Tatting Tea Tuesday 12/1/09

Go here for free printable cupcake & teacup (or coffeecup) notes.

And get a getwell card featuring a teacup in another free printable!


These are the Snowrose snowflakes I made in 2003 in a surprise ornament shower for an online tatting friend. The pic in that entry was so tiny because it was the only way I knew how to make thumbnails then. LOL! They really were very pretty. I'm glad we can have bigger graphics now.

I've been tatting but they're gifts so I can't show them yet. I've also been busy looking for programs for my lace guild for the coming year. That's really fun but I also get way too inspired for what I have time for.

I'm trying a Christmasy background after seeing a post by Pat Winters about free backgrounds from http://www.shabbyblogs.com/. I'm not sure I like it that much. I wanted something lighter rather than dark and so that limited my choices. We'll see.

I was knitting last night, a neck cowl, and dropped some stitches that were impossible for me to figure out how to pick up so I ripped it all out and started over. At this rate, I may get it done in time for next year!

Tatting Tea Tuesday 10/20/09 & Giveaway!

Look what I got! I was on a tea blog and happened to see some tea jewelry and thought....I want something like that! I have teapot earrings and you see those everywhere, though mine were made for me by a friend, so I didn't want that but perusing Ebay, I found this lovely vintage brooch which was on a Craft & Barrow card but the back of the pin says KC© and I haven't had time to look into it.

Til now....there are several companies that sell jewelry that have KC as part of their name, Kansas City being the most common and my best guess. The card the brooch arrived on didn't look like it originally belonged there. Although Kohl's might sell jewelry from the KC brand, I don't think it is Croft & Barrows. Doesn't matter as I love it as it is, but I got that "feeling" even when bidding that Croft & Barrow wasn't right. Don't know for sure though.

Now for the giveaway! I am still culling magazines and found this scrapbook stamping magazine which has several ideas for cards having to do with a tea theme. I don't have the stamps, time or inclination to ever make them, SO.....some lucky person who does gets to have this! I don't generally get a zillion comments like some people so I think I'm safe in putting the names in a hat and drawing one. That means, if you don't want the magazine but want to comment, just say you don't want in the drawing and I won't put your name in the hat. Make sure I can contact you!!!! I'll draw the name on Friday. You must comment on THIS post or I won't catch it.

Okay, one more thing. As I was going through another storage tub, I found yet even more printouts that I must assign to a binder or in the circular file. I found lots of OLD correspondence too, from my early tatting days. Remember that spiral bookmark in my pattern folder and I couldn't remember who made the original for me in an exchange? I found the email! It was Darlene Ulbricht. I wonder where she is now? The pattern actually started with the edging (I'd call it an insertion) from the book edited by Rita Weiss, Tatting Doilies & Edgings, on page 23 of my copy. These are a collection of patterns from 6 earlier publications that Dover put together and Rita edited. They range from 1920 to 1944 but I don't know which one it originally came from. Even so, the idea to tat it in two colors like that came from Darlene.

I'm having a busy day Tuesday, so this is written ahead and scheduled for Tuesday. Have a wonderful day sipping tea, nibbling on chocolate, and tatting away!

Tatting Tea Tuesday 9-29-09

From Tipnut.com:

How To Remove Coffee & Tea Stains From Mugs
If that favorite coffee mug of yours is getting a nasty brown ring inside, here are a few different methods for making your mug look brand new again:

Method #1

Wet a cloth then rub the inside of the mug with baking soda. If the stains are stubborn, soak overnight in hot water and baking soda.
Method #2

Soak the mug in bleach OR vinegar for several hours or overnight.
Method #3

Fill mug with boiling water, add two spoonfuls of dishwasher detergent then soak overnight.
Method #4

Try a paste of corn starch and vinegar, apply and let sit for a few minutes then scrub away.
Method #5

Drop two denture tablets in the mug, pour hot water over top then soak overnight.
After soaking mugs and removing the stains, rinse and wash very well before using–especially when using the bleach method.

How To Clean Stains From Teapots
Teapot Cleaning Soaks

Fill a teapot with boiling water, squeeze the juice from a wedge of lemon (1/4 lemon) and toss in the peel, add 1/8 cup of baking soda. Soak overnight, wash well in the morning.
Fill teapot with boiling water and add 1/4 to 1/2 cup Realemon juice, soak overnight then wash well in the morning.
Fill teapot with boiling water and add a couple denture tablets. Allow to sit overnight then wash with soap and water in the morning.
Put about 1/4 cup dishwasher detergent into the teapot, cover with boiling water and soak for a few hours or overnight. Wash well to remove all detergent residue.
Put 1/4 cup of washing soda in the teapot, cover with boiling water and allow to soak overnight. Wash well in the morning with hot soapy water, making sure to remove all traces of the washing soda.
Teapot Cleaning Scrubs

Sprinkle a small spoonful of salt on a damp cloth and gently scrub.
Gently scrub stains with a baking soda & water paste.
Gently scrub tea stains away with a baking soda & lemon juice paste.
Make a paste of salt and vinegar, scrub onto stain and wash off a few hours later.
You could also try the cleaning methods listed for coffee and tea stain removal from mugs. The tips above will help with mug or tea cup stains as well (modify amounts as needed).

These stain removal tips are for ceramic or common materials, for fine china or delicate porcelain teapots, choose a gentle cleaning method like baking soda soak (or paste) or try some of these tips.

After your teapot is clean and shiny, here are some tips you might enjoy for How To Make A Good Cup Of Tea.

I've uploaded the beaded blossom brooch to my Esnips site. You can click the link below or the folder link in the right sidebar. I don't know why it shows a little red x in the preview because there was no photo, only the pdf icon. Maybe it will show up when published. Ha! Famous last words! It's still clickable.

Beginners Beaded B...

Hosted by eSnips

So set yourself down with a cup of tea that reminds you of Autumn and tat this little beaded brooch!

Last week my sister and I stopped at Tuesday Morning. It was only Monday but we were at Tuesday. heheheheh


One of my finds was this teapot notepad. It appears to be a product, like the teacups at the left here, of this brand name, Sensuali-Tea. I know there was a website on the packaging but when I try to bring it up, all I get are websites with its products - not the website itself. So google on your own if you like. I don't have time right now!

The tatting underneath is a second version of my lesson 4 motif with the Design Tat group. Someone suggested making it in two colors so I tried it. I think at some point I will try making a small mat with these motifs in size 80 thread.


I don't know that I've ever mentioned it but while I like tea, there are very few "flavors" that I like. I don't like the fruit teas. I do like SPEARMINT flavored tea and SEE - I found a can of Bentley Spearmint tea in silk teabags during my same trip to Tuesday Morning!

I also like Chai (minus the milk) and orange/lemon/spice flavored teas. Not raspberry or blueberry or cherry or pomengrate or vanilla. I'd rather have the real fruit in those cases and vanilla in my sugar cookies. LOL!


This was actually one of the first items I picked up and carried around with me. Two linen towels with two scented butterfly soaps. I couldn't resist!


Here's a closeup of the towel and the soaps. There is a Mary Konior butterfly edging that I want to tat for these towels. Aren't they sweet?


And here's a closeup of the embroidered butterfly. Simple but elegant. I need a house to put them in. (SMILE)

I finished the wristlet bag from Sharon's book last night but it was blocking this morning and still not quite dry. I'll show it in the next post. I'm also starting the beaded bag which is next in her book. I'll also show some of the goodies from my O-Hi-O trip.

And a Tatting Ta-Ta to all!

Tatting Tea Tuesday 8/25/09

I was blog surfing last weekend and found this
Felt Tea Bag Softies Tutorial. You can click on the steps of the directions and they expand.

Well, naturally, I just had to try one ...or two...for Tatting Tea Tuesday! I couldn't find my white felt so I turned to the red felt and immediately thought of peppermint tea. It just so happens I have a huge peppermint cup to put them in! I think it's actually a soup bowl, but you don't know that from the photo, do you?


I couldn't stop at just one. And now I'm thinking...hmmm, I have gold and brown and black felt...nice Autumn colors. Maybe I should tat an acorn, or a mum or a tiny squirrel or Autumn leaves?


The space isn't really too large so you have to find small motifs. I decided to make an easy candy cane by tatting two short strips of the ricrac stitch (also known as Victorian set stitch and node stitch), joining the second color at the base of the first one before I tatted it. Then I twisted the two together and stitched it to the felt in a candy cane shape. The problem is, red on red is hard to see. If I were to do it again, I would stitch the candy cane on an oval of a different color and then stitch both to the "bag".


For the second bag, I attached a little motif I'd already made and tatted the "string" between bag and label. I used a blend of white and silver thread to blanket stitch around the outside. I really suck at letter embroidery but maybe if I practiced more, I would do better. I'd like to think so anyway.

If you have the motifs already tatted, the longest time is taken up stitching everything together. I think they would make nice sachets too. Embroider on little muslin bags and embellish with tatting.

Part of my surfing also took me to this intriguing blog named Embloggery. The stitcher committed to posting entries that were entirely hand-stitched. Many of the words are symbolic so you really have to think about them. See if you can figure this one out before you go to her blog. She's moved on to other things, but I thought it was creative and clever. If you click on the photo on her blog, it will take you to her Flickr site where you can see all of them with notes. You know what else is cool? She's in Indiana! Bloomington, to be exact.