What is a square knot?

You start by taking four cords and pin them on a macramé board, one right next to the other. It is a lot easier to pin them so the cords won't get tangled and you have some tension there for starting. So you take four cords, wind them up and pin them all together. In other words, you have cord number one, number two, number three and number four. You have the outside cords, the one on the left and one on the right. The center cords are the two cords in the middle and they are considered the sailor cords around which the knot will be tied. Now, you take the right cord and place it over the two center cords and under the left cord. Let go of the right cord and let it lie on the board. With the left hand, take the left cord under the center two and up through the loop made by the right cord. Remember that the center two cords must remain in their original position and then you basically want to pull the outside cord taut.

After you have done the first loop, take the left cord in your left hand and place it over the two center cords and under the right cord. Let go of the left cord and let it lay on the board. With your right hand take the right cord under the center two and up through the loop made by the left, pull the end taut at the four, and you have now completed one square knot.

That is the right square knot. The left square knot is done in the same manner as the right square knot but begins on the left side with the left cord.

Other traditional knots include alternating square knots, the picot or butterfly knot, the Chinese crown knot, the finishing wrap knot, the large head knot, the half hitch knot, and then the double half hitch.

A lot of people use the square knot for plant hangers, place mats, and rugs. The picot knots, double half hitch, and Chinese crown knots are used more for jewelry because they are more intricate.

There are specialty boutiques and gift shops that charge quite a bit of money for handmade macramé jewelry, but the macramé cord itself is not very expensive. It's also something that just about anyone can do.

In fact quite a few elderly people do it and they tell me they enjoy it first of all because it takes a while to complete a finished project and it is very satisfying. You have made something and its good therapy. People with arthritis say that it seems to help their hands. It's very good exercise for the hands.