Page 118 - Lidya Chen "Complete Book of Chinese Knotting"

07 Creative Designs (115-129) 4/10/07 1:41 PM Page 115

Creative Chinese

Knotting Designs

Since the publication of her first
book, Chinese Knotting: Creative De-
signs That Are Easy and Fun!, nearly
twenty-five years ago, Lydia Chen has
been relentless in her researches into
Chinese knots. She has continued to
explore the origins of Chinese knots
by examining ancient artifacts and
learning from their intricacy, and at
the same time has continuously in-
vented new knots and accumulated a
vast personal collection of designs.
The following section is a sampling of
her creative knot formations.
In Chinese Knotting and her sec-
ond book, Fun with Chinese Knotting:
Making Your Own Fashion Accessories
and Accents, detailed notes and dia-
grams were given for each knotting
application. Here, however, because of
the complexity of the new formations
discussed, no diagrams are provided,
only detailed descriptions and a
photograph of each finished design.
This has been done intentionally; the
designs are primarily intended to
inspire readers to create their own
masterpieces.
The chapter is divided into six
sections: (1) Conceiving a Design,
(2) Real and Imaginary Creatures,
(3) Flowers and People, (4) Painting
Chinese Knots, (5) Plafond Designs
and (6) Jewelry and Ornaments.

115