Tatt-ling

At the insistence of a number of people, and spurred by my own desire, I have taken it upon myself to learn how to Tat. I'm specifically working on Needle Tatting. My youngest has decided that my title as a novice Tatter (which she says sounds too much like 'tater, or potato) should be "Tattling". In her mind, the etymology is similar to gosling and has no relation to the annoying habit of children who are trying to get each other in trouble.

Where were we? Oh, yes. Tatting. After a slight snafu with really horrid needles (Don't buy the Havel brand "economy" needles!), and finding out that the folks at Michael's have no idea what tatting even is, I was able to work through the instructions for a couple beginner projects this afternoon. Romana had recommended a book called Learn Needle Tatting Step by Step, by Barbara Foster. It is very good. The author also has a website called Handy Hands that has instructions and an online catalog.

This is my first completed medallion. It measures just under 2 inches. I need to work on my tension, especially where the different sections are joined. If you want to watch a similar medallion being made, TotusMel has a video on You Tube that I found really helpful. Don't laugh, but the video is less than 8 minutes long and she demonstrates the whole medallion. It took me a full two hours to make mine.

My "tatterfly" has some issues too. (Don't worry, I already told the DD that she doesn't get to name the rest. But she thinks she's sooo funny right now.) I'll figure those out tomorrow. The butterfly is a little smaller than the medallion.

The Josephine chain is pretty easy and reminds me of  the macrame we used to do in Jr. High. I'm used to working with tiny things and embroidering for hours, but right now, my hands ache! DD saw the part in the book where it recommends covering a Christmas tree with icicles made from this chain and I think she has big plans forming. I, on the other hand, am envisioning adorable note cards, bookmarks, and funky collars for the cats (HA!), and wondering about using wire to make jewelry.
There will most certainly be more to come on this topic. I'm wondering what happens when I'm no longer a Tatt-ling. Do I become a Tatt-spert?