Tatting Improv

For starters, I have to say I really don't understand why people complain about jury duty. My experience of it so far, for the two days that I've actually had to be there, was that I got paid to sit in a room and tat for a few hours, then the defendant plead guilty and we all got to go home. I can see how it would be annoying if you didn't have enough sense to bring something to do, or to be grateful you're not at work.

Here's a little something I whipped up last night (I wouldn't tat something like this at jury duty-- no bead work when I'm not at home). I think I know a certain librarian who might like it...

I wanted a necklace in blue. I'd say I succeeded. The threads are Lizbeth colors 703 Sky Blue Light, 704 Sky Blue Dark, and 185 Arctic Waters, all in size 40. The Arctic Waters colorway matches the two sky blues, as well as the Periwinkle color that I didn't use in this piece.

The large doodad at the top is one I've had for a while, waiting for inspiration to strike. Naturally I wouldn't expect to find a published pattern for such an unusual finding. I had to simply decide on the shape I wanted and do it. Normally, I would be annoyed with a piece that requires as many cut and ties as this one, but in an improvised design of this nature, I found it was actually better to tat it in small bits, so that if I didn't like the way something came out I could just cut out that little bit. I only had to do that a couple of times though, and in both cases I got it right on the second try. I'm very happy with the results, and the more I look at it, the more I like it!

The doodads all came from Artbeads. If you go to their website and type the word "components" into the search window, you'll find more doodads than you will ever know what to do with. I accept no responsibility for any resulting damage to your bank account. Additionally, I used an assortment of seed beads and a clear teardrop.

As for what I tatted during jury duty today, it's not done yet, so you'll just have to wait.