Читать книгу The Complete Book of Chinese Knotting - Lydia Chen - Страница 8
ОглавлениеChinese Knotting Techniques
Fourteen basic Chinese knots are treated in this book, namely the (1) clover-leaf knot, (2) pan chang knot, (3) round brocade knot, (4) constellation knot, (5) good luck knot, (6) Buddha knot, (7) double connection knot, (8) plafond knot, (9) flat knot, (10) creeper knot, (11) double coin knot, (12) button knot, (13) cross knot and (14) tassel knot. These basic knots have numerous, almost unlimited permutations, which can be formed either from variations of their basic designs or from a combination of basic knots. The knotting techniques for producing many of these so-called compound knots were taught in Chinese Knotting: Creative Designs That Are Easy and Fun! and Fun with Chinese Knotting: Making Your Own Accessories and Accents. In this book, four major methods or techniques for tying knots and nine ways of modifying them are applied to each of the fourteen basic knots. Each basic knot is treated separately, with its various modifications derived from the major methods and modification skills clearly shown in words and pictures. Not only will this strategy enable you to learn the knotting techniques of many new knots, but it will also allow you to fully appreciate the concept of basic knots and lead you to create new knots yourself.
FOUR MAIN METHODS OF TYING BASIC KNOTS
From lengthy research into the knots that were first used by the Chinese for practical purposes and later as decorative motifs, Chinese knotting experts, including Lydia Chen, the author of this book and a world-renowned knotter, have identified fourteen basic knots, namely the (1) cloverleaf knot, (2) pan chang knot, (3) round brocade knot, (4) constellation knot, (5) good luck knot, (6) Buddha knot, (7) double connection knot, (8) plafond knot, (9) flat knot, (10) creeper knot, (11) double coin knot, (12) button knot, (13) cross knot and (14) tassel knot.
These fourteen basic knots have been classified not only according to their structure but also the four main methods or techniques used to tie them, which include (1) pulling and wrapping outer loops, (2) using single flat knots, (3) overlapping outer loops and (4) knotting semi-outer loops or “S” curves.
1. Pulling and Wrapping Ear Loops
Cloverleaf Knot
This is made by forming first one ear loop, then a second ear loop and passing it through the first one, then forming a third ear loop and passing it through the second one. The cord end is pulled tight to form the center knot. The cord sections between the inner loops make up the outer loops of the knot.
Pan Chang Knot
This knot is formed using the cloverleaf knotting technique, but increasing the number of ear loops on each side to two or more. The cord end is hooked up with the fourth side of ear loops two times or more using the same technique as the cloverleaf knot.
Round Brocade Knot
This involves the cloverleaf knotting technique, but an additional ear loop is pulled through every second or more ear loop in front of it. The second last ear loop is then hooked up with the first two loops in the beginning using the pull one, wrap one technique.
Constellation Knot
This knot is formed using the round brocade knotting technique, except that the second ear loop in the beginning is wrapped around the first. The rest of the ear loops are done in the usual pull one, wrap one technique. The last two ear loops are then hooked up with the first two ear loops, also using the pull one, wrap one method.
Good Luck Knot
This is tied using the cloverleaf knotting technique, but after pulling the cord end through each ear loop, the cord end is reversed and pulled through each ear loop again to make it look as though the knot is being tied with two cords. The difference between a good luck knot tied this way and one done using the overlapping ear loop method is that the cord ends will come out of the knot body in a slightly different position.
2. Using Single Flat Knots
Buddha Knot
This is made of two flat knots, with the second knot hooking through the loop of the first. The cord between the two knots becomes the top loop.
Double Connection Knot
One cord end is used to tie a single flat knot around the other cord end, then the other cord end is used to tie a single flat knot around the first cord.
Plafond Knot
The body of this knot is made by hooking up and tightening four consecutive single flat knots using both cord ends.
Flat Knot
This is formed of two opposing single flat knots pulled together.
Creeper Knot
This knot is made by tying two opposing single flat knots, then pulling the cord section on the top part into the body of the knot.
3. Overlapping Ear Loops
Double Coin Knot
This knot involves making two ear loops, one on top of the other, with a third ear loop weaving through the other two to hold them together.
Button Knot
This involves overlapping the ear loops of two opposing knots. The right ear loop with the cord end beneath it is put on top of the left ear loop. The right cord end is then woven clockwise around the overlapped loops.
4. Using Semi-ear Loops or “S” Curves
Cross Knot
This knot takes the shape of two “S” curves weaving their way into each other to form the body of the knot.
Tassel Knot
This is basically a double cord cross knot with compound outer loops to produce a double-layered structure.
NINE WAYS OF MODIFYING BASIC KNOTS
Modified knots are variations of basic knots. Although the finished knots may appear to be quite different from the basic knots from which they originate, they can nevertheless be traced back to the skills employed in tying the basic knots. In this section, nine major ways or methods of modifying basic knots are described and illustrated, namely (1) increasing the number of outer loops, (2) altering the knotting sequence of the outer loops, (3) extending the outer loops, (4) overlapping the outer loops, (5) changing the shape and reducing the cords, (6) shifting the weave of the knot body, (7) knotting a tall three-dimensional knot, (8) recombining skills and (9) recombining basic knots.
The names of the techniques provide a clue to the way in which each basic knot is modified. Naturally enough, the more complicated the basic knot, the more potential it has for modification. Hence, some basic knots have more modified knots and some fewer.
The examples given below will help you appreciate the basic principles in modifying basic knots as preparation for the next section on extending and varying basic knots.
1. Increasing the Number of Outer Loops
With basic knots that are tied using the “pull and wrap” technique, for example, the cloverleaf knot, round brocade knot, good luck knot, constellation knot and pan chang knot, the number of ear loops involved in the pull and wrap can be increased to make knots of different sizes with varying numbers of outer loops.
Round brocade knot with six outer loops.
Round brocade knot with ten outer loops.
Brooch in the form of a round brocade knot with eight outer loops.
2. Changing the Knotting Sequence of the Ear Loops
For all Chinese knots formed by overlapping, pulling and wrapping, for example, the cloverleaf knot, round brocade knot, pan chang knot, constellation knot and good luck knot, a change in the sequence of the overlap, pull and wrap is all that is needed to produce modified knots with overlapped outer loops. For example, follow a 1, 3, 2 sequence instead of 1, 2, 3. There are plenty of illustrations on this point in “Creative Chinese Knotting Designs” on pages page 115–159.
Pan chang knot with its compound outer loops shifted.
3. Extending the Ear Loops
With the round brocade knot, cloverleaf knot or constellation knot, where the ear loops are tied using the “pull and wrap” method, the ear loops can be deliberately extended whereby whenever an ear loop meets another, the former is pulled through and wrapped around the latter. The new knots made in this way have more complicated weaves than the original basic knots, and are known as the compound round brocade knot, compound cloverleaf knot and compound constellation knot.
The dotted lines indicate the forward extension of the outer loops.
Cloverleaf knot with four outer loops. The outer loop is pulled and wrapped forward.
Cloverleaf knot with four outer loops wrapped and pulled.
Cloverleaf knot with four outer loops. The outer loop is wrapped forward.
Cloverleaf knot with four outer loops. The outer loops are pulled and wrapped forward.
Cloverleaf knot with four outer loops. The outer loop is wrapped, pulled and wrapped forward.
4. Overlapping the Ear Loops
A good luck knot is made by overlapping the ear loops clockwise or anticlockwise. The more ear loops involved, the bigger the hole in the center of the knot body. To rectify this, two ear loops can be overlapped after every two, three or more interspacing loops. In this way, the hole will shrink and the knot body thicken.
Wall decoration made from a good luck knot in which two outer loops were overlapped after every two interspacing loops.
Good luck knot with four outer loops.
Good luck knot with six outer loops. The two outer loops are overlapped after every two interspacing loops.
The first layer of ear loops in this good luck knot are overlapped in the usual way. However, for the second layer, the outer loops are overlapped after every one, two or three outer loops to produce compound outer loops, giving the knot the name good luck knot with compound loops.
Brooch made from a good luck knot with four compound loops.
Good luck knot with four compound loops.
Good luck knot with four outer loops.
The first layer of ear loops in this good luck knot are overlapped in the usual way. Before overlapping the outer loops in the second layer, the side loops around the knot body are lengthened and overlapped to form new basic knots. Slightly different new knots can be devised by varying the direction of the lengthening process, the face from which the side loops are lengthened and the direction of the overlap.
Brooches made from good luck knots with overlapped side loops.
