How To Macrame: A Step By Step Guide For Beginners

4 months ago 16

Macrame is the beauteous creation of hand-tied knots and loops that make a woven textile. While it whitethorn look intricate, getting started with macrame is really beauteous casual and erstwhile you larn a fewer basal knots, determination are hundreds of projects you tin make.

With macrame you tin make usable items similar handbags, plant hangers, oregon straps, oregon projects that are purely for decor similar wall hangings, jewelry, oregon table runners. You tin adjacent marque your ain Christmas stocking!

What is macrame?

Macrame is simply a crafting method wherever you make a texture done making a bid of knots and loops with either rope, yarn, string, oregon cords. The apical of your task is secured onto either a mounting ringing oregon tied to a instrumentality oregon dowel and past the signifier is created done handmade knots.

Often the hobby of macrame is combined with different crafting mediums similar weaving oregon knitting, but axenic macrame is erstwhile the afloat portion is made of knots made by hand.

What’s the past of macrame?

Macrame whitethorn spell backmost arsenic acold arsenic the past Persians and Babylonians who utilized macrame-like knotting successful artifacts successful centuries BC.

The much modern macrame was brought to the westbound from much Arabic countries who chiefly utilized the knots successful the 13th period to necktie ends successful items similar rugs, shawls, oregon different items that had fringe. By the 17th century, ladies successful waiting for Queen Mary II utilized the method arsenic the pastime dispersed done England.

Sailors started to usage the macrame knots to walk the clip connected ships and would adjacent commercialized made items similar belts oregon hammocks erstwhile they got to shore, which besides helped the trade dispersed done Europe. Macrame remained fashionable done the 17th and 18th centuries until the Industrial Revolution brought astir the sewing instrumentality and past the method fell retired of favour until the 1960s and ’70s brought the trade backmost to popularity arsenic portion of the handmade movement.

The connection “macrame” either comes from the Arabic connection “migramah,” meaning ornamental fringe oregon it whitethorn besides travel from the Turkish connection “makrama,” which refers to a towel or napkin.

Is macrame casual oregon hard to learn?

Good news! While it whitethorn look complicated, macrame is really precise casual to larn and it’s precise akin to making relationship bracelets if you retrieve doing those arsenic a kid.

There are a fewer basal knots that we volition thatch you, and erstwhile you get those down you’ll beryllium capable to marque astir immoderate macrame task you want!

How agelong does it instrumentality to implicit a macrame project?

The clip needed to implicit a macrame task volition alteration greatly depending connected your level of accomplishment (your archetypal macrame task volition instrumentality much clip and experts volition knot overmuch faster), material, size, and complexity of your project.

While smaller/simpler projects tin decidedly beryllium completed successful a abbreviated afternoon, you whitethorn request respective hours dispersed implicit a fewer days for larger partition hangings.

What benignant of cord bash you usage for macrame?

There are respective types of macrame cord that you tin usage for your macrame project.

Rope: The twisted strands of fabric cord enactment springiness macrame projects durability and you’ll get a defined heavy knot that is improbable to unravel. The astir communal kinds are twisted three-ply and braided six-ply ropes for macrame and enactment comes successful a ample assortment of thickness for larger projects arsenic well.
String: A drawstring is simply a overmuch finer twisted strand compared to enactment truthful you get a smaller and softer look than with rope. Your knots volition besides beryllium overmuch smaller truthful it tin beryllium amended for finer, much delicate projects.
Yarn: While yarn is often utilized for knitting, you tin besides usage it for macrame. Wool, acrylic, and hemp are communal bases for yarn and this enactment provides the biggest colour range.
Waxed cord: A waxed cord is smaller successful diameter than a enactment and it is coated successful beeswax to marque the cord much waterproof. The wax besides strengthens the cord truthful it makes for beardown knots arsenic well.

100% Natural Cotton Macrame Rope Cord

Soft Cotton Macrame String Thread

Bulky Wool and Acrylic Blend Yarn

1.5MM Waxed Cotton Macrame Cord

How overmuch macrame cord bash you request for a project?

When measuring retired however overmuch cord you request for your macrame project, you’ll privation to find the approximate magnitude of your finished task and chopped your cords 4 times that length.

If the cord needs to beryllium folded successful fractional for the project, past you privation to chopped the cord 8 times the finished length.

What supplies bash you request for macrame?

To marque your macrame project, you’ll privation the pursuing items:

Macrame cord
Scissors
Measuring tape
A stick/rod oregon a mounting ring (a metallic hoop) to bent your task connected
Wooden beads oregon different beads for decoration (optional)

TIP: Before you chopped your cord erstwhile moving with yarn oregon rope, usage masking portion and wrapper it astir the yarn oregon rope. This volition support the end of the cord from unraveling portion you work.

5 Basic Macrame Knots

While determination are much than 5 knots you tin usage successful macrame, if you signifier these 5 elemental knots, determination are truthful galore projects you’ll beryllium capable to tackle close away.

1. Lark’s Head (aka Cow Hitch Knot)

A Lark’s Head knot is truthful easy! Fold your drawstring successful fractional and spot the halfway loop down your hanging rod.

Slip your 2 drawstring tails done the apical loop and pull.

2. Square Knot

Tie 2 Lark’s Heads knots broadside by broadside connected your rod. This knot uses lone the strands connected the outer near and close edges and the mediate 2 strands enactment put.

Take the strand each the mode connected the near and transverse it implicit the mediate 2 strands but past down the strand each the mode connected the right. It volition look similar a fig “4.”

Next, instrumentality the close strand, keeping it implicit the strand that came from the left, and spell down the mediate 2 strands coming retired wherever the spread successful the “4” was created successful the erstwhile step. Pull that knot choky to the top.

Now you’ll repetition the process backwards by taking the close strand and creating a backwards “4” that goes implicit the mediate 2 strands and nether the strand connected the left.

Take the strand connected the left, keeping it implicit the strand that conscionable came from the right, spell down the mediate strands and travel retired again wherever the spread successful the backwards “4” was created.

Pull strands choky and you’ll spot a quadrate knot!

3. Spiral Knot

The spiral knot is fundamentally the aforesaid arsenic the quadrate knot but that you support making your “4” signifier successful 1 absorption truthful it creates a spiral shape.

Tie 2 Lark’s Heads knots broadside by broadside connected your rod and proceed to marque your archetypal knot similar your would with a quadrate knot.

Rather than reverse the absorption to implicit a quadrate knot, support making the aforesaid knot implicit and over, pulling each knot choky to the top.

As you marque much knots, you’ll spot the spiral signifier commencement to emerge.

4. Berry Knot

Start by making a quadrate knot but erstwhile you necktie your knot astatine the top, permission a small country supra the knot truthful you tin crook your tails done that spread later.

Make 2 much quadrate knots truthful you person 3 quadrate knots successful a row.

Take the tails of your cords and propulsion them each done the tiny spread successful the mediate you near supra your archetypal quadrate knot.

Pull the cords each the mode done and you’ll spot that your quadrate knots person created a ball-like berry shape.

5. Double Half-Hitch Knot (DHH)

This knot is often utilized to make lines successful your enactment and you’ll privation to commencement with astatine slightest 4 Lark’s Head knots broadside by side. The outermost near cord volition beryllium your moving cord and the adjacent 3 cords successful enactment volition beryllium your holding cords.

Use your near cord to loop astir the archetypal holding cord truthful that the loop is facing down and the necktie of the loop is facing up.

Tighten the loop to the top.

Repeat the enactment truthful you person 2 loops tied astatine the apical of the cord.

Take your moving cord and commencement to necktie loops connected the 2nd holding cord successful enactment and necktie 2 loops astatine the apical of that cord.

Repeat again tying 2 loops with your moving cord onto the 3rd holding cord and past fto your moving cord bent (it should present beryllium the 4th cord successful adjacent the mediate of your project).

Now you conscionable repetition the process backwards connected the different broadside by utilizing the outermost cord connected your right side as your moving cord and tying 2 loops connected each of the adjacent 3 hanging cords.

Now you should person some your moving cords successful the mediate of your work.

Now you’ll necktie 1 past Double Half-Hitch Knot by utilizing your near moving cord to necktie a loop astir what was your close moving cord.

Avoid these communal macrame mistakes:

Cutting cord excessively short: Rather than conscionable eyeballing your cord, marque definite you are measuring that you person astatine slightest 4 times the afloat magnitude of your finished task to guarantee you won’t tally out! There’s thing worse than not being done with your portion and abruptly you tally retired of cord.
Pulling knots excessively tight: It’s a precise akin happening with relationship bracelets, that if you are pulling your knots excessively tight, past your knots volition look deformed and your task volition commencement to twist and curl. Pull your knots conscionable snug capable without implicit tightening and effort to support each the knots the tied astatine the aforesaid tightness. As you commencement your projects, you’ll cognize if your knots are excessively choky if your task curls and you’ll privation to commencement implicit not pulling your knots truthful hard.
Not practicing/giving up: Like each caller skills, it takes clip to consciousness much assured and instrumentality connected harder and bigger projects, truthful support practicing and don’t springiness up arsenic you get the bent of it!