Celtic knotwork design 4: BREAKS MAKE PATTERNSInterlace all done? Time for a break. Not that kind of break! A ‘break’ is what makes fancy Celtic knotwork design out of plain weaving. Plain interlace decorates calligraphy nicely, but add breaks and it becomes much more exciting. A break is like a short wall or barrier introduced into the interlace pattern. It is shown by a line at least one whole square long in the grid of squares. The cords which encounter this break-line in the pattern cannot cross it. Like thwarted worms, they are obliged to turn aside:
Where the cords turn and meet each other, they join in a loop. Various combinations of these side-turns, new joins and loops create the attractive patterns or knotwork which are so characteristic of Celtic design. 
The idea of the break-line is also the basic principle of joins make knots. Remember the half-squares you introduced earlier, at the sides of the panel, as spaces in which to join the ends of cords? The outside edges of those half-squares are ‘breaks’. The cords encounter these breaks, turn round and join with their neighbours to re-enter the interlace and seal the knot. Similarly, when you link cords by drawing curves between the basic units, you are making the cords approach the edge of a pattern and then ‘bounce’ off it so they flow back into the weave. In just the same way, you can make cords form a decorative Celtic knotwork design inside your interlace by adding an internal break which forces the interlace to turn or deflect, merge into its neighbour and so weave its way back in and round by a new route.
How to include breaks to make a Celtic knotwork designThere are twenty ways of adding breaks so you end up with a muddle of loose ends and cats’ cradle. Not that I would discourage experimenting with it! But by following two very simple rules, you will save time, effort and paper, and also learn how to draw a Celtic knotwork design which looks authentically good.• A break-line on the edge of a square (ie on a grid-line) must start and stop half-way into a square. Here is an illustration:
All the above breaks and anything similar will work in a pattern -- so long as too many breaks aren't used and they aren't too randomly placed. (Even then, you'll get some interesting effects.) Below are examples of wrongly positioned breaks which won't work to produce good Celtic knotwork design. They all disobey the above rules:
By the way, if you want two break-lines to meet, then one must be on a grid-line (edge of a square) and the other in between. Here’s another useful tip: stick to a repeating pattern of breaks and don’t crowd too many in, or you lose the regular ‘woven knots’ effect. Let’s turn to the example knot and see how a simple break pattern works there to give it that 'croissant' shape:
By the way, the above knot is found in the Book of Kells and other traditional Celtic knotwork designs on stone monuments, etc. See how there seems to be just one central knot there, a rounded shape with two little 'horns' to it? But that single central section is actually made up of all six of the basic units of interlace in the layout. By introducing three breaks, you will give it the two 'horns' and separate it from neighbouring units. It will all make sense! Here’s the basic interlace layout we’ll start with:
It’s the same as the one you did earlier for the interlace: three squares by two, starting with right-handed crossed-cords-in-squares, with the rest of the crossed cords filled in. I’ve shown all the edge-curves joined up so you can see what’s going on, but you’ll probably be better off eventually just working with the central section of the interlace filled in. The basic interlace must be correct (over-and-under) before you start. Let's introduce three breaks into the pattern – nothing too fancy:
Now, rub out the pencil lines which show cords crossing immediately under the breaks. These cords, instead of crossing, are going to turn and join each other. 
Finally, re-shape the lines carefully round the breaks, keeping the curves smooth and sweet, and tucking the cords in as close to the corners as possible:
By looking at your new Celtic knotwork design, I hope you can see how that round, complete-looking central knot is a kind of illusion. It's actually six units of interlace, massaged into a Celtic croissant. At the ends of the knot, you now have a plain cord running top to bottom where the break prevents the cords from weaving in. This adds to the illusion that the central knot 'happened' as a complete single unit rather than as a compound weave. If you wanted a repeating Celtic knotwork design from this, you'd simply take off the half-squares on either side and repeat the central 3X2 block, with one of the 'tall' end-breaks between each block.
Note: Again, I drew my crossed cords very long, to make them super-clear, and I started this demonstration with the interlace already completely pencilled in -- so it would be easy to see what was going on with the breaks. However, so much clarity for the purposes of explanation gives a slightly angular effect to the final knotwork. Once you know how the actual Celtic knotwork design part of it works, you'll get a better, more rounded effect by making your original crossed cords shorter and introducing the breaks before you add the curves on the interlace. That's for another page, though. Right now, I hope you feel happy that you can draw Celtic knotwork. As for the knot you've drawn, it only remains to ink it in. There's another page on that, if you're interested in any more tips and techniques. Otherwise, thank you for coming this far and I hope your Celtic knotwork designs will serve you well in your calligraphic work!
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