newbie alert

[fntm]

Hello! My name is Lindsay and I'm a multifaceted artist. I draw, sculpt, knit, sew, and a whole bunch of stuff in general. Before today, I had never even heard of tatting. My interest peaked immediately after I saw this photo over at craftzineblog

Comments

[chamois_shimi]

I'm very much a newbie myself, I started learning shuttle tatting this summer while traveling but haven't been able to get back to it with new baby and all. I LOVE that image from craftzineblog!

I started out trying to learn needle tatting several years ago, but couldn't make head or tails of it - somehow I always ended up with rings that were impossible to close and threads going the wrong way. I found shuttle tatting much easier to wrap my brain around, for whatever reason.

I also found that while learning and only making endless rings trying to figure out how it works, you don't really need a shuttle. Embroidery floss wrapped around a little bit of cardboard works great. Heh.

This is how I started out:
http://www.hhtatting.com/learn.html
http://www.georgiaseitz.com/2004/design.html
http://www.be-stitched.com/tat.asp

[teikasmom]

Hi! I find needle tatting much easier. If done properly, it can be taken back if you make a mistake. Learn Needle Tatting by Barbara Foster is a beautifully illustrated teaching book (about the size of a magaine). She is the guru of needle tatting. BTW, I also shuttle tat.

[same_sky]

I think that needle tatting is supposed to be easier, but (I think, personally) that shuttle tatting is prettier. Forgive my bias, as I shuttle tat. ;) The only hard thing about shuttle tatting is making the stitches flip upside down. Once you get it, it's easy. I learned from a book called Easy Tatting, by Rozella Linden (I think). There are also heaps of websites out there, like this one: http://www.geocities.com/tatrasutra/how2tat.html. Good luck!

[alien_sunset]

I've been tatting on and off for about 4 years now, all self taught, mostly by the internet.

i prefer shuttle tatting.
you don't have a long pointy thing to worry about loosing and sitting on or anything, and i find the shuttle easier to hold and maneuver.

there is a neat little group of tatters over on http://etatters.ning.com/
and this is the site where i originally learned to tat: http://www.geocities.com/tatrasutra/how2tat1.html

for books and supplies, check out handy hands: http://www.hhtatting.com/

[gretaorgayle]

Any of the books by Barbara Foster are good to help get you started in tatting. I tat on a needle and have yet to find a pattern I can't convert from a shuttle tatting pattern. I can't shuttle tat to save my life. I've tried, lots of times....even have my grandmother's shuttles. They're pretty much just keepsakes. Needle tatting I can just about do blindfolded. I find it's much easier. But, depending on who you talk to, everyone is going to have a different opinion. You may find one works for you and the other doesn't....my suggestion would be to try both and see which you prefer.