Tatting?

Why have I never heard of tatting before? Has anyone ever tried it before? Is it difficult for beginners? I crochet like a mad woman and I can knit. I figure tatting can't be too difficult then... right? Any insight that you all can offer about the art would be super cool.

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7 replies since 25th June 2010 • Last reply 25th June 2010

Reply #1:

Wow... I had to google it cause I had no idea what it was but it looks LOVELY! Good Luck with it! x

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Reply #2:

A recent crafty superstar did this and I had to google it then. There are quite a few youtube tutorials and it looks so clever. Its like lace making - it looks like it requires a fair bit of coordination (which I'm sadly lacking) but it seems very low cost to start. They seem to use a bobbin to help keep the thread tort and I'm not sure if it needs to be a special tatting bobbin???

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Reply #3:

Tatting? I'm taking it from Arty's post that (like she said) its a process to weave/make lace. Wow that would be an amazing skill to have but it sounds incredibly difficult... I would imagine its not that much different from crocheting, it's just a different material (I'm guessing).

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Reply #4:

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=dtMR_XtTvTk&feature=related
I have never heard of tatting eather but I typed it into youtube and got this ^ video. The start is the same as casting on in knitting so that would be easy for you. It looks really cool, I kind of want to start now!

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Reply #5:

I dabble in both needle tatting and shuttle tatting. With shuttle tatting, you wind thread or string from a ball onto the shuttle. You use one hand to hold the thread (either in a loop or a straight piece, for a ring or a chain), and pass the shuttle under and over that thread. With needle tattling you thread a long dull-pointed needle the same diameter as your thread, wrap the needle with tat stitches, then pull the needle through dragging the end of the thread into and through the wrapped stitches. Either way, the pattern is created by making a series of larks-head type knots. The basic stitches are quite simple to learn, but you do have to master tension and gauge (just as you do in knitting or crochet). The patterns can be extremely simple or very very complex. Shuttle tatting is great for carrying around with you, as you can make simple motifs and later stitch them together into a bigger project. I like to carry a shuttle (filled with thread, of course), a tiny pair of scissors, and a safety pin around in a little plastic box that fits easily into my pocket. If I have that box, I can make little butterflies, tiny hearts, etc, which are perfect to tuck into notes, stitch onto shirts, glue onto cards, etc.. A search for "how to tat" should find several video and photo instruction pages, but here's a link to get you started:http://www.janeeborall.freeservers.com/TipsTechniques.htm
You can also search "how to tat" for videos and patterns.
The picture is my "pocket project box". It will actually hold a second shuttle plus a pair of embroidery scissors, although right now I only have the single shuttle in it.

Medium pocket tatting kit
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Reply #6:

I have had a tatter for years but I haven't tried it yet. I have done bobbin lace which is difficult and requires you to really pay attention to what you're doing but I've seen people tatting absent-mindedly so I think it's fairly easy. It's something I intend to teach myself to do this year.

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Reply #7:

Tatting is very big in Puerto Rico. I went to visit my Abuela this summer and the church ladies were making some beautiful things. Good luck! It's such a beautiful craft.

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