Page 218 - Lindsey Philpott "The Ultimate Book of Decorative Knots"

212 the ultimate book of decorative knots

Introductory notes for a few instances in which we parallel a strand with
We will focus on the first type of TH Knot for most another strand of a different colour or texture.
of the chapter, particularly looking at ways in which First, let’s take a look at the single strand TH
we can ‘grow’ or expand one knot into another. Knot. We have to start with a couple of brief
Expanding one TH Knot into another involves some definitions:
pattern recognition. I suggest you look carefully Bight: The ‘bump’ around the perimeter circles
at the photographs and read the accompanying or the one in the centre circle of a TH Knot, whether
instructions to give yourself an opportunity to in flat, cylindrical, or spherical form.
see what is happening for each one. If you are still Lead: The crossing of one strand by another
unsure, don’t lose hope, but instead try again. It strand between bights – leads are sometimes also
is a simple weave, going over and under, but made referred to as ‘parts.’
such that it returns to its starting point, just like Pass: The number of times that a single cord or
wrapping a cord around something but deliberately strand travels around the TH Knot from start to
moving over and under one pass after another as finish; once from start to finish is a single pass, twice
well as remembering to move from one ‘side’ to the and the TH Knot is doubled, three times around and
other. If neither the photographs nor the written the TH Knot is doubled and doubled again or, for
explanations work for you, perhaps try creating a most of us, tripled. When making a Single-Strand
string pattern to follow, something like connect TH there is one golden rule to follow: The number
the dots, but with the lines drawn in for you. There of bights and leads must not be divisible by the same
is a tool to help you do this toward the end of this number, except when dividing leads or bights by the
chapter. number one.
Turk’s Head Knots as flat mats are made on the Let’s try a few examples. If a TH has four bights
basis of two circles, one inside the other, that are it cannot have an even number of leads, because
made with a single strand. Those two circles form even numbers are divisible by two, just as four is
the inner and outer edges of the TH weave. The TH divisible by two. Another example: If a TH has six
weave moves between the two circles, first one circle bights it cannot have three leads, four leads, six
and then the other, inside to outside and back again, leads, eight leads, nine leads, ten leads, twelve leads,
ever repeating itself until it completes the entire fourteen leads, fifteen leads, etc., because six and the
woven round, like the mythological Ouroboros that other numbers are divisible by both two and three.
swallows its own tail. Woven circles can then also
readily be formed into a cylinder if the outer edge
or circumference of the circle is matched in size sIngle-strand tH Knots
with the interior ring of the TH weave to make the Fortunately, someone (Clifford W. Ashley) has
weave go around the face of the cylinder instead of worked out a handy table that shows which TH
lying flat. Beyond the circle and the cylinder, the TH Single-Strand Knots can and cannot be made. The
can then further be manipulated into a sphere, with ones that can be made are labelled with an X in the
care being taken to form a small enough number of following table.
bights and a large enough series of crossings and Every X represents a possible TH of one strand.
by adding some interior bights within the weave The number of bights is read across the top row,
to enable the surface of the sphere to be covered. the number of leads is read down the left column.
We will describe more of that later in the chapter. The ‘S’ is a special case; one lead and one bight is a
Our first attempts will be made using a cylinder. grommet, or circle. I have left in the obvious case
Many people use the centre cardboard tube from of the single bight with any number of leads, which
the centre of a roll of kitchen paper or foil for this results in a double helix and does not seem to me
purpose. In most cases in this chapter we will be to follow the ‘spirit’ of the TH Knot, even if it is
making our TH Knots with single strands, except technically true!