I started tatting an edging for this tablecloth this week. I have been messing around with hens and chicks patterns, ever since Carol (sunset) introduced me to it as a beginner pattern last week. I am so glad I got this thread in size 10!!! It's DMC Cebelia brand, and the color is simply stunning! The hanky/cloth is a large square, about eighteen inches wide. I can't take credit for the pattern. I got the stitch count for the rings (4-4-4-4, 4-4, and 4-3-2-2-3-4) from Tatman's free hens and chicks tatted cross pattern, which can be found if you search the web. I apologize, I couldn't find the link or I would post it here! Then I just experimented with the length of bare thread required until the motif would lay the way it should, with just the right tension. If you make the bare thread too short, it wants to fold over on itself; too loose and it sags. Here is a picture of the progress I have made so far:
With Carol's help I was able to design a corner motif that more or less goes with the rest of the pattern to be able to turn the corner on the tatted edging. The key pointers she gave me were
1. Keep the rings or stitch counts as consistent with the hens and chicks pattern
2. Add two tiny rings to help bridge the gap from the last hens and chicks motif to the corner motif, and from the corner motif to the first hens and chicks motif on the next edge
3. How much to leave for the bare thread gap will come instinctively. I didn't quite believe this at first, but sure enough, I found that I was able to intuit about how much thread I would need!
Hopefully next time I post, this little tablecloth will be gracing my tatting vignette at Keep Me In Stitches here in McCall!!! More on that later.
Have a wicked awesome day!
~ Jo
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