Until recently, you couldn’t hear the word “macramé” without it conjuring up visions of thrift-store place mats, summer camp friendship bracelets, and Mama Cass’s bolero vests. But thanks in part to Sally England, the masterful, Michigan-based, macramé artist who has made distinctly modern, large-scale commissions for the likes of Nike and Ace Hotels, the once nostalgic medium is having another day in the sun.
We visited England’s studio in Grand Rapids, located on the second floor of her Old Victorian flat, a few months ago. Growing up in rural Michigan, England says, her deep connection to the outdoors was a precursor to her eventual, tactile love affair with natural fibers. “There’s something about the textural element of macramé that feels really good and cozy — in an earthy kind of way,” England says.
England received an MFA in Applied Craft & Design at Portland’s Pacific Northwest College of the Arts. And while she’s explored other mediums like knitting since then, England, who is self-taught, prefers macramé for the control and versatility the fiber material allows, and she sees its applications as practically endless. Along with custom plant hangers and wall hangings, England has also created room dividers, window screens, lampshades, chunky rope necklaces, and even ponchos, among other pieces.
Her technique is premeditated, but always trial-and-error. “As time goes by, I’ve become more accurate in my precision,” she says. “But since each of my works is different, my process is never quite methodical.” Because she works primarily on a commission basis, she’ll brainstorm with a client on a particular vision before sketching the design in order to help illustrate its concept. (Sketching knots, she admits, is very difficult). Once a concept is approved, she sources her rope online from an American supplier, before sizing, cutting down, mounting the ropes to the wall, and, eventually, knotting.
“For me, just getting started on a project and letting myself get into the zone can be the hardest part,” she admits. Rustic dwelling, however, is conducive to the concentration that’s needed for time-consuming and often-repetitive projects that would otherwise be thwarted by the distractions of big-city life. England fancies herself a country girl for life, and she daydreams frequently about buying a chunk of land — perhaps a farm or a commune — where she hopes to one day write a book on her craft. “My biggest inspiration,” she says, “is the simple and thoughtful ways of living from the past.”
England prefers macro-macramé, which employs larger-sized rope, to micro-macramé, which is the technique used when making smaller pieces, typically jewelry. “I find it more challenging to work with small knots,” she says. “When I do, my hands feel really obnoxious and giant.”
There are hundreds of macramé looping techniques, and England employs several of these. Her favorites included the square knot, half knot, horizontal and vertical clove hitch, lark’s head, overhand knot, diagonal clove hitch, buttonhole knot, and Chinese crown knot.
The lark’s head knot is typically the initial knot used to begin a piece, in which the cord is looped over a dowel and then bent over. England sources different ropes from a handful of different U.S.-based suppliers, but her favorite type of rope is 100% cotton solid braid rope because of its “soft texture.”
When creating wall hangings, England uses a mounted wooden dowel that serves as an anchor of sorts, allowing her to hang a dozen or so cords at an even level, before knotting.
“When I’m creating work, I definitely have a starting point,” she says. “And when given the freedom, I will let the first row of knots inform what the next row becomes, and so on.”
England prefers to keep her design plans open to new interpretation: “You can’t always force the rope to do what it doesn’t want to do.”
While England has a worktable that she uses for sketching and assembling smaller works and projects, she spends the bulk of her day standing and knotting her pieces.
“Since I work from home, I have a lot of flexibility when it comes to my day, which is awesome because I hate routines,” she says. “One day I might spend five hours in the studio, and the next day it could be 12. It all depends on my workload… and how burned out I am.”
“I first became interested in macramé as a little girl. I found an old instructional book of my mom’s and was mesmerized by the concept,” England says. “I knew I would learn one day.”
England likes to think of her work less as “products,” but rather “individual works of art for the home.” Every piece she creates is one of a kind.
England uses a liquid fabric dye to bring color and life to her pieces. “Larger diameter ropes are more difficult to dye than smaller ones, especially if I am dyeing in bulk, which I usually am,” she says.
“I really enjoy flipping through issues of ELLE and W, and I take note on how fashion trends seem to inspire art trends and vice versa,” she says.
“I like looking at old architecture and interior design books from the 60s and 70s, and picture my macramé (and myself) living in those places and times,” she says.
In the studio, England listens to an eclectic mix of music, podcasts and audiobooks while working.
“I like to surround myself with things that make me happy: Plants, drawings, photos, fiber art made by other artists, little mementos, and various inspirations,” she says.
England’s design goal is “bringing solace to interior environments.” Here, the beginnings of a custom wall hanging.
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