Methods for making kanzashi from rep ribbon

Japanese jewelry has always beckoned with its mystery and unusualness. Fancy patterns, bows, flowers in the hair and a huge variety of multi-colored ribbons in combination with traditional clothes make our idea of ​​the culture and life of Japan even more interesting. In this article, we’ll talk about this type of jewelry like kanzashi, and more specifically, about this traditional jewelry made from available materials, for example, from rep ribbon.

Kanzashi, or, as true Japanese, “kanzashi,” appeared in the 17th century in the form of jewelry made from different materials. These were hairpins or crests, usually made of precious wood. However, to emphasize the status of the person, they could be made of expensive metals. Due to the inaccessibility of these materials to ordinary people, needlewomen from different countries began to make them from simpler things - rep, beads or rhinestones.

Rep ribbon is a narrow ribbon of polyester and rep fabric, with scars distinguishing it from other species. At the edges of the tape has an edge, which allows you to save the desired shape and rigidity. Width of tapes is from 5 mm to 50 mm. Find them is not so difficult, just visit any store for needlework or fabrics. Features of the production of this type of fabric form an unusual relief, and by increasing the density and number of fibers in the base make it even more distinct.

For fabric from rep are characterized by such properties:

• strength and durability;
• moisture transmission and retention (hygroscopicity);
• air transmission;
• stiffness and shape retention.

Rep ribbon is selected by these parameters.

1. Width. Manufacturers offer tapes from 5 mm to 50 mm, but the craftsmen choose a narrow range of sizes, from 25 to 40 millimeters.
2. Picture. Rep-ribbons are of the so-called perforated structure, they have patterns similar to lace.
3. Color. A variety of color palettes makes tape selection a real adventure. You can find different colors - from plain and ordinary to printed patterns.
4. Rigidity. According to the type of shape preservation, rep ribbons are divided into three types: soft, medium, and hard. Soft ones are used mainly for decorating books and photo albums, and harder ones are used for creating kanzashi ornaments and wearing on clothes.

Let's move on to the manufacturing process.

1. Rep tape 25 mm and 40 mm in the amount of 2 pieces of different colors, it is desirable that they fit together.
2. Beads, artificial twigs with stamens.
3. Metal clamps.
4. Mugs made of felt and with a diameter of 35 mm.
5. A thread with a needle, a glue gun (very convenient) or ordinary glue, tweezers, a candle and a pen.

A large number of workshops (MK) on the manufacture of kanzashi can be found on the Internet. But actions are not always clearly and clearly described. Each step is described in detail below, which is very convenient for beginners. There are many types of kanzashi from colored ribbons, but the manufacturing process is approximately the same. The basis of kanzashi is a flower.

1. Mark a narrow ribbon on the desired number of petals, 8 or 10 cm in size. From a wide ribbon, 4 leaves in each flower will be made, cut the ribbon into small pieces of 5 cm.
2. The formation of the petals and leaves will occur by folding the prepared segments in half, as well as joining the left and right corners together. Then in the same way we connect the other end, then we take the lowest corner and fasten with the rightmost upper one. The last bend will be at the place where the segment was folded in half, it must be made 5 mm larger than the upper corner.
3. We cut off the pieces that are no longer necessary, burn the edges with a candle and use the glue to fasten the slices together.
4. We pull out the tip of the petal by 2-3 mm and press it with tweezers, solder the resulting clip with a candle.
5. We pass the thread through all the kanzashi petals and carefully, not tightly, pull it into a flower. Glue the stamen or decoration that was planned in the center of the flower (you can embroider beads). Then, glue all the petals from the back.
6. In the same way, we make the petals of a simpler form and glue them to the clip, if the kanzashi will be used as a hairpin.

Elastic bands using kanzashi technique are very often used in everyday life. All jewelry consists of bows or petals; they are attached to a felt mug with a rubber band attached in advance. For splendor, you can add an openwork tape.

1. Prepare 4 tapes of the same length and 25 mm thick.
2. Solder the ends of the tapes together (if there is a pattern, then one tape is ordinary, the second with a pattern).
3. Fold the resulting material in the form of the English letter V and fix it in the middle with a needle.
4. In a place secured by a needle, fold the kanzash's petal so that both ends of the tape are 90 degrees apart from each other.
5. Bend the upper part away from you.
6. Lower the right side away from you and fasten with the top with a needle.
7. Bend the left part of the tape onto yourself and also fasten it with the rest of the needlework.
8. Do the same with the other tape.
9. Fasten both parts together with a thread and tighten, tighten. Glue the gum from the underside using an adhesive gun.
10. For structural strength, you can fasten it in the middle with tape with a width of 5 mm to 10 mm.
11. On the opposite side of the elastic band make a pattern of beads or some other material.

Hone your kanzashi-style skills to create more and more varied jewelry.

After a little practice, start creating roses and hydrangeas, headbands and small hair ornaments. Try to diversify crafts in different colors and new ideas, create jewelry from several types of ribbons, the possibilities of crafts from rep ribbon are not limited.

On how to make a hairpin from a rep ribbon in the Kazan technique, see further.