattern by Anitra Stone. It is one of the patterns that (hopefully) will be available from this year's Palmeto Tatters 2010 Tat Days.  But... I couldn't wait, I wanted to do a polar bear so badly. I reverse engineered it, ( though I WILL be buying the real thing). I changed the ears and left out one of the legs to make my polar bear. He doesn't look perfect, but pretty good. In the pattern, he is a black bear, but I think this works for a polar bear.  The next one I make, after getting the REAL pattern, will look much better. (BTW.. don't look at the ends I haven't hidden yet!)

Week 23... Christmas Bat

Here is another little Christmas bat. I did this one in green! I think they are so cute! I would have had another ornament to show.. but, somehow, I can't find the thread I was using, and I only needed to make two little legs... waaaa. I will have to look around better. Drat those house fairies that take my stuff!

For something a little different...

A Christmas Bat! Isn't he cute? He is the pattern of Kaye Judt, and he is in her new book, A Little  O' This and a Little O' That. http://www.handyhandstatting.com/detail.cfm?ID=2532
I made him in Christmasy colors so he could be on my tree. I am going to make a green one, too, with reddish pink eyes. This is COC week 22 ... and counting.

And... week 21 of the COC

Here is a little Christmas tree ornament for my week 21. Working on my week 22 as we speak, so stay tuned!

Christmas Challenge..better late than never!

Week.. 20? Ok, I know I am behind. Sometimes life just slaps you up side the head!
So, here we go..
Here is "Dolly". In case you don't recognize her, she is one of the Misfit Toys from the Christmas classic TV show Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.  Yes, I have started another 'epic' project. I want to make the characters from the show and put them in their own little scene. I made her first because in the show, it seems she is wearing a tatted lace collar!  In an effort to catch up with my challenge, not every week will there be a Misfit toy, as they take a while to make. So, be prepared for a smattering of different ornaments to appear.
But for today, I present...Dolly.

Just a note...or two.

Whew! I have been so busy with my knitting, I have been quite remiss in the tatting department! I have been doing swaps, which have been knitting and crocheting. I will blog them on my dog goneknit page later.
I just finished another 'ornament'  for my challenge, and need to catch up quite a bit. The ones I am currently wanting to do will take a bit longer than normal, but catch up I will! I will post a picture tomorrow.
Now, if you know me you know I love Halloween. Here
http://ehagemporium.blogspot.com/2010/08/giveaway.html#comments
is the Ecectic Halloween Artists Group page. Such lovely Halloweenyness. They are having a giveaway, so check it out!

Indiana State Fair 2010

I recently went to our state fair with my best friend and her husband. I didn't enter anything (as it is tooooo pricey to enter), and how I do wish I could have entered Bellaluna! 

 I met a lovely lady named Mary Rinker, who was demonstrating tatting! She isn't online, but we had a nice long chat and I encouraged her to come join us online tatters. She told me not many people knows she tats, even her pastor was surprised when he saw her demonstrating at the fair! Here she is showing someone the basics, and here is her display.

There was one display case of tatted items that were entered. Here they are...and in many cases, you can read the names of the exhibitors...Congratulations ladies!!

here's a close up of the pattern for that bag.. for those of you interested.

Foreign comments

Just to let everyone know.. if I can't read your comment(at the moment I have gotten many that look to be Chinese or Japanese), or at least translate it(I can translate the Spanish and French), it will be deleted.
Most of the Chinese or Japanese comments seem to be ads for 'risque' sites.. so out they will go.
On a lighter note, I will be posting a couple of pics from the State Fair here soon. Had a nice time though it was 110 degrees!!!

All of my Fair entries with ribbons

Here is a photo of everything I entered and how they all did. I actually only entered 14 items, as they didn't  accept one photo because it didn't have a hanger.. oh well..  Click on it for a larger view.
So 10 wins out of 14.. even better! And 13 ribbons.. yeeeehaw!
Oh, this will be my last post about it.  On to getting caught up with the Christmas ornament challenge. I am a few weeks behind because of the fair, so I will get caught up and post the picture here asap!

Fair wins 2010!!!

My sweet Bellaluna won!  I was very excited to see a Sweepstakes ribbon and Judge's Choice on her! Wow!!!

Of all of the things (15) I put in the fair, I didn't really care if any of them won, except for her. I had such high hopes, and they came true! Here is a video of the pictures from the fair, along with better photos of each entry.

Bellaluna on her perch

Ok, she is OFFICALLY finished now. I just finished making her perch and attaching her to it.  I bought the flat of wood at Wal-mart, and I got the branch off of my dying apple tree.  I put a washer and screw from the bottom up through the top and through the branch. I stained it, and varnished it, and, by golly, it is just like I imagined it would look!  Cross your fingers for me and Bellaluna, for we must enter the fair on Thursday, and wait until Sunday to see if the judges like her.

Gothic Twilight Necklace

Hiya! I just finished this necklace that I wanted to put into the fair. The necklace pattern is not my own, I saw it on the internet (it is the design of agasunset, here is her blog, and she sells it on her etsy page.. minus the Edward cameo 
http://agasunset.blogspot.com/2010/03/i-am-not-goth.html)
sorry I don't remember where) and when I put the red beads on it, I thought, this looks like something from Twilight (it is a movie about a girl and a vampire, in case you have been hiding under a rock).
Then, I thought it would look cool if I made a 'cameo' of Edward (vampire) and wrapped it in tatting and hung it as the focal point.  I used computer shrink plastic to make the image, then, I used black sewing thread for the tatting around the cameo. (I used DMC black sized 8 for the necklace.)  I think it looks pretty neat, so, it is going into the fair, too. One week to go!

Bellaluna is born

If you want to view paradise, simply look around and view it, anything you want to, do it....
These are the words in my head and heart this morning. You may recognize these words from the movie "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory".
 I, quite by accident, watched it and the new version, a total of three times in the weeks I spent while creating Bellaluna, and the words seem to have come to fruition with my little bat. I thought her up as a wild idea to celebrate my tatting name, and she has come to life just as the song goes..anything you want to... do it.
I finished her last night, while watching that movie about a candy maker. So, she has a sweeter feel to her in my mind.
I am so pleased with the way she turned out. I have no idea how many beads I used in her wings, I will try to get an estimate later. (edited.. she has well over 1300 beads!) She is a little over 18" in wingspan, and 10" head to toe. I haven't selected the branch I will hang her from yet, as her display... I have to find just the right one.
  I hope she does well in the fair, but even if she doesn't, I'll love her all the same.

Bellaluna's progress

Hello there!

My little Bellaluna has turned into quite a project! But, I am really loving how she is turning out. I am very bad at taking progress photos.. I guess I just don't want to stop to take them, but, here are a couple I took this morning.

Here is Bellaluna with her legs and hands attached. I see that I am probably going to have to fix the length of one of her fingers, but when I made it, it seemed to be the correct length.. measure measure....

                     

Here is a photo of the wing detail. I have estimated it will take another 2 weeks to finish the wings. I rolled around many ideas in my head, like.. using a bunch of little motifs, using one big motif and a few little ones, tatting the whole wing section then attaching it...

Finally, I landed on this idea of making the beaded 'fabric' in a sort of mignonnette style. I was half way thru the first wing, when I realized I would not have enough beads, and had to go on a bead search. By the way, my Michael's has almost totally gotten rid of the regular beads like this.. they are just full of the expensive 'fancy' jewelry ones. So, dear friends, I am recommending you check out Jo Ann's fabric for beads. That is where I found these, regular seed beads (well, they are a beautiful iridescent Japanese beetle type with colors of blue, purple, gold, green)..plus they have the fancy jewelry ones, too. Also, Hobby Lobby had a nice selection. Well there is my plug for the day.

Anyway...cross your fingers I get her done in time for the fair!

Week 19... Celtic Cross ornament and Bellaluna progress

May 15.. here is the progress on my Bellaluna.. I have her body finished now. I have to make her legs and 'arms' and then her wings..  I think I will put beads in her wings to make them more special. The left is the front and the right is the back.  I wanted those two little circles on the back to look like her bum..heehee..

Also, for you who are following along.. here is week 19's ornament. A Celtic Cross.

Golden Earring and Mystery Medallion

Do you have the mate to this earring, (as seen on the right) or a pair? I lost the mate to this, one of my favorite pairs of earrings, a few years ago. I have decided to put up the picture hoping someone out there has a mate or a pair, they are willing to sell me. I am going to leave it up on my page..indefinately.. or until I find one.

I also have this medallion I got in a box at a yard sale. Does anyone know anything about it? There is what looks to be Latin writing on it, it may be a religious medallion, as it does say Alpha and Omega on it, but I don't know. If you know anything about it, please email me or write a comment about it.
Thanks for looking!

New 3D project started today

Ok, so, here is what I have decided to tat next. It is something I have wanted to do for a while, but just recently could invision it. He is going to be...

Tada! A 3D tatted fruit bat! Fruit bats are really cute, because they actually look a lot like a dog with wings. Here you see his head, the only part I have finished so far. He is going to a full bodied, and winged, bat. The plan is to get a neat gnarly branch from my dying tree, make a sort of stand out of it, and hang my little bat from it, upside down, of course. I wish they made black polyfill.. I think that would be neat to stuff him with, but at least, you can really see the tatting this way. What do you think?

Beary Merry Christmas

Here is the ornament for this week.. Snow Bear! He is one of the snowflake animals I have thought up. He is a variation of the Snow Angel, of course, only a bear! His little tail makes the 6th point of the star.

Challenge week 18...

Gingerbread house revisted

I received and email today from someone wanting to see my Gingerbread house. And, upon looking, saw that there were no pictures of it posted here!  I guess they were all posted on my old Myspace site, which I never go to anymore. It took me about 5 months to complete, if I remember correctly. Most of the time was spent trying to figure out what to put on it!
 So, here are some pictures for anyone interested. This post has a lot of pictures so, hold on, here we go...
First pictures up.. the candy. I tatted every bit of candy on the house. I had someone, who saw it in person, think the chocolate kisses were real.. that was a big compliment!

Peppermints, gumdrops, lollipops and kisses.

Non-pareils and taffy trees.

Good and plentys and 'licorice' scotty dogs. I have a red one on the house, too.

The house beginnings..candy canes and block tatted door.

...and more. House on plastic shape I made, later made a cardboard one.

The house complete with tatted snow on the base. (I think that took the longest and was the most tedious.)

Closeup of Peppermint girl and you can see the red scotty in the background.

The back with licorice all sorts, candy canes making a heart, and gumdrops.

One of the sides.  Gumdrops, taffy and "m&m's" on the roof.

The official picture of the Gingerbread house.

To see pictures of the Haunted house, go to the sidebar, to 2009 April and May.

Thanks for visiting!