How to Tat With Two Colors

Lace can be made using a tatting shuttle or tatting needles.

Tatting in two colors can be accomplished in several ways. The simplest method is to tat one ring and attach it to another ring of a different color. Interlocking rings in this way can be done with either needle tatting or with shuttle tatting. Entire projects can be designed using this method. Two separate pieces can be made, woven together, and then a third color can be used to make a border, thus uniting a dual project into one. In either case, a working knowledge of tatting would be required before attempting to tat in two colors.

Things You'll Need

• Tatting needle or shuttle
• Tatting thread

Instructions

Make Separate Rings and Chains

1. Make a double-stitch ring using color one. Close the ring.

2. Make a double-stitch ring using color two, but loop one picot into a picot of the ring made with color one.

3. Continue making your two different colored rings and attaching them until you have made enough to complete your pattern.

4. Make chains of the chosen colors and attach them around the picots of the rings as desired.

Make Both Color Sections Together

1. Tie a knot to join your two colors together.

2. Tat a ring with color 1 and close it as close as possible to the knot.

3. Pick up color two and tat a ring or a half ring using the first color as the core. Pull the stitches snugly over the core.

4. Continue tatting in color one or color two as desired. You can alternate colors back and forth as long as you blend the colors seamlessly over the core.

References

• Ribbonwinners Tatting Patterns & Shuttles; Georgia Seitz; 1998
• Lesson 3: How to Tat With Two Colors