Today braiders enjoy the challenge of making these twined braids for their own use, and at least one Japanese designer has made garments using this technique on a larger scale. The long-legged version of the karakumidai allows you to sit in a chair to braid. The slant is perhaps a bit more extreme than the Japanese version in order to improve your vision while braiding.
The top of the karakumidai is 13.75" (35cm) square with 33 pegs on each side and the bottom the top has 17 pegs. We use hard maple with a hand applied shellac finish, the long legs have a lap joint in them to facilitate travel, the whole dai is fastened with knock-down bolts so it is very easy to assemble and disassemble without worry that there will be any failure of the bolt and metal insert assembly.
The EZ Bobs in the photo are not weighted but we do offer them with 8.8g of weight. You may wish to make your own traditional hira-dama (flat bobbin); instructions come with the karakumidai.
Please click here for karakumi photos.
Made in USA by BraidersHand
