December 8 - Silkie Ribbon - Hand Dyed Silk Ribbon now available in Mini-Skeins and Large Skeins
We just finished winding all the mini-skeins, labeling and taking pictures. This ribbon is a silk blend with 45% silk, 38% viscose, 17% nylon available in 15 yd mini skeins and larger 75 yd skeins. > Silk Ribbon
We are very happy to share this new product with you for your projects. This is the silk ribbon used for kumihimo kits we just added a few days ago listed right below.
Midnight Blue
Sunset
Atlantis
Iceland
Hydrangea
Obsidian
December 6 - Hand Dyed Silk Ribbon Kumihimo with 4mm Magatamas, C-Lon Bead Cord and Metallic Accents Available in 7 gorgeous colorways: Obsidian, Winter, Sunset, Atlantis, Iceland, Midnight Blue, and Hydrangea. All fully color coordinated. > Silk Ribbon Kumihimo Kits
I was delighted to find this hand dyed silk blend ribbon. It braid beautifully and the texture and colors are luscious!
December 1 - More Buttons I keep collecting more buttons... Here are some of the new buttons. They have been integrated in the buttons pages. A NEW tag is clearly marked by their names. Enjoy browsing!> Buttons
November 27 - Kumihimo PIP Necklace Bead & Cord Kits available now!
I got many requests for these PIP bead necklaces at my last shows and online.
The instructions have been added to the bracelet manual... So if you have a bracelet tutorial, get the newest version of the PDF online. It now includes a comprehensive page on how to make these necklaces!
November 27 - C-Lon Fine Weight Tex 135 - New Colors - Copper Rose just came in!
November 20 - C-Lon Fine Weight Tex 135 - New Colors - New Spool Sizes
New colors are coming in and the transition of spools size is continuing. Now 27 colors are available in the new 50 yd spools, including these new colors: CB Caribbean Blue, CEL Celadon, FL French Lilac, GM Gunmetal, IB Ice Blue, IND Indigo, LO Light Orchid, MB Medium Brown, NK Nickel, NT Nutmeg, OG Orange, VR Venetian Red, and WN Wine. > C-Lon Fine Weight Tex 135 Bead Cord
Nov 19 - New Colors of PIP Bead Bracelet & Earring Kits
These two new colors, Jade Garden and Moon Essence, are amazing and they add so much to the collection!
September 27 - New Colors of KO Beading Thread
Just Added - Smoke Green (2nd row on far right), Orange (4th row on far left), Scarlet Red (next to Orange), Turquoise (5th row on far left), Capri Blue (next to Turquoise).
Now the collection has 24 colors to choose from.
August 31 - Jellyfish Earring
Kit with PIP Bead Kit
and Tutorial
New!
Match styles, have fun. This is my first foray into designing kumihimo earrings...
This is the perfect follow up to the bracelet. Make the bracelet first and then the earring will be very easy. The tutorial assumes you have already made another beaded kumihimo project. > Jellyfish Earring Kit with PIP Bead
July 28 - New Kit & DIY Tutorial for Kumihimo Bracelets with PIP Beads
This has been a labor of love as it evolved from a simple tutorial to four designs altogether with sophisticated bead placements. In the process I made countless trial bracelets, not counting all the aborted ones... I love these beads. They are amazing for kumihimo. I hope you will love them too!
This project requires no previous kumihimo experience. The tutorial is comprehensive and assumes no previous kumihimo knowledge. All these bracelets are made with the Pip Flower Pattern, Pips All Around, Half Round PIP Design, and Duo PIP Flower Design. Find out more about these projects. > Pip Kumihimo Bracelet or > Post with More Info and Large Photos
July 15 - New Bracelet Tutorial
Are you interested in learning a new kumihimo braid? This is an easy to learn flat braid made on a round kumihimo disk with satin cord or 2 mm Chinese knotting cord, and metallic cord as accents in the form of little hearts.
Just Added - A great find, a Vintage thread, manufactured from Germany prior to 1994. Great color choices, heavily bonded, incredibly strong for its diameter... A good choice for your beads thread needs.
Offered in 100 yd spools. Limited to colors and quantities in stock. No longer manufactured.
June 11 - New Post on Loading Beads onto Cord & Thread - Needle Types & Sizes, Thread Leader and Self Needles
Answers to FAQs. Compare methods for loading beads onto cord & thread, plus a full tutorial with large pictures on thread leaders and self needles made with beeswax. These are essential techniques for bead stringing and beaded kumihimo.
Buttons - We just added a few metal buttons such as these elongated egg shaped ones with speckled antique finishes. They are very light for their sizes and come in three finished. These were found in an estate sale, so they are limited to what's on hand and they are of unknown origin, although they have all the marks of Italian metal buttons. > Buttons
Fujix Tire Silk Spool - We just added some additional spools of Fujix Tire Silk. > New Silk Colors
Kumihimo Bracelet with Copper & Turquoise Beads Sleeves - I just tried a new combination with Copper instead of Silver. Check it out. It is the first colorway on this page
> Kumihimo Bracelets with Peyote Sleeves Clasps
May 25 - C-Lon Fine Weight and Micro Bead Cord
We just got in a few more colors in the new spools sizes. 50 yd for the Fine Weight and 100 yd for the Micro. Here are the lists of what's available now.
Fine Weight Tex 135: AB Antique Brown, ARG Argentum, C Capri, CHA Charcoal, FX Flax, OY Oyster, S Sable, TL Teal, TQ Turquoise, and WH White. Most of these colors are still available in the larger 136 yd spools for a limited time until they are sold out. Turquoise is only available in the 50 yd spools. > C-Lon Fine Weight Tex 135 Bead Cord
Micro: Caribbean Blue just came in. Here is the list of all the colors available in the new 100 yd spools: AB Antique Brown, ARG Argentum, CB Caribbean Blue, CHA Charcoal, CPR Copper Rose, EGG Eggplant, GM Gunmetal, GO Gold, GR Grey, L Latte, OY Oyster, PER Peridot, PK Peacock, RS Rose, SILV Silver, SS Sea Shell, TQ Turquoise, VA Vanilla, WH White and XX. XX is the Mystery Color available temporarily until sold out. > C-Lon Micro Cord
May 10 - C-Lon Micro - 4 New Colors
Four new colors just arrived packaged in the new 100 yd spool, shown with an original 320 yd spool of Chocolate. From left to right, we have Silver, Peacock, Eggplant, and a new mystery color.
Somehow the factory sent us a new color. It was supposed to be Sepia, but even though it has the right code for Sepia on the box, Sepia it is not.
We welcome your suggestions. When compared to all the C-Lon browns, it is closest to Chocolate, but a lot lighter. Like Chocolate is has a lot of red. The closest hex code is #8d7473 or #8d7374, named "grayish red or reddish grey", but what's to be expected from internet engineers.
Name this color!
As to names... it looks like red cedar bark or a dusty chocolate rose, too red to be Taupe, not dark enough to be Beaver, Carob, Russet... a dusty reddish light brown, dusty taupe, rose brown, rosy taupe, chocolate mauve like the new popular hair color... Right now, it is still unnamed with just XX as its color name. > C-Lon Micro Cord
May 9 - New Kumihimo Tool Bags
We redesigned some of our kumihimo bags. The new bags are trimmed with black edges, and have a black strap. Zippers keep the content secure. Plus some the bags now include all the essentials for beaded kumihimo, such as a big eye needle, 2 blunt bead embroidery needles for the Peyote Stitch Sleeves, and a small cake of beeswax for self needles.
We just got in some new barrel end clasps perfect for kumihimo. They come in silver and gold tone and have a very strong magnet. We also just added new metal finishes for this very popular toggle end clasp: antique brass, antique silver, black oxide and antique copper finishes. > Findings
May 9 - New Colors of Rayon Satin Cord and Nylon Satin
Check all the new colors of Rayon Satin... We just got 11 new colors.
Main differences between Rayon and Nylon Satin:
- Rayon Satin has a finer texture than the Nylon Satin, but it also more subject to damage and harder to keep clean than Nylon Satin cord.
- Nylon Satin cord ends can be melted with the Thread Burner or Cord Zapper making it easier to finish pieces. The Rayon Satin ends need to be glued, they cannot be melted.
- Rayon Satin can be washed by hand, but colors may bleed. Nylon Satin colors are more stable, but dye lots are not always even as nylon is harder to dye than rayon.
- Rayon Satin diameter varies a bit more from roll to roll especially for the larger sizes.
- As to sizes, they do not quite compare. The 1mm Nylon Satin is the thinnest. The Rayon Satin #2, the thickest.
April 16 - C-Lon Micro - New Colors - New Spool Sizes
C-Lon has just introduced 8 new colors and new 100 yd spool sizes. The original 320 yd spools will be slowly phased out and replaced with the new spool size. The new colors just added are: Vanilla, Latte, Argentum, and Charcoal were added in April. Gunmetal, Copper Rose, Turquoise, and Antique Brown just came in this week. Another 8 colors are planned for this year. > C-Lon Micro Cord
February 8 - Vintage or Discontinued Nylon #18 Just Added
I have been cleaning my closets and organizing my back stock. All these items are limited to stock on hand - so order accordingly!
Original Mastex on the tall black spool including rare colors such as Jade and Bluebird. Sorry, sold out as of Feb 13th. I have a few spools left of old Mastex on the shorter spools > Mastex
Original Conso with high bond content making this cord very abrasive resistant. These spools are not from Conso final production which had no bond and put them out of the bonded nylon business! > Original Conso Nylon #18
Odds and Ends - Stringth #5 (similar to Tuff Bead Cord) available on 2 colors, Pink/Salmon in 20 yd spools in a dye lot a bit darker than the Tuff Bead Cord, plus large 100 yd Black spools with lower bond than Tuff Bead Cord > Stringth
February 1 - New Colors of D&E Nylon #18
D&E Nylon #18 is back in stock. Old Gold and Rose are new colors, or colors that have not been produced for a very long time...
D&E is one of the original upholstery hand stitching thread. D&E bonded nylon is made by one of the former producer of Mastex. It came about after Mastex closed down, upon the insistence of some designer and myself, D&E was created to fill in the gap.. > D&E Nylon #18
January 30 - 3 New Colors - Kumihimo Bracelet Kits with Lily Petal Bead Edges
Miyuki Duracoat Metallic Beads Central Rib, with
100% Nylon Ribbon, C-Lon Bead Cord, & Peyote Sleeves
These kits are similar to the Copper River kits listed below, but instead of braiding with Rayon Boucle, I got a chance to play around with the 100% Nylon Ribbon. This ribbon braids beautifully, and it has a gorgeous sheen. There are other differences, but the pattern is similar, beads on the edges and top rib, with no beads right against the wrist, making this bracelet incredibly comfortable. > Kumihimo Bracelet Kits with Lily Petal Bead Edge
January 20 - 'Copper River' New Bead Edges & Bead Ridge Kumihimo Bracelet Kits
with Czech Lily Petals, Toho Hybrid Apollos, Rayon Bouclé, C-Lon Bead Cord, & Peyote Sleeves
This kit combines fabulous hand dyed rayon bouclé yarn that shift slowly from denim blue to rust, C-Lon Bead Cord, gorgeous metallic and luminous finish on the Lily Petal Czech bead edges, and brilliant copper toned Hybrid Apollo Toho beads on the top ridge. The yarn and Toho beads are no longer available, so this kit is available in limited quantities.
Get this kit while you can! > Copper River Bracelet Kit
January 16 - New Buttons Buttons, perfect for leather wrap and crochet bracelets > Buttons
