Coronavirus Doily - the grand finale!

At last!  It took a while but I hope you'll agree it's worth it! 
I'd like to think this has some correspondence to this time when we're all working on our own stuff - and ourselves - and will come out of it with great appreciation for how beautiful everyone is, the beauty around us and the beauty we've created...  this pattern uses a bunch of esoteric techniques you'll be so much more comfortable with now, so perhaps it was useful as well as pretty.

Wind a shuttle and ball CTM.  In fact, if you’re planning ahead, wind at least two shuttles full and cut from the ball, then wind a third shuttle and leave attached to the ball.  The number of  filled shuttles you’ll need will, of course, depend on your thread size – I used size 50.  And, incidentally, the finished doily in size 50 is  about 12 inches in diameter.  Note: there's an odd symbol here  you'll see twice because blogger wouldn't let me transfer a dingbat into the pattern - it's a place to take note of because it's the spot you'll return to for repeats.

R: 8-8+ (to a bottom R of previous section) 8+ (to CH p of previous round) 8.

&*& R: 7+ (use a fine crochet hook to join to the joining p several rounds back (see photo) meaning you’re crossing over the previous CH round to join in the same space) 7.

R: 8+ (to next free p on CH round 8+ (to bottom R of previous section – this will be the next flower cluster) 8-8.

CH: 5-5

R: 4+ (to last p on previous R) 12+ (to next R of same flower cluster) 8-8.

CH: 5-5

R: 4+ (to last p on previous R) 12 --- (this is a long picot, which will pull up to be about ½ inch high in size 20 thread….  You’ll need to experiment with other size threads, because it will become a double picot and you’ll need to join to it three times more) 1+ (back to the long p) 15.

{{CH: 5-5-5-5

R: 7+ (join to double p) 7.}} twice

CH: 5-5-5-5

R: 16+ (to double p) 12-4.

CH: 5-5

R: 8+ (to R p) 8+ (to 4^th p on flower cluster) 12-4.

CH: 5-5

R: 8+ (to last R p) 8+ to fifth p on flower cluster) 8+ (to next free CH p) 8+

Repeat from &*& around.  You’ll be ending with CH: 5-5, join to base of first R, tie, cut and sew in ends.

Dampen, block, paying attention to the middles of the flower clusters and the middles of the points - they seem to want to twist! and press.

And if you've gotten this far - congratulations and thank you for bearing with me.  I hope I get to see what yours looks like!

Coronavirus doily Part 9

This round has a lot of start-and-stop to it, but it’s the next-to-last round, and the last one will be continuous.  You will (I hope) appreciate the pickiness of this round later…  Wind two shuttles with two different colors, then take the two threads and tie them together with a square knot.  The ends may be worked into the first two rings – that’s part of the pickiness of this, I’m afraid.  I really wanted a bright golden yellow in this round and very sharp eyes may note this is not the same gauge as the other threads.  It seems to work anyway because this ring isn’t structural – I wanted that color there as a sort of gleam of hope in the center of the flower… if you assume the purple is a flower.  You could, of course, make things very slightly easier on yourself and use a single color here. 

Using the main color and tatting in the tail, R: 7+ (join to a p on previous round) 5-7-5. 

After closing the ring, use a fine crochet hook to make a shuttle-join / lock join to the join made in the previous round.  Which means you’re joining to a picot two rounds back. 

R: 5+5-6-4.

Using the second thread-color shuttle, R: 4+3-3-4.

Cut the second thread color and work its tail into the next ring.

R: 4+6-5-5.

After closing this ring, repeat the lock join to the same place as before.

R: 5+7-5+ (to next p of round below) 7.  This last join is tricky, but yes, you can do it!

Cut thread and sew in ends. 

Leaving two picots completely free, Repeat around.  There will be 22 of these flowers around the doily and it will take a little time.  It will take me just a little more time to finish it...