Want to learn how to macrame? Then you came to the right place!!
I will show you how to macrame a belt in just a few hours using the following basic macrame knots.
Square Knot (SK)
Alternating Square Knot (ASK)
Reverse Lark’s Head (RLH)
Half Hitch (HH)
Double Half Hitch (DHH)
OK… now go and gather up the supplies and tools you will need to make your macrame belt. I have mine ready.
Supplies & Tools needed to make Macrame Belt
- 50 yards 3 1/2mm BRAIDED Macrame cord
- One belt buckle, 2 1/4″ minimum opening to insert cords
- Knotting board or ceiling tile
- T-Pins
- Tape measure, ruler or yardstick
- Scissors
- Craft glue
Macrame Cord: I am using 3 1/2mm BRAIDED macrame cord since that is what I prefer when making belts. You can use any cord millimeter you wish allowing for cord “doubled” to fit on both buckle ends.
Belt Buckle: Buckle doesn’t have to be exactly like mine but the opening for the cord should be at least 2 1/4″ length if using 3 1/2mm cord. That is the size opening needed to double half hitch all cords to the buckle when finished knotting.
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1:
Cut six 7 yard cords (Yardage depends on how long you want belt to be. I used 7 yard cords since I wanted belt to be long. I’m a big girl. 😀 )
Step 2:
Find the center of one of the 7 yard cords and Reverse Lark’s Head (RLH) it onto one side of the belt buckle. Follow the illustration in the picture.
Pull Reverse Lark’s Head (RLH) tight against belt buckle.
Step 3:
Number the cords 1-12 left to right. (Up to this point, I know you only have one cord mounted. That one cord will now be Cord #’s 1 & 2. Label the rest once they are mounted to the belt buckle.)
Step 4:
Tie a Half Hitch (HH) knot with Cord #2. Bring this cord up, over and through the buckle opening.
Bring cord down and pull tight against the Reverse Lark’s Head.
Tie a Half Hitch (HH) with Cord #1. Bring up, over and through the buckle opening. Pull down and tighten.
Congratulations!!
You have now completed your first Reverse Lark’s Head and Half Hitched both sides of it.
Push knot to the left side of your belt buckle. Continue mounting all cords the same as you did this one.
This is how your belt should look after all cords have been added to one end of your belt buckle using Reverse Lark’s Head knots combined with Half Hitch knots.
And this is how the backside should look. The “bumps” were created by the half hitches. Make sure to turn belt over to the smooth side before continuing.
Step 5/Row 1:
Now you are ready to begin tying a row of Square Knots (SK) using all 12 cords.
Left Side Row 1: Tie one Square Knot with cords 1- 4. Push knot up close to the top and tighten. Look at the illustrations for help.
Center Row 1: Tie one Square Knot in the center with cords 5 through 8. Push knot up close to the top and tighten. Make sure knot is lined up with the knot on the left.
Right Side Row 1: Tie one Square Knot on the right side with cords 9-12. Push knot up close to the top and tighten. Make sure knot is lined up with the other knots in this row.
This completes Row 1. Pat yourself on the back. You have just mastered the Square Knot. The Square Knot is THE main knot for most macrame projects.
Step 6/Row 2:
You will now tie a row of Alternating Square Knots (ASK) with cords 3-10. This row consists of just two square knots. One SK tied with cords 3 through 6 and one SK tied with cords 7 through 10. (This row is called an Alternating Square Knot row because you are tying knots with different cords than the previous row.)
Tie a row of Square Knots using all 12 cords. You will tie these knots the same as you did in Row 1 but with one exception. Don’t push up too close to the knot above. You will drop down slightly (about 1/4″) when tying the knots on the left and right so a little peephole is formed along the edges. This creates an open airy design along the belt edges. Use a ruler until you can judge by sight how much to drop down. Look at the pictures to gauge the distance I used.
Step 8:
Continue tying rows of Alternating Square Knots (ASK) and Square Knots (SK) in the following order until you either reach your desired belt length or you run out of cord. 😀
- Row 4. Row of ASK’s
- Row 5. Row of SK’s
- Row 6. Row of ASK’s
- Row 7. Row of SK’s
- And so forth….
- Last row should be a row of three SK’s.
Leave at least 8-10 inches of cord after tying your last row of knots. You will need about this much cord to “comfortably” double half hitch cords onto the other side of your belt buckle.
Step 9:
Once you are finished tying knots, you are ready to Double Half Hitch (DHH) all 12 cords to the other end of your belt buckle. I apologize but my photo for this step turned out fuzzy and I was way past this step to retake it. So I double half hitched a few cords onto a metal ring so you would have a picture illustration.
This may be a struggle to get all cords on the buckle end but slide the cords down as far left as you can to free up some space along the buckle opening. After double half hitching all cords to the buckle end, pull each cord as tight as you can to create a smooth appearance. (See why I told you what type opening to use.)
Step 10:
Yippee!! You are almost finished. The end is in sight and a new belt will soon be hanging around your waist!! How does your belt look? This is how mine looks after double half hitching the 12 cords to the other side of the belt buckle.
This is the backside showing where the cords will need to be trimmed.
Make sure you are satisfied with the belt length and are indeed finished knotting. Once cords are trimmed there is no turning back. BEFORE TRIMMING CORDS….. Lightly apply craft glue to the underside of the knots on the backside of the knotting. Straighten cords. Press flat with your hands. Set aside and allow to dry.
Step 11:
Ready to trim cords. Leaving about 1/2″ from the top, cut all 12 cords. Look at picture illustration. Melt the CUT cord edges with a cigarette lighter or match to keep cords from fraying. Don’t hold fire very long to the cord, just a split second. Don’t want to ruin or burn your beautiful creation.
Here are pictures of my finished belt. Including the belt buckle, my belt measures 40″ and has 119 rows. It took me 3 hours to complete.
Hope you are happy with your new belt. Feel free to send me photos of your finished belt. Send to don_mae2@yahoo.com. Enjoy!!
Here is your Certificate of Completion. 😀
My related articles:
https://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2008/05/06/how-to-tie-a-macrame-square-knot/
https://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2008/05/18/how-to-macrame-a-purse/
https://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2008/05/09/how-to-macrame-a-basket/
https://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2008/05/02/macrame-sewing-baskets/
https://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2008/05/01/may-is-macrame-month/
Macrame Cord Suppliers
Need more help tying knots? Go here. Click to enlarge the chart.
http://thingsyourgrandmotherknew.blogspot.com/2009/01/basic-macrame-knots.html
This Year's Dozen 