Page 23 - Lindsey Philpott "The Ultimate Book of Decorative Knots"

MATErIALs, METHods, MEAsUrEMEnTs, And TooLs 17

of your palm. Make a turn up and around your
outstretched thumb, anti-clockwise if on your left
hand, clockwise if on your right hand. Stretch out
your little finger and wind the cord in the opposite
direction around the little finger, making a figure-
of-eight twist across your palm. Keep making
figure-of-eight turns until you have enough cord
for the work you are going to do, then finish it off
by slipping the coils from your thumb only and
putting a Half Hitch around the centre of the bundle
before taking it off your little finger. Add a second
Half Hitch in the same direction (making a Clove
Hitch) around the centre of the bundle. Now, find
the end you started with and you can begin the work
Note the thumb on top of the cord and the pricker
tip under the cord. The pricker is held by the re- with that end. As you start to use up the cord, pull
maining fingers of the right hand. out one or two twists of the figure-of-eight bundle
and retighten the Clove Hitch around the middle,
save your nails from being chipped, cracked, and to keep the bundle in place. You could use elastic
broken from trying to grip and pull a piece of cord bands if you do not know how to make a Half Hitch,
through a tight spot. There are a number of ready- but always start your piece with the end you started
made prickers you can buy. I have several that I use, on your palm prior to winding around your thumb
depending on what I am working on. All of them and little finger. You may even want to add a slip of
share a single feature: They are not sharp enough to paper or tape with a number or letter on it under the
penetrate the fibre I am working with, unless I really Clove Hitch or elastic band, to identify which knittle
stab at it. The ends have a radiused or tapered point, it is for later reference.
but it is never sharp. If it were, it would pick up stray The ends of cords can be easily confused with
fibres and could even snag fibres that then could not each other, particularly if you are making something
be smoothed down again, which could wreck the with multiple cords of the same colour. Wrap the
finished look of the piece. To use a pricker, insert end with a piece of differently coloured electrician’s
just the tip parallel to the cord you want to pull and tape or, using a piece of drafting tape, add a letter or
then slide the tip under sideways, place your thumb number to each end of each cord, so that you can tell
on top of the cord, and, using the rest of your hand which one is which. For some cords, tape will not
to grip the tool, press down with your thumb-tip work, so try adding a dab of cyanoacrylate glue (also
enough so that you can grip the cord and pull it called CA glue or superglue) to the end of your cord
through. Try not to pull from too far away in the and allow it to set hard before beginning your work.
piece; instead, pull directly adjacent to the length Colour or identification can then be added with a
that requires your attention. Pulling from too far coloured pen or marker.
away can stretch the cord without getting the piece
you want in place.
If you are making anything with particularly Tip: When passing the end of a cord through
long cords in it, make the cords up into a bundle a piece, it is sometimes better to insert the
(or knittle, as it was once called). Start with the doubled end rather than the very tip, so that the
cord in your sub-dominant hand, palm facing tip does not become worn out.
you, with the tip of the cord at the little finger side