The lucet is an ancient fiber tool used to make braids. While it’s thought these tools originated in Scandinavia around the Viking age, they eventually spread to other parts of Europe. Countless lucets and possible lucets have been found in archaeological excavations and throughout history, these braids had many uses: trim, closures, laces, bag straps, and so much more. Lucets are simple tools and braiding with them is easy and fun. This subscriber exclusive excerpt of Catarina Ferreira’s article “How to Make a Lucet Braid” from the Summer 2024 issue details exactly what you need to know and do to use these fun and forklike tools. —Christina

MAKING A LUCET BRAID

Materials Needed •Yarn of choice •Lucet •Patience

First, a disclaimer. Though this may seem very straightforward, I have seen variations of the lucet braiding process. The one described here is the one I was taught and the one that has worked comfortably for me over the years. I am right-handed; therefore, these instructions and images are shown for using a lucet with a right hand. However, you should be able to mirror the instructions for the left hand.

[PAYWALL]

BRAIDING

Photo by Catarina Ferreira

1. Place your yarn through the middle hole of the lucet and hold it so that you can keep the yarn tail in place either at the back or the front of the lucet, as you prefer. Make sure to leave this tail a few inches long (Photo 1).
2. Loop the yarn around the right-side tine of the fork, then through the middle of the tines (Photo 2), and around the left-side tine, counterclockwise (Photo 3), then around the right-side tine to lie over the loop formed on the right tine. There should be a Z-shape in the middle (see Photo 4).
3. Lift the lower loop on the right tine over the top of the tine. You may need to let go of the yarn tail to give it a little slack (see Photo 5).

   Photos by Catarina Ferreira. Get a closer look at each step by clicking any image in the gallery above to open it in full-screen mode.

4. Rotate the lucet in your hand clockwise, keeping hold of the working yarn to keep the tension (Photos 6 and 7). Try to keep this tension as even as possible. An alternative can be to hold the working yarn on the same hand as the lucet, as if to crochet. I’ve found this makes my hand cramp after a while, but you might have better luck if you’re an experienced knitter or crocheter!
5. That is it for the motion. You’ll just have to repeat looping the working yarn around the right tine and then lifting the lower loop over the top loop and the top of the right tine and rotating the lucet in your hand. The first few turns may look like nothing, but it comes together quite quickly (Photo 8).
6. Once you have the desired length of braid, remove the loops from the tines and cut the working yarn with a few inches of tail. Gently work the loops until they’re small (Photo 9). Feed the tail through the opposite loop and pull slowly, then feed through the final loop and pull (Photo 10). Your braid should now be secured (Photo 11).

Photos by Catarina Ferreira. Get a closer look at each step by clicking any image in the gallery above to open it in full-screen mode.

A FEW FINAL TIPS

I typically keep my tension very tight. The tighter you pull the working yarn, the more defined and smaller the square shape of the braid. However, it’ll also make any changes in tension more obvious.

Once your braid is done, you can gently pull on either end, which helps smooth out any twists or tension problems. A word of warning: if the loops fall off the tines, it is very hard to reposition them properly. If you need to put the project down, I have found that putting a rubber band across the loops and the working yarn keeps everything in place.

Depending on your yarn and tension, it may be quite difficult to lift the loop over the right tine. Some archaeologists and makers have suggested that some sort of hook implement may have been used in the past to help with this motion. I’ve found fingernails can be helpful, and I’m looking forward to experimenting with hooks.

Please keep in mind that this is a looped braid, which means that if it is cut in the middle, it will ravel. If the working loops fall out and you pull on the working yarn, it will ravel. However, you can ravel a small length and then try to feed the tail back through the loops to salvage a cut braid.