Get Started: Macrame Jewelry

If you wanted to get started making jewelry, macarame has a lot of promise. It doesn’t take a lot of supplies or tools, the basics are pretty easy to learn, and it’s making a come back in a big way.

Back in the 70s, I was very into macrame. I remember making plant hangers, wall hangings, and, of course, lots of jewelry. Here’s a picture of an actual choker necklace from my macrame glory days that some how survived.

In the 80s macrame’s popularity took a dive, and so did my supplies. So, today I had to start from scratch in order to get started making macrame jewelry. But, I literally less than $20 at Wal-mart to get started.

The main supply need for macrame jewelry is the cord used for knotting designs. There are all kinds of cords available today. One of the most popular is hemp, which is actually rope or twine made from a hemp plant. It’s popularity has grown because it is very strong and now is available in a range of colors. Not too long ago, it was only available in boring beige. When I went to Wal-mart, I found a 10 yard package of hemp in natural, red, and green for about $4.

Another popular cord to macrame with is a waxed sinew cord. Again, it’s fairly inexpensive, but normally you can only find it in natural colors such as white, brown, and black. There is also beading twin available which comes in a much larger range of colors.

Once you get your main ingredient, the cord, you need just a few more items to get started. The most important is the surface area you will work on. You need something that you can pin your project to while you work. My personal favorite is a foam pillow. You can get a piece of foam, a few inches thick, from a fabric store. I don’t like the feel of foam myself, so you can cover it with some material if you don’t like the feel either. Another option is a piece of cord board. You can get these at most hardware stores. You need a large enough piece that you can comfortably set on your lap.

To keep your project pined against your work area, you’ll need some nice strong pins. I recommend either corsage pins or those T shape pins they use to keep wigs stuck on foam heads.

Next, you just need beads of your choice. You can use polymer clay, lampwork, wood, just about any type of bead you want. Your only restrictions are the size of the hole. It needs to fit through your cord. Normally, most cords are about 1mm thick.

Finally, you need instructions to get started. Under the Macrame Jewelry section of my site, you can find links to sites that offer free instructions for some of the basic knots you’ll need to know. Also, there are links to suppliers that offer a variety of macrame books. You might even try looking in used book stores. I’ve managed to find a few old macrame books this way.

That’s really about all you need to get started making macrame jewelry. Besides your local craft store, you can find supplies for macrame from most bead shops and suppliers you'll find linked under Beading Supplies.

Here's a printer friendly copy of this file.

Sign up for the weekly Jewelry Making Newsletter and
find out about new additions to this site each week.

Subscribe to the Newsletter
Name	Email

Chat with other jewelry makers in our chat room.

All graphics created by Tammy Powley.

Previous Features