Making macramé bracelet patterns is a delightful pastime for anyone, but it is especially fun for young girls who can glean hours of quality time together creating friendship bracelets.

Making A Macramé Bracelet
Making a simple bracelet will require a good length of macramé cord and a variety of beads. Bracelets can be attached with a bead or button or can be tied on. Because of the variety of beads and different types of macramé cord available for purchase, it’s best to purchase a plastic bin with several compartments so you can store your macramé supplies.

Before you begin, make sure you have all of the supplies on hand. Because the art of macramé is the art of tying decorative knots, making a simple bracelet can take up a lot of cord. Macramé cord is generally thick cord that is woven or braided to a thickness of about ¼ inch to 1 inch. But, just because some types of cord are labeled macramé cord, don’t be fooled into thinking you can’t improvise by using different mediums. Anything from ribbon to kite string to binder twine or blue jean strips can be used to create macramé jewelry. What you do need to recognize, however, is that the item you are making is a bracelet, which means it should be something that will complement one outfit or many outfits, and the material should be comfortable to wear.

A hemp or jute bracelet using uncolored macramé cord and a few colored beads would be a perfect accompaniment to blue jeans or casual wear. But you may want to create a white hemp bracelet with yellow and orange beads to wear with a sunflower sundress. If you add alphabet beads in a variety of colors and spell out your name, it can be worn with anything simply because it now has become an ID bracelet.

Colored Hemp Or Jute
Hemp or jute is macramé cord that can be purchased in a variety of colors and thicknesses. To keep a bracelet from becoming too cumbersome, use a thinner macramé cord or string. If using colored cord, try to find beads that match.

Macramé Beads
Wooden beads, glass beads or Swarovski beads all can be used in bracelets—just make sure the beads are not too large for the bracelet or too elegant for the type of macramé cord used. Wooden beads always go well with jute and hemp cord. However, while all beads can be color coordinated to match the jute or hemp cord, Swarovski crystals tend to look more elegant, and macramé jewelry is usually a more rustic type of accessory. If using Swarovski crystals, a smooth cord in a soft muted pastel might be a better choice.

Knots To Use
Bracelets can be intricate or simple: The choice is yours. If making square knots or a flat bracelet, you have more room for bead experimentation than when making a bracelet that will spiral around your wrist. At the same time, a beautiful bracelet can be created by using the simplest of knots: the half knot.

Regardless of which knot you choose, you do need to have a pattern in mind. Once you begin making the bracelet, try to space the knots and beads at equal intervals so that the bracelet doesn’t end up lopsided.

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