Temari part 4: the finished ball

Here is my finished ball.  It's not the best one I've ever done, but it's OK!

One of the reasons I chose this design is that I really need to practice my spindles.  In this picture you can see the difference between the first one I stitched, on the left, and the fourth one, on the right.  Practice does indeed make . . . better.  Still not perfect!

And here's the final shot.  I had originally intended to do the whole thing just in ecru, navy and copper metallic, but once I got the ecru parts of the long spindles done, I really felt like it was all too much of a muchness.  So I grabbed some magenta for the outer parts of the long spindles, and I'm glad I did.  I like it so much better.

This design is pretty simple, but you can get even simpler.  Remember this ball that I sent my mom?

All you'd need to do is mark off your ball with a simple 4 division (even easier than simple 8!) and then lay different colored threads to either side of each marking thread.  The one on the equator is called an "obi" - isn't that cute?  This simple design is still one of my favorites.

Here are a few more of my older temari balls, just for inspiration.  I'm just showing the ones that are so simple that they don't really need any explanation, now that you know how to mark a ball.

same as above, but with a different decoration in the negative space

spindles, but woven while stitching

a simple 16 division, wrapped

 . . .  with a very wide obi

more spindles . . .  sorry it's so fuzzy - it's 4 years old!

So, has anyone tried it out?  Liking it?  Not liking it?  I think I'm going to set it aside for a bit and get back to my knitting and sewing!

Temari part 3: finally, some embroidery thread!

OK, so we've got a lovely thread-wrapped ball with divisions marked with pins.  I forgot to mention that the division we did is called a "simple 8" division.  It's handy to know this in case you want to search for different designs that can be done on this division.

For this step, you need both your paper scissors and your cuticle scissors, your perle cotton (I used size 5, which I got at Michael's), metallic thread (also from Michael's), needle, pins and the strip of paper you used to mark your ball.  Start by cutting a length of metallic thread that will go around your ball 4 times, plus about 6 inches. Tie a knot at the very end:

Thread this onto your needle, then stitch it into the ball, coming out exactly at one of the pins for a pole and pulling it tight so that the knotted end gets buried among the sewing thread wraps:

Now wrap the thread around the ball from the north pole to the south and back again, laying the thread exactly next to the equator pins along the way.  When you get back to the north pole, pivot 90 degrees and wrap again, then pivot 45 degrees and repeat:

On your last trip around the ball, tack the threads down at both poles with a backstitch (I usually do one at the south pole and two at the north pole where the pivots are), making sure to go through some of the sewing thread as well:

Once you've come back to the north pole and have tacked the marking threads down, take your threaded needle out a couple inches away, and then cut off the remainder very close to the ball, making sure not to cut any of the sewing thread. If some of the color of the metallic thread shows through, you can use the tip of your needle to push some of the sewing threads over it to cover it up.

Now your ball is marked and you're ready to start stitching!  The design I'm doing is called "spindles," and for this design I don't want my equator to be visible.  Many designs do need a visible equator though, so you can mark the equator with metallic thread in the same way as above if you need it.

I decided to do spindles of alternating lengths, four long and four short.  I left all the equator pins in until each spindle was stitched.  I started with my short spindles. I took my "measuring strip" and folded two of the eighths in half right next to each other and cut notches.  Then I used that to make markings to the north and south of an equator pin:

Next I got an arm's length of ecru perle cotton, knotted one end and threaded the other end onto my needle.  I stitched into my ball, bringing the point of the needle out just to the right of the red pin south of the equator:

Pull the thread tight to bury the end, then take it to the left of this pin and the metallic thread all the way up to the red pin north of the equator.  At this pin, take a small stitch from right to left under the metallic marking thread, catching a few sewing threads as well:

Flip the ball 180 degrees and do the same thing back at the first red pin.  Continue in this way, flipping the ball and building up the spindle to the right and left of the center metallic thread.

You can remove the pins after the first couple threads have been placed.  Do as many rows of this color as you'd like and then change to another color.  Bury the end and cut off the tail as before.

For this ball, I did 9 rows of ecru ad 5 rows of navy.  Here's my first complete spindle; after I finished it, I marked with pins where all the other spindles will go. The pins on the right will produce a spindle just like the first one, and the pins to the left will produce a longer, thinner spindle.

Once I've completed the whole ball, I'll take more pictures to show!

Temari part 2: marking the ball

Now that you have a wrapped ball, you're ready to mark the divisions.  For this ball, I'm dividing the sphere into 8 vertical sections with two poles and an equator.

For this step, you need some card stock of at least 8.5 x 11", paper scissors, ball-head pins in 2 different colors and some very pointed scissors, like cuticle scissors.

To begin, cut a strip about 1/4 inch wide from the long side of your card stock. Fold one end back about 1/4" and stick a pin through it, then stick it into your ball:

Wrap the strip tightly around the ball, trying to make sure it's centered, and then make a fold that butts up to the pin.  Once you've established the circumference of the sphere, try it out in different places:  leave the pin in place, but swivel the paper to a different place and wrap it around again.  You may find that you have to adjust the length you've marked.

Now fold that circumference in half and make a crease:

With your scissors, cut a small triangle at the halfway fold:

Wrap the strip of paper around the ball again, and use a second pin of the same color to mark the other pole.  Again, check this by trying it from different angles, and adjust as necessary:

Once the second pole is found, open out the strip again and fold each half in half to make fourths.  Cut notches into these as before:

Wrap the strip around the sphere so that the south pole is centered in the notch, then use your second pin color to mark the equator where the other two notches are (blue pins in these pictures):

Open out the strip of paper again and eyeball where the halfway point between the first two equator pins might be; swivel the paper and mark these as well:

Now take your very pointed scissors and cut a small diagonal into the place where you originally pinned the paper at the north pole, then remove the paper altogether:

Fold the fourths in half again so that the paper is now folded into eighths.  Cut notches again.  I like to cut them on the other side this time - it helps me be more even when I'm marking the equator.

Finally, hook the strip onto one of the equator pins and wrap it around the ball, making sure the first four equator pins fall into their notches and adjusting them if needed.  Then mark the remaining four places on the equator so that you've got eight even divisions.  I usually take the strip off once I've done this and try it starting from another equator pin at least once, just to make sure everything is even; because the threads were hand-wrapped, these balls are not perfectly spherical, so some adjustments are often needed.

All ready for the next step!  You may need the strip of paper again, so don't throw it away until the ball is completely finished.

I hope these were clear enough for anyone who wants to follow along!


(And for those who are interested, I'm wearing Zoya Kennedy from the Feel Collection on my nails.)

Temari part 1: wrapping the ball

I started a new temari, and as promised, here are the step-by-step photos in case anyone wants to follow along, or just see how it's done.  I apologize that some of the photos are a tiny bit unfocused:  it's really hard to hold the camera steady in one hand early in the morning after drinking a big mug of coffee!  I think you will still be able to get the idea anyway.

There are too many steps to make one blog post, so I'm breaking it down.  In this post, I'm showing how to wrap the ball to do the stitching on.  Simple temari aren't very difficult, especially if you have some good instruction books.  I have two books, and these are where I've learned all the temari I know - not much, but enough to make some pretty balls!

Here are my books:

The Craft of Temari by Mary Wood and Japanese Temari by Barbara B. Seuss.  The Barbara Seuss book has especially clear and easy-to-follow instructions.

To get started, you need some leftover yarn and some styrofoam balls.  I like the 2.5 inch balls because they make a finished size that is easy for me to hold on to when stitching.  I have done bigger balls, but my hand tends to cramp when holding them.  You also need a darning needle.

With your yarn, begin to wrap the styrofoam ball, constantly turning the ball in random directions so that you don't get too much yarn built up in any one place.  I like to use sock yarn or 4-ply because I think it makes a smoother ball, but you could use a heavier yarn if you need to.  Just be aware that you may need more thread to smooth the ball out later - and wrapping the thread is more tiring than wrapping yarn.

Wrap enough yarn around the styrofoam so that you can't see any of the white and the ball feels a little bit squishy.  The amount I used here is what is left over from a skein of sock yarn after making one adult size sock - not sure how many yards that is!  When you reach the end of the yarn, thread the last few inches onto the needle and take it in and out of the wrapped yarn a few times to bury it.  (Click the picture above to make it larger.)  You don't need to cut off the tail if you don't want to, since you'll be wrapping thread on next.

Now take two spools of all-purpose thread and repeat the process.  I used the large spools that have 250 yards each.  Wrap tightly so that the threads won't come loose later.  Bury the ends just like you did with the yarn.

After you've wrapped both spools of thread, the ball should look nice and uniform, with none of the yarn showing through.  It should also feel like a firm base to stitch on, with a little bit of cushion.  Make sure to bury the last several inches of thread by stitching in and out of the ball three or four times, and then carefully cut off the tail - don't cut any of the wraps!

Now you've got a nice base ready to be marked with divisions!

Temari materials

I've been working on a step-by-step for temari balls that I hope will be clear enough for anyone who wants to try it out to follow.  But I thought before I publish that series of posts, I ought to put up a complete list of materials needed.  Here they are:

styrofoam balls in 2, 2.5 or 3 inch diameter
left over sock (or DK) yarn
sewing thread:  2 full spools
tapestry or darning needle
paper scissors
pointed scissors, like cuticle scissors
card stock in 8.5 x 11 or larger
ball-end sewing pins in different colors
metallic embroidery thread
perle cotton number 3 or 5 in a few different colors

My one handmade gift.

I can finally show the one, secret, handmade gift I made this year.  I sent it off to my mom late last week, and she received it yesterday.

On the sideboard in my dining room, I have a bowl of temari balls I've made over the last couple years.  When my mom was visiting in the spring, she commented that she'd like to have a bowl of temari too.  Wish granted!

In the fall, she sent me a box of all her leftover bits of sock yarn.  I used those to wrap the inner styrofoam core of the balls.  Then I got two large spools of serger thread in colors I thought she'd like and wrapped the balls with thread.  In the past I've always used regular spools of sewing thread, two per ball.  I really like the serger thread because it comes on a cone that can stand up, and the yardage means I don't have to stop mid-ball to start a new spool.   The only downside is that the color selection is more limited.

yarn-wrapped cores and serger thread

thread-wrapped balls

poles and equator marked

I made her six balls of different styles and colors.  I'm a novice at temari, but I really enjoy doing it.  Each ball takes approximately 3 to 4 hours to complete.  For all of these balls, I divided the sphere into 4, 8 or 16 sections.  I haven't done a lot of experimenting with divisions of 5, 10, 6 or 12, but I'm hoping to in the future.

ball, perle cotton, pins, needle, metallic thread and sharp scissors

I love to give temari as a gift because as I make each ball, I'm constantly thinking of the person I'm making it for.  My understanding is that these are given in Japan at the new year as a good wish token for the year to come.

So here are the six balls I made.  I'm showing each one from two different angles - it's hard to see all of a temari at one time!

simple 8 division - improvised design

simple 8 division - rose garden with obi

simple 4 division - wrapped

combination 8 division - wrapped

simple 16 division - kiku with obi

combination 8 division, wrapped with interlocking tri-wings

Have you ever done temari?  Do you like it, or did you find it tedious?