Five essential knots every crafter should know

When you open your first macramé kit, the knotting guide can feel overwhelming. Here's the truth: most macramé projects use only four or five knots, and you can learn all of them in a single sitting.

1. The Lark’s Head Knot

This is how almost every macramé project begins — it's how you attach your cord to a dowel or ring. Fold a length of cord in half, loop it over the dowel from front to back, and pull the tails through the loop. Done.

2. The Square Knot

The square knot is the workhorse of macramé. Made with four strands: two outer working cords and two inner filler cords. Cross the left cord over the fillers, pass the right cord behind, bring it up through the loop. Then reverse. One complete square knot.

3. The Half Hitch

A half hitch is simply looping one cord around another and pulling it through. Chaining half hitches creates elegant diagonal and horizontal lines. A double half hitch is the standard.

4. The Spiral / Half Square Knot

If you make only the first half of a square knot repeatedly — always from the same side — your work will naturally twist into a beautiful spiral. This creates the twisted columns you'll recognise from plant hangers.

5. The Overhand Knot

You already know this one. In macramé it's used deliberately as a design element: to create fringe, to space sections, or to finish off a piece neatly. Done in groups, overhand knots create beautiful textural effects.