differences between stitch and technique

Tatting is well known for having only 2 stitches, I've no doubt, first and second half (warning: picot is not a stitch!), very basic and simple, but the more I read about it, the more I discover techniques that may change the appearance of the traditional tatting. I love tatting because I always learn, it is a challenge, like with English (that is very difficult for me, being a second language). There is a wonderful project guided by Elizabeth Davis (aka Tatknot, link here: https://tatknot.blogspot.com/p/tatting-techniques.html). She has written 2 great lists of techniques, one of them has links to instructions and patterns. Many thanks for sharing your files, Eliz!

(close up on quad_03, https://flic.kr/p/fHS8s3, example of Catherine wheel joins)

Lately, I've been thinking about terms and translations. In my Italian, we can say, for example, that tatting or embroidery or crochet are crafts, handmade lace's techniques, and they have their own stitches. But, how many stitches? The fact is that we usually say "the crochet technique" or the crochet work, and talk about "a crochet stitch" even if it is not a stitch, but a way to arrange lines or groups of the main stitch, that is the single loop of yarn. Anyway, I've never read about "a tatting stitch" in the same sense, in fact it is commonly accepted that they are "tatting techniques". We say "lavoro chiacchierino" (chiacchierino is a noun, not a verb) and it is a technique in making lace.
And also, just because we usually say that tatting has only 2 stitches, unfortunately that fact lets someone think that tatting is meagre.
Now, if I were translating the list of tatting techniques to my own language, I would rather had used the term "punti" (that literally is stitches) because that meaning fits better in my understanding.

I admire translators (human being, I mean), that put their own heart on trying to bring one word's meaning from one person to another. I think it's impossible to have just one language and I love the rich heritage that every language or dialect is full of. But I also love the fact that I can read in a second language, I'm so happy that I've started to.

Ciao,
Ninetta

P.S. Please read my other post about tatting movements and stitches, here:
https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/2019/01/tatting-movements-and-stitches.html

wonder! (chissà!)

I wonder if the venetian picot can set tatting forth to drawing new shapes... I'm very curious to see what tatting designers are going to do! In Italian I'd say "Chissà!" 💕💗😍
(how to pronounce Italian "chissà"  https://forvo.com/search/chiss%C3%A0/it/)

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I'm very very happy to share here with you the pendant "Corallo", original design by Lalla Caliò. She shared it in an Italian tatting group in Facebook, and I love that so much, I asked her permission to post it here too. She kindly agreed to and sent me her photos, the next is a collage of her tatting:

In the next picture there's my attempt at the design by Lalla, I started a simple chain with 3 beads in the starting point, then there is a venetian picot with beads trapped in the top, that is the auxiliary thread is inserted and 3 or 4 beads are put just in the top, after then you go forward to the chain, passing each and every subsequent fhs (first half stitch) over the beads. The pattern goes on alternating chain and VP with a variable number of stitches.

That's lovely, isn't it?

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After the first rosette and the the thin bookmark with venetian picots, I've been playing with the idea of "joining venetian picots", that is something similar to what I did in the body of Muskaan's butterfly in last post (butterflies).

I found that it's better to keep something like a pin or another thread (this works better for me) inside the top of the VPs, because it happened that when I was looking for the 2 top loops to join the VP, I had troubles, due to my short-sight and to the "shifty" picot.

I already wrote this but it's better to repeat, otherwise I'd hear you expressing yourself in French and that's not convenient for any nice tatter. You have to be very careful when joining, in fact you see that the venetian picots have two loops to be taken in the join, if you take only one loop they unravel!

Well, I have a little square that I think it's "the less tatting-like thing" that I've tatted:

--- Pattern ---
Legend:
CTM continuous thread method
VP4 = venetian picot, in this case I write VP4 to indicate that the picot has got 4hfs, I measured all picots with a gauge of 4mm
puncetto tatting (also called the pointed chain): https://flic.kr/p/9Cbk3R 
CWJ = Catherine wheel join
LJ = lock join
JSS  = Karen Cabrera's video 117 - Anne Dyer's JSS

Wind up 2 shuttles CTM. I used dmc ecrù thread, size 40.
The centre is a ring with 1ds, 7 VP4 separated by 1ds each, end with 1ds and close the ring, then I climbed to the first round with a line of puncetto tatting (5 puncetto stitches) and then
The first round is: a chain of 8ds, picot, 8ds, lock join to 2VP together, repeat all around.
The second round is: a chain of 8ds, then a CWJ in the picot, then picot and another CWJ in the same underlying picot, 8ds and LJ to same point of the underlying LJ, repeat all around.
The third round (is similar to 2nd but with VPs, that is): a chain of 5ds, VP4, 4ds, CWJ in the underlying picot, {FR: 6ds,picot,6ds}, and another CWJ in the same underlying picot, 4ds, VP4, 5ds, LJ to same point of the underlying LJ, VP4 , repeat all around and don't tat the last VP4, in fact that is the point where I climbed up to the next round, again with a line of puncetto tatting (5 puncetto stitches). (Maybe here I should have tatted one puncetto stitch more, something to tat again)

The pattern can go on and on, adding chains' rounds and VP4 all around, just increasing the right number of ds, that is what has kept me busy for a week, ruffling and cupping and grumbling!

Fourth round:  5ds, JSS to join the underlying VP, 10ds, then a CWJ in the picot of the FR, then picot and another CWJ in the same underlying picot,10ds, JSS to join the underlying VP, 5ds, JSS to join next VP, repeat all around.
Fifth round: 5ds, LJ, 11ds, then a CWJ in the corner picot, then picot and another CWJ in the same underlying picot, 11ds, LJ, 5ds, LJ, repeat all around.
Sixth round: (it is similar to 3rd but with VP4 separated by total 6ds, that is): a chain of 5ds, LJ, 1ds, VP4, 6ds, VP4, 5ds, CWJ in the underlying picot, {FR: 6ds,picot,6ds}, and another CWJ in the same underlying picot, 5ds, VP4, 6ds, VP4, 1ds LJ 5ds, LJ, VP4 , and repeat all around.

I stopped there. If you'd like to continue (and add your count for ds and VPs), don't tat the last VP4, in fact that is the point where you can climb up to the next round, again with a line of puncetto tatting.

I like a lot the Anne Dyer's JSS to join this tricky VPs. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend the book "To Boldly Go Where No Shuttle Has Gone Before or Tatting Definitely Not for Beginners" by Anne Dyer, it is one of the best tatting books I've bought.

Ciao,
Ninetta

timeless rings and chains

Funny break between one project and another.

I've bought a little packet of O-beads, without any idea how to use them. Then the other day I came to this: a timeless pattern with only rings and chains.

OB = O-Bead 4mm
CWJ = Catherine Wheel Join
vsp = very small picot
Thread: I've used metallic gold DMC 282, that is like a size 70 thread.

If you are wondering where those beads come from, this is a link:
http://www.potomacbeads.com/Czech-O-Beads-s/2450.htm

Load CTM 2 shuttles, beads aren't loaded on shuttles but joined with a normal upper join.

Start with a ring: 4ds, OB, 4ds, vsp, 4ds, OB, 4ds.

 (*) Chain 12ds ; Ring: 4ds, normal join to previous bead, 4ds, vsp, 4ds, OB, 4ds.
Repeat from (*) for your desidered lenght.
Turning for the second part: Chain 12ds; CWJ  to last bead; Ring with SH2: 10ds; CWJ  to the same last bead;
Second side: (**) Chain 12ds ; lock join to the vsp of the ring below.  Repeat for all the length.
The opposite end is the same as the turning side. Finish with a chain tied at the base of the very first ring.

This bracelet actually has already one matching earring, I'm doing the second and I'll show you soon.

Kia Ora
( http://www.straytravel.com/new-zealand-travel-information/kiwi-lingo/ )
Ninetta

butterfly in slow motion - part 2

The next photo shows that the join in the first butterfly I tatted in 2011 is a wee bit better positioned at that point. That is because I joined those picots (up and down) at the same time with a CWJ. 

But this time I first joined the upper picot (the one that belong to the lower part of the wing), then I joined the picot under the chain with a CWJ, that substituted for one double stitch. I think the effect is quite the same and the process is simpler than the previous.

It's fundamental that both threads are on the same side of the motif, otherwise it will be very tricky to continue. I put both on the back of what already done, but it's just my personal choice.

So, here it is the sequence of stitches at the connection point (we are at the chain already tatted of 2-2-2, where we stopped to join) :
- upper join
- CWJ (it replaces one ds)
- 2 ds
- upper join
- CWJ
- 3 ds
All that you can find in the pattern as 2 joins (with black dots - marked wrongly), a chain of 3 ds between and a next chain of 4.

Useful links for the CWJ:
http://www.janeeborall.freeservers.com/CatherineJoin.pdf
http://yarnplayertats.blogspot.com/2011/03/catherine-wheel-join-my-video-demo.html
http://yarnplayertats.blogspot.it/2011/04/catherine-wheel-join-in-still-photo.html

After the chain, I reversed the work and tatted the last ring, then a last chain.

I hid the ends using a similar method to Frivole’s:
http://leblogdefrivole.blogspot.it/2011/03/more-hiding-ends-and-eightsome-reel.html

But instead of hiding both threads inside, I sewed the yellow thread with a needle.

All we can do now is tatting the other wing, exactly the same.

Ciao,
Ninetta