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Where creativity & imagination go hand-in-hand... |
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Monthly Newsletter November 2014
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Hello Braiders,
 Greetings from Truckee! I feel like I have been on awhirlwind of learning new things, meeting new people and acquiring new skills. Happy, happy, happy! In the last two weeks of October, I took classes from Laverne Waddington, Makiko Tada and Adrienne Gaskell.
Just before leaving for Japan, I "got lucky" and was able to fill an opening in Laverne Waddington's Backstrap Weaving Class. Loved every warp, weft, shed, sword, moment of it. Everything about it was new to me. In addition to learning the fundamentals of Backstrap Weaving, it was valuable for me, as a teacher, to be in the shoes of the student that has the least experience.
After the Backstrap Weaving workshop, I went home and literally started packing for Japan. Before I knew it I was rolling my carry-on bag out the door, with butterflies in my stomach, heading for Japan where I would meet a brand new group of soon to be friends and fellow Kumihimo lovers. In Japan, I had the honor of meeting and taking classes from Makiko Tada and learning new skills from the exceptionally talented Kumihimo Bead expert, Adrienne Gaskell.
Needless to say, I feel so fortunate for these amazing experiences and grateful to the people that make it all possible.
Happy Braiding,
karen@whataknit.com
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Laverne Waddington - Backstrap Weaving Teacher Extrodinair!
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The week before leaving for Japan, I tried something new! An opening became available in a Backstrap Weaving Class and I grasped the opportunity and I am so glad that I did. Before this class, I had no experience with any type of weaving so it was sort of with a leap of faith that I trusted my fiber guild friends who were sure I would love it. And love it - I did!
The 2 day class, "Complimentary-Warp Pick-Up Weaving and Weaving an Andean Tubular Band - Nawi Awapa", were taught by Laverne Waddington. Born in India, raised in Australia and now living in Bolivia, she travels in the Spring and Fall to teach and share her love of weaving. Laverne is an excellent teacher and a delightful person. Considering I knew nothing about weaving when I arrived at the class, I
 was very happy at the end of two days when I left with wonderful samples and many new skills (photo right)! I really enjoyed the class. Laverne is one of those teachers that comes very well prepared, times everything just right, and gives and gives and gives. I also had the pleasure of having her over to my home for lunch one day after the workshop and showed her my Kumihimo braids. It was interesting to me that there are braids that can be made on the Marudai or disk that are similar to the narrow bands we made on the backstrap looms, reinforcing that there is often times more than one way to create something. For any of you that are interested in honing your skills or learning something new, I highly recommend that you contact Laverne Waddington about teaching a workshop for you. Her email address is lavernewaddington@yahoo.es. |
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Japan Adventure Tour with Makiko Tada & Adrienne Gaskell
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 Thank you to so many of you that wished me a great trip to Japan. It was another trip of a lifetime. The experiences far exceeded my wildest expectations. I smiled so much that I actually had to rub my cheeks at night because they felt so sore! How's that for a happy camper?
It's hard to know where to start. We had a plentiful and exciting itinerary, perfect weather, fantastic classes and a VERY special group of people. We "clicked" and I think we all went home with our hearts warmed by new and special friendships.
Japan is beautiful. Busy yes, but beautiful. Cleanliness worth mentioning, a peacefulness amidst the hustle, a sense of security, attention to detail and a refreshing touch of tradition. The kimono clad woman and children were absolutely beautiful. Breathtaking, stop-in your-tracks beautiful! I loved, loved, loved it!  As for site-seeing my favorites include Fushimi Inari, our personalized Walking Tour of Kyoto with Shinsaku Tada (Makiko's husband), Miyajima and the trip to the top of  Mt Misen and Hiroshima for the Peace Park. Actually I loved everything - riding the buses, subways, trains and even the bullet train. I was excited every second of every day but today, in my post trip recovery, some of it is a blurr! W  e had two days of classes with MAKIKO TADA and two days of classes with ADRIENNE GASKELL. For those of you that know me, you know that I was super excited about the opportunity to meet Makiko Tada. And it was incredible. Makiko is a beautiful, talented, generous teacher and she has a wonderful sense of humor! It was very special to meet her. And Adrienne Gaskell is very special too. Adrienne kept us super busy teaching us new techniques. Her generosity was also overwhelming. We had four days of non-stop learning. Fiber braids on the Marudai with Makiko and beaded braids on the Marudai with Adrienne. Incredible. Fun, fun, fun! While we were in Hiroshima we had a fantastic tour of the Toho Bead Factory. What an  incredible experience that was. I hope I never hear anyone ever complain about the price of beads. The making of Toho beads is a very long process with quality control checks all along the way. Each bead is its own little masterpiece! 
Thank you to all that made the trip possible: Adrienne Gaskell, Kim Tamarin, Makiko Tada and Shinsaku Tada.
I will try to put together a slideshow in the near future.
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Free * Holiday Necklace * Tutorial
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Another Quick & Easy! This is an 8 strand round braid made with Petite Satin Cord and the closure is a 6mm Glue-in Silver Plated Toggle & Loop.
You will need:
- Red Petite Satin*
- Green Petite Satin
- White Petite Satin
- 6/0 Seed Beads
- 6mm Toggle Closure
- Glue (I like WeldBond)
- Scissors
- Measuring Tape
- Needle & Thread to finish ends
*The yardage required of Petite Satin Cord will depend on the length you want to make your necklace - same goes for the beads (see my notes below for the sample I made).
You should know:
Kumihimo Round Braid
Instructions:
1. Determine desired finished length of necklace; multiply by 2.5 (ex desired finished length 20". 20" x 2.5 = 50").
2. You will cut 8 lengths of satin in the length you determined above. You will cut 4 Red, 2 Green and 2 White.
3. Set up disk with the satin cord in the N, S, E, W positions as shown below.
4. Add 6/0 seed beads to the N and S elements as indicated in the diagram below. (I used 6/0 Crystal AB seed beads).
5. Wind cording and beads into bobbins so they do not tangle when you are braiding.
5. When the beads are loaded and wound into bobbins, begin braiding (left up, top down, rotate, repeat).
6. I braided about 3" with satin only and then dropped beads until they were gone. Then I finished with another 3" of braiding.
7. Finish the ends and glue into end caps.
My Necklace Notes:
The sample I made is 20" long from toggle to loop.
I cut each of my cords 50" long therefore I used almost 6 yards of Red, almost 3 yards of Green and almost 3 yards of White.
I used 150 6/0 seed beads. The beaded portion is 13" long. I strung 75 beads on each cord noted in the diagram below (150 beads total). There are approximately 12 (Miyuki) to 15 (Toho) 6/0 seed beads in a gram. 150/12 = 12 1/2. I allowed 12 1/2 grams of beads for my necklace.
The beaded portion is 13" long. I strung 75 beads on each cord noted in the diagram below (150 beads total).
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Just added! KUMIHIMO BOOK
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 New to my book collection!
Jacqui Carey: Japanese Braiding - The Art of Kumihimo $21.95
This is a wonderful book and reference for those braiders that are new to the Marudai. It's also great for braiders with experience. The book contains step by step photos that show joining warp threads to tama leaders, winding the tama and making a slip knot, mounting your braiding cords on the Marudai and working the braid. You'll learn many braids including Square, Round, Flat, Honeycomb, Hollow and Round Flat braids. (Hard Back with Spiral, 96 pages).
Makiko Tada: (Disk & Plate books)
Comprehensive Treatise of Braid VI: Disk & Plate ($42) Comprehensive Treatise of Braids VII: Disk & Plate 2 ($42)
Rodrick Owen:
Braids: 250 Patterns from Japan, Peru & Beyond ($19.95 - excellent book for Disk, Plate and Marudai)
Jacqui Carey: Beads & Braids($39.95) The Book of Braids: A New Approach to Creating Kumihimo ($39.95 - excellent resource for Marudai braiders)
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NEW! TOHO & MIYUKI 8/0 SEED BEADS
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8/0 TOHO Seed Beads: Frosted Silver Lined Gray, Transparent Rainbow Honeycomb, Silver Lined Milky Nutmeg, Ceylon Gladiola, Metallic Nebula, Metallic Hematite, Crystal Metallic Teal, Silver Lined Gray. These colors are gorgeous in "real life". Sometimes photos just don't do colors, luster and sparkle any justice!
8/0 TOHO: Periwinkle, Cornflower, Wisteria
8/0 MIYUKI: Aqua Alabaster, Luminous Sun Glow
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What a Knit - GIFT CERTIFICATES
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Can't decide on which kit to give? Keep it simple and get a Gift Certificate. It will surely delight anyone that loves Kumihimo!
Available in increments of $25, $35, $50, $75, $100, $125 and $150.
You order the gift certificate, I mail it to you, you give it to someone special and the recipient emails their order to me. It's that simple.
My telephone number is on the Gift Certificate. I am easy to reach and I am happy to assist!
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Kumihimo Group - Sun City West, AZ
|  It is always heart-warming for me when I hear about the good things that Kumihimo brings into people's lives. Retirees in Sun City West, AZ who live in Grandview Terrace Independent Living have been introduced to Kumihimo through Pearl Quast who says that this wonderful expression of art fits right into the mission of Masterpiece Living. Physical, intellectual, social and spiritual qualities make up masterpiece living and are accomplished while working the loom, creating new designs, sharing completed projects and enjoying the work of one another. There are a  dozen people from all professions who meet in a special room, in the complex, twice a month to learn a new technique and to share ideas. It has become the buzz word in the dining room, the exercise room and the lobby throughout the day. Each week a new person or two inquires and wants to get started "with the fun of Kumihimo." Pearl says the group is almost up to a dozen and ranges in age from 73 to 90 something and that Kumihimo has been the vehicle that has helped her meet so many new like-minded people in her community. And so it is, Kumihimo is a wonderful experience at so many levels. |
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WHAT A KNIT ! Newsletter Archives
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For those of you that are new to What A Knit, you'll find some good info in the archived newsletters.
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Shopping
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I have 12 "Kumihimo Shops" to meet all of your Kumihimo needs.
All orders are through PayPal (or use the credit card option) and I ship orders via USPS First Class Mail. This has been amazingly reliable and incredibly fast. Most orders are shipped the same day I receive them.
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