What does "dog days" really mean? I was curious also so I checked with the encyclopedias online and discovered the facts. The term was coined in the area of the Mediterranean Sea centuries ago. People in those days were more attuned to nature and were careful observers of the sky. During the last of the summer, the star Sirius, aka the Dog Star, and the sun move closer together in the sky. This celestial movement occurred during the hottest and most humid days of summer in the latitude and were often accompanied by disease and misery.

Thank goodness there is much less disease these days but the heat and humidity can be miserable for everyone. The heat can frustrate tatters into not double checking that ds count before closing that ring, or forgetting an important picot needed for joining. Worst of all, the humidity gives tatters damp hands which may make the thread wet in spots. Damp thread will not glide easily when tatting and many a knot may result. (Keep a pouch of talcum powder in your basic tatting kit but keep excess powder from the lace.)

So, here it is, the "dog days" of summer. Too hot to tat? Well, take a break and think tatting. Enjoy!