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It was bound to happen sooner or later, I succumbed to all the cuteness. I knew eventually it would overflow into my tatting someday. How could I expect live in a home filled with puppets , clown props and balloons and not have it happen. My wife and I even have a giant 4 foot long clown fish that looks like Nemo currently sitting in our living room (recently returned from a visit to the local library's teddy bear sleepover). Well I guess its OK since I make part of my living as a clown. I finally gave in to the "cuteness" and made a set of teddy bear earrings in silver wire from the book, "Mini-Tats" by Patti Duff.
Tatting in silver gives you a very different perspective. 1) you can't just try out a pattern in silver, mistakes are costly. 2) you have to have very strong and steady hands, 3) you can't watch TV and tat in silver ( a real bummer) - you have to focus 4) you have think about negative space in a new way - you can't stiffen it.----- but I'm still having fun doing it! These are Dawn's horse head earrings in silver, my latest work. Watch for them in my ETSY store.
It's been months since I had time to blog, between my duties as Pastor, my birthday party business and my first high end craft show, I've been swamped. I'm just now finishing my Christmas gifts. Now for the tatting...I've been tatting up a storm trying to get enough stuff ready for upcoming shows that I have actually developed a tatting callus. Who knew that was even possible?The most exciting part has to do with the show I did. I met a lot of other crafts people, one was someone who makes jewelry with wire, using knitting and knotting techniques. She encouraged me to try tatting with silver, she even gave me a good size length of wire to start with. It's taken a bit to get a handle on how to work with wire but the results are awesome. Here are some pictures I took of a pendant and earrings in silver, the pattern is the center of the "arches" doily.
I can hardly believe it... I've been awarded a Folk Art Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Mississippi Arts Commission in the amount of $4400 for my tatting. I applied way back in March and only applied because my wonderful wife encouraged me to fill out the forms and send in the photos/samples of my work. It was a juried at both the State and Federal level. The Fellowship is to encourage and enable artists to continue and grow in their work. There will be write ups in the paper and possibly a award ceremony. I can't believe I've been acknowledged at this level, I never thought I would get a Fellowship, especially such a wonderful one, I guess it's time to shout, "Praise The Lord" and do a little happy dance.
Its a crazy week with my ordination service scheduled for Sunday, July 12th and Vacation Bible School to begin the following week, but I've still managed to find some time to tat. The idea for this cross came from a baby bonnet in Aunt Ellen's Tatting Handbook and a similar cross by Sharon Briggs. It is tatted in Flora #20.
This is what happens when a tatters starts to crack. My wife and I unfortunately have no children (not from lack of wanting), we have no pets because our apartment complex charges a fortune for them, but we do have Serta Counting Sheep. They may not be as good as kids or pets, but they don't have to be taken for a walk and never want to borrow the car. Believe it or not , the sheep are not the crazy part!!! The crazy part started a while ago while I was crocheting some baby booties and bonnets for a ministry called "Threads of Love", they take them to the local hospitals for the preemies, I decided to make a set for "Trinity" (she's a #3 Serta Counting Sheep). That was strange, but cute, but strange... the losing my mind part came when I decided she needed a little BLING, so I tatted her a tiny pink tiara with a swarovski crystal on top. My wife laughed (it is her sheep, after all) and I'm starting to think about starting a Tatters Anonymous group. Well here's Trinity.......
