DIY Macrame Tutorial: Holiday/Winter Holly Berry Wreath! - Please see below for materials and written instructions.
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Materials:
For one holly berry and leaf:
21 ft of 3mm Recycled String (Colour: Eucalyptus)
5 ft of 3mm or 5mm Recycled String (Colour: Terracotta)
Hey guys! If you’ve been following me for a while now you will know that I created a holly berry/leaf tutorial a couple of years back. I received a few comments saying that you’d benefit from a slower and more in-depth tutorial so I went ahead and recreated the tutorial for you which I’ll be sharing today. I also took it one step further and incorporated the holly berries/leaves into a wreath. I love that this wreath can be used all winter long, not just for the holidays! Okay let’s get started!
Cut 7 pieces of 3mm eucalyptus string, each piece is 3 ft long. Fold once piece in half. Fold the second piece in half to find the centre. Attach it to the first piece using 2 vertical double half hitch knots (DHHKs). We have now tied one vertical DHHK. Tie a second vertical DHHK to the other side of the centre piece.
Add the remaining 5 pieces of string using the same process.
We will now tie a series of DHHKs to create the rest of the leaf. We will need to tie our DHHKs up and down to create these points. Working on the right side of your leaf, use the right cord as your filler cord and tie one DHHK working to the left. Tie another DHHK working to the right. Tie 6 more DHHKs working to the left.
We will not make a point on the next row so using the right cord as your filler cord, tie 6 DHHKs working to the left.
Repeat rows 1 and 2 on the left side of your work. I’ll show you how to create the point one more time.
Move back to the right side of your work and repeat row 1 but do not tie the final DHHK. Tie the final DHHK to the filler cord from the left side of our work to connect the two sides.
Repeat on the left side of your work.
We will tie one more row. Using the right cord as your filler cord and tie a DHHK. Grab the filler cord and the working cord and use both as your filler cords when tying your next DHHK. Each time you tie a DHHK pick up the working cord and add it to your filler cords for the next DHHK. Tie 6 knots total. Repeat that process on the left side of your work.
We will now make the berry using a berry knot. Cut 2 pieces of 3mm or 5mm terracotta red cord, once piece is 2 ft long and one piece is 3 ft long. Attach the two cords to your leaf as I do here using a tapestry needle.
Find the longest piece on both sides and tie 3 square knots around the 2 middle cords. Leave a bit of space before the first square knot. Bring the 2 middle strands up and through the middle of the cords at the top. Tie one more square knot to secure the cords in place.
You now have created one holly leaf and berry. Create one, two or a few more depending on what sort of wreath you’d like to create. Here are a couple ideas. Attach two or three leaves/berries to the side of a gold ring. Attach some faux garland to your wreath and then add in your holly leaves/berries. At first I thought I wanted to add in a few leaves without the berries but then I went back and incorporated a few more berries. Tie a simple knot to attach each leaf and berry to the wreath and then once you are happy with where they are positioned go back and tie a double knot to secure each in place. I added a few more pieces of garland in front and around the leaves and berries to hide the ends. Trim the ends that are showing and you’re all set!
I hope you all enjoyed this tutorial! Thanks so much for watching and we will see you in the next one. Just a quick heads up that I’ll be switching back to posting once a month, on the first Wednesday of every month.