The structure for this braid is very simple: maru genji. It works up very quickly and easily, and the resulting braid is very flexible. At this scale it is slightly harder than when it is worked with more strands per tama, but after experimenting with different amounts of counterweight, I opted for using only 50% of the total tama weight (8 ounces or 227g) so that the individual stitches in tbe braid would remain square. It took me roughly five hours to complete the 137 inches (3.5m) of braid. Instructions for the maru genji structure on the maru dai are found on page 25 of Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids, page 37 of Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo , page 18 of Carey’s Beginner’s Guide to Braiding: The Craft of Kumihimo, and page 53 of Rodrick Owen’s Braids: 250 Patterns from Japan, Peru & Beyond.

The creation of the braid was the simple part – using it to create the necklace I envisioned was more complex, though not difficult. With patience, this is definitely a beginner-level project. First I determined the inner length of the braid (roughly 18 inches, or 45cm), including the width of the magnetic slide clasp from Hobby Lobby.

Then, after marking the center point, I divided the braid into segments which gradually decreased in size from center to end. I marked each division with quilting pins with large heads so that the braid would not slip off too easily and so that I could remove them easily when the time came.

Each subsequent row contained an increasing number of stitches to create the drops. The stitch where the pin is inserted was NOT included in the counts given here – this list is only the number of stitches between pins.


First drop row pinned to base row. (The yellow pin head indicates the center stitch in the base row.)

Second drop row pinned to previous two rows.

 
Third drop row pinned to previous three rows.

Once all four rows had been pinned, they were sewn together with four strands of the rayon, and sliver beads were added as spacers. The rayon carried on the tapestry needle (using a rounded tip needle prevents splitting any of the threads which make up the braid) disappears nicely into the braid if you’re careful to avoid spanning two stitches in the braid structure. The path of the thread through the beads is shown here.
 

Beads were not added at points where the number of stitches in a row was equal to the number in the previous row, as shown in the back view of the necklace.

The magnetic clasp slides open vertically.

The braid structure that I chose is a variation and expansion of hira yatsu found on page 73 of Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo . I used sixteen 70g tama, but I increased the counterweight to 24 ounces (680g) to make the braid more supple. The fiber was from the supply of Imposter from Braidershand: color #61 Graphite, #40 Silver and #6 Dark Coral. The 105″ (2.7m) length tied in the center gave a warp length of 52 inches (1.3m). When the braiding was complete, the finished length was 27.5 inches (68.5cm) of braid with 12 inches (30.5cm) waste.

My choice of braid structure was both for the hand of the finished braid and for the way the colors could be arranged. The initial color set-up was as follows: color #6 Dark Coral at positions 1 and 12; color #40 Silver at positions 2 and 11; and color #61 Graphite at positions 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,13,14,15, and 16.

The magnetic clasp is from Facebead. The design includes a receptacle at each end which is ideal for mounting a braid, and there is a small latch that reinforces the magnetic closure. The rhodium plated finish is very nice and the effect seems very modern and attractive.

I chose a spiral structure in plain black rayon to allow the focus to remain on the pendant itself. (For more information on how this type of spiral braid is constructed, see the instructions for the Spiral Snake Necklace I did last November.) This time I chose to use sixteen 70g tama for the float elements instead of twelve that I used for the Snake Necklace. Again I used four 100g tama to carry the tie-down elements in order to provide the increased tension necessary for a well-formed spiral braid. The tie-down elements were one-half the size of the float elements (and twice as long to account for the increased take-up for those elements), and each of the four carried a single strand of C-Lon to carry beads. I used a counterweight of 20 ounces (567g).

I made several attempts to drop 6/0 or 11/0 glass beads on the tie-down elements, but I was unhappy with the inconsistency of the bead placement. In the end, I left all beads off during the first half of the braiding process. When I had completed enough of the spiral structure for the first half of the necklace, I stabilized the braid with the chopstick and removed the strands of C-Lon from the tie-down elements. I passed all four of the C-Lon strands through eighteen 11/0 TOHO glass beads, then threaded the beaded length through the small hole in the pendant. I returned the C-Lon strands to the four 100g tama and continued to braid the spiral structure until I matched the length of the first half of the necklace. In this way, there are four very strong pieces of C-Lon to support the weight of the stone pendant and stand up to whatever abrasion may occur within the glass beads.

The Imposter Rayon in color #20 Black and the end caps are from Braidershand, the magnetic clasp is from Toho Shoji Crafts & Parts in New York, and the split jump rings are from Gifts of Avalon. After spending the majority of January closely supervising tradesmen who were working on an exterior renovation of my home, I am thrilled to be able to get back into the studio to braid!

(above) The half-round cross section braid from Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids

(left) 16 tama flat braid with antique mahjong tiles.

(above) Flat braid with double-coin knots securing a dichroic pendant

(below) Purple silk with Chinese coins and dragon pendant








(above) Detail of braided loop closure
(below) Braid of sewing thread with kokopelli pendant

A holiday craft fair is held at the University of Florida on the first Saturday of December, and a good friend and I enjoy spending the day there each year. This year I tested her patience mightily when I passed a booth selling hundreds of different kinds of beads for the customized bracelets and necklaces that are very popular here. I decided that perhaps I could create a braid that would be small enough to pass through the beads, and I spent a very long time choosing possible combinations from the overwhelming display of options.

Instructions for the kongoh structure on the maru dai are found in all basic maru dai texts, including Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids, Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo and Beginner’s Guide to Braiding: The Craft of Kumihimo, Rodrick Owen’s Braids: 250 Patterns from Japan, Peru & Beyond, and Catherine Martin’s Kumihimo: Japanese Silk Braiding Techniques. The initial color arrangement is shown here.

I used a 567gram counterweight in order to make the kongoh structure a bit more supple and narrow. The warp consisted of two sections each of the #11 Natural and #13 White Imposter from Braidershand, doubled and each section divided in half for the sixteen 70g tama. The finished braid was at least four inches longer than the necklace because I lost the binding (and watched precious inches of braid unravel) twice while threading the beads onto the braid. The end caps and magnetic clasp are from Lavaliere Sterling and Stones, Inc. in New York City.

Before I could start, of course, I had to make a quick trip to the local “Everything’s $1″ store to look for the silly party straws. There were two types available: a red and white holiday set and a multicolor set. Each necklace requires two of the straws, so one package would have given me more than enough straws, but I decided to purchase two of the multicolor packages so I’d have two straws of each color just in case the braid didn’t cover the plastic completely. After rearranging the curves on a table several times, I cut away the parts I did not need to use until I was satisfied with the shape. At first I taped the join at the center bottom, but I discovered as I braided that it was better to leave the two halves separate. They are quite secure within the braid, and the break allows the necklace to be more flexible. I also learned that the tightest part of the curve needs to be large enough to accommodate the thickness of the mirror on your maru dai.

I wound four of the sixteen tama with a metallic silver thread, and the remaining 12 were wound with Imposter rayon from Braidershand in color #30 Ocean Jade. I chose the colors thinking I’d use a fused glass pendant with those colors, but when the braid was finished I decided that the larger silver snowflake would be more attractive. I measured the curves on the straws and found that I would need at least a full 36 inches (91cm) of completed braid for the necklace, so I used six full sections of the Imposted instead of folding them in half as I usually do. Using a 455g counterweight, the 105-inch (267cm) warp yielded 36 inches (91cm) of finished braid with approximately 27 inches (69cm) of waste remaining. The diagram shows the initial color arrangement I used. Instructions for the kara uchi gumi structure on the maru dai with 16 tama are found on page 87 of Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids, page 60 of Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo , page 141 of Rodrick Owen’s Braids: 250 Patterns from Japan, Peru & Beyond, and page 67 of Catherine Martin’s Kumihimo: Japanese Silk Braiding Techniques.

Beginning braiders often complain about the kara uchi gumi, or hollow structure, because they find it easy to get lost during the braiding process. (I myself found this structure very difficult to complete without many errors at first.) The structure is an ideal lesson in why watching the kensaki, or point of braiding, is so critical when you are braiding. The kensaki shows you immediately what step is needed next, and when you train yourself to watch what is going on there, you will know where you are in the process and what comes next. The sequence always starts at the North/South axis. One of the elements in the North and South pairs is free, and the other in each pair is crossed by an element from the previous move. The structure is a tubular plain weave – that is, over one, under one. The free thread must be crossed by another to continue the 1-1 weave, so if the free thread is on the right, then the next sequence will be clockwise (above left). If the free thread in each pair is on the left, then the next sequence will be counter-clockwise (below left). Be sure to take your time and concentrate on the process. (I find that instrumental music on the noise-cancelling headphones helps a great deal with that.) Take the time to realign the eight pairs of tama frequently so that you can clearly see the “flower” at the kensaki. I found that the structure was easier to control if I kept the tama lower than I normally would – at about 12 inches (30cm) below the bottom of the mirror. This was especially helpful when I was braiding around the core.

I began by braiding about 9 inches (23cm) without a core, although I did use one of the straight pieces that I’d cut off of the drinking straw to keep the center space consistent so that it would be easy to insert the squiggle core later, and also so that it would not collapse and be distorted by the counterweight. When the straight piece began to appear short, I would gently pull it up and continue braiding. The metallic silver thread gave the braid more body than it would have had with only the rayon thread. When I had completed the 9 inches, I inserted the first half of the core. I kept it on the North/South axis. The core must be moved out of the way so that the stitch can be placed underneath it as you go around the curves. The kensaki tilts as the core curves, and I found that occasionally the stitches were elongated, but it did not seem to ruin the overall appearance of the braid. Once I had braided around both of the straw segments, I finished by braiding another 9 inches (23cm) without the core.

Next time I may try another approach – braiding the entire length of the kara uchi gumi structure using a core slightly larger than the straw, then threading the cord through the braid after it is removed from the maru dai. Making the cut ends of the drinking straw very smooth will be essential for that strategy to work, but I think it might be worth trying. The book suggested that one of the advantages of using the drinking straws is that you can thread a length of C-Lon through the straw itself and bring it out to attach a focal bead or pendant.

I finished the necklace by binding the ends and gluing them into a finding/clasp set designed by Jill Mackay for the Bead Landing line at Michael’s. I made sure to thread the bale of the pendant onto the braid before gluing the second side of the finding/clasp set. As I said in the beginning of this article, I had a lot of fun creating this necklace, and I am very pleased with the result!

The “flower” at the kensaki, or point of braiding, for the hollow braid.

I chose to do a monochromatic braid so that the pattern would not distract the eye from the assortment of beads and the pendant. A single package of four sections of the Imposter silk substitute from Braidershand in color #42 Green Tint was folded in half to provide sufficient length for a single necklace without much waste. I knew that in order to carry the beads on the fiber itself instead of using a supplemental warp, I would have to divide the rayon into sixteen segments instead of only eight segments. But I also knew that working a kongoh gumi structure with 16 tama creates a stiffer braid with stitches so small that much of the sheen of the rayon is hidden (see the Holiday Necklace I completed on vacation). Instead, I chose the maru genji gumi structure, which has longer stitches on the surface of the braid. Because the tama move in pairs when working maru genji gumi, I placed 12 beads on every other tama to allow enough space for the 6/0 beads on the outside of the braid.

I used a 454g (16oz) counterweight for the sixteen 70g tama, and placed the tama carrying beads at each of the even-numbered positions. I braided a little more than nine inches of plain maru genji gumi, then I dropped one bead with each move until I had placed six beads from each tama. I learned to be careful that the strands on the tama without the beads in each pair was left securely behind the bead on its companion tama. Then I braided three sequences without dropping any beads before starting to drop beads again. Once the remaining half of the beads were in place, I completed another length of plain maru genji gumi equal to the initial length of plain braid for the second half of the necklace. The finished length was 22 inches (56cm) with about 10 inches (25cm) of waste.

I found some 11/0 seed beads in similar colors in beads that I’d saved from other projects, and I created a band of them to attach the Peridot sea glass donut from Wild About Beads to the braid. I also added a carved quartz rosette from Black Market Minerals to decorate the pendant. I finished the necklace by attaching end caps and a clasp in yellow gold to pick up the gold in some of the beads.

Instructions for the maru genji gumi structure on the maru dai are found on page 72 of Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids, page 51 of Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo , page 97 of Rodrick Owen’s Braids: 250 Patterns from Japan, Peru & Beyond, and page 59 of Catherine Martin’s Kumihimo: Japanese Silk Braiding Techniques.

I am uncertain which side of the pendant was intended to be the front and which the back, but I prefer the side pictured at the left. The eight tama kusari tunagi braid passed easily through the opening in the bale on the pendant, and the weight of the pendant allows the necklace to hang nicely. I used eight 70g tama, and a counterweight of 227g. I was able to get 24 inches (61cm) of the kusari tunagi structure at the end of the warp in addition to the 27 inches (68cm) for the sea glass donut necklace.

Instructions for the kusari tunagi structure on the maru dai are found on page 34 of Jacqui Carey’s Creative Kumihimo , page 24 of Makiko Tada’s Comprehensive Treatise on Braids Volume I: Maru Dai Braids, and page 38 of Charlene Marietti’s Kumihimo. The Imposter rayon, the end caps, and the snap clasp are all from Braidershand, and the split rings are from Gifts of Avalon.