Kumihimo - Ancient Japanese Art From

In my quest to find unusual jewelry techniques and a little bit out of the ordinary, I have discovered Japanese Kumihimo. It literally means interlaced threads, and is an ancient Japanese art form of braiding. It was originally used to lace together the body armor of the Samurai, and when the Samurai were banned from Japan, it found its way into Japanese theatre, costumes and the tie that fits around the obi.

There are still Kumihimo societies operating in Japan but for the most part they keep their braiding techniques secret. However, with a little research and dogged determination, I have uncovered resources for many types of the braids and configurations used. The braids are executed on a wooden Muradai using threaded bobbins and tension to create uniformity in the braids.

I am on a mission to learn many types of knotting and braiding to compliment my metal embossed and polymer clay pieces. By far, Chinese knotting is the more difficult, if only because of the incredible detail that goes into forming these knots. I'm getting there, but this is a more timely process, and requires a little bit of meditation thrown in.