project: weaving a uke strap

Swamp Yankee

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I'm working on a project to make an ukulele strap out of hemp cord using Native American "finger weaving" techniques.

It's been tricky getting it started, but once the technique is mastered, the work goes surprisingly quickly and it's kinda fun, sorta.

Here's a diagram of the basic technique, but my design is much more ambitious, using 40 cords instead of the 10 in the diagram.

http://www.turtletrack.org/IssueHistory/Issues01/Co12012001/Art/Diagnalweave.jpg

I had tried it first using regular cotton kitchen twine but soon found myself going bonkers trying to keep track of 40 strands of cord, all of which were the same color :confused:

This is a link to a picture of the working side, where the actual weaving is done:
https://www.hangoutstorage.com/banjohangout.org/storage/photos/large/70/7068-1175183132019.jpg

And this is a link to a pic of the woven product so far:
https://www.hangoutstorage.com/banjohangout.org/storage/photos/large/70/7068-2185183132019.jpg

My intention is to weave enough strap, and then to stitch leather ends on it with holes punched in them to attach to the strap buttons and endpins on my ukes.
 
Very cool! Thanks for sharing the technique. The strap's looking great, and the in-progress gives some good understanding and appreciation for the artwork!
 
Wow! I am impressed. I couldn't even understand the diagram. I wish I had your craft skills. When you've got the whole thing done, please post a pic of the finished product. I'd love to see it.
 
Thanks folks - it's not as difficult as it might appear. The toughest part is trying to keep the weaving consistent when each warp cord is just hanging there loose-ended as you weave the weft cord through it. Then when you've made a pass, the "weft" cord gets wrapped a few times around the chopsticks to hold it in place long enough to weave the next "weft" cord over. And then the previous wrapped weft becomes the last warp in line......you know what I mean? :D
 
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