So, this is my first time blogging about my adventures in learning how to spin yarn. It all started last spring (2022) when my friend mentioned that she was going to her brother's to shear his sheep. I didn't even know he had a sheep, but I had been on a sock-knitting kick and thought free wool was better than paying for it. I asked what they planned to do with the wool. She said they were probably going to throw it away like they had done last year. I got over my shock pretty quickly (she knew I was a yarn crafter), and asked her if I could have the wool. She agreed, and I patiently waited for shearing day. I watched every YouTube video I could find on processing wool and learning how to spin without spending a fortune. I learned so much but was ultimately unprepared for what I received. They have no idea what breed Lamby is, so there was no way to know what type of fleece I would be getting. Also, they had only sheared him one time before, and they were using dog trimmers - s...

 So, I had this great idea that I would work through some vintage tatting pattern books and blog about it. Maybe even write a book with updated patterns. I don't know if I just happened to pick the hardest book to start with or they were just so much smarter in the mid-1800s, but this week was an epic fail. I was complaining to my daughter when she suggested that I write about my fails, as well as my successes. So here goes. The premise The book is "The Tatting Book" by Mlle. Riego, published in 1850. I found it at the Antique Pattern Library , and Google Books . It seems to be her first book on tatting. Her preface states that tatting individual pieces, then sewing them together as it had been done in the past, is currently making a revival in France under the name "frivolite". She didn't feel this method of work was practical for the "English lady", so she wanted to create a new method of work that would be suitable for English workers. She sets ...