Celtic picots

I like designing patterns for flowers and butterflies but I also do little mats for my groups, who meet monthly, and for workshops. This is one of the patterns I did for a workshop on 'Playing with Picots'.
You have to use a picot gauge for a Celtic picot (see www.paradisetreasures.com/okp.html) and it has to be just the right size. If it is too big the 'knot' will be droopy and if it is too small it won't show properly and could pull the design out of shape. I found that a round picot gauge worked better than a flat one( cut from a piece of card or plastic). For this pattern I used wooden dowelling 3/16th inch (.4cms) diameter and cut it into pieces about 2 inches (5 cms) long for the ladies at the workshop.

I didn't have much time to get on with the tender, carriages and guards' van last week because I was busy preparing for my two tatting groups but here they are at last. I was in such a hurry to get them photographed that I've only just noticed that the hand rail on the guards' van isn't straight!
There are three different carriages and I could use them to make a frieze for a play room if my grandchildren were younger but as they're 13 and 8 I don't think they'd appreciate it.
When I did the train I hadn't thought of doing the carriages until Jon suggested it. When I wanted to mount them I found that I had only one more piece of card the same colour so I had to photograph each part one at a time. Sorry about that!

Another wild flower - the daisy

I've been working on carriages to go with the train engine since last week but they aren't quite ready. I decided to do three different size carriages and a guards' van so I have a lot of tatting to do.

I thought I'd show you the pictures of my daisy which goes with the poppy and cornflower. Very patriotic when put together being red, white and blue.

One of my friends belongs to a tatting group and the members have decided to make a cot quilt and use tatting to decorate it. Each member will tat a pattern or picture to fit on a piece of fabric measuring 5 1/2 inches by 6 inches, (14 cms by 15.5 cms) then they'll all be sewn together to make the quilt.
To cut a long story short I said I'd design a train for her to tat and this is the result.