Macrame

Macrame is the craft of tying cord or string into patterns of knots to make something useful or decorative, with no needles, hooks or looms. Just your hands. Tie a few simple knots over and over and they build into textures, spirals and nets. Wall hangings, plant hangers and bottle carriers are classic makes.

Sailors have long passed the time tying decorative knots, and macrame had a huge moment in the 1970s. Now it's back, and the knots haven't changed a bit.

The lark's head knot comes first. It attaches each cord to a dowel, stick or ring, ready to start.

The square knot is the workhorse of macrame. It uses four cords: two working cords on the outside tie around two filler cords in the middle, left side then right. Repeat it in rows and you get a flat, woven look. Tie it on one side only and it twists into a spiral, which is often called a half knot spiral.

The double half hitch makes neat diagonal or straight lines, and it's how those tidy ridges and zigzags appear. A gathering knot, or wrap knot, bundles all the cords together at the top or bottom of a piece to finish it off.

Cotton cord is soft on the hands and easy to untie when you go wrong. Single-twist cotton brushes out into lovely fluffy fringes, while braided or three-ply cord holds its shape and suits hard-working makes like bags and carriers. Jute and hemp look more rustic, and waxed cord is good for jewellery and bracelets. Wooden beads and rings are the finishing touch.

Your Activity Leader starts by showing you how to mount your cords and tie the key knots. Then you practise them, slowly at first, until your hands start to remember the pattern. Before long you're building up rows, adding a spiral or two and shaping something you can actually use, like a water bottle carrier or a small hanger. Undoing a knot is allowed. Expected, even.

Very. Most macrame is built from just a few knots repeated, so once you've got those, a whole world of patterns opens up. It's easy to fix mistakes, it needs no special skills and many people find the steady rhythm of knotting really relaxing. It also turns out to be very chatty. Great for making friends, and for making things for your friends.

You might also like Rope Making & Useful Knots, Basket Weaving and Rug Tufting.

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