Thursday, April 19, 2012

Beaded Kumihimo

Kongo Gumi,

Kumihimo beading

An old type of Japanese braiding, kumihimo was really created to the seal regarding battle suits for Japanese samurai and the horses. Afterwards, kumihimo braids had been utilized to secure quilted coats as well as kimonos. Nowadays, kumihimo is much more well-known than in the past and also beaders have discovered exactly how these types of braids may be used to highlight a unique lampwork cyrstal glass bead and just how they may be adorned together with strands associated with gleaming gemstone beads. Kumihimo is completed over a light in weight disk, usually done of froth, along with steps for every follicle associated with dietary fiber becoming braided. Another kind of free-standing kumihimo device is known as the marudai as well as is made up of wooden group upon 4 hip and legs. Materials attached with bobbins tend to be braided with the pit down the middle of the actual wooden group. The simple, stroking movements associated with braiding materials with each other create kumihimo an excellent option with regard to including a hand-crafted string for your preferred hand crafted cup or even porcelain bead.

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Saturday, April 14, 2012

Kumihimo Instruction - Braiding Disk Template

"Kumi" means to braid or gather together and "Himo" means string or cord so "Kumihimo" means simply braided cords. Traditionally Kumihimo is done on a Marudai which is a round wooden stand that the braider would kneel at. Modern braiders tend to braid at tables and Marudai can be made of plastic and more portable versions are simple disks cut from thick foam rubber.

For a simple eight-strand braid you will need:

  • A sheet of thick card
  • 2 strands of thread or yarn a meter long in one colour
  • 2 strands of thread or yarn a meter long in another colour
  • Scissors


Instructions

  1. First make your Marudai, use the template below to cut one from your card.
  2. Fold your 4 strands in half and knot them to make a loop, push this through the hole in the centre of your Marudai and wedge the strands into the slits as shown
  3. Move the top right strand to the slit to the right of the bottom pair then the bottom left strand to the slit to the left of the top strand.
  4. Rotate your Marudai a quarter-turn anti-clockwise and repeat with the two other pairs.
  5. Continue working this way until your braid is the desired length then knot it and trim away the excess thread.

maru dai, marudai, kumihimo marudai



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