I have made this kind of netting before (see the snake shekere), so I know how I wanted to make the loops, attach the stringers to the loops, and attach the shells.


In the first step of the netting, I make a double strand of hemp twine into a loop big enough to go over the nec, but way too small to go over the gourd. I counted up my beads and had enough for 3 rows of 7, so I needed to hang 7 loops of twine over each of two double strand loops I had made.
I then took one strand, from the adjacent loops and knotted them together as to make the first row in a net.


These knots are all square knots (you would use a sheet bend, I think, in a real net). A completed unit looks like this.


For each side I added the shells. I run one strand through the bead hole and tie a square knot as a stopper right behind the hole, and on the “mouth” side of the shell, then I run a strand out the hole I drilled in the other end of the bead, and make a further square knot behind that bead. Doing it this way holds the “mouth” side in when playing. If you want the mouth side out, and the rounded backs in, I would try it the other way, stoppering and running the lines outside the back of the shell, instead of the mouth.


One side completed looks like this:


Hanging one of the completed halves over the net, I again took one strand from adjacent nodes and pulled those together, knotting them with a square knot. I then tied a shell knotting again behind the drilled hole after pulling one strand through the hole.



I hung the other half over the neck to get the knots for the other piece. Then I removed that one and replaced the one with the second row of shells attached. I placed the other half in the position it will be below that row and began tying the second piece, to the second row of shells in the upper piece. I trimmed the loose ends of help twine.


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