Watch This Space For More Macrame Tidbits

Hi there,

My goodness it's been a full year since the last post. Just to let you know we'll be getting back into action.

I have a whole heap of awesome patterns coming to me via a super secret contact. And I'll be sharing some of that with you as soon as it arrives on my doorstep.

So stay tuned!

Samantha

A New Twist On Macrame

Charlotte Observer | 03/23/2006 | A new twist on macram�

A new twist on macram�
Innovative materials enliven an old fashion
SAMANTHA CRITCHELL
Associated Press

When you hear the word "macrame," do images of 1960s-style wall hangings dance in your head?

Today there's a wide world of macrame that has nothing to do with hippies and hemp.

The friendship bracelets that neighborhood girls give to each other? They're macrame. So are some pretty cool trims for lampshades and curtains, and top fashion designers are embracing macram� for straps, belts and other adornments. Macram� fits into both the artisan and nautical trends spotted on the spring runways.

Hannah Milman, crafts editorial director at Martha Stewart Living, explains: "Macrame falls under the category of textile making, using knots rather than weaving or knitting to create a textile out of string, yarn or twine."

Most woven fabrics are done on a loom, but macram� typically is done with cords looped around dowels or pins tacked onto a foam board.

The knots range from the most simple -- square knots like sailors do -- to intricate Chinese-style knots.

It's become common to add beads, shells or other embellishments between knots to make the macram� more decorative. Also, while that natural hemp or cotton string is still used, so are delicate velvet ribbons, leather, natural raffia silk and dyed twine.

No matter what the material, multiply the length of whatever you're making by four (and add a little extra for finishing off the ends) for each strand. If you want to add width, increase the number of strands.

If you're making a belt to wear with jeans, Milman advises taking the dimensions of your waist, adding 12 inches and then multiplying that number by 4. That's for each cord.

Be generous, because you can always cut but you can't add on once the project is in progress.

This might seem complicated, but it's not -- once you start knotting, Milman promises.

"Macram� isn't hard. It's why you see little kids selling macram� friendship bracelets. It's something you can do with a ball of twine and a few beads," she says.

"All the fashion designers today probably remember doing macram� as kids at summer camp."

If you take the time to look at the weave of a macram� item, you'll see a beautiful pattern that also adds texture to an outfit, says Melody Kulp, founder and creative director of Sweetees.

She says stores can't keep in stock the brown, peach and green macram� belts she paired with solid soft-knit dresses and pants this season.

"If you really wanted to, you could make it yourself," says Kulp, "but our macram� belt has fusing inside. It's not as easy as it looks. But if you're a crafty person, I'm sure you could do it."

Indeed, belts and bracelets are easy and satisfying projects to start with, says Milman, and it won't take long to move on to a choker necklace with some semiprecious stones, gold beads or rhinestones.

Instructions and patterns seem readily available. A quick Internet search turns up dozens of macram� Web sites, mostly run by devoted crafters, and there are several good books. They were published in the 1960s and '70s, but the directions remain the same.

The idea is to use new materials and an old technique.

Yay! I can not begin to tell you how happy I am to read this. I have really noticed an increase of traffic even to this blog over the past few months - we may be taking our time, but we definitely are growing in numbers :-)

Macrame For Halloween

Hello there fellow Macrame Lovers,

I have been so busy with my day job that I have been neglecting posting on my blog :(. What has been happening in your worlds?

Did anyone create any Macrame for Halloween? I would love to see what you produced. Please feel free to send me a sample to : caromcc@gmail.com .

I am excited to say that I am venturing up your way to the beautiful state of Florida and I can hardly wait. I have been scouting the weather maps to get a feel for the weather at this time of the year. My destination is Orlando.

If you have any tips to offer about what to pack I am all ears.

Well I hope you are well, and please let me know what you would most like to see on this blog and I will do my best to produce it for you ( I have my trusty magic wand and top hat :) ).

BFN

:)

Lagerfeld Does Macrame!

AP Wire | 10/07/2005 | Coco meets James Dean at Lagerfeld's show: "For his spring collection for Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld imagined a meeting of two great icons: Coco Chanel and James Dean.

Influenced by traditional Chanel tweed and a rock 'n' roll image of the 1950s movie idol, Lagerfeld sent out eclectic garments for Chanel's spring-summer 2006 ready-to-wear collection in a Paris fashion week show on Friday.

At times, James Dean lookalikes appeared in weathered leather jackets and jeans, a way to introduce similar items into the women's collection.

A tough-looking, long and lean black leather jacket was worn with knee length shorts. Then came a graceful white re-embroidered macrame top worn with three-quarter sleeves over matching flared skirt."

So what Macrame fashion piece do you have in your wardrobe for this season? All the best designers are onto it.....and so are we :)

Homeless Kids Find Voice In Macrame

Beacon Journal | 10/15/2005 | Homeless kids find voice in art: "This past summer, artists and volunteers worked with about 150 students at Safe Landing, Access, the Battered Women's Shelter and Catholic Worker, a program that provides transitional housing and is mainly helping immigrants and their families.

The students did macrame and reverse-image printing, and made beaded bookmarks, jewelry, masks, sock puppets and frames. The volunteers and artists tried to incorporate other subjects into the activities, including reading, writing and history.

Gabina Davila, a parent liaison with Catholic Worker, said many of the students had one or both parents working during the day. She said the kids enjoyed the arts and crafts activities".

This touched me deeply and reinforced to me the power of art and crafts such as Macrame to heal, both physical and emotional wounds just through pouring ourselves and igniting our creativity that comes from our heart. It has got me thinking where and how else can we expose others to Macrame and/or other crafts so they too can feel more joy, peace anf fulfilment in their lives. :)

Big & Small Ads - Hilarious Tangent From Macrame

Hi fellow Macrame Lovers,

I thought you might enjoy clicking on these links. I currently reside down under in Oz, and there is an ad running down here that is receiving local and international attention for its clever use of humour to sell the product.

Click on this link to enjoy for yourself:

Big Ad

And if that wasn't enough!!! Another clever Aussie company has made this ad as a p-sstake of the first ad which was a p-take of advertising!!!

Check it out, its a scream...

Small Ad

I'd love to hear your thoughts....or at least your laughter!

BFN

Carolyne :)

Lady In Red - Macrame Wall Hanging

Hi lovely Macrame-ites,

I am back from my vacation and what a wonderful time I had with some of my family members. It was truly special!

And when I got back I found this wonderful example from the same source as the key ring below. Do I feel lucky or what to be sent this to share with you.

I am not sure why I titled it as above - I guess it is so vibrant that that song came into my mind.

I hope you also are inspired by this creative offering.

Carolyne :)

Awesome Readers Macrame Keyring Handicraft!

Hi there sensational Macrame-ites,

Check out this that a delightful reader sent me. As part of my product offering - you know the awesome downloadable book I offer http://www.macramelovers.com, I also offer a 7 day free 'tips and tidbits' email course.

I have been receiving wonderful feedback from subscribers, and what is more special to me, is that some are sending me examples of their very fine handy work, like this picture below.

Thank you 'Da Bear' :).

I hope you are having lots of fun knotting away, do send me some piccies, I love to see how creative everyone is.

BFN

Carolyne :)

Stylish Macrame Beaded Scarf

Margie Makes..: "Sunday, October 02, 2005

Behold! Macrame scarf with wooden beads! I ended up using all of three balls and a bit of the fourth and it's certainly long enough"

Look what else I found - Macrame is running rife in Australia, my posing before was also from another wonderful Aussie. I hope you find this inspiring and do check out Margie's blog - it is worth a look! :)

Bright & Breezy Macrame Wall Hanging

Fibre Fancies. Exploring forms in textiles and threads of fact and fantasy: "Thursday, September 29, 2005
Macrame hanging. Looks good on a small window, but fades a little.
"

Check out this lovely bright and breezy wall hanging. Very colorful!!! :)

Tied Up With Something Other Than Macrame..can you believe it?!

Hi there lovely Macrame Lovers,

I have been tied up with something other than my Macrame....you can call it the day job. All good. And I am soon to be enjoying a fabulous holiday with my mother and sister, so there will be fewer postings over the next couple of weeks.

Though will send you some juicy stuff shortly to wet your palate, and please do send me examples of the work you created, I love seeing the fruits from your fingers.

BFN

Carolyne :)

Linen Cording Works Macrame Wonders

Hi there lovely Macrame Lovers,

I thought I would share a snippet from my book re different kinds of cording you can use, which may serve to open up even more creative options for you as you are happily knotting.

:)

Linen:

Linen cording comes in a wide variety of colors and weights which makes it very desirable for many knotting patterns. Linen has the strength and diversity that many other types of cording don’t have, making it great for Macramé projects that need to be strong and durable. Linen cording is often used in Macramé wall hangings and looks great when combined with other types of cording, such as cotton and silk. The one thing that you need to keep in mind is that linen cording will fray easily so you’ll have to be very sure to finish off the ends of your project carefully.

Recommended Macrame Reading

Handcrafted by Elaine - macrame instructions - additional resources FAQ: "CAN YOU RECOMMEND MACRAME BOOKS?

I am often asked whether I can recommend any books. There are many books, old and new, on macramé. I am not familiar with most of these books. There are two books that I know well and can recommend.

The first is The Macramé Book by Helene Bress. This book has instructions for lots of variations on the basic knots - similar to what I'm trying to do on my web site. It was originally published in the early 70's and was out of print for a long time. A few of years ago it was revived. It also shows the work of some artists including some spectacular wall hangings. The original edition is the only macramé book that I owned for many years. This is not a book for people who want step-by-step instructions for projects.

The second book is The New Macramé edited by Katie DuMont and published in March 2000 by Lark Books. A lot of the work used in that book is my work. This book is a macramé jewelry and accessories book which includes some really nice and very diverse work beautifully photographed. It also includes step by step instructions for specific pieces. Instructions were provided by the artists and then revised to fit the format of the book. Some beginners have found the format of the instructions in that book a little difficult to follow, but after a little experience you should be able to follow many of these patterns. I provided instructions for some of my work for that book. When my instructions were translated to the format of the original hardcover book some changes were made and I noticed a few corrections that were needed. I have created a corrections sheet for my projects that I can e-mail to anyone who has the book. Most of these corrections were made before the publication of the softcover edition. I do not receive any royalties from the sale of this book.

Well of course I'd want to add my book in there http://www.macramelovers.com, AND I know that to have more than one book on something you love IS a good thing, so do check them out, and thanks again to Elaine for her tips. :)

The House of Macrame

emyko: "my urge to create things is something I doubt will ever go away, and I think that is what makes me an artist. Maybe it will be hanging macrame plant holders or scarves or dishes or drawings. And maybe those things will appeal to other people and make them want to give me money. But mostly, I like to create because it makes me happy, not only to make something beautiful, but to make something that is useful to me. When I am an adult with my own home, I would like to make as many of the things in my home as possible. Obviously shoes and dishwashers would be a bit difficult, but I'd like to make my own furniture and plates and wall art. And anything else that I can figure out how to make. I think that would be immensely satisfying."

I loved this post from Emyko's blog - it just felt so magical reading it - being creative does fill us with such a wonderful feeling - satisfaction, completion, love, peace and whatever words you would use to describe it for you. What a beautiful share :)

Who Is Your King Pin Macrame Supplier?

Hi fellow Macrame Lovers,

I received a lovely email from someone in Brisbane Australia asking me about finding suppliers.

I recommended her to the online ones, as I find online shopping to be wonderful convenient and international - oh and safe, I have never had a bad experience - touch wood!!!

I would love to know who you recommend as your favorite 'King Pin' Macrame supplier? Can be in the 'real world', a Craft Shop down the road, or your preferred Internet Supplier of Materials

I really welcome your thoughts.

Best to you

Carolyne :)

Jute - The Grand Dame Of Macrame Yarn

I thought you might enjoy this excerpt from my book. Like we all have our preferences - mine is for Jute - it is what I made my very first Macrame Project - a Planter - with all those years ago. I remember dying up a storm in the laundry with the Condese Crystals (not sure if I spelled that the right way of not!?). It really is the most wonderful of yarns to work with - in my book at least......:)

Jute:

Jute is a great material to use for many Macramé projects. It is not too costly and the thickness of the yarn will give you fast results. You can buy jute in 2-ply sizes all the way up to 5-ply. One thing to keep in mind when you’re using jute is that it is not colorfast. This means that if you’re going to be using the jute in a project that is going to be subjected to electric or natural light for an extended period of time that it will fade. You’ll find that the natural tone of jute, which is a sandy, light colored brown, will be great for natural projects when you’re going to be using objects such as shells, stones, natural beads, and other rustic items.

Jute is also available in dyed colors for those Macramé projects where you need color. Or you can take your Macramé craft one step further by dying your own jute.

More Groovy Macrame Knotting Tips

Handcrafted by Elaine - macrame instructions - additional instructions FAQ: "HOW CAN I FINISH A NECKLACE, BRACELET, ETC. AT THE CLASP?

When you are down to 4 cords, working up toward your clasp, you can make a square knot sennit. Bring the core cords around a jump ring or the loop in your clasp, leaving at least a half inch between the end of your sennit and the ring. Using 4 core cords (the original ones and the same cords looped back behind your piece), tie some more square knots until you are near the clasp. Tie the ends of your cords behind the square knots and glue.

HOW CAN I ADD MORE CORDS TO MY WORK?

One method of adding cords would be to separate 4 cords into two groups. Take a new cord (folded in half) and use it as your knotting cords to make a square knot with two of the old cords as core cords. Then repeat the same thing with the other two original cords as core cords for another added pair of cords - this brings you to 8 cords where you originally had 4 cords.

Another method of adding would be to take a new cord and, starting at the center, use that cord as a knot bearer and double half hitch the other cords to the new cord. This will give you two new cords.

HOW CAN I DECREASE THE NUMBER OF CORDS I AM WORKING WITH?

The easiest method to explain for decreasing cords would be to use several core cords in a square knot"

Thank you Elaine. Please do go and check out her website - there is quite a lot there that might take your fancy...... :)

Macrame - How Do I Start A.........

Handcrafted by Elaine - macrame instructions - additional instructions FAQ: "HOW DO I START A NECKLACE, BRACLET, CHOKER, ETC?

If you are going to close a choker by tying it you can just start with square or half knots leaving enough extra cord at the end of your core cords for tying. (You can pin or tape the cords to your board to hold them in place to start). Another alternative would be to tie them together in one overhand knot to start. If you are mounting it onto a clasp you can use two doubled cords and loop them around your clasp to get started. Then use your 4 cords to make square knots.

HOW CAN I START/END MY WALL HANGING?

The easiest way to start a wall hanging is to mount cords on a dowel using either the lark's head or double half hitches.

There are many different ways to end a wall hanging. A few of the options are:
End with a row of double half hitches and let a fringe hang down.
End with overhand knots.
You can tie overhand knots in each cord, every two cords, or larger groups of cords."
Check out Elaine's Macrame website by clicking on the link - these are some questions I have readers frequently ask me - and here are some great thoughts in response. Thanks Elaine! :)

Macrame Used In Cutting Edge Interior Design

The Globe and Mail: New suites in Amsterdam owned by young chef: "Suite seven features Wanders' iconic macramé-like 'knotted chair' made out of rope soaked in glue. Vases are made from casting the shape of an egg stuffed into a condom, and a wall is given over to his one-minute sculptures. You get the idea.

You know by now my passion is also to reinforce what a force and contemporary craft Macrame is.....well here is a snippet from an article that talks about Macrame as part of a Leading edge Interior Design project for a Hotel - way to go for the Big M!!! :)
"

Russian Macrame - Macrame Spans The Globe!

Kommersant - Russia's Daily Online: "Rare crafts such as woodcarving, basket weaving, macrame, and wonderful lacework and embroidery have been preserved in various villages in the region. The hands of the lacemakers produce patterns in fine, nearly weightless threads that rival the frost patterns on windows in delicacy.

Craftsmen who model clay toys and ceramics also make their contribution to Orel's cultural heritage. Orel potters have their own style of painting distinct from the work of craftsmen in other regions.

The art of Orel masters has been presented twice at fairs in Germany and France, as well as in Russia (Kaliningrad, Moscow, and Sochi). The cultural legacy and knowledge of Orel masters is being carefully passed on to their children and grandchildren, who are continuing the work of their forebears."

This article is fascinating!! And to hear that rare crafts such as Macrame have been found here conjours up such rich visuals!!! Check out the article - and know that when you are creating your piece de la resistance that this is a global passion pursued by many!!! Carolyne :)