Tatting & a video tutorial!

I've still been plugging away at tasks to get done at work & in craft-land. In the latter category, I mentioned before that I'm working on Jane Eborall's TIAS. http://tatitandsee.blogspot.com/2013/01/introduction-to-tias-2013.html I'm liking this project. It's in bite sized pieces, which keeps me from completely ignoring all the other things I need to get done (we have to wait a few days between the release of each piece of the pattern). This project is also teaching me some new techniques.

Here's my progress so far:

Day 1

Just basic rings & chains. Working with size 10 crochet cotton.

Day 2

In this section, I got to learn how to do a split chain. The interwebs were surprisingly lacking in tutorials for needle tatting such a thing. I found this video & tried it, but didn't care for the results. The sideways ring bothered me & my mild OCD. I ended up doing the split chain the same way as a shuttle tatter would, and like the results much better.

Day 3

Nothing new. Just a continuation of the split chain to climb up to the next row, which is a ring & chain shorter than the previous.

Day 4

Adventure Time! This section involved creating an outline using Catherine Wheel joins. The internet produced absolutely zero tutorials for how to do this type of join with tatting needles. It seemed to be a shuttle-only technique. I tried to substitute other types of joins, but nothing produced the nice, neat, smooth edge I was seeing in other people's pictures. So I tinkered & figured out a way to make a Catherine Wheel join happen for needle tatters. And then I used my shiny new tablet to make my very first video tutorial! Woot! I almost feel techy! Head on over to my YouTube channel to watch the tutorial. (With a special appearance by the ever-adventurous Tali-cat!) If you have any questions, feel free to ask me there or here on the blog.
I'm still not sure what the TIAS project will be, in the end. That's part of the fun! There will be something like 11 parts to the pattern, so we're not quite halfway there yet. My guesses so far: a basket, or a hat. We'll see!

Well, that's enough adventure for this morning & I'm out of time. Happy Wednesday!