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In my garage I’ve been going through boxes of craft supplies stashed away and forgotten about over 3 moves in about 5 years. Running across my huge toolbox of Kumihimo supplies made me surprisingly happy. Recently a reader had asked if I might get back into this fun braiding craft, as she wanted some more project ideas. Today I’m happy to say that I’ve picked my Kumihimo wheel back up and have gotten after it.
The very first time I posted about Kumihimo patterns on this blog was almost SEVEN years ago. I was obsessed and shared 5 different patterns you can create with 8 strands of cord in 2 colors. Little did I know just how often I would reference my own post. It’s hard to remember where to place the cords after a few years :)
Back when I first wrote this post, I used yarn more often than not because it was cheap. But in those 7 years satin cord, sometimes called rattail or bugtail, depending on it’s diameter has gotten a lot more affordable. And I’ve noticed that a lot of y’all are saving this post to Pinterest… It seemed with a spike in interest and a decrease in the cost of materials, Kumihimo is the PERFECT quarantine craft!
What is Kumihimo?
If you haven’t heard of Kumihimo before, here’s a little FYI on the quick… Kumi himo is Japanese and it means “gathered threads”. An ancient craft from the 6th century, Kumihimo is the art of braiding cords, threads, ribbons, strands of beads, jewelry wire and so much more into gorgeous ropes.
You can repeatedly make your favorite Kumihimo patterns by keeping track of the placement of your cords.
Supplies for Kumihimo
I love Kumihimo because you can start out this craft without a ton of expense. Just starting out with the basics, you will need a foam disc and then cords to braid together.
- Kumihimo Disk
- 1mm Satin Cord (Bugtail)
- Scissors
These days you can get 735 total yards of 15 different colors of satin cord for around $30. Prices on Amazon fluctuate like crazy. I actually ordered this set of cord for less than $25 so watch for a good deal.
For enough length of cord to make an 8 strand Kumihimo bracelet, you’ll need around 20 inches per strand, or 160 total inches per braid. If you get one of these big samplers of satin cord, you’ll be able to braid more than 120 different bracelets. In my book, that makes this an extremely affordable craft!
To make round braids you’ll need a round foam disk. You need a disk that is made from thick foam so that it doesn’t bend. The one I’ve linked to is the one I’ve had for over 7 years and it’s still in tip-top shape. They sell for around $6 apiece. There are also square Kumihimo disks for flat braids, but we’ll get into that on another day…
Or you can grab a Kumihimo Kit.
If you just want to get enough materials to see if this is a craft you’re into, you can purchase a Kumihimo kit for around $24 on Amazon. If you have a Hobby Lobby in your neck of the woods, you can get this kit for $15+ tax if you use their 40% off coupon. I think $15 isn’t a bad investment to check out a new craft…
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8 Strand Kumihimo Color Guide
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Now to the meat of this post, the patterns…
Originally in this post I shared 5 patterns. But over the years I’ve gotten 9 favorites that are my go to braids. All of them use 8 warps (or strands of cord) in only 2 colors. It’s fun to make a whole wrist-ful of bracelets using the same colors just different patterns. I will make a stack of Kumihimo bracelets in whatever color palette that has taken over my wardrobe. Here are the patterns:
This post was updated on 6-19-2020.
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I’m excited to find this site devoted oing kuminhimo. I love the craft and look forward to someone focusing on it.
Hello! I’m new to braiding and I love your page. Do you have some kind of formula to figure the length of everything I need, to fit my wrist??
Hey, Taylor! So glad you’re getting into Kumihimo – it’s such fun! I’d strongly suggest making a few practice braids. Measure out, say, 2 feet of cord and see how many inches long your braid ends up being. You can kind of math out how much material you need for a bracelet without waste in the future. Also, the braids have a LOT of stretch. Before making any bracelets I pre-stretch the braids because eventually they’ll stretch anyway and then you have a gigantic bracelet that is way too big. Let me know if you have any other questions!
I love Kumihimo it is so relaxing. I want to learn how to add large beads th necklaces and more difficult patterns. Thanks for free patterns.
Thank you!
Thanks for the two-color patterns. I was introduced to Kumihimo by a friend just before the pandemic and was instantly smitten to the point of being obsessed. I made a lot of lanyards– gave some away, but I just loved working with different colors and experimenting with patterns.
I can’t seem to subscribe for the download – says there is an error. Thanks.
I’ll shoot it to you by email. Thanks for the heads up!
the designs are great but there are no instructions on movement . Yes I am a new inductee. I am hooked and need lots of help. Thank you.
Hi, Lydia! I actually have a different post with movements for the basic 8-strand. Just place your colors in your disc like you see in this post here for the pattern you want, and then move them like you see here –> https://www.dreamalittlebigger.com/post/kumihimo-8-strand-cord-tutorial.html BEST OF LUCK! :)
You can buy the nylon thread on eBay pretty cheap by doing auction only and free shipping. I have gotten most of my colors for under 40 cents for 28 m.
Thank you so much! I was hunting all over for a guide to the color combinations to make what I wanted. Really helpful.
What a fantastic resource! Thank you. I just picked up a disk today and can’t wait to get braiding. Pinning so I don’t loose track of your visual pattern placement index!
There’s this really cool website ( http://craftdesignonline.com/kumihimo/braids/ ) where you can plan out your colours ahead of time and see what they’ll look like. It’s been a great tool for me to figure out some great unique designs before I start! Also, you can use DMC embroidery floss (if you embroidered you probably have plenty lying around, but instead of separating the strands you just use the whole piece) instead of yarn. One skein of floss would usually make me about one solid-colour bracelet, and they’re pretty cheap!
Hello Alison,
I just found your comments on Face Book. Thank you, some very interesting ideas. I have been making Kumihimo bracelets for some time, and have also invented some new ideas I could share with you if I only knew how to put them on the computer ! For instance, I use 1/8 inch ribbon from Michaels, 50c for 10 yards on a disc, so not expensive, and a good selection of colours. I don’t start with a knot of the ribbon, but fold the lengths in half and secure them with a wire. It is easy to remove the wire and soak the end in glue before inserting it into the bead end. I have also made a continuous length, starting with five yards of each colour, folded, and then when finished, place wire around the ribbon at about 5 inch spaces. That is two pieces of wire half an inch apart. Then coat between the wires with glue. Cut the lengths when the glue has dried and then insert into the cord ends. Sometimes I will string beads on elastic and attach them to the cord ends. This is sometimes more flexible in size than using a standard closure. I too was irritated by the lengths of material left at the end of a single bracelet, and found by making the long length, there is only one time of odd lengths !! I have also discovered how to make a Rainbow bracelet, with a six colour spiral, but a little complicated to explain here. I hope that you find some of my ideas useful !! Best wishes for your future weaving!!!.
Lyn
Hi! Thanks for the tips on making these things. I just started making them today. I like that they’re easy enough for my 4 and 6 yr old girls to make, and fun enough for me! I just want to say that although it’s probably nice to have a “real” disk, I just made my own out of cardboard for free and it works just the same. I’m not really into rushing out and buying something if I can do it for free instead. Also we’re using yarn ( I’m a knitter) because I have a ton of it already. My daughter is proudly flaunting a “choker” as I type this, anxiously waiting for my husband to get off of work so she can ask him if she looks beautiful ( even though I’ve assured her numerous times that she’s beautiful as always). Not bad for having just hear of this a couple of hours ago,lol.
I bought a wheel, and one card,8 yd of rattail. I didn’t think about doing something plain. And I too have to buy online so.After I read your article above, I thought……YEAH, my years of doing plastic canvas can really pay off. I can try the designs that you did for free…..sorta. Thank you… I know I am going to need help when I want to put that fat cord through those tiny seed beads……later…..
Thanks….
Absolutely! Yarn is a great, great practice material.
Dose it matter which shape of kumihimo you use? I think mine is an octagon. thanks
I am as of today a follower of your blog!
I think that the octagon shape should work very similarly to the round. In fact, I think that it is meant to work as both a round and a square shaped one so you should be good to go!
I just discovered your site. I am new to kumihimo and the information you presented was SO helpful! I shall be following you to see as you develop new patterns. Thank you for sharing this. You rock!
I love your website! I too, have developed a bit of an addiction to kumihimo…and beading. Just getting started at it really, but have a very hard time putting my projects down. Great job, Allison. I’ll be looking forward to seeing more of your work online!
I’m so glad that you’re into Kumihimo AND that you like my blog. So glad to have you here :)
Your photos for the various patterns are just what I was looking for – thank you! I want to braid horse hair: how do I splice together the strands to make something longer? With my 28-32 inches horse tail hairs, I am limited to making only bracelets; I would like to make cowboy hat bands which need a 54 inch braided piece. Any help would be very much appreciated!
Thanks, Shelley in Saskatchewan
Hey, Shelley – I’m so glad that I could help :) Unfortunately I don’t know anything about braiding with horse hair and a quick search online didn’t teach me much either. I’m so sorry! Have you tried looking into books at the library? I find that is a great source of information for crafts that are difficult to find online.
Help! This does NOT look like the starting point I learned through a class at a local art center (which uses seed beads on #1 TufCord). In these photos you have somehow already knotted up the cords in the center. How is that? Are you just making an initial knot?
My starting cord pattern on a kumihimo disk has the cords running straight top-to-bottom, and east-to-west, just gathered at the center wired to a weight, but otherwise parallel. Help!! {{pinning anyway – for the future!}}
This is not a starting point. This is simply a reference guide for where to place your cords to achieve certain patterns. The intro to creating a simple 8 strand braid can be found by clicking here.
Allison,
Thank you for your wonderful looks. I think I will try patterns 3 and 5 this weekend.
I took a class locally and learned how to do kumihimo with pattern #2 above using beads. I have purchased some books on amazon and the one I found was most helpful was Kumihimo Wire Jewelry.
It gives you *everything* you need to know about Kumihimo on the round foam disk, square foam disk and the traditional bobbin thing. It details several different patterns showing the placement on the disk, different finishing techniques, and gives many many step by step instructions of what you can make. The pictures are amazing! You can apply these principals with any medium you desire but the metal wire is a nice way to visually see it so you can learn to replicate it. Well worth the $13.
I’m so glad you like them! Thanks for the tip on the book, that cover is gorgeous and that has to be a great start, right?!
Hi Allison,
I’m not new to kumi, but I, too, didn’t know how to get different looks; consequently my work has been somewhat boring. Thanks for the lesson – we all surely appreciate it.
Have you tried kumi with 1-1.5mm leather??( and not expensive, either) Very cool. Love using beads, too, for a dressier look. As you know, kumi is VERY addictive!!
Keep on beading,
Carol
Hey, Carol – I haven’t tried leather but I adore Kumi with beads! I’ve got some leather on order and guess how it will be used the second it is dropped in my mailbox. Thanks much for the tip!
Thanks, I am trying kumihimo with wire and this will help when I try two colors. Blessings.
Very glad that the post is helpful! I’ve been braiding the weekend away so I’ll have another handful of patterns to share soon…
Thanks for the info, it is really appreciated!
No problem. Thanks for saying thanks :)
I am learning Kumihimo myself right now. I love it and have made a few spiral bracelets and right now am working on a design I made up myself. I had to figure out how many beads of each color I needed to make a certain length. A Japanese lady I talked with at a bead show told me she goes by inches so 10 inches of beads would make a 20 inch necklace so I go with that figure but like you, I am keeping track of the beads I use for any project too. I am having a hard time finding books on the subject. I want to look through a book before purchasing so do not want to buy online. Sadly, not even Barnes and Noble had any in their craft section.
Books are darn near impossible to find. I bought one online and it doesn’t use a foam disc but the big wood station thing and I don’t have one of those. Needless to say that was $20 wasted… I’m keeping track of the lengths and amounts I use to try and give a good estimate for anyone. I feel sick when I waste a good 8 inches of expensive cord that could have been used on another braid so I have to assume others get just as upset as me!
fantastic! I’m new to kumihimo and was thinking I needed to figure out the colour placement, now I don’t have to so thank you!
You’re so welcome – I’m working on posting a whole slew of patterns soon so you’ll have even more to go by :)
I’m pleased to hear that, thank you. I only just realised you reply to comments in the comments section!
thank you!!!