How to Make a Macrame Plant Hanger: 7 Step DIY Tutorial

Pass 8 long cotton cords through a 2-inch wooden ring and fold each at its midpoint, leaving 16 working strands hanging below the ring. The TWO outermost strands need to be longer (about 9 feet) since they do all the spiral knotting in step 2 - the inner 6 cords stay short and become fillers.

Center each cord through the ring so the lengths hang evenly below. Hang the ring from a doorknob or hook so the cords dangle naturally as you work - tying knots horizontally is much harder.

At the very top under the ring, use the two outermost long cords to tie 25 spiral half-knots around the inner 6 strands. A half-knot is the first half of a square knot only - left over middle, right under middle, through the loop. DON'T reverse direction.

Tying the same direction repeatedly causes the column to twist into a spiral on its own. After about 8-10 knots you'll see the spiral start. Just keep going - the column rotates as you work, so just spin the project to keep your hands comfortable.

Take a separate 24-inch cord. Form a U-shape against the cord bundle with the short end of the U pointing up. Wrap the long end around the bundle 6 times tightly.

Thread the wrapping end through the bottom of the U-loop, then pull the upper short end - this drags the wrapping tail back up under the wraps and locks them in. Trim the excess and tuck the ends under the wraps with a scissors tip.

Measure 12 inches down from the bottom of the wrapping knot. At that 12-inch mark, take any group of 4 adjacent cords and tie a single square knot. Keep the top of the knot perfectly level - crooked here means a crooked plant hanger.

A square knot is left-over-middle-under-right, then right-over-middle-under-left (reversed direction so it lays flat). Tighten and check that the top edge of the knot is at exactly 12 inches.

Work around the cord bundle, splitting the 16 strands into 4 groups of 4. Tie a square knot in each group, all at the same 12-inch level.

This creates the upper rim of the basket - the four 'arms' of the plant hanger. Eyeball the levels carefully; even a half-inch difference between knots produces a noticeably tilted basket.

Measure 3 inches BELOW the previous square-knot row. Now tie new square knots that ALTERNATE - take 2 cords from one previous knot plus 2 cords from the adjacent previous knot, giving you a new 4-cord group.

This bridging row is what turns 4 separate vertical 'arms' into a basket. Continue around the ring until you've added 4 alternating knots, all at the same new level. The diamond mesh is now visible and ready to hold a pot.

Drop another 3 inches below the alternating row and gather all 16 cords together. Tie a final wrapping knot around all of them using your second 24-inch wrap cord (same technique as step 3).

Trim the fringe to 5-6 inches below the final wrapping knot. Optionally unravel the fringe ends for a softer wispy look. Slide a 5-6 inch pot into the basket from the top - the cords cradle it from below and the pot's weight pulls the basket taut.