This was my entry for the spring challenge. Button fastenings work brilliantly with kumihimo and there are several different ways of making the loop and attaching the button. For this one I decided to experiment with making a button hole during the braiding process. Half Round Braid is ideal for this sort of technique. When I reached the required length …
This pretty bracelet can be found in the latest issue of Digital Beading. The spikey rizo beads are offset by the ultra-feminine bow. It is quick and easy to make up and the huge range of colours and surface finishes available in this grain of rice shaped bead means it can be adapted to suit any colour scheme or theme. …
Happy Easter to all kumihimo braiders! The long weekend is a great opportunity to eat far too much chocolate and spend way too much time braiding. Just be careful that sticky, choccy fingers don’t spoil your braids! I made this braid using my Stylish Stackers tutorial and was very pleased to find the perfect props for the photo. They won’t …
After such a wet winter it is wonderful that spring has arrived with such gusto! The gardens and parks have been transformed with vibrant displays of fresh spring colours, so I have decided to do the same thing to the pages of my blog. I took lots of photos in my garden, but I found that I got by far …
I will always be particularly fond of this design because it was my first front cover on Beads & Beyond. When a friend messaged me to say that my design had made it to the magazine cover I was amazed and delighted and it will always remain one of my proudest achievements. I have taken my time in reworking this …
Yesterday I attended a great workshop with Rachel Norris, the well known and well loved UK wire artist. We made this amazing dragonfly using just 10 beads and loads of wire. The workshop was only 3 hours long, so it was not possible to finish and I have been working hard to get mine done before I forgot how to …
It is Mothers’ Day here in the UK and I would like to wish every mother a very happy day. I thought I would find some pretty flowers to post for Mothers’ Day. I haven’t shown this bracelet before and nor have I written a tutorial for it because the construction is rather complex and I found another way of …
The tutorial for this natty, knotty bracelet is about to go into the shop. The design was originally launched as Nautical Knots in Digital Beading magazine. It has now been rewritten, renamed and expanded and will soon be available as Charming Knots. Why do I make so many changes to a tutorial before I put it on my site? One …
Wags Wicone, what a great name! This clever little tool was invented by the husband and father of two jewellery makers. As with so many of the best designs it is very simple, but very effective. It is perfectly possible to wrap wire around any number of household objects to create interesting shapes. A knitting needle makes a very good …
Last month’s challenge over on the Kumihimo Challenge Group was to create a design using 16 cords (or warps if you prefer). By using 16 slots on the disk a whole new area of design possibilities open up and there are several websites offering pattern generators. Flowers, strawberries, cupcakes, watermelons can all be depicted in the braid, to name just …
