Tension

 I've long admired Frivole's Flowering Quatrain bookmark and had it on my to-do list. But I just haven't been able to get it right. On my first attempt, in size 20 thread, I left small spaces between the split rings of the middle row. So when I came to do the second side of the outer row, the middle split rings were bunched and ugly. Aha, learnt that lesson. So on my second attempt, using size 40 thread,  I snugged the split rings neatly next to each other, except where Frivole said not to. Alas. When I finished I found that my tension was still wrong somewhere, the outer row is ruffling. It's a very pretty bookmark, or would be if it was tatted correctly!

Happy tatting on International Tatting Day. Don't get chocolate on your work!

Variations

This is Flower Bookmark by Rachael Mohler.

 Here I joined all six rings to a long picot on the first ring, instead of making vsp on each ring. I also made the chains  a bit longer, which was probably not a good idea. (OK, I confess, I left out a ring at the end, sewed in the threads before I realised. I also needed to pay more attention to the tension of the LHPJs).

More Bookmarks

 This is Kersti Anear's Jessica bookmark in monochrome. There's a link to the pattern on the blog entry I wrote yesterday.

This bookmark is also Kersti's. It's called Floral Tatted Bookmark. I have a picture of it tatted in two colours, but I think on this one I prefer monochrome, which enhances the stylized nature of the design. The large rings could be a bit tricky for a beginner, but it's not a difficult pattern.

I've had this pattern in my files for a long time and made it a number of times. I found it before I started a blog, in a time when I was less fastidious about provenance! If anyone can tell me who the designer is, I'll be happy to credit them. The pattern is based on a classic idea, I have a Coats booklet with an edging that looks like this, and some of Renulek's designs use it too.

Jessica

 On Tuesday I was asked if I'd be prepared to help other people tat bookmarks for a competition. Of course, I'd be more than happy to! So I thought I had better look for patterns that use only rings and chains -  no split rings, self closing mock rings, interlocking layers, you get the picture. Keeping the theme of flowers which the competition requires.  This bookmark is called Jessica, designed by Kersti Anear. I'm working it again in one colour, so that I can have ball and shuttle CTM and have fewer ends to hide. The pattern uses only one colour, but I like the effect of flowers and vines that two colours give.

Susie's Version

Following a comment from Susie, I simplified Jane Eborall's pattern ever so slightly by using two shuttles wound CTM with pink thread for the flowers and then doing the green with ball and one shuttle. It doesn't have the touch of green winding through the middle, but it's easier to tat.  I did the flower using daisy picots, as I did on the blue one. 

The Tail's Tale

 The pattern says to make the flower, tie and cut and then make the tail. I wanted to make the flower and then carry on with the tail without cutting. I thought I could do that by doing the last petal as a single shuttle split ring, carrying the green thread inside the first half. The problem was, I couldn't join that petal to the other petals of the flower. It was just a mess. So I decided to use daisy picots. I haven't done daisy picots for quite a while, the tension on my first attempt was hopeless. But, eventually, I had a flower with a green centre and could continue the tail without cutting.

Flowery SCMR

I had some green size 40 thread left on my shuttles, a good reason to get on with Jane Eborall's Flowery SCMR bookmark that has been on my to-do list. I think I should've chosen a brighter thread for the flowers. It's a tricky bookmark to tat, worthy of being used for a competition entry! I'm still working on the tail. I'd like to do the flower and the tail without cutting, but it's proving more difficult than I imagined (I guess if it was easy, Jane would've already done it). The competition rules say the bookmark must be less than 20 cm in length, so I may have to do fewer repeats of the pattern to have room for the tail. I think these flowers look like water lilies.