I know that I should be finishing up projects (dolls and quilts mostly) but I've also been working on a new obsession in between sewing sessions. A couple months ago I saw a display on some gorgeous necklaces and bracelets at a sewing show. Turns out that the necklaces were made using a very old Japanese braiding technique called Kumihimo. It looked easy and portable so it would be a fantastic thing to bring on RV trips or when I wanted to do something while watching TV.
The basics are simple - wrap your cut cords onto plastic bobbins and then move the cords among the slots on the foam Kumihimo disk. The braid will form in the hole in the center. This is the beginners way to achieve braids. The experts use a large wood hoop on a stand called a marudai that doesn't have slots and is stationary. I'm pretty satisfied with my first braids on the foam disk and don't want to lose the portability.
First I made an 8-strand braid in a black satin rat-tail cord. I used it to hold a crystal heart pendant that Steve gave me many, many years ago. I used to have it on a black velvet tube but didn't like the look too much. This was just the ticket!
Detail of the braid plus a piece of the magnetic closure.
Next I made another braid using a hand-dyed multi red/pink satin rat-tail. I'm pretty excited by this one but haven't decided what decoration it needs to complete the necklace. Reds haven't been my color in more than a decade but I'm starting to be attracted by the rich reds again.
A closeup of the variety of pinks and reds in the cord.
This is the foam Kumihimo disk with my third braid. The how-to book mentioned a tip about stopping half-way through a complete "stitch" so that you'd know where to pick up. In this case I'd first rotate the disk until the 4/5/6 were facing me. Then I'd take the #6 strand up and put it in the #20 slot and then rotate the disk for the start of the next "stitch". Once you get the rhythm it's fairly mindless and therefore perfect for movie-watching or when you just want to relax a bit.
A closeup of the braid that's forming in the disk's center hole.
Once I finish the above cord I'd really like to try the technique that really got me hooked - braiding with seed beads! I'll start small with a braided bracelet. I probably won't start for a few weeks but I'm looking forward to it.
