How to Make Split Rings With a Tatting Needle

Tatting creates durable and beautiful lace patterns for collars, edging, doilies and more. In its simplest form, it's a series of knots and small loops forming chains and rings. You can use these chains and rings in an almost endless combination. If you want to make rings that are attached to each other, without a chain in between, you need to know how to make split rings.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Start the ring as you would a normal ring. Double stitch however many stitches you need to make half of the ring. If your pattern calls for picots, add them as you would for a normal ring as well.

2. Unthread the needle. Turn your work around and then create the double stitches and picots you need for the second half of your split ring with the thread you just unthreaded from the needle. For the first half of the ring, work from the center towards the tip of the needle using the ball or shuttle thread. For the second half of the ring, work from the center towards the eye of the needle using the needle thread.

3. Finish off the ring. Re-thread the needle with the thread you just used. Slide both halves of the ring off the needle. Close the ring and knot it to secure the stitches.

Tips & Warnings

• The second half of the ring is a reverse of the first side. If you'd like all the stitches to look identical in the final piece, work the double stitches in the second half of the ring in the reverse of how you usually do them.