I think that temari is somewhat unique in the embroidery world, not just because it is worked on a three dimensional surface, but also because often the area that we do not stitch plays a key role in the overall design. Rarely is it really just ‘background’.

An all over design, no wrap thread shows

The orange flowers are negative space

How much the negative space matters can very from not at all on an all over type design, to absolutely critical on a design where the negative space is the entire focal point. (I love those!) Other times the designs are more balanced with both the stitching and the negative space providing design interest.

I’ve really noticed this as I’ve worked on the C8/C10 challenge for the TemariChallenge Yahoo group. At first glance the design chosen looked to be pretty focused on the stitching. It was striped and had interesting interactions between the shapes. The marking lines were left off so did not draw your eye to the non-stitched areas. However, as I stitched the design on different divisions and looked at other’s examples I found that the amount of negative space left made a big difference in the finished ball. It turns out that this is one of those designs where both the stitching and negative space create different focal points as you look at the design.

It is easy to focus so much on the design threads that I am stitching onto the ball that I forget to look at the negative space as part of the overall look. But when I am not happy with how things are coming out it is helpful for me to stop and look at the ball from a short distance away and focus on the negative space. Often I’ll find that adding (or subtracting) one or two rows of stitching will pull it into balance in a way that I was missing close up.  Unfortunately, I only tend to do that when I think the ball is all about negative space.

The negative space is just not all that coherent

I did not really pay that much attention to the negative space when I stitched the C8 version of the challenge ball.  I had just stitched two designs that were quite similar in style and so was very familiar with the process. Negative space was pretty important on both of those so you would think I would have thought about it. Nope, I got caught up in the color and details of the stitching. Surprise… I am not really all that thrilled with the result. I thought it was because of the colors but when I look at it next to my others and compare it to the C8 that other members of the group did I realize that I left the negative space too undefined. It should be a nice square-ish plus sign shape but on mine it is just not that clear. I needed to do more rows on the triangles and start the squares just a little closer in. 

A more defined negative space

On the other hand, I am pretty pleased with the results I got on the C10. On that one I was not quite sure I was going to be happy with it and wasn’t sure how many rows to do so I kept playing with it and adding to it. After each row I would hold it at arms length and really look at the overall design. At some point I realized that those inner pentagons and triangles would not be finished until the negative space had just the right proportions.

I love this one!

Then I went to work on the C6. This is by far my favorite of the three. I stayed focused on the negative space from the beginning, working hard to keep it balanced and evenly shaped. The three way shape that is created is pretty funky and not a ‘normal’ one for our eyes to see so it was critical to get it the right size to be observed without having it be so small as to be overwhelmed by the stitched elements. I really love the way it turned out.

So… note to self… remember to carefully consider the negative space on every design, not just the ones that you think it is a key element in. Be sure to take a minute to step back and have a good look as the design progresses.

There comes a time when you are learning to make temari that you get tired of working with the simple symmetry of simple divisions. The basic N/S orientation just doesn’t do it for you anymore and you yearn for something more complex and compelling. Enter the combination divisions.

When I first started doing temari we called them all sorts of things… complex, combination, complicated… before finally getting a better translation of the Japanese and settling on combination as the descriptive word. Long before we reached agreement on that though they became known simply as C8 and C10. (Actually, there is one you can call a C4 and a C6 also, but that is all of them.) So what are they really? Bear with me here, we are going to go backward to simples before we go forward to combinations.

Simple Divisions

A circle view of a simple 12, centered on N or S pole

A rectangle view of a simple 12, center line is equator, top line is N pole, bottom line is S pole

Let’s start with the simple divisions. The geometry of a simple division is.. well, simple. It has a N and S pole where the lines all come together. So a Simple 12 or S12 has a N pole split into 12 sections and an opposite S pole also split into 12 sections. It might have a equator line but does not have to. The defining characteristic is that there are two opposite poles equally divided. It might be helpful to think of them as centers instead because once you move to combination divisions, N and S poles are a matter of perspective.  You could make an infinite number of different simple divisions.  Your only limitation is the size of your thread.

Note: Generally in temari the term centers and poles are used interchangeably. I’ll try to use centers consistently in this post.

Moving to Combinations

Basically a ‘C’ division is a combination of simple divisions on the ball. You mark a simple something on the ball and then you find another spot to place two opposite centers and you mark another simple something. You can’t place the extra centers just anywhere; they have to be placed so that the additional lines will intersect nicely or you’ll get a mess of lines without symmetry. Thus, there are really only a few different combination divisions rather than an infinite number like there is with simples.

Aside: I wonder what would happen if you tried to just place extra centers without following the rules? You would not get ‘normal divisions’ but you might get something interesting to stitch on. I have not really played with that because I am so delighted by the symmetry on the ball that combination divisions give you. But it could need some exploration…

C4 – a combination of S4 divisions

a basic C4 diagram, notice there is no clear N pole although it is generally considered to be in the center.

If you know simple divisions then you already know the division sometimes called a C4. It starts as an S4, so it has a N and S pole with 4 sections. Then you need to add more centers that are split into 4 sections. It turns out that all you need to do is add the equator line and you will have it: three pairs of centers divided into 4 sections, for a total of six centers. Turn the ball this way and that; there is now no longer only one N or S pole. Orientation depends upon your perspective. Now, the C4 is really just a glorified simple division. It is only another name for an S4 with equator and doesn’t have enough lines on the ball to do much in the way of interesting design.  However, it is a great starting place for other markings.

C8 – a combination of S8 divisions

a basic C8 diagram, notice 8-way intersections, 6-way intersections and 4-way intersections

The C8 is the next combination division that is usually taught. It starts with an S8 and then adds lines to create more 8-way centers. In this case the extra centers are still on the equator. In fact, they are the same ones that you have on the C4! Now you also have places where 6 lines come together as well as lots of shapes to explore. I’ve done several blog posts on marvelous C8s. C8s are usually considered to be a late beginner or early intermediate skill.

C10 – a combination of S10 divisions

a blank C10 diagram centered on a 10-way intersection. Lines everywhere!

This is the biggie. Unlike other combination divisions, the location of the additional centers on the C10 must be precisely measured and plotted using a formula or the lines won’t intersect nicely and certainly will not be symetrical. These extra centers are not on the equator of the original S10. There are alot more of them too: a total of 12 centers on the ball split into 10 sections each when you are done. Because of the precise measurement and non-equator placement of the extra centers this is the most difficult combination division to work. It is usually considered to be a late intermediate or early advanced skill. I’ll do a few posts on C10s in the near future.

C6 – a combination of S6 divisions

a blank C6, the dotted line shows the equator but is not marked on the ball

This last combination division is a bit more obscure. It is shown in a few of the Japanese books but is not quite recognized as a division in it’s own right. I happen to really like it and I always include it for completeness sake.

Although the C6 results in a collection of six section centers (6-way intersections) it is difficult to mark starting from a S6. It really is a subset of the lines from a C8 and so is more often marked by starting with a S8 division. You end up with a total of eight centers that are divided into six sections each. It happens to be a very nice marking to use when you are trying to stitch a four center design. I’ll do some blog entries specifically about the C6 at some point because I like it so much. Because it has such a unique geometry and is really not quite standard, it would generally be considered a late intermediate or advanced skill level.

What next?

So there you are. You have a description of all of the combinations divisions: C4, C6, C8 and C10. If you don’t already know how to mark them you can find resources in the various temari books and on the internet.  I’ve already done posts about the C8 and I will be adding posts about the c10 and C6 in the future.  You can look for them by clicking on the appropriate tag in the left sidebar.  If you are curious about why those are all there are then you can check out the math study I did on temarimath.info. If you are curious about how they are related to another interesting set of geometry objects you can check out the platonic solid comparison and the platonic solid design studies I did. Have fun with them!