KBDesignOriginals

I have been playing with string since childhood, and have done crochet, macrame, string art, leather braiding, knot-work, knitting and most recently horsehair braiding, but tatting is by far the most satisfying. I have been a tatter for 25 years, and have won a number of awards for my tatting.
My Etsy shop is dedicated to all those out there who want to take their tatting beyond doilies and Victorian edgings, into what I have called extreme tatting, and for the discerning lace lover who wants something different. I have personally designed and tatted everything that appears in the shop, and for many of the articles, I also sell the patterns. I had a local outlet for a limited number of my finished articles, but nowhere to sell the patterns, and Etsy has been a great place for me to do just that and be in contact with other tatters around the world. We are not a dying breed, contrary to public opinion, just a hidden one!
I like to start with an idea and see if I can make it a very good tatted object. To me, very good means it is designed to work with the form, be robust and hold its shape, be a beautiful object in its own right, but inspire further application. I have done quite a bit of custom work, especially for my daughter, who has inspired much of the Celtic lace on the site, and for fashion students.
Many of my ideas come from nature and the natural form, and I strive to make the natural form of tatting work with the form I want to create. Once I have a design and I've tatted it, I give it to various testers, usually friends, family and occasionally the cat, who is really good at testing that the object is robust. Frankie the cat's personal favourite is the gecko, and he will filch them out of containers if I am not careful.
For finished articles, I then repeat the design based on the “road-tests” and using all my craftsmanship and skill to make a beautiful piece of lace. Some of them have a single use, such as a bookmark or jabot, others can be sewn on to almost anything from baby quilts to jackets. Each listing describes what thread was used, and uses it can be put to; should you want it for a different use, a different colour, or a different material, I am more than happy to do custom orders.
Once I am satisfied that the design is everything I want, I move on to making the pattern. I write it up with instructions, diagrams and photos, and give it to a very dedicated group of tatters who try to make the same object out of my directions I did. All their suggestions and improvements are worked into the pattern, its instructions or explanations, and then it is published. I have begun working with some needle tatters to provide notes for the patterns to be made using needles.
Since every tatter is unique, even with a pattern, there can be some differences in the finished article, or there can be some queries as to just exactly what I meant, so I always remain available to anyone who buys my tatting or my patterns so that they can ask questions or tell me more suggestions for improvement. Most of all, I want to continue to inspire and encourage other tatters and lovers of lace.