How to Make your own
Oui Zigzag Bracelet
Once your threads are arranged on the kumihimo board, the braid is made by repeating the same sequence of movements. It can look complicated at first, but once you've completed the sequence a few times, it becomes surprisingly simple.
Please scroll down to the bottom of the page for a video tutorial.
Understanding the square kumihimo board
Imagine your board as having four working areas:
TOP
LEFT ← centre → RIGHT
BOTTOM
Your coloured strands begin in two rows across the top and bottom of the board.
Using the colour abbreviations:
Y = Yellow
O = Yellow/Orange variegated
P = Pink
R = Red
W = White
Your starting colour sequence is:
TOP: Y Y Y O P R W
BOTTOM: Y Y Y O P R W
Step 1: Create your two side strands
Start with the first yellow strand at the top.
Move this strand down and across to the second available slit on the left-hand side of your board.
Now take the first yellow strand at the bottom.
Move this strand up and across to the second available slit on the right-hand side.
You now have one working strand on either side of the board.
ILLUSTRATION 1
TOP: Y Y O P R W
┌─────────────┐
│ Y ← │ ○ │ → Y │
└─────────────┘
BOTTOM: Y Y O P R W
Step 2: Begin working along the rows
Now take the second yellow strand from the bottom row.
Move it across the board into the slot that was previously occupied by the first yellow strand on the top row.
That empty top position has now been filled.
The movement also creates another space that the next strand can move into.
Step 3: Follow the zigzag
Continue along the top and bottom sequences in the same way.
Each time:
Find the next strand → move it into the newly empty position → move to the next strand.
Rather than thinking about the entire board at once, concentrate on one movement at a time.
The empty slot effectively guides you through the pattern.
Movement 1
BOTTOM Y ↗ empty TOP slot
Movement 2
next TOP strand ↘ newly empty BOTTOM slot
Movement 3
next BOTTOM strand ↗ newly empty TOP slot
And so on.
This alternating movement is what creates the characteristic zigzag.
Continue until you have worked all the way through the top and bottom colour sequence.
Step 4: Reset the board
When you reach the end of the sequence, you need to perform three movements to put everything into position for the next row of braid.
① Right side goes up
Take the strand currently sitting on the right-hand side of your board and move it up into the available top position.
② Left side goes across
Take the strand sitting on the left-hand side and move it across to the right-hand side.
③ Top left goes down
Finally, take the first strand at the top left and move it into the second slit on the left-hand side.
You have now reset the board.
① RIGHT → END TOP ↑ │ R
② LEFT → RIGHT L ─────────→ R
③ TOP LEFT → SIDE LEFT T ↙ L
And that's one complete sequence.
Now you simply begin again.
The rhythm to remember:
Side → Side → Zigzag → Reset
Or, in full:
Top to left.
Bottom to right.
Zigzag through the rows.
Right goes up.
Left goes right.
Top-left goes left.
Repeat.
As you repeat the sequence, your finished flat braid will gradually emerge through the centre of the board.
