Making a Mandala - Step by Step 2

We continue weaving the star and here is where one can drive out its own creativity. We can put the quantity of colors that we'll like most. I usually prefer to work as if this is a flower of many colors. Here I wanted to use 3 colors.

Once we finish the star, now is time to change of color and weave a circle. The way we'll be weaving here is the same one used at the beginning to place together the two 4 sided figures and obtain the 8 sided figure. 

Here we can see that I completed 2 weaving circles, one in green and another one in light blue. So now we can start doing the square and the first color I selected is the violet. You should start by one end of the upper 4 sided figure.

I completed the violet square, so now I would like to go with the light lila, in the other way round than the violet one. We continue weaving in this way until we get a total of 4 squares.

 

If you have any doubt while doing it, feel free to ask a question through the commentary section and I'll be answering.

 

 

Making a Mandala - Stept by Step 1

Wanted to share with you a video I made showing the step by step on how to make an 8 sided Mandala of 3 millimeters. I'll be publishing the step by step in 3 entries due to the duration of the video.

In this Video you'll see how I weave the center of one 4 sided figure that will end up being a diamond shape. Once I finish the centers of both 4 sided figures, we should set them together passing through the yarn in each of the 8 sides.
This part is one of the most difficult ones, so be patient and take all the time you need because both figures will move. When you do it, the same should be sturdy and with the sides equidistant from each other. Is not an easy job, but with practice each time will become better and much easier.

We continue with the process of setting together the two 4 sided figures. Remember to always leave the knots of the color changes in the back side of the Mandala, as we should avoid leaving them easy to the sight.

And now we get started doing "The Star"! We begin weaving by passing through the yarn in one end and going to the next one by leaving 2 consecutive ends without weaving and passing through the back the yarn. This means that will be weaving on the third end. 

We continue doing this process until we get to the size of our choice for the star.

Hope you like it!

 

 

How to decorate the Mandalas - Second Part

Tassels at the Ends

The tassels are very decorative and embellish our work. Many times they can help to put out of sight any imperfections. Some people like to include tassels in all sides of the Mandala, others just 1 or 2. The important thing here is that it goes to the taste of each of us and the desire of the work we’ll like to carry out.

To do the tassels, we first need to cut strands of yarn / wool of the same colors used in the Mandala we completed. If you’ll like the tassels chubby, cut several threads, but you should regulate them according to your taste and desire. My view is something of a middle point, it should always be according to the work I'm doing, if the Mandala is something big, then the tassel has to be in line with the same.

Once we cut the strands, we put them together mixing the colors. We’ll pass through 1 strand in the middle and make a knot, as you can see in the below picture.

 

 

Now fold in half the full strands in the section we made the knot, and cut the ends of the strands with a scissor to even them.

With another strand we begin to twine so we can shape the tassel. This strand can be from the same color we used for the knot or employ one from another color that are included in the tassels. 

 

Below find how it looks once completed and we can now place it in the ends of the Mandala.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to decorate the Mandalas - First Part

How to decorate the Mandalas - First Part

Once we come to an end with our Mandala, is good to take time to do some finishing details and decorate them with different things. This is where we can give free rein to our creativity.

While there are some standard outlines, I encourage each of you to do the ones you like best.

In this first section I would like to show the “Ojo de Dios” Huichol or also known in english as God’s Eye. These are weaves that the Huichols used as protective amulets. They usually have a diamond shape.

As shown in the first publication, whenever we start weaving a Mandala, it will be a God's eye (diamond shape) but smaller. In this case, if we want to do a “Ojo de Dios” Huichol, we should continue weaving until we get a bigger diamond shape or the size of our choice.

To make the finishing touches, you can decorate them with tassels/pompons/bobbles at the ends. Below you can find a picture of how beautiful and festive they are. In the next publication, I will show you how to make the tassels.

Mandalas

MANDALAS 

 

If you like the arts and handcrafts, the MANDALAS are the perfect medium to capture either on paper or in weave all the creativity we have.

As we embark on it, the MANDALAS make us to concentrate in such a way that everything surrounding us fades and as a result we can rest our minds from the daily concerns.

The word "MANDALA" means circle, and the employment of different colors enhances the disposition as it is very beneficial for depression, anxiety and stress.

So let’s get to work!

Supplies Required:

- Wool of different thicknesses, rustic thread and “Macrame” that is a thread of a very fine & thickness strand and has a beautiful gleam that works wonderfully on this type of artistic crafts. The most important thing is to have a large variety of colors, to make gradations from one shade of color to another and multiply color combinations.

- Wooden sticks of diverse thickness or branches of trees (the range can from 3 to 8 millimeters). They can be available at hardware stores and building supply places.

- Scissor, ruler.

- Ornaments: pearls, beads, boulders, etc. to garnish the work.

We take 4 sticks and form two crosses

To form these two 4 sided figures (like a cross) I made in the middle a notch in one face of the 4 sticks so we can later fit the slots together, so they can stack closely and this will prevent the sticks from moving.

 

 

To do the notch, I do it with a cutter

 

 

We begin by tying the thread / wool with 2 sticks together (Fig. 1) and after a few turns, we move the sticks so we can outline a 4 sided figure and began to weave a center that will have a diamond shape or also called Ojos de Dios (Fig 2 and 3)

Fig.1

 

Fig.2

 

Fig.3

 

Next we take the two 4 sided figures and we put one over the other, in such a way that we’ll get an 8 sided circle.

 

Fig.4

 

From here, coming soon I’ll be uploading a video to show the step by step of a MANDALA, so you can complete the work. The MANDALA will be like the one in Fig. 5, but with different colors.

 

 

Fig.5