Beyond Boho: Inspiring Macramé Projects For All Levels

As a beginner, you need to look for easy macramé projects that walk you through the fundamentals of the craft and get you used to joining cords and finishing off designs. Patterns that let you practice a few of the most common knots will strengthen your foundational skills and accelerate your learning in the future.

When your experience grows, you’ll be able to turn your hand to more complex designs and work with more knots, or much larger amounts of cord. It won’t be long until you’re knocking out elaborate wall hangings, bags, trinket holders or ornaments—and adding your own macramé embellishments.

Basic Macramé Projects For Beginners

To get started with macramé, try your hand at a simple and achievable project first. It’ll help you get your head around what’s involved and see how it’s possible to create something from a few pieces of cord.

These beginner’s macramé projects use just a couple of common, simple knots and will give you plenty of practice tying them. They get progressively harder, so you could work your way down the list or skip straight to the advanced projects if you’ve got more macramé experience.

Kick-Off With Macramé Keychains

The easiest way to begin is by learning how to make macramé keyring. The bead tassel pattern uses a lark’s head knot, plus standard knots to attach the cords and a wrapping knot to finish. You’ll use these knots in almost every DIY macramé project, so mastering them early is essential.

You can pick up another knot—the double clove hitch—by trying your hand at an arrow keyring. Since you’ll only have four pieces of cord to work with, it’s a more manageable way to practice this common knot.

Two macramé keyrings side-by-side. The left shows the bead tassel keyring with a bead at the top and long tassels hanging from it. The right shows the arrow keyring with eight rows of clove hitch knots and some tassels at the bottom. — This bead tassel macramé keyring (left) is the simplest project for beginners to master as it only requires a couple of knots. The arrow keyring (right) is the ideal pattern to try after, because you’ll get to practice one of the most common knots. Still from Skillshare Class Learn How To Make Your Own Macramé Keyring by Megan Chaffe

Move On To A Macramé Feather Wall Hanging

With the lark’s head and double clove hitch knots firmly in your repertoire, you can move on to how to make a macramé feather wall hanging. This is the perfect opportunity to practice square knots and learn how to create, trim and strengthen fringed edges.

Someone brushing out the edges of a macramé feather wall hanging. The small spine of knots surrounded by fringed edges looks like a bushy feather. There are five macramé feathers made in a variety of sizes and colors. The overall effect is a very different texture from a traditional wall hanging, which tends to focus more on knots instead of a fluffy fringed edge. — You only need two knots to make a feather wall hanging. Still from Skillshare Class Learn How To Make A Macramé Feather Wall Hanging by Megan Chaffe.

Progress To Macramé Plant Hangers

The next craft to master is creating a net, which you’ll pick up when you tackle a macramé plant hanger. You’ll get lots of opportunity to practice tying your square and spiral knots, and creating even spacing.

Skillshare teacher WildRose shows you how to move the net of a macramé plant hanger to so that the leaves of the fern plant don’t get squashed. — Get even more practice with square and spiral knots and learn how to make a net when you macramé a plant hanger. Still from Skillshare Class Macramé Plant Hanger DIY by WildRose.

Advanced Macramé Projects For Competent Crafters

You should now be able to knock out the basic knots—lark’s head, square and double clove hitch—with ease and be ready to take on some more advanced macramé projects.

These all have a layer of complexity to them, whether it’s working on a bigger scale, using more knots, or adding in additional colors, which makes them too ambitious for beginners.

Perfect Patterns With A Boho Macramé Wall Hanging

If you want to craft the most iconic macramé item, you’ll need to learn how to make a boho macramé wall hanging. You’ll use the lark’s head and square knots you’ve already practiced, but this pattern introduces you to pearl and spiral stitch knots to add texture to your wall art.

Skillshare teacher Ewa Szczepaniak is trimming the end of a boho macramé wall hanging so that the cord doesn’t hang too low down. — This macramé project will get you used to making pearl and spiral stitch knots. Still from Skillshare Class A Beginner’s Guide to Mindful Macramé by Ewa Szczepaniak.

Combine Colors With Macramé Coasters

You could also bring your new-found crafting skills to the dinner table and make a coaster.

It’s suggested that beginners can make a square macramé drinks coaster easily enough, but the stripe down the middle makes it somewhat more complicated. You’ll need to remember where you are in the pattern when you add the colored cord, and be precise with the knots because the stripe will stand out.

A square macramé drinks coaster with a baby blue stripe running through the middle. Skillshare teacher Megan Chaffe is holding it in her left hand and using her right hand to trim the fringed edges on the left-hand side of the coaster. — Square shapes are easier to work with, and this is the ideal pattern to learn how to add a stripe of color to your macramé. Still from Skillshare Class Learn How To Make Your Own Square Macramé Drinks Coaster by Megan Chaffe.

For a more advanced macramé project, try your hand at a circular coaster. It may look simple, but you’ll discover when you learn how to make the macramé coaster that you have to keep introducing new bits of cord with every new ring of the circle. When you’ve got the hang of that, you’ll also add-in some new cord to create the accent color.

A macramé drinks coaster being made. The center of the coaster is made from multiple pieces of white cord and an accent brown color is being added to create a triangle highlight. — This circle macramé coaster uses just two knots, but the circular shape makes it a more challenging project to complete. Still from Skillshare Class Learn To Make Your Own Macramé Drink Coasters by Megan Chaffe.

Step-up Your Shaping With A Trinket Holder

If you’re in pursuit of crafting a perfect circle, you also need to learn how to make a macramé trinket holder. It’s similar to how you’d make the coaster, except you’ll discover how to lay clove hitch knots on top, instead of next to each other.

A macramé trinket holder with a necklace in the middle. The bird's eye view shows the inside of the trinket holder and the fringed edges that line it. — You’ll have to learn how to lay knots on top of each other to make a macramé trinket, which can be tricky to get your head around. Still from Skillshare Class Learn How To Make A Macramé Trinket Holder by Megan Chaffe.

Go Miniscule With A Macramé Bracelet

If you enjoyed working with nylon cord, you might like creating a Peruvian-style macramé bracelet, too. With just five colors and only one knot, it may seem simpler than the mandala—but you’ll be making two halves of a bracelet that will need to join up perfectly. It requires a level of precision that means it’s truly an advanced, and very small, macramé project.

Skillshare teacher Shannon Solange is showing how to create a Peruvian-style bracelet with just square macramé knots. The bracelet is half-way finished and she’s about to pull the thread through to complete a knot. — You have to make two sides of this Peruvian-style macramé bracelet and join them together at the end. It’s a complicated pattern to tackle, unless you’re an advanced crafter. Still from Skillshare Class Making Your Own Peruvian-Style Macramé Bracelet by Shannon Solange.

Get Decorative With Christmas Macramé Projects

There’s no shortage of patterns for Christmas ornaments, and some are more advanced than others. For example, you could use square knots and netting to make your own baubles, adapt the mandala pattern to make a wreath, or make a Christmas angel to hang from the tree. You could even give your Christmas macramé projects as gifts to friends and family.

A close-up of red baubles made with macramé and hung on a tree. It’s surrounded by other ornaments, including snowflakes and angels. — There’s a range of ornaments you could make from macramé that will look elegant on the tree or make for wonderful gifts. By Erika Parfenova on iStock.

Showcase Your Skills With Macramé Bags

If you prefer to wear your textiles instead of displaying them, making your own bag is a great way to show off your new skills. You could apply your knowledge of how to create a net and make a wine bottle tote or a produce bag. But for a truly advanced macramé project, you should push yourself to learn how to make a cross-body macramé bag.

You won’t need any elaborate knots, just a lot of accuracy and patience. You’ll use square knots to make the straps and a large portion of the bag, then finish the edge with double clove hitch knots and make a crown knot tassel for embellishment.

A birds eye view of a macramé cross body bag. The straps haven’t been attached yet and the bag is closed to show off the crown knot tassel. — You can elevate your macramé skills by applying the same simple knots in a more complex pattern, like in this cross-body bag. Still from Skillshare Class Learn How To Make Your Own Beautiful Macramé Cross-Body Bag by Megan Chaffe.

Embrace Macramé Embellishments

There’s a simple way to adapt these macramé projects to weave-in your own aesthetic style, and that’s to embrace macramé embellishments. These final flourishes can transform the look of your project and bring them in-line with your own sense of style.

Bedeck With Beads

If your macramé is feeling a bit one-dimensional, you can add some texture by including beads. You could stick with the boho feel and use wooden beads, use dyed or metallic beads to enhance your color palette, or even use shaped beads for your macramé project and introduce a new design element.

Experiment With Colored Threads

Not a fan of white cord? An easy way to embellish your macramé projects is to use colored threads instead. The obvious choice is to use hues that match your own palette, but you could also use glittery thread to bring some sparkle to your creation.

Flaunt Your Flair For Macramé

As these macramé project ideas show, there’s a heap of possibilities when it comes to what you can make with some string and knots. By adding your own macramé embellishments, you can stamp your own signature on designs and stray as far away from the boho aesthetic as you wish.
If you’re feeling inspired to get crafting but macramé still seems too complicated, it’s time to discover other easy crafts and DIY you could try.

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