| Our tama (ta-ma) shape are based on Japanese tama; they hold a lot of thread and don't easily catch on each other. They are made from hard maple and sealed at both ends. The hard maple has been polished to a fine finish and have been lightly coated with wax. The photo (almost life size) at lower left shows our original tama next to a our large tama, the large tama are also made of hard maple and 25% larger than our standard tama.
Braiders should chose the weight of their tama to reflect the type of braids they intend to make. The weight of the tama relates to the number of ends and type of yarn used as well as how the braid will be used. Thirty-five gram tama are used for very fine light braids on the marudai, 70 gram tama make flexible finer braids using small threads, while the 85 gram tama make firmer braids and can better tension larger threads. In Japn 100 gram tama are often used on the marudai. Both weights can be used on either the marudai or takadai, however the 85 gram tama are recommended for the takadai. The 100 gram are standard for the ayatakedai but lighter weights can also be used.
If you use thick yarns or yards and yards of yarns or ribbons you might want a larger tama. We offer our 70, 85 and 100 gram weights in the larger size; the lightest we offer for the large tama is 38 grams.
In Kumi Himo: The Essence of Japanese Braiding by Aiko Sakai and Makiko Tada have written instruction for thirty kakudai braids, 14 use 8 tama that are 240 grams each and 16 use 12 to 16 tama that are 100 grams each. This is the only book that we have in English for the kakudai.
As experienced braiders know and new braiders soon find out, tama can be required in large quantities. We are pleased to offer these exquisite tama at a very reasonable price.
Original Tama Prices:
35 gram, $7.50 each, 8 or more $6.50 each
70 gram tama are $ 7.50 each, 8 or more $ 6.50 each.
85 gram tama - $ 8.00 each, 8 or more $ 7.00 each
100 gram tama - $ 8.50 each, 8 or more $ 7.50 each
Large Tama Prices:
38 gram
70 gram
85 gram
100 gram - All four weights are $9.25 each, 8 or more $ 8.25 each
240 gram tama - $9.75 each, 8 or more $ 8.75 each
Custom weights - $ 10.00 each, 8 or more $ 9.00 each
Our tama are built to Rodrick Owen's specifications.
|
