Happy 2011!

Hi all! Happy 2011! Have just looked at my 2010 posts, could've sworn I'd posted something since July, but apparently not.... Forget mobiles, where's the brain-computer interface when you need one?? =) Haven't finished much in the way of tatted UFOs, but the major one (DS#2) got done about 10 days ahead of schedule.... Bub turned up in a bit of a hurry. He gave us a bit of a fright by being completely the wrong way up at 38 weeks, and spinning back to wrong way up after being turned by the doc, prompting the doc to schedule him for delivery by cesarean in 3 days time. Bub didn't like the sound of that, and I went into labour the same night. Luckily for all concerned, he'd managed to get himself in the right position by then, so labour was kicked along with some drugs so as not to give him the chance to turn again! Anyway, here he is, the cause of all the concern:

Needless to say, not a lot of tatting has happened recently. =) I did however manage to get some Christmas related stuff done beforehand. I've been doing a few snowflakes in spare moments during the year to put in with Christmas cards. Of course, I've forgotten to take a pic of those sent, but the ones below are pretty indicative of which ones I've been doing this year. The enlarged pics are the ones I did the most of.

These are mostly from Jon Yusoff's book "Tatted Snowflake Collection". The left two in the middle row are from "Tatted Snowflakes" by Vida Sunderland. I've added the beads to sparkle them up a bit. The doily below is from Jan Stawasz's book "Tatting Theory and Patterns". It's just called "Doily" on page 65. A friend will be getting this for Christmas (rather belatedly), but she doesn't know that yet. =)

It's extra special, as it incorporates one-of-a-kind feline derived fibres.

Translation - the cat wouldn't budge, so it's full of cat hair. When you're being sat on by a 10ish kilo (20 pound) cat, you *stay* sat on. I swear he put on weight in the 4 days I was in hospital, so he's now on a diet! No, it's not Tigger (my usual svelte tatting companion), this is Greebo - the runt of the litter (no, really!).

He's just a (reeeeeaally big, and very soft!) softie. =)

In the Santa stakes, I asked for (and received) some size 80 Lizbeth thread to try out, and tatting book in French called "Frivolite dentelle au navettes" by Pascale Provost. (Pardon the lack of accent on the "e" of "Frivolite", can't figure that out at present.)

It's a hardcover book completely in French (which I don't speak, but can guess at bits and pieces of). The photos are good, and the patterns are diagrammed with stitch counts and different colours for different rounds, as well as being in longhand. Also has a lot of instructions (and photos) about basic techniques. I picked up a new thread joining in method I hadn't used before, so that was good.

I came across the book from following up Pascale's work from Snowy's blog. I really like geometric patterns, which this book has in spades.

Now how to force myself to finish some UFO's instead of just creating more from this and Jan's book??? I have plenty of will power - it's the won't power I'm lacking. =)

Have a good 2011!