Annalisa

"Annalisa" has actually been finished and blocked for about a week and a half now. I wanted to hold off on posting it till I had it mounted and framed, but every single day something has come up to keep that from happening, so I finally decided I'd better just show it to you as is.

First, here it is before blocking, taken from an odd angle to show just how badly the blocking was needed. It is one of those pieces that you have to bunch up as you work on it to maintain your hold, plus it was always folded up small in my tatting bag when I wasn't working on it.

Now here it is on the blocking board. I took this one because I can't seem to get a good photo of the thread, but when it's wet you can see even in a photo just how many colors are in it. Of course they aren't this intense when dry, even in person.

Finally, a scan of the blocked doily, with the fabric I intend to mount it on. Someday. Soon.

Depending on your monitor, you may be able to see the thread colors somewhat here. I was planning on ironing it after blocking, because it still wasn't quite perfect, but it turns out simply leaving it on the scanner bed for a week and a half, with Squijum sitting on the scanner lid every day (it can't possibly be comfortable, but he insists), worked just as well. With all these long chains, this is as good as it gets.

I have to admit, this was a tough one to tat. The diagram was incredibly complex and difficult to follow. When you successfully complete a project like this, it is wonderfully satisfying.

To recap, "Annalisa" doily, from the book Tatted Doilies by Iris Niebach, tatted in Olympus thread color M12, size 40.