Questions, Comments, or Photographs for Discussion with Carolyn Oliver
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When we are doing other braids and transitioning to new braids, how do we know if we should skip a step or where to start for a smooth transition? Second question, I usually look to the point of braiding to figure out if I need to add or remove weight do you have a better way to figure out if an adjustment is needed in the counterweight?
When you are choosing your own transitions think about how the moves of the current braid and the new braid line up. Is there any point in the current braid that would flow easily to the new one? Two examples that I didn’t include in the course that are straightforward are kongo gumi Z twist to kaku yatsu and kongo gumi S twist to Edo yatsu.
For the counterweight I look at the point of braiding as well, but another way to check is to insert the chopstick in the point of braiding, remove the counterweight, and look at the braid. This is really helpful when the structure is one that you haven’t braided before.
I enjoyed this sampler braid and found some sections/transitions worked better for me than others. The braid was made with imposter (gray – 2 sections per tama) and pink fiber (do not know what it is – used 10 ends/tama). Tried my best with transitions but not sure if I did 2-3 and 4-5 correctly. You will see that braid 8 looks wonky – not sure what happened there. I was most surprised by braid 7 – Hira Nami. It was new to me and the movements seemed most unusual. It is now one of my favorite braids!
Thank you CarolynPhyllis, I think your braid looks great! With a little practice you should be fine. I’m glad you like hira nami, despite it’s odd move sequence it’s a good braid. Nishiki yatsu is a challenge for sure, but you did well with it. Thanks for posting!
Katherine, that looks good, thank you so much for posting your braid. I’m glad you enjoyed the class.
I decided to make a short necklace with the first and last braid at 3 inches. The 7 middle braids are each 2 inches. I used silk. I was OK not using 2 alternate colors. It didn’t make a difference when braiding. I didn’t quite match my colors side to side on the necklace to make it even although I tried. I loved doing this class. The directions were very clear. Thanks again Carolyn!My finished braid. I learned so much from transitioning to different braids. Thank you Carolyn!
Here’s my transitions braid, done in a Japanese purple precut metallic. I had not previously done the Nishiki Yatsu braid before – I really like the way it looks. I also appreciated the tip about putting a piece of tape on one of the marudai legs, 5 – 6 inches below the mirror with the idea that you unroll your tama to that length and braid until your tama are at the mirror and then change braid structures. Since the hole in the bead is quite large I’m planning to make 1 or 2 more braids and use them all together. I’m thinking of an entire braid of Nishiki Yatsu, since it’s new to me, and then if I need a 3rd, maybe Kawari Edo Yatsu I. because I really like that braid. Because I still have many other braids from the Virtual Gathering to complete, it is unlikely that this project will be completed prior to November 14th, but if it is, I’ll post a picture here.
Thanks for sharing your braid and your plans for it, Jane. The braid looks good and I think putting this braid with others would be a really great look for the finished piece. Nishiki yatsu is a fairly new braid to me as well and I think it is a lot of fun on it’s own.
I used purple metallic for my braid, and did not follow the instructions exactly – I did longer sections of some and shorter sections for others. This will be kept as a sample of the different braid structures.
What a fun class. I really enjoyed doing all the different braids, as a new braider many were new to me. I think this was my best braid yet.
I used Imposter from BraidersHand in 167 Dusty Rose and a metallic in a dark rose (my attempt to name it) that I got from Giovanna Imperia a long time ago. I enjoyed all of these braids. Braid 9, Kara Yatsu, was braided after Braid 7 because the counter weight was similar. And then I changed the counter weight and braided Braid 8 Nashiki Yatsu. I wasn’t very successful braiding Kara Yatsu and did a very short sample of it. I’ll have to go back and try it again.
Thanks, Carolyn, for a great class!
Marlene, that looks great. Changing up the order of braids is perfectly fine, and doing it because of the counterweight change is a great reason. I hope you go back and try kaku yatsu again, it’s an interesting braid once you get used to it.
I used Imposter-a nice magenta and pale gold. This was a really fun project and the directions were easy to follow. I plan to turn it into a necklace and will make my own lampwork bead as a focal. Thank you, Carolyn.<
Peggy, your braid is so nice and I’m sure a matching bead will make it even better! Thank you for sharing.
This was a great class for me to get started with Kumihimo. Thank you for great class notes.
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