text: So, I started the next Gridlock-Tubular bangle bracelet soon after finishing the one in my previous post:
  The working of the body of the piece was not so difficult for me as I have made several versions of a Gridlock bracelet. But joining the ends together is (for me, at least) a complex thing. I want the bangle to look as seamless as possible, yet there are so many cords to deal with and working in a circle is awkward.
  As I contemplated how I was going to approach this complexity, I decided to make a simpler project. Personally, I love simple projects. They are quick to make and I get a boost from completion. They help me to contemplate more complex problems as they do not require my concentration. Simple projects take just enough of my "monkey brain" to keep it busy while I "incubate" a dilemma.
  I decided to finally try putting a "cage" around a large stone bead. I went for the simplest rendition I have seen in my internet wanderings, as I interpreted it. Voila!
  I covered a block of styro-foam with some t-shirt fabric, turned the bracelet inside-out and placed it around the block. It definitely helped get the other side of the circle out of my way and made it easier to pin and keep track of all those cords. The rest was just painstaking work to join matching pairs of cords together...and the use of a tapestry needle, a crochet hook, and a pair of hemostats.
  I don't know why I haven't thought of making a block like this before! It seems so obvious to me now. It worked so well! Since styro-foam won't hold up through repeated use, I have cut a bar from one of my small work boards (of very dense foam rubber) and covered it with t-shirt fabric...to make a more permanent support piece for working in a circle.
  So, as to "Simple VS Complex" - I do love sinking my teeth into a complex piece upon occasion, I also love simple projects for the reasons I gave above and because they are fun to make.
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