Fingerloop braids are braids woven using loops or bowes of string on your fingers. If you need a strong lacing, a finger loop braid will multiply the strength of your stringrope by 10. Of course, braiding is no more an exclusively japanese art than is paper folding, but it serves as a convenient term to distinguish the craft from what i do with my hair. Making and sharing are her two biggest passions, and shes created hundreds of free online diy tutorials and videos, mostly about. I finally completed the fingerloop braiding for this project.
Finger loop braiding takes practice, but is doable. Becky stern is a content creator at autodeskinstructables, and part time faculty at new yorks school of visual arts products of design grad program. Fingerloop braids found in digs in london have been dated to as early as the 12th century. Where there are minor differences between the harleian and the tollemache, the tollemache is used unless it is an obvious mistake. They have information about fingerloop braids from all over the world and from different periods. The directions for this braid is tollemache 38, greyne dorge of 6 bows. The resulting braid could be used as a lace, for fastening, or as trim.
Oldest known image of fingerloop braiding, fingerheld loopmanipulation. This does not create lace such as that created by bobbin lace. Fingerloop braiding is one form of the technique of loop manipulation, which can be used to make braids of all sizes and complexities. It is found throughout history all over the world including medieval and renaissance europe. Modern instructions and original text i have two ways to get to the. The first one is the full view from my hands to the anchor. It includes instructions for all the braids in the then known 15th and 17th. I am proof and available to help teach these to shirelings. The resultant braids were used to tie doublet and hose in the middle ages, bodice ties for the elizabethans, ornamental frogging in the 18th century, right up to the victorians. Hold your hands with the palms up and the fingers slightly hooked to hold the loops in place. Learning to braid with string is a great way to test out new types of braids before working it with other materials like hair, rope or ribbon. With your hands slightly cupped, palms facing towards you and fingers towards the center, place a loop onto the index al and middle bl fingers of your left hand, and on middle br finger of your right hand.
It can actually make 3 different braidsroundish, flat, and two tiny braids at the same time. Assume the motor will be a 24 loop 48 single strand or. This braiding technique still survives today in isolated areas of europe, the middle east, south america and japan. Loop braiding is a fun, fast way to make strong, beautiful cords and bands. Using your right index ar finger, go through the loop on your right middle br finger. The fiveloop braid appears in four structural variants. Bracelets, chokers, belts, hat bands, as trim on clothing, or furniture if you need a strong lacing, a finger loop braid will multiply the strength of your stringrope by 10. A single bowe is one length of string, folded in half and looped around a finger. Moisture and grease on a finger result in fingerprints on surfaces such as glass or metal. My 9 loop tutorial includes a full phototutorial, as well as video. Ten loops was most common, but there were two 20 loop braids, which would probably have required four workers. Fingerloop braiding was a popular technique in 15th century.
Content 1 lengberg castle 2 fingerloop braiding a manuscripts b lengberg. Use divided braiding with all 5 loops to make two minibraids cut them apart at the bottom. Using only 100 fabric loops, the rope develops from the straight chain that forms while doing the most basic finger weaving technique. For that method, she crochets the extra cord in a chain that sits at the back of the loop like my bobbins and is dragged through the loops as you braid. Modern instructions and original text i have two ways to get to the same information, depending on your needs. The explanation on page 4 and mcleans drawing of hands working a fiveloop braid p. Old english pattern books for loop braiding loop braiding. The ridges enter from one side of a finger, form a curve, and then exit on that same side. Multiperson fingerloop braiding phialas string page. Pattern books for fingerloop braiding exist from the 15th and 17th centuries.
Jun 05, 2011 likewise, try 9 loop braids after getting used to the moves of 7 loop braids. Beginning with the basics of hair tools, brushes, and accessories, this simpletouse guide presents braiding techniques from the rope ponytail and chignon to french twists and cornrows. Many pattern books survive from the 15th and 16th c. These examples are purse strings, edgings for hairnets, and loose braids possibly laces or hat laces. Repeat the previous steps with your left hand use the index finger to move through the loop on the left middle finger, and take the loop from your right ring finger reversed. Click on tutorials in my upper menu to find all my tutorial posts, in an ordered sequence.
It is a type of braiding known as loop manipulation. Native americans north, central and south americans used finger weaving to create many items for their home and clothing. To me, old english loop braiding books or loop braiding. Fingerloop braiding patterns from 15th century texts treatise on the making of laces tollemache book of secrets and directions for making many sorts of laces ms harley 2320. This type of braid was very common in medieval london crowfoot et al. Beginning finger weavers find making a jump rope one of the easiest ways to master the weaving technique. Braiding techniques such as kumihimo, fingerloop braiding or plaiting, require a finite length of thread. Other than joining with a partner and playing with colors theres not a lot of design potential to explore. Diy jewelry easy instructions for diy braided bracelets, made from any type of cord or thick string. They were used as edging on mesh hairnets, purse strings, and for fastening clothing.
The actual number and color of bowes will vary follow the directions given with each braiding pattern. Get finger weaving indian braiding pdf file for free on our ebook library pdf file. Beginning fingerloop braiding there is also a printable document version of this class. Things to make when finger weaving with loops our pastimes. Magic fingers hair braiding provides style and beauty the way you want it.
Finger loop braid 2 square braid this pattern makes a really nice. A divided braid is like braiding two braids at the same timeuseful for braiding a loop or buttonhole into one or both ends of your braid. Learn the ancient art of flat braiding a method that predates the loom, a. The three basic patterns of fingerprint ridges are the arch, loop, and whorl. Start with 2 loops on the left hand and 1 on the right hand. Using this book i became fairly proficient at this skill. Loopmaniputlation braiding research and information center. I needed a short bit of medieval braid for a project, so join me while i attempt to show how to make the specific pattern a grene dorge of vi bowes, from t. Loop braiding encompasses both finger loop braiding fingerheld loopmanipulation braiding is a more technical term, and handheld loop braidingsee my kuteuchi tutorial, as well as the photos near the end of my piece on rodrick owen and ancient peruvian flat braids. The ridges enter from one side of the finger, rise in the center forming an arc, and then exit the other side of the finger. The ends are turned back a few inches, then covered tightly with more fabric loops to form handles at.
Fingerloop braiding reached a high point in medieval europe and england between 1200 and 1600 ce. A fingerprint is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. Magic fingers hair braiding, daytona beach, florida. There have been archaeological finds of fingerloop braids from as early as the 12th century, and documented patterns written pattern books dating.
It has numerous illustrations of various finger weaving patterns and pictures of museum quality examples done by others. Multi strand finger loop braiding in this instructable, im going to. First make your four threads the same length, roughly 23 yards, and then loop them up so that you have 4 loops 1 to 1. Fingerloop braiding was used in the late medieval period to produce lacing, hose ties, purse strings, seal tags and similar items. Fingerloop braiding is a technique of making sturdy and decorative cords from threads. Fingerloop braiding for beginners the company of the. Fingerloop braiding is the method of creating a braid using loops of string, held on the fingers of both hands and passed from one hand to the other to create a pattern. Braiding motors keeps the rubber under tension minimizing the cg change during the flight from fore to aft. Motors unwind from the front and the remaining knots always crawl to the back of the bus. Manuscript this is one of at least four similar manuscript books that describe. Sample fingerlooped braids from a fifteenthcentury manuscript.
Braided string creates a strong, thin cord to use in jewelry or other crafts. Fingerloop braiding, or more technically fingerheld loopmanipulation braiding, is an offloom, noequipment technique for making braided bands. Loop maniputlation braiding research and information center. Here in part 1 i demo the roundish version i call it a square braid. The art of braiding, revised basics is the most important book in the art of braiding series and is referred to throughout the entire braiding book collection, as the basic skills taught are those needed in order to braid any item.
Summer is upon us, and this is a great boredom buster, travelfriendly craft. The book is inexpensive and i have used it successfully as. In its dropdown menu click on old english pattern books for loop braiding for my. I explored various thickness and length of these braids. Sep 30, 2014 braiding techniques such as kumihimo, finger loop braiding or plaiting, require a finite length of thread. Introducing the most extensive book on braiding availableover 40 styles for al hair types, from straight to very curly hair.
Grants clearly written guide to the art of leather braiding contains detailed illustrations, stepbystep instructions, and a wealth of incidental, fascinating information. Leather braiding has stood for more than forty years as the definitive book in its field. Finger weaving craft with cotton loops chicacircle. The loop should fit around the first joint of each finger.
My tween loves to use these loops in other crafty ways, and wanted to demonstrate how to finger weave with them to create some fun and colorful accessories. It makes accessible, to even the novice, serviceable and recreational uses of leather, from the simple but clever braided button. The easiest method to put the threads on the bobbins is to make a half hitch with the loop and tighten it around the neck of your weight. Kumihimo home page kumihimo is the japanese name for the art of cordmaking via braiding. Loop manipulation braiding is a form of braiding where the threads to be braided are formed into loops which are placed over the fingers and exchanged in a series of patterns.
I finally completed the finger loop braiding for this project. A braids length is set before the braiding begins a strand of thread is cut and doubled to form a fixedlength loop and the braid cannot be extended. Jun 12, 2012 my tween loves to use these loops in other crafty ways, and wanted to demonstrate how to finger weave with them to create some fun and colorful accessories. You can buy just a bag of refill loops, and be well on your way to some finger weaving fun. In the middle ages, finger loops are known as bowes. He has had a life long interest in learning and teaching crafts including basketry, braiding, bead work, tablet weaving, inkle loom weaving, and wood carving. Fingerloop braiding is done by making loops of thread, then manipulating them variously passing loops through loops in different patterns to form braids. Place one loop on each of the index, middle and ring fingers of your left hand, and one loop each on the index and middle fingers of your right hand. The lucet has been used to make cords for over one thousand years.
The lowest loop of one hand is pulled through the top loop of the other hand, crossing over any other loops. Jun 01, 2006 gerald findley spent many years studying, reproducing, and teaching the art of fingerweaving. Fingerloop braiding patterns from 15th century texts. A select group of braiding publications from around the world. An ongoing comparison of fingerloop braids from three different manuscript sources. Pull it through and onto the right index ar finger. Aug 03, 2012 first loop transfer above square braiding moves.
See more ideas about finger weaving, braids and weaving. This is a reshoot of finger loop braiding lesson 1. From the 15th century onwards, various directions and recipes for different fingerloop braid techniques began to appear in books and in print. Fingerloop braiding is one form of the technique of loop manipulation, which can be used to make braids of all sizes and. Corrections and improvements on the information given in this video will be published here in the description section, along with relevant sources and the na. Bring your finger below and behind the bottom of the loop that is on your left middle bl finger. Gerald findley spent many years studying, reproducing, and teaching the art of fingerweaving. Apr 29, 2017 in other words, you should have a loop on b and c left, and on a, b and c right. The second video is a close up on my hands so you can. The instructions specify to take the loop reversed, but unreversed makes an interesting braid as well. It will be the active fingerthe operator fingerfor the first move. Finger loop braids were popular from the 11th to the 15th century in.
To close the loop back up, you return to the braiding moves for a square or flat braid. Sep 19, 2008 this is a reshoot of finger loop braiding lesson 1. It has been done all over the world for thousands of years, and uses individual fingers to hold the loops. Yarn or thread is used doubled and held in loops at the ends by the fingers. Lucet is a technique suited for very long cords as the braids can be created without premeasuring threads. The braid is made from loops of thread, attached at a central point, and the loops placed over the fingers and interlaced in different ways. Jul 2, 2016 explore unicornfiberarts board craft braiding fingerloop on. The two 15th century examples i am familiar with contain an assortment of recipes for single and multiperson braids. All of the techniques are clearly illustrated with large drawings and. Walk down the loops on your right hand and tension again.