video; un: dunmer dragonborn

[fireandhoney]

Turns out when one is bored, doesn't feel like drawing or reading, and has a familiar that makes silk, this is the end result.

[He holds up a braid of string. The string is pearlescent, and it's crudely braided together, looking like a kid's first attempt to braid their hair or make a friendship bracelet. One can also see four very large spider legs draped over his shoulders, though the rest of the spider is hidden behind him.]

I may have discovered the future of fabrics right here.

[He tugs the string a few times, as if testing its strength.]

Comments

[individuates]

That's so cool!

[well, more the spinning than the braiding - which could do with a little help, but...]

What if you went into weaving?

[fireandhoney]

Oh, I don't know, I'm more of a drawer and sometimes painter.

[individuates]

Supplying a weaver, then?

I mean, I'm not one, and I can only imagine how much raw silk and time it would take to make a full garment, but I mean. If you can part with a little I'd definitely be interested in giving it a try? Like, to make a kerchief or something?

[fireandhoney]

I could do that. I mean, I am open to other forms of art too.

[individuates]

I mean, if braiding is your bag, you could get lengths of it dyed and braid those! Maybe you could use a frame like doing kumihimo?

[fireandhoney]

I mean, I'd need a lot more practice with weaving and braiding stuff like this. I never even braided my own hair, my cousin had to do it for me.

[individuates]

Oh, kumihimo's good for that! I mean, our mother knows personally these master craftsmen in Kyoto who make all of these insanely complicated designs, but because it's done on a frame, even little kids can do it!

The legit version is, like, a stool-thing with a hole in it, and you arrange all of your threads around the outside and the braid comes out in the middle. But kids can make their own frame out of a piece of cardboard with a hole in it and notches around the edge to help them keep track, and that works just as well!

[fireandhoney]

Huh, sounds almost similar to a loom. I suppose that sounds easy enough, assuming spider silk can work with it.

[individuates]

Sort of? It makes a braided string, instead of a woven length of fabric, but it helps keep the weight and the tension more even than if you were just braiding with your fingers...

[fireandhoney]

I suppose I could give it a try, if I were to make myself a frame like you describe. Especially when spider silk is so fine.

[individuates]

It's not hard, I promise! You can make a card super easily to help guide your braiding - I can even draw you a diagram, if you want?

[fireandhoney]

I'd appreciate that.