Tablet Weaving and Ply-Splitting Books, Tools & Kits

SCOT braid with 4-color cords

Make eight cords, each having red/white/black/blue plies. Four of the cords should be S-plied, and four Z-plied. Even up the ends -- do not double them over a rod as this would reverse the color sequence in half of the braid. You can put the ends on a rod if you wish.

Work by pulling the left-hand cord through all the seven others to its right (the simplest form of SCOT). However, the cords must be split so that the colors on top of the hook are in pairs. For example, the colors of the plies might be black and white, white and red, red and blue, blue and black. When you encounter cords of the opposite ply, this sequence has to reverse in order to give the pattern shown. Once the first splitting is done correctly for all cords, the rest of the splittings are easy, as there is just the usual 1/4 twist between successive splittings.

Plate 23 (left), TPSB, shows an extension of this idea, but with two sections, worked on the A fell, with S and Z plied cords.

SCOT braid in two sections

This braid is worked by pulling the outside cords into the center. Make 24 cords, 12 S-plied and 12 Z-plied. Arrange 4S, 4Z, 4S, 4Z, 4S, 4Z. The first and last four cords in the sample are orange/red, and the others are orange/white. Work on the V-fell. This is the braid shown in Plate 23 (right), TPSB.

SCOT braids with vertical and diagonal lines

Start with 16 cords, with plies arranged dark/light/dark/light, all Z-plied. The braid on the left is worked on the V-fell. See Plate 21 (left), TPSB. The braid on the right has an inversion in the center -- a sudden change from a V- to an A-fell. See Plate 35, TPSB.