AY Honors/Macramé/Answer Key

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Cavandoli Macrame

Macramé or macrame is a form of textile-making using knotting rather than weaving or knitting. Its primary knots are the square knot and forms of hitching (full hitch and double half hitches). It has been used by sailors, especially in elaborate or ornamental knotting forms to decorate anything from knife handles to bottles to parts of ships.

Cavandoli macrame is a variety of macrame that is able to form geometric patterns and/or free-form patterns like weaving. The Cavandoli style is done mainly in a single knot, the double half hitch knot.Reverse half hitches are sometimes used to maintain balance when working left and right halves of a balanced piece.

Common materials used in macrame include cotton twine, hemp, leather or yarn. An essential feature of the threads used is a level of "give". Jewelry is often made in combination of both the knots and various beads (glass, wooden, etc.), pendants or shells. Sometimes 'found' focal points are used for necklaces, such as rings or gemstones either wire-wrapped to allow for securing or captured in a net-like array of intertwining overhand knots. Leather or fabric belts are another accessory often created via macrame techniques. Most friendship bracelets exchanged among schoolchildren and teens are created using this method as well.

For larger decorative pieces such as wall hangings or window coverings, a work of macrame might be started out on a wooden or metal dowel, allowing for a spread of dozens of cords that are easy to manipulate. For smaller projects, push-pin boards are available specifically for macrame, although a simple corkboard works adequately enough. Many craft stores offer beginners' kits, work boards, beads and materials ranging in price for the casual hobbyist or ambitious craftsperson. Vendors at theme parks, malls and other public places may sell such macrame jewelry or decoration as well.

References

Lorain Blanken, 2008, Macramé Jewelry Photos The New York Times