Tag Archives: Macrame

Easy Macrame Shelf You Can Make in a Couple of Hours!

I have gotten the permission from one of my favorite Youtubers, Lots of Knots Canada, to link her page for some tutorials if you want to learn macrame! Her tutorials have REALLY helped me get started with this fun art. If you check her out, make sure to let her to know I sent ya!

Hello, my lovelies, and welcome to my second post! Honestly, I hate those blog posts that go on and on about the background of the idea and how they came about the final product and, blah blah blah…so I’m just gunna get right in to it.

Last week, my mother sent me a picture of a shelf she saw in a boutique in Phoenix and said it was $80! I told her, “Um, no. I can make one for free.” So I took the inspiration photo and got to work.

Inspiration shelf

Here’s what you’ll need to get started:

  • 4mm single strand macramé cord (I got mine on Amazon. Click here to purchase)
  • 24″ wooden dowel
  • 2×6 board, cut to 24″
  • Paint or wood stain. I used Minwax stain in the shade Provincial
  • Polyurethane
  • 1″ hole drill bit
  • Electric drill or cordless drill

Let’s Do This!

Cut 26 pieces of the cord, 84″ long (or 7′). Set aside 8 of the cords. You won’t need those right now.

Attach rope in sets of two, using the lark’s head knot, to the dowel. If you’re not sure how to do the lark’s head knot, click here to watch a tutorial! Then, on each end of the dowel, attach one strand.

There should be 8 sets of two, plus the one strand on each end, totaling 18 strands on the dowel

Tie a square knot at the top of each set. You should have 8 square knots when finished. See below for a pictorial on how to tie a square knot!

Start off by making a number “4” with the left strand.
Take the right strand and place it over the left strand.
Fold the right strand under the middle two strands.
Put the right strand into the loop and pull tight.
Now, do the opposite of what you just did. Take the right strand and make a backwards “4”.
Place the left strand over the right strand.
Put the left strand under the two middle strands.
Put the left strand into the loop and pull tight.
Voila! You have a square knot! Great job!
Once finished, you should have a total of 8 square knots at the top of your work.

For the second row, begin about 2.5″ from the top row. This is where you incorporate your end strands. Going left to right, use the end strands and the two outside strands of the set next to it and tie a square knot. Continue this to the end of the row. This will give you 9 square knots.

Here, you can see there are 9 total square knots.

Continue down to the third row, beginning 2.5″ from the second row. Using the two inside strands from each pair, tie a square knot. Continue this to the end of the row. You should have 8 square knots in the third row.

The fourth row is where the “V” really starts to take shape! Just as before, begin about 2.5″ from the third row and continue the same process as the previous rows, but this time, you should have 7 total square knots. Continue this process for each row, eliminating a square knot each row, until you get to two square knots on the last row. (See picture below)

You should now have a “V” shape, consisting of 10 rows.

Adding the board

Take the 8 strands that we set aside and attach 4 on each end of the dowel, using the lark’s head knot. Here, you can either just attach the board, or you can make the ends a little more decorative. I am going to add spiral knots on each set of strands with a different color strand that I had previously dyed for a different project. These strands are 3mm in diameter, but you can sure use a 4mm strand as well. Click here for a tutorial of the spiral knot from Lots of Knots Canada.

This is what my finished spiral knots look like.

My board is 24″ long. I just got a 2×6 board from HomeDepot, used my table saw, and cut it down to 24″. After that, I took 100 grit sand paper and sanded the edges, and finished off with 360 grit sand paper to smooth it all over. The entire board.

I then stained with Minwax Provincial stain. I only did one coat because I didn’t want it too dark. If I was re-doing a table or something that gets used often, I would have conditioned the wood beforehand. Once that was dry, I took a 1″ drill bit and cut a hole through all four corners of the board, about one inch in.

Once I had the holes cut, I lightly sanded the inside of the holes with 600 grit sandpaper and went over the top of the board, with a very light hand. Almost no pressure.

After the holes were cut, I went over the board with Minwax Helmsman indoor/outdoor spar urethane in Clear Satin. I used the spray can because it is easier for me to control and get a much more even coat. I went over it three times, with about an hour and a half between each time. After the second coat was dry, I took a 360 grit sanding block and smoothed out any imperfections on the board to make it as smooth as possible.

Once the board was dry (I let it sit for 48 hours before handling it), I put masking tape on the ends of each of the end pieces, so that it is easier to feed through the holes. It may seem like all four of the pieces won’t fit, but trust me, they do. This will give a more secure hold.

Now, feed the strands through the top of the board. The last set of strands go through the front holes, and the second set go through the back holes. Once you have them through the board, wrap them around the front (or the back) and feed through the holes once more. This will secure the board in place.

Once you have the strands through all four holes and level, bring the 8 strands on each side to the middle and tie them together, to create more reinforcement.

I used a method of knot tying, called the common whipping knot. Using a separate piece of cord; gather all cords together and first lay a ‘loop’ down the center of them all. Wrap the cord around all the cords including its own loop you just created. Thread the end through the loop and pull up on the end peeking out at the top to tuck the bottom end up into the wrap. Trim the bottom cord first so you can pull the end fully up into the wrap and then trim the top cord.

You can stop here and enjoy the shelf as is, or you can do what I did, and tie knots on the end of each cord. This helps prevent the cord from fraying, and personally, I think it gives it a more finished look!

And here’s the finished project!!! I hope my directions were easy to follow. Please leave a comment with any questions you may have and I will respond the best I can!

Don’t forget to check out my friend, Chantel, over on her YouTube channel, Lots of Knots Canada, for some amazing macramé tutorials and tell her Sara sent ya! Also, check out her Etsy store for some macramé cord, textiles, and her book!