I find it very soothing to work with a bit of cotton string -- it actually helps me concentrate better when I'm engaged in conversations or attending concerts or shows. I make quite a few of them, usually finishing the ends off with a small tassel, and then I give them away.
If you're wondering why you got one, all I can say is "Who knows?" Either you expressed interest, or smiled at me, or maybe you were just near at hand when I finished it. Enjoy.
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Very often, people will ask "How much?" I point out that since I give these away in person, I cannot, in all conscience, ask for payment from any recipient.
I do make some fancy ones, for which I may charge a nominal sum, depending on how fancy they are, how much trouble I went to in making them, or some other factor at the time. Generally this involves hand-dyed string, or unusual patterns. Again, you'd have to catch me in person to see what I've got on hand, but you can see some examples at the bottom of this page.
If you look around at any of the conventions or dances that I have attended, you will probably see at least a few folks sporting these as bracelets. If you have glanced through the photo folders here on my site, you may have noticed them on the wrists of some of the individuals in the pictures.
Please don't ask me to start mass producing these and sending them out -- they are made on the spot and given away, strictly on an ad hoc basis. If you want one, come and find me, in person, and ask for one.
In addition, feel free to explore the part of the site where I have placed illustrated directions on making them, and learn to do your own.
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In teaching kids how to make bracelets in string, I've been working my way toward easier and easier teaching props, and I've come up with patterns that can be wrapped around those styrofoam "noodle" pool toys and used as a guide for the Turk's-head knots I use. There are two, so far, the five-lead by nine-bight knot and the seven-lead by nine-bight knot.
Print the pattern out with no scaling and it should be just about the right size to wrap around the noodle. Put toothpicks into the loops, no particular precision required, then follow the over and under pattern of the knot with string.
Once you get back to the starting point, pull it off the cylinder and run more string through, next to the first pass, and tighten it up to the desired size. Practice until you get it right. Oh, and never tighten it down on someone's wrist -- always leave some slack.
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Okay, here's a pile of fancy bracelets, hand-dyed cotton seine twine, mostly #18 and #24, various colors, and a few bits of mixed-up string.
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Sometimes I finish a bracelet in white cotton (like the one at the top of this page) and then dye it. This is interesting enough, but if I then re-size it, the colors shift around. Look at this one:
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Here's an even fancier one:
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Here's one that I've finished dyeing, but haven't shaped into a bracelet yet:
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Okay, several people have asked me about these, and offered to buy them, so I'll see how this works out. If you would like a fancy-colored bracelet, it's $25; you can click this "buy" button and I'll send you one.
They're all different, and they're all the same... so I don't know for sure what you'll end up with. Small ones for kids, big ones for adults.
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