Here’s a tiny heart…..nothing like the last minute!!!

Enjoy

Just realized that I had easy access to these patterns digitally so decided to share them with you.

Since it soooooo close to VD, I am including the smallest heart pattern with hopes that you could get it done by VD.

Enjoy!

Just recently (in fact it is still going on) there has been discussion on Arachne Lace list serve about mathematics and lace.  It is focused on the work of Veronika Irvine, a lacemaker (bobbin lace) who holds a Master’s Degree in Mathematics is is/was working on a PHD in computer science.

Click here for more information about Veronika Irvine:    http://web.uvic.ca/~vmi/

The title to the paper is: “Developing a Mathematical Model for Bobbin Lace”

Abstract:

Bobbin lace is a fibre art form in which intricate and delicate patterns are created by braiding together many threads. An overview of how bobbin lace is made is presented and illustrated with a simple, traditional bookmark design. Research on the topology of textiles and braid theory form a base for the current work and is briey summarized. We define a new mathematical model that supports the enumeration and generation of bobbin lace patterns using an intelligent combinatorial search. Results of this new approach are presented and, by comparison to existing bobbin lace patterns, it is demonstrated that this model reveals new patterns that have never been seen before. Finally, we apply our new patterns to an original bookmark design and propose future areas for exploration

I pointed out to the discussion  that there are some math ties to tatting too. A few years back, Patty Dowden introduced the tatting world to ‘Hyperbolic Tatting’ and taught it at the Minnesota IOLI Convention (so sorry I couldn’t go to be in that class!).

Follow the following link to explore Patty Dowden’s work on Hyperbolic Tatting:

http://api.ning.com/files/7K-JVVxwVhh4LGvReFO018O*M*lVkVxiCkKDXgkvZES9uImRI9DR6d5*5E-Te54YQgM07nM*LFJxlaKHH-5w6iU-Gm28GnaB/HyperbolicTatting.pdf

Just recently I was in the Denver Art Museum Textile Gallery and they had some wonderful displays up that introduced fiber/textiles as ‘Art’. In the tatting display was a couple of small tatted bits of hyperbolic tatting. I faintly recall that Patty gave a workshop there…but could be completely wrong about that. I have a picture of the display and hyperbolic tatting on my blog: www.TheShuttle.com/shuttlesmithblog

I have been researching and playing around with the concept of Tesselation in my tatting design work. My last book, “MORE Fun with Split Ring Tatting“, introduces that theme and features unique tatted designs with Tesselation in mind. However, “Tesselation” refers to designs made of identical shapes but the shapes must fit together without any gaps. I have a few of these designs in my book. BUT….Lace is about the negative space (holes) enhancing the positive parts (the thread) in the design. Thus I came up with a new term: LACE TESSELATION. Many of my designs fit into that category.

You can see some of the designs on the front covers of the book at this address: www.TheShuttleSmith.com/books-for-sale/ There are more in the book.

This is another post about my trip a couple of weeks ago to Denver, Colorado.  The purpose of the trip was to help my daughter move from Omaha, NE to Denver where she is starting grad school in counseling (I’m so proud). I have already posted a couple of observations and exhibits previously.  The last day I was there, we decided that we had had enough of the ‘moving thing’ and opted to go downtown to the Denver Art Museum (DAM).  We kinda screwed up by spending too much time in another part of Denver and didn’t allow ourselves ample enough time to explore the DAM to the extent it deserves.  DD & I found ourselves choosing which exhibits we most wanted to see.  I chose the TEXTILE Exhibit and was very pleasantly surprised by what I found there.

One gallery had a quilt exhibit.  Since I have been studying historical quilt blocks and recreating them into my Quilt-Inspired Split Ring Tatting series, I was interested in this.  As is usually my experience when viewing quilts (in a museum or at a run-of-the-mill local quilt show) I soon get overwhelmed by the incredible details in them.

A second gallery had THE MOST WONDERFUL introduction to Textiles as ART.  I WENT CRAZY WITH the joy of seeing such a comprehensive approach to the introductuction of using fibers to create art.

The exhibit was split into 3 different categories:

1.  Intro to what are fibers, spinning, weaving, dying process to create fabric
2.  Needlework Art
3. Lace Art

Lace ART Exhibits

I will be teaching a 6-hour class on Sol/Teneriffe Lace at the 2015 IOLI Convention this coming August…..Come have fun with me exploring a simple yet fun technique of lacemaking.

Another fun Historical Ann Orre Pattern.

This pattern utilizes small and big rings together quite nicely.

Add/subtract picots to your liking…..I tried to recreate the historical patterns as close to the original patterns as possible.

Click on this link to find the pattern (PDF) in my pages on this website:

http://survivalarchitecture.com/shuttlesmithblog/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/14-91.pdf

While in a thrift store (looking for items for my daughter’s new apartment) in Denver  I found 4 of these ceramic plates.  The photo above is from the internet and shows all 4 designs.  I have only 3 different designs–I have 2 copies of one design.

From what I can tell, they are still available for purchase.  However, the price I paid of $2.50 each makes my thrift store purchase a bargain.

In my research I found the following items in the same design series.  Darn it!  that Christmas is over—I could have put these on my ‘Want List’.

My daughter and I decided that after 3 days of moving her into her new apartment in Denver that we would take one day to sightsee around Denver.

We went to a really wonderful neighborhood on Broadway that had alot of great antique, thrift and other stores.  We ate at an Argentinian cafe called Maria Empanada, which I highly recommend–the mushroom torta is ‘to die for’.  While in the Broadway neighborhood I saw my first ‘yarn-bombing’–a bicycle rack covered in knitted and crocheted squares.

According to Wikipedia:  Yarn bombing, yarnbombing, yarn storming, guerrilla knitting, kniffiti, urban knitting or graffiti knitting is a type of graffiti or street art that employs colourful displays of knitted or crocheted yarn or fibre rather than paint or chalk.

Then we went downtown to the Denver Art Museum (DAM) where we saw the following exhibit that sparked my Fiber-Art-Loving interest.

This was a relatively new exhibit (Sept 2013) in which blankets were donated & collected from the community along  with stories about the blankets meaning and memories to the owner.   Each blanket has a tag attached to it with its ‘story’.   The stories were published in a book (one was located next to the exhibit).  The blankets were stacked (quite high) to become part of a permanent artwork and blanket story column installed in the American Indian art gallery.  The artist’s (Marie Watt) work is centered around community, particularly through her use of wool blankets.  Wouldn’t this be an interesting way to accumulate other fiber art pieces such as lace, doilies, dish towels, etc. to preserve historical memories to bygone times?!?!?!

Last weekend I had a bit of an adventure (‘adventure’ defined as something other than being home, doing what I typically do at home).  I helped my 24 y/o daughter drive her car and move from Omaha, NE (where we live) to Denver, CO (where she will be starting grad school in counseling at No. CO Univ.)  We drove out on Saturday and had her new apartment waiting for our arrival that evening.  It was an uneventful trip with the minor exception of a fairly crazy head/side wind on I-80 across the plains of Nebraska.  I took Monday and Tuesday off of work to have a mini vacation in Denver.  Most of the time was spent shopping for things she needed for her new apartment, including a bed, as well as moving in her possessions (all moved in the back of her car–so not too much stuff) & setting stuff up.

I wasn’t planning on having any tatting-related sightings.  But while shopping for a bed, I was pleasantly surprised to see this backpack at a restaurant that had lace on it.  Upon further observation, it had tatted designs on it.  And when I really started looking, the tatted designs were high-level SPLIT RING TATTING motifs!!!!!

The girl who was wearing the backpack thought I was a crazy woman to be so interested in her backpack.  I told her I was a ‘lacemaker’ and that was why I was so interested….but I don’t think that she had a clue as to what that meant.  She did (somewhat grudgingly) allow me to photograph it (though she mentioned that I was to purchase her lunch for her–which I ignored.)

This is a very interesting backpack!!!!   When I got home, I did a little bit of research on it.  The company is Dakine and is made/sold from Oregon.  This particular model is from 2013 but is no longer available/for sale.  I WANT ONE!!!  I think that the model is called  Prom Crochet.   If you click on the photos (especially the top one) you should get a enlarged, fairly crisp view of the intricasies of the design.  The tatting is crazy cool!  A lacemaker, especially a tatter had to have been the one to design the pattern.  I have no idea how to research this any further.

I will be posting OTHER Lace, Tatting, & Fiber Art related sighting from this same trip in further posts—coming soon.

This is my Quilt-Inspired Split Ring Tatting design based upon the classic quilt pattern ‘Grandmothers Flower Garden’.

The fabric quilt uses hexagonal motifs, joined together in rounds.

My design uses 6 rings per motif, but the motifs are tatted as one round– ‘continuously’.  I do all the figuring-out as to how to work the ‘path’ of the round.

Watch for variations that I have designed/drawn in future posts that use this basic design as the basis….lots of fun!

I’m not sure if this design for a Heart fits in with my ‘Patchwork’ or ‘NonPatchwork’ Series of Quilt-Inspired Fun with Split Ring Tatting.

It is ‘patchy’ in that is made of blocks of either squares or triangles.   But it is not squared-off—edges filled in with tatting to complete a square shape.

I also have a second Quilt-Inspired Heart design….not yet tatted, still in the design-stage.