After taking Bonnie’s suggestion to start out with one line and cross it with one other line, I think I understand plaited twills a bit better. It’s actually not unlike drawing Celtic knotwork – which I learned in the course of making my Celtic knotwork pysanka eggs. First you draw the ribbons in whatever color you’re making them, then you add outlines if necessary to indicate whether a ribbon is on top or bottom at an intersection point. Then you fill in the background.
Here’s a screenshot of tonight’s masterpiece:
What I did for this one was to create the plainweave lines first, then border them with black to make the crossings more evident, then fill in the sections in between.
Here’s a shot with the background blank:
Once I realized that the important part is the lines that are crossing, and that the rest is superfluous to the plait (and can be filled in however you find most decorative), it became a LOT easier.
I plan to play with plaits some more tomorrow, since it looks like it’s gonna rain.
