Book Reviews

The Tatting Connection

Tatting is for knotty people™

Book Reviews

On this page, I'll review some of the books I've come across over the years. All of these books can be found at Handy Hands, Inc (www.hhtatting.com) unless otherwise indicated.

I'm using two rating systems: one for overall experience level needed and one for my overall opinion of the book. I consider how well the book is written, how easy the patterns are to follow and the variety of the patterns included. I'll be attaching a picture of the book as well as soon as I can get them.

The experience levels are:
Beginner - just starting out with tatting, anyone can use this book
Intermediate - more than beginner but hasn't tried the fancy things like split ring or cluny
Experienced - adept at the basics and fancy techniques
Instructional - a book that has no patterns, just instructions and information

The overall opinon is rated from one to five shuttles, one being the least favored and five being the most favored.

	Tatting with Visual Patterns (Konior) Beginner 5 Shuttles This is my all-time favorite book. The 59 patterns are presented both in diagram form and basic written instructions. They are easy to follow. All of the patterns I've tried so far have come out very well. There are a variety of projects in the book including laces, doilies, crosses, flowers and more. Some of the patterns are made up of just rings and some with just chains making this an excellent book for beginners. This is an awesome addition to anyone's tatting library.		Christmas Angels and Other Tatting Patterns (Hahn) Intermediate 3 Shuttles This book has approx. 51 patterns with snowflakes, angels, a Christmas Tree, doily, earrings and other items. I've done several patterns from this book and they turn out well. The patterns are written in the standard abbreviation type shorthand (2ds, 1p, etc) and are easy to understand. This book is okay for beginners but does have some tricky joins with some projects.
	Learn Needle Tatting Step by Step (Foster) Beginner/Instructional 4 Shuttles This book's instructions are exclusively for needle tatting, but the patterns can be done by needle or shuttle. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. Patterns include a doily, lace, bookmark and more. I have not done any patterns from this book but they are well written. (See the Tips page for the difference between Needle and Shuttle tatting.)		Tatted Snowflakes (Sunderman) Intermediate 3 Shuttles This is another one of my favorite books. There are about 40 patterns all dealing with snowflakes, including one three-dimensional snowflake. The patterns are written in standard shorthand, but some could be done better using newer techniques such as two-shuttle tatting to make them easier to do with less cutting off of threads. I have had to modify a few of the patterns to increase the number of stitches so that the finished product lays flatter. Overall though, the patterns are well written. It's still one of my favorite books for the variety of snowflakes.
	Mini Tats 69 Petite Motifs (Duff) Beginner 4 Shuttles This book has 69 patterns for small flowers or snowflake type designs. They can be used for notepaper, mini ornaments or appliques. Most are 1 to 2 inches in diameter. They are an excellent way to use up thread left on the shuttle after completing a larger project! The patterns are written in standard shorthand and also diagramed making them very easy to follow. This is an excellent book for all tatting experience levels.		Tatters Treasure Chest (Waldrep) Intermediate 3 Shuttles The approx 105 patterns in this book are all written in the standard shorthand and include laces, doilies, placemats, baby items, alphabet, medallions and more. The patterns are written in an older style which makes them a little more difficult to follow. The variety of projects is wonderful but I wouldn't recommend it for beginners until they get more experience in reading patterns.
	Tatting Patterns (Sanders) Experienced 2 Shuttles This is another book written in old style shorthand and very difficult to follow. The only thing I like about this book is a three dimensional pansy that eventually turned out great, but not without modifying the pattern and a lot of frustration! Many of the patterns also call for a peculiar type of thread that has wider bumps in it that is probably no longer manufactured - at least I've never seen it! It's a nice book to look at and see what prior generations did with tatting, but definitely not a book I'd recommend for anyone not experienced.		Tatting Patterns and Designs (Blomqvist) Intermediate 3 Shuttles This is a book with a variety of approx. 86 patterns covering doilies, laces, bookmarks, snowflakes, medallions and bridal crowns. My favorite cross bookmark is a modified version of one of the patterns from this book. The patterns are written in a new shorthand (3-3-3 etc) which makes them relatively easy to follow, but doesn't specify where joins are made. I've also had to modify about 75% of the patterns I've tried from this book just to make them come out right. I like the variety but not how the patterns are constructed so I wouldn't recommend this book for beginners at all.
	Old Issues of Workbasket Magazine (No rating and not available through Handy Hands) These are good sources for all kinds of tatting patterns. Some issues didn't have tatting patterns in, but most had at least one. They are all old-style shorthand but pretty easy to read and follow. There were a couple issues with the wrong photo (as soon as I can find my listing, I'll make a note of them here!) My current collection has about 75% of the patterns that were published and I've only done a fraction of them. The level of difficulty varies. Some use rick-rack edging or crocheted hairpin lace as part of the design. Next time you are in an antique shop, keep an eye out for these small magazines!