My enamel powders have arrived

Last night I raced home to see if my shipment of a sampler package of 169 colors of powder enamel had arrived.   IT DID!!!!!   So I spent the night sorting through the packages of color, writing the names on the packages and organizing them by colors.  There are two groups: opaque and transparent enamels.  Then I stayed up late prepping the metal into shuttle shapes so that when I get home tonight I can start actually adding the enamel colors to my copper shuttles.  With so many colors to choose from, it may be quite the delemma.

My ties to Pilger, the town in Nebraska destroyed by a tornado



My old church in Pilger, NE after June 16th tornado--all that's left

I understand that the tornado that ripped through the tiny town/village of Pilger, Nebraska  (in northeast Nebraska) on Monday, June 16th, made national (& probably international) news. 

It was one of my home towns.  I grew up on a farm equal distance (about 7 miles each) from both Pilger & Wisner.  I have stronger ties to Pilger because it was where I went to church.  The church (St. John's Lutheran Church) that was completely destroyed by the tornado was my church--where I was baptized, confirmed & married, family funerals.  All my family now lives in Norfolk, NE--20 miles away.  Many of my old farm area neighbors however did suffer damage.  One our family friends lost all their farm buildings but the house was still standing.  However the damage to the house was so extensive that it was considered a total loss and the family is moving out.  I really don't have any news to add to what you can read on the internet, papers, of on TV.  The damage is bad! 

Two years ago Pilger celebrated its 125th Anniversary as a village.  It motto was: "The little town too tought to die".  There really wasn't much commerce in Pilger--a convenience/gas store, post office, bank, senior center, bar/cafe, library, and volunteer fire department and farmer's cooperative.  We'll have to see how many businesses rebuild.  I heard on the TV news that the farmer's coop vowed to rebuild. 

Businesses that did survive:  the library, water tower, city park and swimming pool. 

Copper Enamel Tatting Shuttles Debut

The ShuttleSmith's Copper Enameled Tatting Shuttles

Announcing the first photo of The ShuttleSmith's Copper Enameled Tatting Shuttles.

I received my new torch in the mail Thursday and then promptly locked myself into my studio for the last three days using it, working to produce the first  The ShuttleSmith Copper Enameled Tatting Shuttles.  Friday night I produced the two on the right.  Then on Saturday I made the other five.  Last night I made two more....not photographed. 

I love the process and the colors but am limited to the sampler colors that I bought.   So once I pulled all the processes together and proved to myself that I actually COULD make this work, I ordered a color sampler of all 169 colors of enamel that the company makes!  Now I am again checking the mail everyday, waiting for that to come in.   I will probably be so overwhelmed with the colors that I will be stymied. 

I will be taking the day off from shuttle making today to travel 100 miles to visit my parents in honor of Father's Day.   Then tomorrow I have to go back to my real job (the one that pays for the enameling supplies!) so I won't be able to get back to my studio---Sad face.  Copper Enameling is proving to be quite an addiction for me. 

Dresser Lace 2

 

As I have mentioned before, I have other lace passions other than tatting.  They are the needlelaces of:  Carricmacross, Teneriffe/Nanduti, and Romanian Point Lace.  That is what is represented in the laces on my dresser and night stand.

The laces seen here starting from lower left to right are:  Tatting, Romanian Point Lace, Tatting, and then Nanduti. 

 

The tatted pieces were tatted by me.

 

This Romanian Point Lace piece was the first piece that I had ever collected/found.  I found it in an antique store in Riverside, CA while there to teach at a national needlework show.  It was filthy, a light brown color and covered in dust bunnies. I actually found it on the floor next to the dock door.  It was marked $10 (a price I was thrilled with!) but I took it to the clerk and told her where/how I had found it and that it was filthy.  She looked at it and quoted me a price of $2!!!!  I tried not to show too much eagerness in pulling out my money too fast!!!  I brought it home and soaked it overnight in Orvus detergent and the next day it was white and beautiful---quite the transformation.  This piece is not the most unique of this lace type , but it does hold a special place in my collection due to being my first and in how I obtained it.

What I have been working on

Just an update to fill you all in on what I've been working on


I have been working on getting tatting Book Number 3 ready to publish.  Of course it is SPLIT RING TATTING.  The title/topic is:  Block Alphabets in Split Ring Tatting.  It will feature 2 different alphabets with matching numbers as well as 'frames'  and ideas as to how to use the letters you create for decoration.  Right now I am sewing on letters and a frame I tatted to fabric base.  I will eventually frame it so that it mimics those filet crochet nameplates.  Hopefully soon I will have a photo of it to show/share.

The other things that I am working on/towards is to create some new and unique tatting shuttles.
This includes:

• The ShuttleSmith Tatting Shuttle Endeavor Number 1 is Leather Tatting Shuttles. 

I've already debutted one form of my leather shuttles--those that are double layered.  This features bonding a colorful, decorative leather to a base layer of leather that is sturdy.  I have  several colors already made, plus I purchased a whole bunch more leather scrap pieces in some great colors to make more. 

Leather Tatting Shuttles as of 6/10/14



• The ShuttleSmith Tatting Shuttle Endeavor Number 2 is Stone Tatting Shuttles

I have been apprenticing with a master lapidarist who has been teaching me about rocks and mineral specimens---it has been a fascinating journey thus far.  I had actually taken two separate lapidary classes in the past and know a little bit about the process and had actually even made a prototype stone tatting shuttle (though I can't find it today).  Bruce has been collecting mineral specimens and cutting/polishing rocks into jewelry pieces since he was a kid (check out his website: http://www.thefinestthings.com/).  The problem with learning from Bruce is that he has the best tools available....so I was apprehensive about his kind offer to learn on his tools, knowing that I would be not able to afford such wonderful machines.  Recently he 'hooked me up' with a local guy who was selling off some lapidary machine.  I went down and bought it but haven't had time to play with it.  It needs to be hooked up to a water source which is a bit difficult.  Plus, Bruce & I are busy with other aspects of our lives (eg. lawns, landscaping, home repairs, motorcycling--me) this time of year and haven't had alot of time to explore this hobby.

• The ShuttleSmith Tatting Shuttle Endeavor number 3 is Copper Enameled Shuttles

This is what I am actively working on.  I took an introductory class and discovered how much fun it was.  We made jewelry but my thought was 'How can I make tatting shuttles!'.  I have had success with creating jewelry peices but as yet haven't finished a tatting shuttle YET.  By the end of the week, I should have a prototype.  I am actively checking my mail for a new torch that will be hot enough to heat the larger piece of copper that forms the shuttle.  BTW, 'enameling' is the process of fusing glass onto a base, in this case copper.  I have alot of color options to play with.  Hopefully I will soon have something to show you......

Website is fixed

Hello all,

Just an update that I FINALLY got around to asking my husband (a computer genius!--hopefully he will read this and continue to help me with my computer woes!) to look at my website issues.  You all were saying that you got a blank page.  So I tried out 3 different web browsers (Internet Explorer, Mozilla, and Google Chrome) to see what I got when I put in my website address.  On the latter two I got a blank screen.  On Internet Explorer, I had the option to go to another screen page that did let me in, and was how I was able to get content onto my webpage recently.  The husband-genius figured out that Google had changed how it handles things and thus he was able to figure out a fix. 

Sooooo....this all means that you can go to my website  www.TheShuttleSmith.com   and check out:

• The latest Free Split Ring Tatting Pattern
• 'Lace Handkerchief Origami'---a tutorial on how to fold a lace hanky so that all the lace will show.

Sincerely,
Karen Bovard
The ShuttleSmith
Omaha, Nebraska

Lace Handkerchief Origami

Lace Handkerchief Origami

I've been doing this for quite some time...but just recently decided to write up the directions as to how to do it. 

The directions are in a PDF file on my website:
www.TheShuttleSmith.com

Go to:  "Lace Handkerchief Origami" tab

Click on the pdf file at the bottom of the page.

There is even a pattern that you can print out to learn the technique on paper before attempting it with your precious lace hanky.