Completed Wedding Arch

Wedding Arch 14Peter completed the wedding arch frame this morning. It is sitting out on the deck being tested by light breezes in this picture. It has passed the tests we could think of to test how well it will stand in place. It definitely will NOT BE OKAY to have kids climbing on.

K A P U!

Should be easy to setup and take down. Yay!

Wedding Arch 13We put it together here so if it had any problems we could correct them here and now instead at the wedding venue.

Isn’t it amazing what parents will do to make their children feel special? Love and family are truly the most important parts of life, aren’t they? Special days for special people.

Macrame Office With a View

Wedding Arch 10 Here is my macrame office with a view. See how the branch wood is hung on the window curtain rod using a motorcycle tie-down strap on each end? These work out great for letting me easily raise it up as things progress.

Wedding Arch 11After attaching the cords, the longer ones on both sides have to be wound around my fist and then rubber-banded to make them manageable. The shorter lengths in the middle, are able to remain full length without causing any hardship as I do the knots. The knot-tying begins and there are many times that I asked myself that silly question. “What was I thinking?”

Wedding Arch 12Over a period of 20 days, a custom macrame wedding arch is completed. Wishes for true love for our children crossed this Mother’s mind during the creation of this wedding arch gift.

Macrame Necessities

There are a few macrame necessities that people don’t often think of, like tape and rubber bands. A really time-consuming but absolutely necessary step is shown here, where the tape is needed.

Wedding Arch 08Wrapping tape around each rope end will stop it from fraying as I tie the knots. You can end up with a real mess and many tangles if you skip over this step.Wedding Arch 07As the ends are secured the different lengths of rope are stored.

Wedding Arch 09With the ends all taped, the ropes await being started on the branch.

Knotty Supplies

Other knotty supplies are needed. Besides the rope, an appropriate natural stick is needed to tie all the cords to at the very start.  Specifically a wooden curtain rod. Luckily, we are well stocked with forest-type products outdoors here in Elk WA. Wedding Arch 04Having an expert in forestry is always handy too. Peter, finds a perfect dead limb and cuts it to the right length for me. Wedding Arch 06Wedding Arch 05Thank goodness for the handiest man in the world. Not only is he capable of finding just what we need, but he also gets it ready without even using electricity. A green deal magician accustomed to using his common sense and old-fashioned hand tools. Move over Biden. I really scored with this keeper dude. Love him!

Tying the Knot

Tying the knot, literally, is what started this next project. Our daughter is getting married and she asked for a macrame wedding arch curtain for their ceremony. It has been decades since I did any macrame so I was a little nervous about taking on a large project like this.

1,200 linear feet of cord is needed for her wedding arch. Initially, we went into shock at the craft store when we discovered how high the price is for “macrame” cords. An average of $40 for 150 ft which works out to about .27 per lineal foot or a whopping $324. Whew! We ordered a simple “shipping rope” from Uline.com for approximately .065 per foot or $78 instead.Wedding Arch 02 I bet that no one will ever guess that we did not use a macrame cord from the craft store. Besides, if they do notice I would wonder if they really had a life.Wedding Arch 01

You can see my plan drawing and record of cord lengths as we pull out 23-foot long and 13-foot long cords for this project. There are two sides 2×7 and the middle 2×4 with an outlined heart shape at the center of the arch.Wedding Arch 03 See how the rope stretches across the dining room and kitchen on the floor as we measure it out. It takes lots of cord, space, patience, and lots of persistence to begin this large a macrame.