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Moss Hollow Pottery
17 Rock Road
Lakeville, PA 18438
mosshollowpottery@verizon.net About Us 
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Please look here for answers to your braiding questions.
Q: How do I get started?
A: You're making an 8 warp braid, so you need 8 cords (or 8 sets of cords). There are 4 two yard cords in the kit. Fold them in half and tie them in the center with a string, a twistee tie, or even make a knot in them.
Place the string (tie or knot) into the center hole in the board from the top down. This willl put all eight cords on the top of the board. Put one cord (or one set of cords) into the notches on both sides of all four dots printed on the board. This will give you four sets of two cords that are evenly spaced on the board.
Turn the board over and wind the cords into the no tangle bobbins. Turn board back to face up and you're ready to go.
You may have to apply some downward pressure to get started. Just put your thumb on the center of the cords in the hole and push downward slightly for the first few sequences. Or use your index and middle fingers under the board to pull slightly downward on the thread or twistee tie. Some braiders will add a wight to the center of the cords, not my preferred option but it can work.
Q: How much cord do I start with?
A: 3:1 is a good rule of thumb. Use 3" of cords on all 8 warps for each 1" of braid you want to make.
Q: Braid is too short:
A: If you purchased a kit from me you received 4 cords of #1 rattail, each 72" long. If you folded these in half and tied a string or "twistee tie" in the center (clean start method) rather than tying a knot in them you should have braid that's about 15" - 17" long. If you relaxed the braid by stretching it to it's longest length you should get a braid that's 17" - 22" long.
A: If you're mixing the weight of the warps (some thin and some thick) you will frequently use up one or two of the warps much more quickly than the rest. In the future pull a longer length on the thin. Ditto for warps that have beads on them. The smaller weight warps get used up more quickly because they have to wrap around the thicker warps within the structure of the braid.
A: If you've got a braid that's short use it as a bracelet; make a necklace by cutting it in half and putting a bead set in the center (this is shown in my book Braiding for Beaders); use it as the center of necklace with a pendant slide on it (this is shown in the instructions that come with the new BeadSmith board). Put chain or beads on the ends to make it your desired length.
Q: I don't know how to finish the braid:
A: The new BeadSmith board illustrates this in the lower left hand corner on the inside of the instruction sheet. My book shows this on page 25. Just take a thread (I prefer size D S-lon), tie it just inside of where you want to make your cut. Wrap it around the braid a time or two (aka whipping); tie it off with a square knot and trim the ends; cut the braid; glue the braids and the whipping into the end cap.
A: If you don't want to whip the end prior to cutting here's an alternative: using a clear glue (I prefer Super Glue regular formula) put a drop or two where you want to cut the braid. The glue will soak into the braid and hold the warps in place. Once the glue dries just cut the glued area with very sharp scissors. Glue the caps into place.
A: If you want to use head pins and cones, whip the head pin onto the end of the braid, slide the cone over the headpin and the braid, finish with a wrapped loop.
Q: Braid is too big/too small for the caps/cones, how do I make it fit?
A: My braiding kit (starting about April 2009) comes with 2 sizes of caps: Four 6mm and four 4mm (sometimes 3.5mm) end caps. Kits prior to this had eight 6mm caps.
If you're making a braid out of the #1 rattail that came with the kit use the 6mm caps. Eight warps of #1 rattail makes a perfect 6mm braid (if you've reduced the braid by relaxing it).
A: If your braid has a really large diameter you'll want to use an 8mm or 11mm cap. The copper and gold necklace that I always have on display in my booth uses the 11mm brass caps. Or, if you're braiding with soft textiles (yarns or rattail) you can reduce the diameter of the braid during the whipping process. Just make sure that the whipping is kept short enough to be covered by the end cap or cone.
A: if you've made a tiny braid and the caps you've got on hand are too large you can "cheat" the design by tying a knot about 1/4" from the end of the braid. This sets the cord cap up against the knot and you can't see that the braid doesn't completely fill the cap.
A: You can easily make spring caps to the diameter you need if you've got wire and mandrels.
Q: Can I use braids in jewelry designs without the use of caps or cones?
A: Yes, I explore this option in the book Braiding for Beaders on pages 21 -25.
Q: How much do I need?
A: A good "rule of thumb" is 3:1. Use 3" of textiles on each warp for every 1" of braid you want to make.
Q: How many beads should I use?
A: This varies by the size of bead and weight/mix of textiles to beaded/non-beaded warps. I'm working on it. For now figure the size bead/inch x number of warps you're using beads. EG: if using size 6 seed beads on all 8 warps you'll need 64 beads per inch.
Q: The beads aren't "right"; what's wrong?
A: Most of these braid structures are hollow, the basic 8 warp round that most of you are using is. Therefore, you generally want the bead to set on the surface of the braid (as opposed to becoming trapped in the middle). The "working warp" will be crossing 2 warps on its way to it's new notch. If the bead on that working warp falls over the top and in between the 2 warps that are being crossed it will fall into the center of the braid. So, what you want to do is slide the bead on the working warp into the center hole and tuck it under the first of the 2 warps that are being crossed. This will assure that the beads stays on the surface of the braid.
Beads trapped in the middle can be cool; especially if you're using large wooden beads and hemp. Try beads on just one waro and cage them within the braid; it's a very rustic look.
Q: My braid is all twisted and lumpy!
A: Most likely you're crossing over the center when moving your warp. Be sure to keep the left on the left and the right on the right. If the working warp is coming out of the bottom left it gets placed in the top left.
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