Macrame Tote Bags
These two macrame tote bags hang beside my front door to assist me at the library, book store, or when I am heading to the farmer’s market. I have gotten so many compliments on them that when I respond with the words “DIY” or “handmade”, a new craft enthusiast is born!
One of the great things about macrame crafting is that you can just untie your knot and try again if you make a mistake. You also don’t need much to get started — just some macrame rope and a pair of scissors!
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Are you thready for this?
If you have done a few macrame projects before, these macrame tote bags will be very easy to make. However if you have never done any macrame, this will be more of an intermediate project for you.
For our designer Meagan, it took about 2 hours to make the large tote bag and 4 hours to make the small one. The amount of time it will take you depends on not just your skill level but how you decide to space your knots. The farther apart your knots are, the larger your bag will be and the fewer knots you will have to tie.
Another tip for making these macrame tote bags is to look at the photos in the photo tutorial carefully while reading directions. Macrame can take some time to learn, and re-reading the directions can really help. Reading ahead on the directions is also helpful if you are stuck!
Skill level: Intermediate
Knots used: Square Knot & Wrap Knot. New to macrame? Check out our skill course: 15 Macrame Knots for Beginners
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How to Make Your Own Macrame Tote Bags
- Gather your craft tools and materials. Then download the tutorial below.
- Cut 24 ropes that are 6 feet in length each. Separate the ropes into two groups of 12.
- Cut a 24-inch piece of rope; use this string to tie a wrap knot around the 12 ropes.
- Place the wrap knot in the middle of the 12 ropes, and wrap the knot about 20 times.
Full tutorial available for members. Join here!
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Need more ideas? Browse our macrame projects to see what else you can make. And be sure to tag your crafts with the hashtag #MadeWithLia when you post pictures.
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Discussion
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8 Comments
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Brianna
June 13, 2024 at 8:39pm
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Lia
June 14, 2024 at 9:30am
@Brianna
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Emily
March 30, 2021 at 9:13pm
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Lia
April 1, 2021 at 7:19am
@Emily
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Emily
March 2, 2021 at 9:53am
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Lia
March 2, 2021 at 10:29am
@Emily
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amy
April 1, 2020 at 10:39am
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Lia
April 1, 2020 at 12:56pm
@amy
Back to the TopThe instructions to this are extremely vague. There are so many better places that have more detailed instructions. I’ve been expermentinf for days trying to decipher what the instructions mean and I’ve taken it apart over 20 times after thinking I’ve followed the instructions.
Hello Brianna. Sorry to hear you are having trouble. Since it is just using one knot, this video might be helpful to give you better instructions on how to create the knot uses for this tote. https://liagriffith.com/craft-academy/15-macrame-knots-for-beginners/
My bag turned out really cute, but I only had enough cord to make 9 rows of knots instead of the 15 that the directions said that I should be able to make. I followed the directions exactly and I used the exact cord that they recommended. Does anyone know what could have happened?
Hi Emily! The pink bag only had 9 rows so the cord amount may be off in the instructions– we’re going to look into this, so sorry but thanks for your patience! In the meantime try adding 2-3 more feet to your cord length and you should be able to complete the 15-row bag.
For this project, are the square knots supposed to be all left square knots? Or are we supposed to alternate with left and right square knots?
Hi Emily! You can use left or right square knots, but whatever you decide to use you must use for the entire bag.
approx what size do the bags turn out? can’t wait to try all these fabulous projects!
Hi Amy,
The approximate size of the tote bags is included in the PDF instructions 🙂