Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker

How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker
Although the finished look is very intricate,
the fishbone pattern is really quite simple to
create. If you can tie a square knot, you can
make this look. If you don't know how to tie
the knot, now is a great time to learn!
Skill Level
Intermediate
Time
Required
1 to 1-1/2
hours
Materials
Comments
Hemp or Cord
I used 1-mm diameter hemp cord. I think
waxed linen would look very nice, too. You can
use other thickness/types of cord - just make
sure your beads will fit! The bead carrier cord
can be thinner than the other cord, but you
want it to be strong enough to support the
weight of your beads without breaking.
Beads
You can use beads that are all one size, but I
like the graduated hemp rings, so I used
multiple sizes (two 5-mm, two 6-mm, two 8mm, one 10-mm vintage Swarovski round
crystals). The beads don't need to be round.
Also, you can use more or fewer beads. I think
the design works best with an odd number of
beads.
Knotting Board or Substitute I used a 3-ring binder and some Scotch tape.
Scissors
Okay, so I used my wire cutters. My bad.
Measuring Tape
Not absolutely necessary, but better safe than
sorry.
Glue
Normal white glue is often recommended, but I
get my jewelry wet, so I prefer clear-drying
Jewel Bond or similar non-toxic waterproof glue.
Hemp jewelry often uses pony beads, shells or other natural beads. My wood
beads have huge holes and my stone beads have tiny holes, so I updated the
classic look with Swarovski crystals. However, you can use any type of bead
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
you want, as long as the beads will fit on a single strand of your chosen
macrame cord.
First things first. You will need some sort of knotting board on which to make
your jewelry. This is important because the cord around which you will be
forming the knots (known as the filler cord) must be held straight to keep your
work neat. Many people use a clipboard and simply place the first knot under
the clip. Some people are comfortable tying the cord to their big toe or to a
door knob. I used a 3-ring binder, with a knot/space/knot hooked onto the
middle ring of the binder. You can also purchase knotting boards.
To begin, decide what length you will make your jewelry. You'll want a snug
(not tight) fit, so simply take the measurement around your neck, ankle, wrist,
whatever, to get the finished length. For a choker, you want three cords each
about 8 feet long (about 2 meters) and cut two cords 12-18" long (about half a
meter). The long cords will be folded in half and used for the actual knotting of
the design. They will serve as both knotting cords and filler cords. One of the
shorter cords will be used to tie on the jewelry. The other short cord will be the
carrier for the beads. Obviously, you will want shorter cords for bracelets or
anklets. Just keep in mind that it is easier to work with too-long cords than it is
to add more cords if you make your initial strands too short.
I've broken some of the knot instructions into
separate pages to improve the load time of this
tutorial. Set one short cord aside for now. Fold
one short cord in half. Align the three longs
cords and find their mid-point (I just folded
them in half). Secure the middle of the three
long cords with a lark's head mounting knot.
If desired, tie an loose overhand knot about the lark's
head knot to leave yourself an opening so you can
secure the hemp to a knotting board. I tied the piece
photographed for this tutorial taped to a piece of
printer paper and my desk using Scotch tape! As you
can see, fancy workspaces really aren't required.
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Now, you have two short strands
above the lark's head knot (top of
the work) and six long strands
below it.
Tie square knots using two of the long
strands, with the other four knots acting
as filler cords. For my choker, I tied 20
knots, or about 2". You will want fewer
knots and/or fewer beads for a bracelet
or anklet.
Now, add the cord that will be the bead carrier.
To do this lay the remaining short cord on top of
the filler cords, parallel to them and extending
an inch or two over the knots that you have tied
so far. Use your knotting cords to tie a square
knot around this new cord as well as the four
filler cords.
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Bend to extended portion of the short cord down over
this knot. Tie four more square knots over the end, the
fillers, and the bead carrier strand. I had a total of 25
square knots once the carrier strand had been secured.
Now, start to make the fishbone pattern.
The first step is to form three pairs of
knotting strands. Start by laying your
knotting cords out perpendicular to the
work. Take one pair of filler cords and tie a
square knot about the other pair of filler
cords and the bead carrier cord.
Lay this new pair of knotting cords out
perpendicular to the work.
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Take the last pair of carrier cords
(the long cords) and tie a square knot
around the bead carrier cord. Lay
these knotting cords out to the side.
Take the top (first) set of knotting cord and tie
a square knot around the bead carrier cord.
This side of this knot will loop out a bit. You can
try to make all of your loops the same size of
you can make this loop small, with larger
successive loops. It's up to you! Once you have
tied the square knot, lay the knotting cords out
to the side.
Use the top knotting cords (the second pair)
to tie the next square knot. Now you have
two loops of your fishbone pattern.
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Use the top knotting cords (third set) to tie a
square knot and make another loop. I
continued in this manner until I had seven
loops. Make as many or as few as you like (at
least three, though, to set up the cords). Slide
the beads onto the bead carrier cord (hopefully
you checked to make sure they would fit
before adding the bead carrier cord!). The
order of my beads is 5-mm, 6-mm, 8-mm, 10mm, 8-mm, 6-mm, 5-mm. Slide the first bead
up to your work and leave the others toward
the bottom.
Forming loops around the beads is a bit
different from making standard fishbone
loops. Tie a square knot with the bottom pair
of knotters, then the second set, and finally
the top set.
Each loop should be slightly larger than the one
before it.
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Slide the next bead up to the work. Repeat the
process: tie the bottom knotters, the second set,
then the top set. Continue until all of the beads have
been used. Note: some people like to flip their work
after the large center bead. I didn't, but this
produces a nice effect (try it to see!).
Once you have tied the third loop around the final bead,
it's time to make more loops the 'old' way. Use the
topmost knotters to tie a square knot. Use the new top
set of knotters to tie the next square knot, etc. I did this
until I had six loops (not seven).
After the sixth loop, lay all of the cords, except the
top knotters, alongside the bead carrier strand. Tie a
square knot over all of these strands (which also
creates the seventh loop).
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How to Make a Hemp Fishbone & Bead Choker - Free Jewelrymaking Instructions
Now you will tie square knots (25, in my case). I kept
reducing the number of filler strands. I cut them at
staggered lengths and knotted around them until only
the two knotters and two carriers remained. There are
a couple of ways to deal with the bead carrier. You
don't want it to slip (which would lose your beads). You
can make the bead carrier serve as a filler for the
remainder of the piece. However, I like to tie a slip
knot in the cord (after I have cut a few other filler
cords) and knot (tightly) over this knot. After this, you
can cut the bead carrier and hide the end. I tied my
25th square knot very tightly and glued point where
the knotters left the piece. Once the glue had dried, I
cut the knotters off close to the work. This left a pair of
carriers to match the top strands.
Here's the center
of the finished
choker. It's
probably obvious
to you at this
point: larger
beads produce
larger loops; stiffer cord produces firmer loops. If you like, you can run your
work over beeswax to smooth down any 'fly away' pieces.
For decoration, I
added a 5-mm
crystal to each
strand. I tied an
overhand knot
below the beads
and applied glue to
the knot before
cutting it. If you
slide the bead
down to the knot
while the glue is
wet, you can affix
the bead to the end of the strand. My choker simply ties on, so it is adjustable.
My choker measures ~14 inches in length, from the lark's head knot to the last
square knot, plus several inches of cord for tying. Your finished length will
depend on the thickness of cord used, number of beads, tension, and how
many knots you tie.
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