Starting the
Braid This can be a pain. The good news is that
you only have to do it once per rug. But done nicely, the
beginning will be virtually undetectable in the center of the rug.
The illustrations here show how to start a rug with three separate
colors.
- Attach the first two strips, following
the method on the previous
page.
- Turn the combined strip over, so reverse
side of the fabric is facing up, and rotate it horizontally on the
work table.
- Fold the upper edge down to meet the middle
of the new combined strip, and the bottom edge upward to meet the
middle, as shown in the first step for folding on the
previous page.
- Take your third strip, and fold it
completely, according to instructions on the previous
page.
- Place the folded third strip on top
of the inside of the combined strip, at a right angle as shown below,
to the left of the seam on the combined strip.
- Line up the top of the third strip with the
horizontal center of the combined strip.
- Using thread that matches Strip #1 (Blue in
our picture), tack down Strip #3 in place with a small stitch or two.
- Fold down the top edge of the combined
Strips #1 and #2. Tack into place as unobtrusively as possible.
- Aha, three strips all attached! Fold
the right-hand horizontal strip (red) down over the vertical strip
(yellow), so that the open edges on all three strips are to your
right.
- Slide the left (blue) strip over the center
(red) strip so that the open edge stays to the right.
- Manipulate the right (yellow) strip over
the center (red) strip so you can keep the open edge to the
right. This will form a pointed end for the start of your
braid. Sometimes I have to fool with this a bit, to make it
neat.
- From here, you can start regular
braiding. Always keep the open edges of each strip to the right,
and keep the braids very tight.
|
