recycled Archives - Love to stay home

Recycled Macrame Frames are a great way to repurpose some old canvas frames. I had so many of these canvases that my kids had painted when they were younger.

Instead of throwing them out, I decided to take the canvas off, underneath is a perfectly good wooden frame that can be recycled.

Macrame is just such an awesome hobby that anyone can learn. I just started macrame about 10 months ago and just love it. You do not need any special tools, only your hands! With some cotton cord or rope, you can create beautiful macrame decor or accessories.

These frames can be used as tabletop decor or to style any shelves in need of some dressing up!

What do you need for these Recycled Macrame Frames?

Canvas frames or any old picture frames (You can find great options for cheap at any thrift store)

Macrame cotton cord or rope (My cord is from Ganxxet)

Scissors (The scissors and brush that I have are from Miss Knottie Macrame)

Brush

(Disclaimer: These are affiliate links, which means if you buy any of these recommended products, I will receive a small commission from Amazon at no extra cost to you. Please know that I only recommend products that I know to be of great quality. Thank you so much for your support!)

I am trying my very best to keep my blog ad-free, so it does help if you can use my link when you are shopping on Amazon. Thanks for helping me out, I am truly grateful!!

How do you make these Recycled Macrame Frames?

The possibilities are endless with the designs you can create!

You can use as little as 2 knots and make a beautiful frame or you can use a combination of a few knots.

You can also attach macrame feathers. To see how to make feathers, I have a whole post about it. You can take a look at it here.

The Basic instructions are:

Attach your cord to the frame with larks head knots. Or use one cord to attach your cords.

Use even numbers of cords.

The length of cord you need would be about 4 lengths of your frame.

In case you are just making a design halfway, you can use 3 lengths of cord.

Frame 1:

For this frame, I used 1 cord, 14 inches long to go around the top of the frame.

I secured the cord to the back with a hot glue gun and some tape.

Next, cut 12 cords 26 inches each.

Attach these 12 cords to the top cord with larks head knots.

I made a very simple design with this one.

With the first 4 cords tie a square knot. Do the same across with the rest of the cords. Total 6 square knots.

For the next row, leave out the first 2 cords and tie a square knot with the next 4 cords. The square knot is tied leaving 2 finger space or around 1.5inches gap. Do the same with the rest of the cords leaving out the last 2. Total 5 square knots.

For the next row, it is a repeat of the first row, so 6 square knots in total. Leave a gap of 1.5 inches from the previous row.

I left the remaining cords to hang down And trimmed the cords to the length of the frame.

TIP: When you need to leave a space between rows of knots, to make the knots at the same level, use a ruler or a long piece of cardboard placed in between the cords. This will give you an even row of knots.

Frame 2:

This Macrame Feather Frame is easy and the quickest one to make.

Cut two cords double the length of your frame plus 5 inches.

Tie these with a larks head knot to the frame.

Cut 40 cords of 5 inches each.

Use these to make the feathers. If you would like to see a photo tutorial please see my Simple Macrame Feathers Post.

You can make a small feather or a big feather, it is your choice.

Brush out the cords and cut them in a feather shape.

That’s it, your simple and easy macrame feather frame is ready to be displayed!

Optional: You can spray the feathers with some fabric stiffener, then brush them out and it makes it easier to shape them well.

Frame 3:

This frame has a few more knots than the previous 2. Apart from the larks head knot and square knot, I used diagonal clove hitch knots and regular knots at the end of the cords.

Attach 8 cords of around 40 inches each, with larks head knots around the top of the frame.

Make one row of square knots. (total 4 square knots)

Leave about 1 inch and make another row of square knots. (total 4 square knots)

Next, using 2 cords at a time, tie 4 diagonal clove hitch knots. Do this for the whole row.

After that, make 4 square knots using 4 cords at a time. (total 4 square knots)

Leaving around 1 inch, make the last row of square knots.

Optional: Make regular knots at the ends of the cord and cut the excess off. Or, cut the cords to an even length and then make knots if you would like them at the same level.

Now you can display your recycled macrame frame.

NOTES:

If you are using an old canvas frame, you will need to remove the canvas. This can easily be done by just pulling off the canvas.
You can also paint the frame any color you want to match your color scheme.
These frames can be used as wall art or just standing up on a shelf.
You can go a step further by adding some faux flowers, crochet flowers, or just some simple elements to dress up the sides of your frames.

Hope you enjoyed reading about this simple way of adding some decor to your home by recycling old frames. If you happen to try this, please share a picture with me on Facebook or Instagram @lovetostayhomeblog, I would be really happy to see your creations!