Knot Your Typical Event

MACrame Workshop:
Hanging Plants

Square knot, half knot, lark’s head knot… Our residents got tangled up in over 110 feet of macrame rope, to learn how to make a beautiful hanging plant to decorate their homes!

MACrame Workshop: Hanging Plants

Square knot, half knot, lark’s head knot… Our residents got tangled up in 110 feet of macrame rope, to learn how to make a beautiful hanging plant for their homes!

That's A Lot of Rope!

That’s what we thought too! In fact, while our marketing team was cutting seemingly endless amounts of macrame rope, we kept asking, “Are you sure this is right?” We had close to 30 residents participate in this virtual event. That means, in total, we cut over 3,300 feet of rope all together! (That’s equal to about 1 kilometer, or 2/3 of a mile!) Each kit included 8 long pieces of pre-cut rope, a short piece to tie the bottom, a wooden ring to use as a hanger, and a cute little pot to plant something special in.

Teaching our virtual workshop via Zoom was small business owner, Darcy Barnett. She operates her online Macrame store via her Etsy shop, Knotted Youth. While she averages about 10-15 orders a week, Darcy also loves sharing her talents with others.

The way she approached the steps for the workshop was really smart. First, she introduced the three knots we would be using for the majority of the project. Then, she slowly went through the full process, occasionally returning back the knot demos, using different colored chords for extra visual comprehension. Our residents followed along at home, while darcy answered any and all of their questions.

A Beautiful Mess...

Sometimes, the most interesting creations in life come from need. In fact, problem solving is the heart of ingenuity. For Darcy, this was the catalyst which sparked her love for macrame. Some house plants are toxic to pets!

"My interest in macrame was born out of necessity-- My two cats, Soyah and Ulo, are serial plant chompers. In order to protect my sweet boys AND my helpless plants, I decided to make a few macrame plant hangers to keep my plants out of cat-reach. I scoured Pinterest for tutorials, and a few hours later...I had fashioned a plant hanger out of shiny, synthetic laundry line. What I didn't realize at the time was that I had not only found the combination of many of my interests...I had also found an incredibly cathartic way to combat anxiety. Macrame, at its core, is a very meditative form of art. It requires you to focus on what your hands are doing and touching RIGHT NOW...and not the millions of things flying around your mind. I think that's what enthralls me the most about Macrame: it requires you to press pause and create with your own two hands... and it doesn't need to be perfect. You get better as you go, and your work becomes more complex as you learn more techniques.

My first few plant hangers were a...beautiful mess. The knots were uneven, I was using super thin twine from the hardware store that was rough on my hands, and I only knew two or three knots. BUT!... They held plants, and I kept going; because it quickly became a way to force myself to stop running a mile a minute and to just focus on the now. Two years and many knots later: I teach classes, I have my own Etsy store (KnottedYouthStudio, an homage to my love for the band Sonic Youth), my plant collection has grown, and I have found a way to channel my nervous energy into a relaxing and functional art form on a daily basis. I encourage everyone to give it a try-- we could all use an hour or two of creating something beautiful.

P.S. My cats no longer have leaves to chomp, but they do love to support me while I work....and maybe chomp a string or two."

Darcy Barnett

Fiber Artist

Are You Swooning Yet?

Us too! While only 30 people could join us for the live virtual event due to the intimacy of the workshop, we KNOW there are plenty of others out there who would want to make their own potted plant hangers, too. No need to scour Pintrest, either!

Typically, we record our Zoom sessions for tutorial events like these, in case any of our residents are unable to attend. Often times, this happens because our event slots fill up really quickly, and honestly, it’s just nice to have a reference to turn back to. However, this time around we ran into technical difficulties. We lost our video recording, and again we turned to Darcy for help. Out of that, we ended up with something even better: a Darcy original, YouTube-worthy macrame tutorial, edited by our graphic design intern, Jess Andreas!

Take Aways

First off, macrame rocks! It’s not always easy, but it is super rewarding. Secondly, some house plants are not only tasty, but also toxic to our fur babies. Pictured below are Darcy’s very happy and healthy kitties, safe from all the chompable plants! And finally, when it comes to events, whether they be virtual or in person, Mac residents enjoy connecting with their neighbors and learning new skills.

We would love for you to attend our upcoming events! Click the button below for the cure to any of your perennial boredoms.