Before adding roll tatting to a ring, it is necessary to make at least one DS to anchor your rolls. I have done 2 blurry DS to begin my ring in Pic 1. I have been using a needle puller to help control the thread as I begin adding rolls. The needle puller is a rubber disk used a lot in hand quilting to pull a needle loaded with several stitches through the layers of a quilt. For this purpose, it grips the DS and completed rolls from beneath and makes it easier to control them in the pinch.
To make the rolls, hold the carrying thread* taught and pass the shuttle under the carrying thread (Pic 2). Bring the shuttle up and over the carrying thread and repeat for as many rolls as you wish to add at one time. Although I have read that adding 3 or 4 rolls at one time is recommended, I like loading up and have done as many as ten rolls at once. *I'm defining the carrying thread as the thread between the pinch and middle finger of my left hand, where the DS are usually worked.
In Pic 3 I have tatted 2 DS and loaded 10 rolls. I am still holding the carrying thread taught.
In Pic 4 I have flipped the ten rolls by relaxing the tension on the carrying thread and pulling the shuttle thread taught (like flipping a regular DS stitch).
(Pic 5) At this point I usually drop my shuttle to hang while I continue holding the shuttle thread taught with my right hand middle, ring and pinky fingers. A little tension is required on the carrying thread to keep the rolls from rolling back on themselves while my right hand pointer finger and thumb begin scooting the rolls toward the DS. Speaking of DS, don't forget to keep a good grip on them and try to keep their heads up (or "fancy pants" down) as you work with the rolls.
You can't really tell it, but Pic 6 is an ACTION shot! I am "massaging" the rolls between my thumb and pointer finger in a counter-clockwise or "lefty-loosey" direction to work out lumps as I continue scooting the rolls toward the DS. The motion is much like winding a watch, except going the opposite direction. Be careful not to roll too tight so you won't have difficulty closing the ring.
OH NO!!! The DS have flipped heads down. I'll need to fix that before I close the ring.
In Pic 7 I have added two more sets of 10 rolls. I prefer working with larger sets of rolls because I find them easier to control as I get them into the pinch. I have also stitched 2 DS to anchor my rolls. Always make a DS after you have completed the number of rolls a pattern requires for a ring.
In Pic 8 I have begun closing my ring. Before you begin closing a ring with roll tatting, make sure all your DS are heads up and your picots are to the outside of the ring.
Here is my completed ring
(Pic 9). The first ring is hardest for me because the rolls want to twist more. The needle puller helps me control that. I didn't put a picot in this ring although I would imagine most patterns would call for one so you can connect rings. Once a pattern is underway, the previous tatting helps subsequent roll tatting not be as twisty. At that point I find I no longer need the needle puller.
And that's the way I roll...
