Macramé: Accessories. A Guide to Creating Unique Pieces for You and Your Home

If you’re just starting out, Macramé: Accessories works well as a practical guide because it approaches projects with a very “workshop-style” method: it tells you which knots you’ll use, what materials you need, and guides you with clear steps to build the piece from start to finish. That helps you avoid getting lost, especially with small accessories, where learning to measure, keep even tension and finish neatly makes the difference between “it worked” and “it looks good when worn”.

If you already know the basics, it’s also useful for refining technique: order, symmetry, clean knots and tidy finishes. It’s the kind of step-by-step macramé book you’ll get the most from when you use it at a clear table, with a tape measure to hand, and follow the project sequence without improvising at the beginning.

In Macramé: Accessories you’ll see that not everything is made with the same cord: there are delicate projects (for example, earrings) that use fine cord (around 1.2–1.5 mm) and more structured projects (for example, baskets) that call for thicker cotton rope (approx. 5–6 mm). That difference is key: thickness changes the knot’s volume, the final weight and the rigidity of the piece.

The book’s approach also helps you understand something very practical: two cords of the “same thickness” can behave differently if one is braided, another is twisted, or if they have an inner core. If you’re choosing materials to buy, keep in mind that choosing macramé cord isn’t just about aesthetics: it affects the final result, how comfortable it is to knot, and the durability of the accessory.

In Macramé: Accessories, the instructions are set out to help you work in an organised way: each project lists which knots are involved and, from there, the step-by-step is supported by explanations and charts/illustrations showing where each cord goes and how the knot is formed. This is especially helpful when a design repeats a sequence (rounds or rows), because you reduce mistakes and keep the pattern consistent.

In addition, using knot abbreviations makes the instructions quicker to follow once you recognise them. If you find you “understand the knot on its own” but get lost when integrating it into a real piece, what you gain here is method: what comes first, what repeats, and when you need to measure, adjust tension or prepare the finishing.

Yes: Macramé: Accessories gives you a clear enough base to adapt, but the key is knowing what you can change without ruining the shape. The safest customisations are colour and fringe length (because they don’t affect the main structure if you keep the body of the work intact). You can also adjust measurements if you keep proportions: for example, if you increase length, you’ll need to plan for more cord and control the tension so the design doesn’t “give”.

If you want to go a step further (make it mini or scale it up), the practical advice is: follow the project exactly once first, then repeat while changing only one variable (thickness, length or number of repeats), not everything at once. That way, the book becomes a guide to macramé accessory projects you can truly make your own without frustration.

With the Macramé: Accessories book you don’t just learn “individual knots”: you learn how to combine them to build texture, pattern and volume in a real piece, and that’s what shows most in the final result. You’ll see basic knots (such as the overhand knot and the square knot) and variations used to create panels, borders and raised areas, as well as mounting and cord-management techniques to keep the work symmetrical.

Finishing matters too: hiding ends, shaping the final piece and making sure the accessory “sits” properly (for example, an earring holding a stable shape). If your goal is to improve your finishing, this kind of macramé knot book gives you exactly that: practical construction decisions, not just inspiration.

If you already do macramé, the Macramé: Accessories book is worth it when you’re looking for ideas applied to pieces you can use and give as gifts: personal accessories and decorative projects that don’t feel like “practice”, but properly finished pieces. The interesting part is that the book pushes you to work with precision: proportion, repetition, consistent tension and detail — exactly what elevates your results once you already know the basic knots.

As a gift, it works really well for someone creative because it combines inspiration and execution: it’s not just “look how lovely”, but “I can make that”. If the person wants a book that will guide them project by project, buying Macramé: Accessories makes sense as a go-to reference, not a quick read.