free tatting pattern--bouncy circles bookmark

1. R 12-12, cl

2. R 12-12, cl, rw

3. Ch 12-12, rw

4. R 12 join to picot from previous ring 12

5. R 12-12

Repeat steps 3, 4, and 5 until you have 16 rings. 

6. Ch 15-15, rw

7. R 12 join to picot from previous ring 12, cl

8. R 12 join to next picot (it will already have been joined to existing ring, still, join into that picot) 12, cl, rw

9. Ch 12-12, rw

10. R 12 join to picot space that you joined into for step eight 12, cl

Repeat steps 8, 9, and 10 all the way across. End with step 8 (except the final picot being joined into won't have an existing ring joined to it).

Finish with:

11. Ch 15-15, rw

Tie your final chain to the bottom of your first two rings.

free tatting pattern--ivy ladder bookmark

Here's a cute bookmark pattern to tat. It's simple and mindless and a great way to showcase pretty thread!

13 yards on ring shuttle

6 yards on chain shuttle

1. R 8-8, cl

2. R 10-10, cl

3. R 8-8, cl, rw

4. Ch 10-10, rw

5. R 8 join to picot from previous ring 8, cl

6. R 10-10, cl

7. R 8-8, cl, rw

Repeat steps 4, 5, 6, and 7 until you have ten three-ring clusters and nine chains

8. Ch 18-18, rw

Now you'll be working on the opposite side of the bookmark, joining your large rings to the large rings across from them.

9. R 8-8, cl

10. R 10 join to picot from adjacent large ring 10, cl

11. R 8-8, cl, rw

12. Ch 10-10, rw

13. R 8 join to picot from previous ring 8, cl

Repeat steps ten through thirteen until you're all the way across. End with steps ten and eleven.

14. Ch 18-18

Join final chain to the bottom of your very first ring cluster.

Block and tie ends!

free tatting pattern--little buds doily

Hello! Today I'm going to be sharing my first two full free patterns from my new instagram account themodtatter. There I post daily components of the full free tatting patterns I'll be rounding up here!

Here's the first: Little Buds Doily

Round 1:

1. R 8-5-5-8, cl, rw

2. Ch 6-6, rw

3. R 8 join to last picot from previous ring 5-5-8, cl, rw

Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you have 14 rings. On that 14th ring, instead of your last picot, join to the first ring. End with step 2 and join that last chain to the bottom of the first ring.

Round 2:

1. R 8-5 join to picot from any chain from round one 5-8, cl, rw

2. Ch 8-8, rw

Repeat steps 1 and 2 until you have 14 rings. Join your final chain to the top of the first ring

Round 3:

10 yards on ring shuttle

4 yards on chain shuttle

1. R 8-8, cl

2. R 10 join to picot from chain from round two 10, cl

3. R 8-8, cl, rw

4. Ch 10-10, rw

Repeat steps 1, 2, 3 and 4 until you have 14 large rings, 28 small rings, and 14 chains. Join last chain to top of first ring cluster.

Round 4:

12 yards on ring shuttle

5 yards on chain shuttle

1. R 10-10, cl

2. R 10-10, cl

3. R 10-10, cl

4. R 10-10, cl, rw

5. Ch 14 join to picot from chain from round three 14, rw

Repeat steps 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively until you have 56 rings and 14 chains. Join final chain to the bottom of the first cluster of rings.

Round 5:

12 yards on ring shuttle

8 yards on chain shuttle

1. R 10-10, cl

2. R 12-12, cl

3. R 10-10, cl, rw

4. Ch 10 join to picot from step three of round four 14-14 join to picot from step two of round four 10, rw

Repeat steps 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively until you've gone all the way around. Join your final chain to the bottom of the first cluster of rings.

Block and tie ends! 

Shuttles & Threads (My Tools)

Hello!


Today I'm going to discuss what I use for my tatting projects. The basis of a beautiful project is using quality materials. The first thing you'll need is either a shuttle or a needle. I'm a shuttle tatter, and the only shuttles I've ever tried are the Clover tatting shuttles. They are made entirely of plastic with a curved, pointy tip for joining picots. In addition, they make a cute popping sound when you unwind thread! At least, I think it's cute. After tatting for a few hours, my family begins to disagree with me! In all seriousness though, they work great. I do look forward to trying more in the future, and I'll let you know about them when I do.


Obviously you'll also need thread.  I'm going to cover a few common tatting threads and give you my opinion on them. Let's get to it!




Knit Picks' Curio • 100% Cotton • 100 grams per ball • 721 yards per ball • #10 • $3.99
This was the very first tatting thread I tried. They come in a variety of very pretty colors, which is what drew me to them at first. They have a great sheen and they're extremely soft. They're also very affordable considering how many yards you get per ball.
Although this thread is beautiful in the ball, it presents a bit of difficulty when working. It seems very fine for a size #10 thread. It doesn't have a ton of structure and "oomf" to it. It's kind of difficult to get your knots to look even and uniform.
Also, it's only a two-ply thread. For this reason, it tends to pill or "fuzz-up" quite often. This can also take away from the finished project.
I would however recommend this thread for beginners. I started out with this thread and it made me work at evening out my stitches. When I transitioned to a more structured thread, it was a piece of cake!


Lizbeth Thread • 100% Egyptian Cotton • 10-50 grams • 120 - 184 yards • #3-#80 • $2.95-$5.95
This thread is possibly the most well known in the tatting world. It comes in more colors than you can possible imagine, as well as variegates and "twists" (sort of a baker's twine look). They are relatively shiny and saturated with color. It's tightly twisted and made of six plys, which results in a nice, structured, and pill-free thread.
This thread is my personal favorite. It comes in a multitude of sizes so that you can use it for all your projects. My stitches always look nice and uniform giving
The downside to this thread is that it's a bit more pricey. You get less thread per ball, and it's a bit more expensive. Not to mention you'll have to pay for shipping. In my opinion it's absolutely worth it, but it is something to consider.
Also, I must mention that that the Handy Hands shipping has always been wonderful! Usually it's only 2 or 3 days.


Aunt Lydia's • 100% Mercerized Cotton • 350-400 yards • #3-#30 • $3.49
This thread is, in my opinion, right in between the two above in terms of quality. You can find this thread in your local craft store, and I've even spotted it in Walmart! It comes in quite a few colors, though they tend to be fairly basic. Also, I have a hard time finding certain colors in store. It's fairly tightly twisted, but it still pills just a tad.
It's a pretty good price for the yardage you get. Also, you won't have to pay for shipping if you shop in store. You may have to pay shipping prices if you can't find the color you desire (a problem I've ran into before).


The only other tool I use is a pair of scissors. I think that's fairly self-explanatory though!
So that's it! Those are the tools I use for my tatting projects! I hope this helped you out, but keep in mind this is only my opinion, so I would highly recommend giving each thread a try and seeing what you think! Lucky for us, thread isn't very expensive, so experimenting won't break the bank.
Thanks for reading!


Until next week,
Grace