According to Dictionary, macrame is the art of knotting cord or string in patterns to make decorative articles. If you know how to tie a knot, you can do macrame.
Supplies
Since I live in the province, craft supplies are not that easily available. I bought my first rope in a general merchandise store in the market. You know, the store which sells bolo knives, gardening tools, bamboo cradles, and whatnots, you'll probably find a cotton rope there.
I also bought some rope at a store where everything is P20 or less. It was the cheapest rope I bought but, when you cut the rope, you'll see that inside the rope, there are plastic fibers entwined with the cotton fibers. I didn't like using it.
I also found cotton ropes and other materials at Wilcon Depot. I prefer the 16-strand BRAIDED cotton rope (50ft = P72). The tried the SOLID rope, but it was tougher, a bit difficult to knot, and more expensive than the braided one.
Check out Hallmark's video, How to tie the basic knots of macrame, before embarking on a macrame journey.
Macrame Plant Hangers
For my first project, I chose a plant hanger. I found an easy tutorial in YouTube by WhatsUpMoms. The video said it's a 5 Minute Macrame Planters but I finished my project in 30 minutes!
Since it was my first time to do macrame, I was very careful at measuring the rope and following the instructions. I shouldn't cut the rope too short nor too long for the project to avoid wastage. For quick measurement, one planter like this uses 32 ft of cotton rope (8ft per strand).
It was a fairly easy tutorial but I was being a perfectionist and wanted my first project to turn out well, that's why it took me half an hour to do a 5-minute project. LOL
Here's my first ever macrame plant hanger!
After that, I was able to do other planters quickly. Ta-dah! I hang five planters on my kitchen's window so the plants can get a bit of sunlight. On weekends, I put the plants outside so they can get full sunlight and good 'ol rain water.
Feeling bold to do other designs, I tried Crafty Ginger's plant hanger design #1. This time, the project needed a hoop. At Wilcon Depot, the silver hoop I bought cost P40.
The project was fun to do since I did several kinds of knots. Instead of a planter, I experimented on using a glass bowl with a candle holder inside. Here's my final project.
Macrame Curtain
I also did a macrame curtain in about an hour. Using Rachel Metz' tutorial, DIY Macrame Curtain, I was able to somewhat replicate her project.
Lessons on Macrame
- For me, macrame is therapeutic. Once I got the hang of knotting the ropes, I kinda forget everything else while working on a project.
- I like macrame since I can see the outcome right away. I don't need to work on it for months before I'm able to see the final project.
- Macrame uses a lot, and I mean A LOT of cotton rope.
- I have to be resourceful on where I get my cotton ropes. Among all the ropes I used, I like the one I bought in the market. It's cheaper and softer to use. But, the store had no stock of the rope when I returned to buy more.
