Lovely Tatting: Doilies for Spring and Summer

Today's post is by my daughter, Eunice.

My mom has been tatting for as long as I can remember. The sound of my mom winding thread onto a shuttle is still the first sound I hear when I lazily wake up on weekends. It's a small, rhythmic clicking sound that signals that my mom has been up and getting breakfast ready for the family, and that she just sat down for a few minutes while waiting for us to wake up.  

She was determined to decorate the house with things that she created, not just things that she bought. Though I didn't realize it growing up, I think watching my mom take some thread and turn it into intricate, detailed designs taught me the importance of patience and imagination. While working on this book with my mom, I was stunned at the number of doilies she created, all done with her small, careful hands. Before I started to photograph her doilies for the book, I had not noticed all of the beautiful patterns that she created. While holding each doily, I could see what inspired or influenced her. Certain patterns have subtle hints of specific decades in history, such as the 19th and 20th centuries. My mom and I enjoy watching movies and being transported to a different time. However, most of my mom's patterns were inspired by flowers. She takes great joy in observing the little things in nature. The majority of the patterns in this book were inspired by the flowers of spring and summer. 

When my mom asked me to help her make a book of her designs, I had mixed feelings. I was eager to help her share her love of tatting with other people. But I was anxious because I did not have experience with still life photography or publishing. I finally agreed to do it though, because she trusted me to make her vision come to life. This book is the culmination of over two years of intense collaboration, learning, hard work, and dedication. It was a lot of fun working on this book with her, and documenting over 25 years of work (though this book only contains a small portion of her designs). I hope that when people pick up this book, whether or not they have previous experience tatting, they will see all of the love that my mom put into each stitch.