Craft

Knotty an Fashion somethin g rope and string

Making something with your own hands can be meditative, and the creation gives you a sense of pride and satisfaction.

Macramé string bag

MATERIALS

● 120m fine (1mm) jute twine ● Two 6cm squares of leather

or similar for handles EQUIPMENT

● 4.5mm crochet hook ● Scissors ● Wire coat hanger ● 8 clothes pegs or bulldog clips ● Sewing machine or heavy-duty

needle and thread

● Liquid adhesive (suitable

for leather) DIFFICULT

A good understanding of a variety of craft skills required.

1 Make a crocheted base by following the instructions for the baskets (see page 58) to the end of Round 5 (48 stitches). End with a slip stitch into the next stitch. 2 Round 6: 2ch (counts as 1 treble), *1ch, 1tr* in every stitch. When you have completed the round, slip stitch into top of 2nd chain and weave in ends. 3 Cut 48 two-metre lengths of twine. Fold each length in half and feed the folded end through one of the gaps in the outer row of the crocheted base. Pass the two cut ends through the folded loop and pull tightly to secure. Repeat with a new length of twine in the next gap until you have completed the circle. There will be 96 strands of twine hanging from the crocheted edge. 4 Pass the hook of a wire coat hanger through the hole in the centre of the crocheted base. Bend the ends of the coat hanger around so that they support the crocheted circle, making a temporary frame to hold the bag open as you

d NICE

n g beautiful for your home using g – it’s worth giving it a tie!

work the knots. Use the coat hanger hook to hang the work from a doorknob. 5 Take two pairs of twine strands next to each other. Let the middle two strands (one from each pair) hang together. Pass the left-hand strand across the front of the middle strands, forming a loop on the left side. Pass the right-hand strand over the left-hand strand, behind the middle strands and bring it forward through the loop, making a granny knot across the hanging middle strands, about 2cm from the top. 6 Take the right-hand strand (which was formerly the left-hand strand) and pass it across the front of the middle strands, forming a loop on the right side. Make another granny knot as before, capturing the middle strands. Pull the knot gently until it catches fi rmly, but don’t pull it too tight. 7 Repeat this with the next two pairs of twine strands, until you have made knots all around the bag and are back at the starting point. 8 For the next row of knots, you need to take the righthand strand from the fi rst knot and the left-hand strand from the second knot. These will be the hanging middle strands of the new knot. Using the next strand to the left, make a loop on the left as before and tie it with the next strand to the right. This will place the second round of knots off set between the fi rst round. Pull the knots until they catch, but don’t make them too tight or you will lose the open mesh appearance. 9 Repeat around the bag, then move to next round of knots, off setting each round from the previous one as before. Work about 16 rounds of knots until the bag is the desired size. 10 On the fi nal round of knots, work an extra granny knot to make it a little more secure. Remove the coathanger frame and discard it. 11 To make the braided handles, gather three groups of four strands and plait them about eight times. Use a clothes peg or bulldog clip to hold each braid while you plait the remaining strands. You should have eight braids. 12 Take two adjacent braids and combine them together into one larger braid. Braid for about 40cm from the join, then use a sewing machine to stitch across the braid to secure it. (You could use sewing thread to tie them off by hand if you don’t have a machine.) Trim the ends of the string about 1.5cm from the stitching. Repeat with the remaining pairs of braids until you have eight large braids. 13 Join a pair of the large braids by crossing the ends over each other at the stitching line, then stitch several times back and forth across the overlap to secure. Make sure the braids are not twisted when you join them. Repeat with the remaining braids for the other handle. 14 Wrap a piece of leather around each join, applying glue to both the stitched part of the handles and the leather. Press fl at under a heavy object while the glue dries overnight.

Rope trivet

MATERIALS

● 1 packet 6mm window

sash cord (available from hardware stores in various thicknesses and lengths. You need about 5m) EQUIPMENT

● Heavy-duty sewing

needle and thread

● Scissors

EASY

No special craft skills required.

1 Make a loop in the end of the cord by folding over about 7cm of cord and crossing the cord. Fold the cord about 3cm along from the cross to make another loop and push the fold through the fi rst loop. Pull the end of the cord to secure the knot around the second loop. 2 Fold the cord about 3cm along from the second loop to make anotherloop. Push this fold through the second loop. Keep the loops reasonably loose so they sit fl at when laid on the table. 3 Repeat Step 2 to make a chain about 120cm long for a 17cm diameter trivet. Finish by cutting the cord about 7cm from the fi nal loop and pulling the end fi rmly through the loop to knot. 4 Thread the sewing needle with strong thread and double it for extra strength. Knot the end of the thread and anchor it through the knot at the beginning of the chain. 5 Lay the chain fl at, with the loops fl at-side down, and start to curl the chain around itself in a spiral. Stitch through the side of each loop and then back through the side of the loop in the previous round to hold together. 6 Continue stitching around the spiral, turning it over occasionally to check that the loops are sitting fl at on the top of the trivet. When you get to the end, work a couple of back stitches to fasten off the sewing thread and sew the tail inside the cord to hide it. 7 Use your fi ngers to weave the tail ends of the rope into the underside of the trivet and trim the ends neatly. Turn the trivet over so the fl at side of the loops are uppermost.

Crocheted string baskets

MATERIALS

● 100m hemp rope, about the

thickness of 8ply wool (makes one basket 16cm diameter x 8cm high + 3cm cuff) EQUIPMENT

● 5mm crochet hook ● Scrap yarn (optional) ● Scissors

MEDIUM

Some craft skills required (crochet).

1 Make 4 chain (ch) and slip stitch (sl st) into fi rst chain to form a circle. Work 8 double crochet (dc) into the centre. Work in a spiral without fi nishing each round. 2 Round 1: 2dc in each stitch (16 sts). 3 Round 2: *1dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (24 sts). 4 Round 3: *1dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (32 sts). 5 Round 4: *1dc in next 3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (40 sts). 6 Round 5: *1dc in next 4 stitches, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (48 sts). 7 Round 6: 1dc in every stitch. 8 Round 7: *1dc in next 5 stitches, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (56 sts). 9 Round 8: *1dc in next 6 stitches, 2dc in following stitch*, repeat from * to * to end of round (64 sts). The base will measure about 14cm diameter at this point.

Note: If you want a larger basket, continue increasing in alternate rounds until you have a fl at disc of the desired diameter. 10 Round 9 and following rounds: 1dc in every stitch, continuing for about 15 rounds until the basket is the desired height. Slip stitch into next stitch to fi nish the round. 11 Cuff: Turn the work (so you are working back across the stitches you have just made). Make 1ch to start, then 1dc in every stitch as before, for 4 or 5 rounds. 12 Finish off with a slip stitch, pull the yarn through the last loop, then weave the tail of the rope into the previous row. Weave in the tail at the beginning. Fold over the cuff . Use a short length of coloured yarn to mark the beginning of the round and weave it through at the beginning of each new round. You can simply pull it out and discard it when you’ve fi nished.

Variation 1: Small basket or bott le holder

1 Work the fi rst 6 rounds as for the basket, then slip stitch into the next stitch. 2 Every round: 3 chain (counts as 1 treble), 1 treble in every stitch to end, slip stitch in top chain. 3 When you reach the desired height (ours is 6 rounds high), work one round of 1dc in every stitch and fi nish with a slip stitch, pulling the rope through the last loop, then weaving the tails in.

Variation 2: Rustic loopy basket

1 Using medium (2mm) jute twine and a 12mm crochet hook, start with the fi rst three rounds as for the basket base. Work into the back of each stitch and keep the tension loose. 2 You may fi nd you need to work a round of 1dc in every stitch after round 3 and again after round 4 to keep the base fl at. 3 After round 5, work 1dc in every stitch to make the sides until you reach the desired height, then fi nish off by pulling the rope through the last loop and weaving in the tails.

Cord basket

MATERIALS

● 45m x 8mm cotton window

sash cord EQUIPMENT

● Scissors ● Bucket ● Heavy-duty clear-drying

liquid adhesive (optional)

● Heavy-duty sewing needle

and thread (optional) EASY

No special craft skills required.

1 Cut eight 1m lengths of cord. 2 Take 3 of the lengths of cord and cross them over each other in the centres to form a star shape. Holding them together in the centre with one hand, take one of the cords and weave it around the other 5 spokes, going under one, over the next, under the next, and so on until you have used the whole length of that piece of cord. Tuck the end back into the weaving to secure it. 3 Turn the bucket upside down and place the woven disc on top, with the spokes of cord hanging down over the side of the bucket at regular intervals. Take one of the remaining 5 lengths of cut cord and thread it through the last round of weaving between two of the spokes, pulling it through so the ends are even and it is folded in half over the last round of weaving. Allow the ends to hang over the side of the bucket. Repeat with each of the gaps between the original spokes so you now have 15 spokes hanging over the side of the bucket. 4 Using the remaining uncut cord, anchor one end into the woven disc and continue weaving as before, incorporating the new spokes into the pattern. When you reach the edge of the bucket base, stop and tug lightly on the spokes to ensure they are evenly spaced around the base, and that the weaving is fi rm and secure. 5 Continue weaving around the spokes and working down the side of the bucket, until you reach the height you want the basket to be. If you need to start a new packet of cord, tuck the ends into the previous round of weaving as you did before. Finish weaving by cutting the cord and tucking the end back into the weaving. 6 Lightly tug on the ends of the spokes to ensure they are evenly spaced and the weaving is fi rm, then remove the basket from the bucket, turning it up the right way. There will be tails of cord from the spokes sticking out of the top of the basket. 7 To fi nish the top edge of the basket, take the end of a spoke and lay it along the top edge of the basket. Wrap the next spoke over it and allow the tails to fall inside the basket. Repeat around the top edge. Now go around and pass the tails of each cord around the next spoke along, between the top two rows of weaving, and tug lightly to secure. Trim off the cord ends close to the weaving inside the basket. 8 To secure the ends of the cord, you can use a blob of clear-drying liquid adhesive or stitch with a needle and thread, if you prefer.