Macrame Rainbow Keychain
It’s a wrap! Macrame is a form of textile created by making a series of knots to form a design. Use this tutorial to create a beautiful rainbow key chain using cotton yarn and wire.
Materials:
- Cotton Yarn (white and three other colors)
- Thin Stainless Steel Wire
- Clear Tape
- Scissors
- Glue
- Keychain Ring
Step 1: Begin by making the arches for the rainbow. Wrap the white yarn around four fingers nine times. Then, cut one side of the loop created around your fingers, forming a small bundle of yarn. Do this three times to make three bundles. (You can also use rope cut into three pieces.)
Step 2: Cut three pieces of wire, each a little bit shorter than the length of the rope or bundles. Place one of the cut wires inside a bundle of white yarn or rope. Secure together with a piece of clear tape.
Step 3: Starting an inch from the end, tie the first color onto one bundle. Begin wrapping the yarn and continue until you reach the end of the wire. Cut the excess yarn at the bottom to match the top, along with any wire poking out. Leave the frayed ends of the rope or white yarn unwrapped at the ends to represent the “clouds.”
Step 4: Repeat step 3 using a different color of yarn for each bundle. As you are wrapping the bundles, make sure they fit within each other.
Step 5: Tie a long piece of yarn to the top arch bundle created.
Step 6: Glue all three arches together using craft glue and wait for them to dry.
Step 7: Attach the keychain ring onto the rainbow using the yarn tied to the top arch in step 5.
Learning and Discussion Questions:
1. Where does cotton come from? Watch this video to learn how cotton is processed.
2. Find inspiration for your interior while learning a bit of the history of macrame in this article on hunker.com.
3. Imagine the possibilities! What other items could you make using the macrame technique shown in this tutorial? Here is a list of other projects that can be created using the wrapped rope technique: coasters, large wall hangings, and shapes such as a cactus.
Thank you to our sponsor, PNC Arts Alive!, for helping to make this video possible!
