Introduction: Needle Tatting a Necklace

About: I'm a tattooed needle tatter, a stay at home mom and a homeschooler. I sell my work on etsy. I hope to offer a few patterns more here as I get the time. You can also follow me on twitter as TotusMel and read m…

If you've mastered the tatted flower instructable, you're ready to learn a few new techniques. This necklace will help you learn split rings, josephine knots and clovers to create a wearable piece of tatted art.

This necklace is a modified version of my Fleurette necklace.

You will need basic needle tatting experience easily learned in my other instructable including the double stitch(ds), picots(p), rings(r), chains(ch) and joining.

This design used size 10 crochet cotton and a size 5 tatting needle.

The laws of Copyright Protection permit this tutorial to be used for personal use only. Reselling for profit is prohibited.


Step 1: Josephine Knot

Start by threading your needle leaving about a six foot tail in the eye of the needle.

1.Make a ring of 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds. Close and reverse work

The Josephine knot is simply the first half of the double stitch repeated creating a spiral chain.

After every 10th stitch you will want to take the thread up and around the needle to maintain an even spiral.

For this design we will be making a Josephine knot chain of 60 stitches. Pull the thread through the needle as you would for a normal chain. Close and reverse work.

Step 2: Split Ring

Next we're going to do a split ring, these are usually written like this: 4-4/4-4. The slash representing the split.

Start the ring by tatting 4ds 1p 4ds. Then un-thread the needle and turn it around. You will now be tatting with the tail thread. Continue with 4ds 1 p 4ds.

Re-thread the needle and close the ring like a normal ring and reverse work.

Step 3: The Chain

Continue working with Josephine Knot chains and split rings until you have a total of 4 chains and 4 rings including the first one you made.

Step 4: The Pendant

Now we're starting the main pendant portion of the necklace.
1. R 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds close rw
2. Ch 5ds 1p 5ds 1p 5ds close rw
3. R 3ds 1p 3ds join to center picot of last ring 3ds 1p 3ds close do not reverse
4. R 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds cl rw
5. Ch 10 cl rw

Step 5: Clover Motif

One of the most common elements in tatting is the clover, while they can vary wildly in stitch counts, they are constructed the same way.

1.R 4ds join to center picot of previous ring 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 4ds, close DO NOT reverse work
2. R 4ds join to last picot of previous ring 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 4ds close DO NOT reverse work
3. R 4ds join to last picot of previous ring 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 2ds 1p 4ds close rw

Clover done

Step 6: Finish Pendant

Work up the second side as a mirror to the first half.
1. Ch 10 cl rw
2. R 3ds 1p 3ds join to last picot of previous ring 3ds 1p 3ds close DO NOT reverse work
3. R 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds 1p 3ds cl rw
4. Ch 5 join to picot of opposite chain 5ds 1p 5 ds cl rw
5. R 3ds 1p 3ds join to center ring of previous ring 3ds 1p 3ds cl rw

Step 7: Second Chain & Done

Work the second chain the same as the first with a total of 3 split rings and 4 Josephine knot chains of 60 stitches.

Finish with a Ring of 4ds 1p 4ds 1p 4ds 1p 4ds close tie a double knot, cut and hide the ends in the last ring.

Press the finished piece with steam, then add whatever clasp you like to the ends using the picots to attach them.

You can now use these techniques to create any necklace design you like by changing the center motif or pendant section and varying the chains and split rings.