Learn how to make an easy plant hanger with basic macrame knots. Quick and inexpensive way to hang your houseplants
Do you love plants and flowers as much as I do? Do you have a house full of houseplants like I do? They have a way of multiplying, don’t they?
Well, I have been a busy little bee making some these super simple and easy macrame plant hangers to get these plants off the floor.
The basic steps for making a simple houseplant hanger:
- Cut the rope into 8 pieces
- Tie ends with an overhand knot
- Row 1: knot together 2 strands a
- Repeat with the other pieces
- Row 2: knot together 2 strands from opposite pairs
- Repeat with the other ropes
- Row 3: Repeat Row 2
- Tie the top of ropes into an overhand knot
First of all, don’t let the word ‘macrame’ scare you. These are not the complicated macrame plant hangers from the ’70s. Do you remember those? They were way too involved with too many different knots and spirals!
No, these plant hangers are much more minimalistic and sleek with clean lines that don’t take away from the beauty of your plants.
Plus, they are a super easy, quick (and cheap) way to make your own DIY Plant Hangers. Furthermore, this is also a fun DIY Gift Idea for your favorite gardener.
What is Macrame?
Basically, macrame is a textile art form which uses cording and various knots or hitches to create decorative articles.
Popular items made using macrame techniques are of course, plant hangers but also wallhangings, purses and tote bags, rugs and baskets.
Supplies needed
– 50 ft. Rope Clothes Line (check the Dollar Store)
– Sharp Scissors
– Ruler
Remember the hemp friendship bracelet craze from about 10 years ago? That was macrame so if you made friendship bracelets, this macrame plant hanger will be super easy for you.
The only knots you need to know how to make are the ‘square knot’ and a simple ‘overhand knot’.
Making the macrame plant hanger:
The technique for making this houseplant hanger is very easy although the initial instructions may at first appear confusing. Just follow this tutorial step by step and I promise, it will start to make sense.
Measure and Cut the Rope
First, you need to cut 8 pieces of the rope, each 6 ft. long. This should leave you 2″ if you bought a 50 ft. rope. Mine was about 6″ short lol.
Note: Don’t worry if the pieces are a few inches short, this plant hanger will still turn out fine.
Next, you want to match up the ends of all 8 sections of your rope and then tie a simple, overhand knot, leaving a few inches of rope at the end. This is the bottom of your plant hanger ‘basket’.
Also, it doesn’t matter if the ends of the rope match up perfectly. You can always trim them later.
Tie the first row of knots
Now, you want to separate the 8 strands of rope into 4 pairs of 2 pieces. Using your ruler, measure appr. 4″ down from the knot and tie each set of two strands into a square knot.
How to tie a Square Knot: Begin by tying the two strands as you would tie your shoes. Then, tie the second knot the same, except you will reverse the order.
If you began the knot with the rope in your right hand, you will now begin with the left hand. (see the second photo below).
This makes a flat knot which locks the strands and keeps them from untying. If the knot tries to twist and won’t lie flat, it’s backwards.
It’s confusing, I know! WikiHow explains it like this:
1. Cross the right rope over the left rope.
2. Wrap the right rope under the left rope.
3. Bring the right rope back over the left rope.
4. Bring the original right rope over the other rope.
5. Pull the original right rope under the other rope.
6. Pull on both ends to tighten the knot.
To continue, repeat tying a square knot with the other pairs of strands until you have 4 square knots, each appr. 4″ away from the center.
Tie the second row of knots
Now, for the second row, take one strand from a pair and tie it into a square knot with one strand from a neighboring pair. (I just noticed that two of my knots are backwards lol. Can you spot them?)
Again, repeat tying square knots all around the rope until you have a second row of 4 additional square knots. This forms the basket of your macrame plant hanger which will hold your flower pot.
Tie the third row of knots
Now, you simply repeat the same square knots for the third row. Tie one strand together with one neighboring strand. Each new knot will be tied between two knots from the second row and in line with a knot on the first row.
When you lay it down on the table, your rows of knots in the plant hanger will roughly be square. You should now have 3 rows of square knots (12 knots total), each row about 4″ apart.
Finishing the plant Hanger
Finally, gather up the 8 strands of rope. Set your flower pot into the center of the macrame basket and lift the hanger. Now, just tie the top of the ropes together into a simple overhand knot. That’s all there’s to it.
Hang your new macrame plant hanger onto a hook in the ceiling or on a bracket. If you want to get fancy, you can also add big, colorful wood beads between the square knots.
That is all there is to it! You just learned how to easy it is to make your own simple macrame plant hanger using inexpensive rope from the dollar store.
There are many different macrame knots so feel free to embellish and personalize your hangers.
Also, if you have any questions or if any of these instructions are unclear, please let me know in the comments below.
Enjoy!
Annette
More rope plant hanger tutorials
If you’re completely new to macrame, you will want to take a look at this article for a bunch of cool ideas for making a simple DIY Plant Hanger at House Beautiful.
How do you hang plants on a wall?
One simple way that you can hang your houseplants on a wall mount is to install a metal bracket. These come in a variety of sizes and designs from simple straight designs to more ornate motifs.
If you are using this hook outdoors, make sure it is sealed or made of a material that will not rust.
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Nicole Feliciano says
So crafty! Thank you for this quick and easy idea!
Annette says
Thanks Nicole 🙂