P-L-A-I-T your way to cuteness!

Written by Jasmine Kroeze

Wednesday, 29 April 2009 22:18

plait |plāt; plat|
noun
a single length of hair or other flexible material made up of three or more interlaced strands; a braid.
• archaic term for pleat .
verb [ trans. ]
form (hair or other material) into a plait or plaits.
• make (something) by forming material into a plait or plaits.
ORIGIN late Middle English : from Old French pleit ‘a fold,’ based on Latin plicare ‘to fold.’ The word was formerly often pronounced like “plate,” which is the usual American pronunciation; since late Middle English there has arisen an alternative spelling plat, to which the current alternative pronunciation corresponds.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED...

• 3x lengths of tape or ribbon, I used grosgrain in different stripes ($1 per metre from your local emporium or Spotlight)
• Charms or buttons (10¢ to a few dollars each from an emporium or Spotlight)
• Masking tape to hold the end of your necklace down so you can plait it (from any craft or hardware store)

STEP ONE... all tied up

- Tie the three lengths of tape in a knot; I left about 10cm ends hanging free.

Cut the ends on an angle, you may need to singe the ends to stop them from fraying.

- Tape the knot to a sturdy surface so it is fixed while you plait!

STEP TWO... going plait-y

- Begin plaiting the tape, adding on charms at random intervals onto the tape. If you have charms with small openings, you can hand sew these onto the tape.

- Keep adding the charms on, you may have to reposition the masking tape to hold the necklace firmly in place.

STEP THREE... there you have it!
- Once you have plaited and adorned the whole length, leaving 10cm at the end un-plaited, tie the end off in a knot as you did at the beginning.

- Again, cut the ends of the tape on an angle and singe the ends.

VARIATIONS...
- Use ribbon, lace, chains or cord.

- Try using buttons.

- Add bows made from ribbon or tape and hand sew them on.

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