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I hope that you will find the pleasure in tatting with wire relaxing and fun and to not be discouraged if you don't get the concept right away. Like all aspects in tatting, it does take practice. This project requires concentration in keeping an eye on the happenings of the wire and how you hold the tensin. So by taking these preliminary steps, I hope that you will get a good understanding of how it works and how you can make the wire work for you. Mark Myers, aka Tatman copyright 2002



Supplies:

4 shuttles(2 for practice with thread, 2 for tatting with wire)
thread of your choice
34 or 32 gauge beading wire
scissors that will only be used for wire(no sense in ruining any other pair of scissors)
crochet hook(if not attached to shuttle)
band aides

Preparation:

This project requires concentration in keeping an eye on the happenings of the wire and how you hold the tension. By taking these preliminary steps, I hope that you will get a good understanding of how it works and how you can make the wire work for you.

Step 1) Preparing your hands. Take the band aides and place them strategically on middle, ring, and small fingers. This is so that when you are working with the wire it will not rub your fingers raw and hurt later. Many times through trial and error I have tatted with bare hands and after a while you develop creases in the fingers from the friction of the wire on your fingers. You can take a knitted glove or other type of glove and cut the thumb, index and small fingers off for protection. But who wants to destroy a nice glove. Most people have band aides in the cabinet and they are easier to carry in your tatting kit.

Step 2) Winding the wire on your bobbin or shuttle. This step takes some care in managing your wire so that it will not unravel from the spool or get kinked or twisted. Winding the shuttle with the wire is done the same way as you would with thread. You might get the help from a friend to hold the spool while you gently wind the shuttle. If you don't have any help you might try placing the spool of wire wedged in your lap. Or cut the rib part of a small knit baby sock and place it over the spool to prevent the wire from unravelling. Be sure to replace the wire end back inside the spool securely so it won't have a tendency to wander.

Step 3) RELAX! This is most important when working with wire. You have to almost retrain your hands to tat carefully and be aware of what the wire is doing. Being tense will make your work sloppy or the wire will kink up on you unintentionally. Not to say that the wire won't kink or twist up if you relax. You will just have an easier time if you are relaxed and calm while working with it.

The next steps are illustrated to show you how to work and form the wire into a double stitch and to perform other tasks in tatting with wire. Click on images to get a larger view


	The first step is just like you were making the first half of a double stitch. All steps throughout making the double stitch should be done slowly and carefully until you get the hang of how the wire will work for you. Here you see the wire go under and over the core "thread". Take note as you do this that the wire does not make a kink or bind up. To accomplish this, control the wire with your hand that is holding the shuttle as you pull on the wire. You may also have to pull your shuttle "thread" in an upward direction and then a horizontal direction to make sure the wire does not bind.
After you have initially taken the shuttle under and over the thread, let the wire stay in a looped position and gradually keep pulling so that the "overhand knot" that is formed will transfer over to the half hitch position. When tatting with thread it is easier for you to just make a pull of the core thread and it will flip or transfer to the half hitch position. But when using wire, to make it flip in a sudden movement is not wise. It may kink or bind on you, hence making the wire dented. That is one of the main purposes for making a smooth transfer to the half hitch, so that you won't dent or create a ridge on the wire which in part will weaken the wire.
	The picture to the left shows you the smooth transition of the overhand knot getting ready to transfer over to the half hitch postion. At this point you can begin raising your middle fingers to help in the transfer, or "flip" as you are pulling on the core wire connected to the shuttle.
The picture to the right shows the half hitch on how it should appear after the tranfer from the working wire to the core wire. Note that there should not ideally be any kinks or bends in the wire so that each half hitch is smooth which in turn makes your double stitches smooth looking and gives an overall nice look to your work.
	Grab the core wire that is connected to the shuttle with your thumb and index finger up close to the half hitch to give it some stability and to help make the sliding smoother. Repeat these steps for the second half of the double stitch.



TIP: If you happen to get little binds or creases in the core wire or working wire, take your thumb and index finger and grasp that area, and with your thumbnail stroke the wire to help smooth out the binds.


TIP: What happens if the wire breaks? DON'T PANIC! You can work the new wire in as if you were adding a new thread by working the half hitches over the new wire end. You will notice that when you pull the ring closed or tighten up the chains that the new wire end will poke out from the double stitches. Just clip it off close. It isn't going anywhere. Say that the wire breaks in the middle of a ring. This is most unfortunate even with thread. What you can do is slide the new wire end inside the previous double stitches along the core wire, weaving it in and out. Now continue on with the ring, hiding the old wire end in the process.


TIP:Finishing off. You can use the Magic Thread Trick if you have strong fingers and pliers. But I find that you don't even need to use a needle to weave the ends in. Just use the tip of the wire and weave in and out of the double stitches to hide them. Because wire tatting is not as an even science as thread, you have to be forgiving about the overall look of each double stitch and look at the whole piece that was made. These wire ends won't show when the piece is done and you can admire your work.


The next steps are illustrated to show you how to work with the wire to make a nice join, using the same technique as when making a join to a picot with thread.

	Making a join using wire is just as if you were to make a join using thread. Of course caution plays a big part while you are attempting it. You will notice when you poke your hook through the picot and grab the working wire that there is some resistence.
Carefully pull up the working wire. If you continue to pull up the wire using your hook the wire will have a tendency to crease and come to a point, which in turn may cause a problem later. You can avoid this by pulling up just a little of the wire and then use your fingers to pull it up the remainder so that your shuttle can pass through.





Disclaimer: The opinions expressed on these pages are solely of the author and are not to be taken as gospel. There are several ways to accomplish each step of the processes and it is up to your discretion to find what best suits your situation.