Types of macrame knots

1. Peculiarities
2. Simple knots
3. Chinese species
4. Decorative options
5. Things to know (Q&A)

Mankind has invented a large number of knots, but only a part of them are used in the macrame technique. Combinations and repetitions of one or another of their types allow you to create original products: a bracelet, flower pots, panels. The basis for all these products are various threads.

Peculiarities

The simplest knot weaving patterns have been known since antiquity, when people learned to use knots to create clothes and household items. The macrame technique received its historical beginning and development in ancient China in the middle of the 8th century. In medieval Europe, macrame was also used, since similar works can be seen on the canvases of Renaissance artists, but extraordinary popularity for this technique came only at the beginning of the 20th century.

Cache-pots, carpets, lampshades made of weaving threads were used not only in home interiors, but also were decorations in cultural institutions and catering establishments.

The main tools that come in handy in weaving macrame:

• scissors;
• small pillow;
• pins;
• Crochet hook;
• glue.

The weaving pillow is sometimes replaced with a piece of foam, but often craftswomen also use special boards covered with soft fabric or foam rubber. Macrame threads are used long and strong, and clear reliefs are obtained by twisting these threads. If you need to continue weaving, and the thread is over, then it can be lengthened. For the beauty of the product, colored material is used or coloring of finished products is performed, but this approach is a rare occurrence in macrame.

Glue is needed to process some threads, for example, silk, so that the thread does not unravel during operation. For weaving, you can use ordinary wool yarn, but the threads in its composition must be very stiff and durable.

The knots in macrame need to be twisted tightly, and if the material is weak, it will constantly tear.

Simple knots

Basic macrame knots allow you to make the simplest products that can be turned into the basis of a beautiful interior decoration or jewelry. Before starting work, you should learn the basic concepts:

• the base is the thread on which the knots will be fixed;
• working thread - the one that is used to create the node;
• for the convenience of work, all the threads need to be fixed on something, so this part is also called the base;
• the fastening of the thread on the basis is called a lock and is performed by an element outside or inside the product.

Macrame nodes are divided into basic and additional. The first elements are the basis for numerous variations of patterns, consider some of them.

Rep knot

Its structure is similar to a single knot. In the technique under consideration, it is one of the main ones. By forming such knots in series, you can get a voluminous cord, which is called a bred. Brides are subdivided into horizontal or diagonal.

The horizontal brid is obtained from two working threads, which are parallel to the warp. The thread for the diagonal brid is at an angle. The combination of horizontal and vertical bases allows you to embody interesting geometric patterns.

The rep element can be made vertically or horizontally. The first option involves using the first thread in a row as a working thread. The horizontal type knot involves the use of the second thread in a row as the main one. If you correctly use the combination of these knots, you can get beads of various sizes, which are used to create jewelry. They are fixed with a beautiful twisted thread and get a simple but beautiful decoration.

Flat knot

Used to create interior items, outwardly looks straight. The knot is of primary importance in the creation of many flat elements. Flat knots are made on the left or right side of the work. A series of one-way knots creates a twisted cord that can be used to make curtains or jewelry. As a variation of the execution, a double flat knot can be used.

"Hercules" knot

Such an element was used everywhere even before the advent of knot weaving technique. In ancient Greece, it was the main knot in the manufacture of clothing. Today, needlewomen successfully use it to create beautiful panels, furniture and even carpets.

To weave such an element, use two threads attached to the warp. The thread on the left is laid horizontally hanging down the end on the right. The second thread is laid on top of this base, and the end of the thread is threaded to the left into the resulting loop. The right thread is pulled in a horizontal position so that its end remains on the left, and the left thread is passed under this hanging part. Now the left thread should be on the horizontal base of the right thread, and its end should be threaded into the resulting second loop.

After completing these steps, the Hercules knot can be tightened. The same knot can also be obtained from four threads, and its appearance will be similar to the decorative square Tatting knot.

Chinese species

Each Chinese macrame knot has a different shape that has its own meaning. The weaving technique often uses red threads, which indicate prosperity and well-being.

"Lotus"

A knot that is performed in a circle, while there are no main or working threads in the work, since they are all used for the pattern. Knots are laid clockwise or counterclockwise. This technique was successfully used in marine practice, as the resulting cord came out very strong.

For weaving, you can use a variety of materials - rope, leather, wool.

"Chess"

This macrame element includes square knots that need to be staggered. As a result of weaving, a fabric with a beautiful pattern is obtained, which is used to create baskets, bags and even hammocks. When creating the main square element, 4 threads are required, so for the fabric being prepared, you need to select the number of threads that is a multiple of this number. For training in weaving, satin threads or thick nylon cords are used. Products with elements of "Chess" are interesting and unusual.

"Button"

A knot often used in jewelry making. Finished products look more elegant if you alternate knots with beads. This element is notable for the fact that a loop is formed at the top, which can be left or tightened.

The main Chinese knots are perfectly symmetrical and look identical on both sides of the piece.

Decorative options

Particularly beautiful knots are used to create individual products or as an element in a common canvas.

"Tatting"

A knot that is used as a decoration for a part of a product, when two threads alternately braid an object from the warp threads. The main difference in the weaving technique lies in fixing the contours of the pattern with a special loop. For the Tatting chain, you can use both two and four threads. Single weaving uses one main rope, which is braided with a second, resulting in beautiful patterns.

“Tatting” is a simple, but very elegant weaving, in order to complete it, it is enough to attach two threads to the base or one, but folded in half. The left thread is turned around the right one with an upward movement. It turns out a loop into which the left thread is passed. The elements are tightened alternately, resulting in a whole "column" of knots. "Tatting" of the four bases is formed by alternating the first and last threads, which are tied on the central base - threads folded in pairs.

"Josephine"

A wide knot that can be used to visually highlight part of the canvas. A chain of such knots is also suitable for creating decorative belts.

The Josephine knot symbolically means well-being and longevity, it is also called the knot of happiness and good luck, so jewelry with a similar set of chains is used by shopkeepers.

For beginner craftswomen, it is difficult to perform, since it is necessary to achieve uniform thread tension, only in this way a beautiful product is obtained. For "Josephine" you can use one thread, from which a left-hand loop is made. In this case, the second end of the thread is laid first on this loop, and then threaded under the first end. The same thread is threaded first under the left loop, and then under its second end - this way the right loop is obtained. The resulting complex element must be aligned by pulling on all the finished loops.

Macrame knots "Josephine" and "Tatting" are complex, but they will turn out if you carefully study the patterns of weaving flat and square knots.

"Pico"

These are loops of working threads that are obtained between simple elements. For example, they are often used between several Tatting elements. In addition, "Pico" is the basis for stringing beads. This knot is difficult to do neatly, so cardboard strips used as a ruler will come in handy to create it.

When weaving, one element is first tied, then a ruler is placed under it, while the working threads should be on top of the warp. The next element of the product is tied under the ruler, and the ruler is then removed.

"Berry"

A popular element in macrame, which is also called "Pea", "Nest" or "Hump". The basis for this element is a chain made of square knots. To get the “Berries”, the warp threads must be lifted and threaded over the first knot located at the beginning of work.

The base must be pulled down to the wrong side until the last and first knots are together. Fixing "Berries" is possible with the same square knot.

If you use several multi-colored ropes in this weaving method, you get an elegant cord that can be used in various products.

Having mastered the implementation of basic and decorative knots, you can create your own schemes of finished products based on them, creating unique and original things.

In the next video, you can learn how to create a beautiful amulet using weaving.

Things to know (Q&A)