Routines and Size 80 Thread

I think I’ve finally gotten a study routine down. And since for the next 6-8 months my life revolves around the CPA exams (hopefully I can finish in 6) that means I know what my life will look like for that time.

Sunday-Friday mornings are my primary study time.  I have scheduled out what I want to get done each day and if all goes well I finish by noon or maybe 1.  Afternoons when I’m usually the least mentally responsive are time for errands, with a sprinkling of review, catch-up (where needed) and working ahead (where possible).  I’ve always been both a morning and a night person and it’s during the afternoons that I slow down so this new schedule of using the afternoon for things like grocery shopping and going to get the car’s oil changed have been working pretty well.  Until last week I was trying to get more studying done in the afternoons and it just wasn’t working and leaving me stressed out because I wasn’t getting everything done.  This week I’ve also gotten a fair bit of studying done during the evenings which has been nice, but that’s because Noah has been out of town on business.  He’ll be back tonight and I’ll probably have to adjust my schedule for next week a bit.

The good news with all of this talk about studying is that it means that I’ve figured out how to get my studying in a less stressful manner and now I don’t feel guilty about the time I’m tatting.  Pictured above is a bracelet in size 80 that I just finished.  Well, technically I finished the tatting about a month or so ago, but until a week and a half ago I hadn’t actually gotten the ends sewn in. During a lacemakers meeting I borrowed someone’s magnifying glasses and was finally able to get them tucked in nicely.  It’s been a while since I’ve worked with 80 and I’d forgotten how much I like it.  For years when I first started tatting it was all that I would work with.  This project inspired me to pull out some of my copious amounts of the stuff and start playing around with some more smaller threaded projects even though I’m trying not to get too many new project started.

The pattern for this bracelet comes from the Priscilla books.  I started at the hook and worked across on one side and then did the same on the other.  I’m especially pleased with the bit I came up with for attaching it to the hook.  Being able to do a bit of filler with some lock-stitch chains means the project is a bit more adjustable since the hook attaches directly to the lace to fit around the wrist and the overlap isn’t bulky.   The split rings are a convenient way to hide the ends at the start of each side.  I’m thinking of doing a necklace of a similar style, but it would end up being a choker, which I don’t really wear and I’m not sure yet I want to put that much time into a piece I’m not likely wear.  I’ve been thinking about some variations that might work, so we’ll see if that’s something I’ll get around to eventually.