gold fiber soft neck rings necklaces 3836

 This pair of soft neck rings is designed to look like the dramatic metal rings made famous by the indigenous fashion experts living in remote locations in Asia and Africa. This pair is made  from cotton and hand dyed cord with cotton floss accents. The in-line magnetic barrel clasp is designed to maintain the simple geometry while allowing an easy way to add remove these from the neck.

The top necklace is 14 3/8" (365 mm)
The bottom necklace is 15" (382 mm)

 Here are some related designs you might like:

coil neckpiece (hand dyed rope)

three soft neck rings

authentic metal neck rings
Four copper neck rings

similar design bracelets

four fiber wrapped bangles

The barrel clasp is augmented with a loop and button to prevent the necklace from coming apart unexpectedly.

You can see these in the fiber section of ArtiFactSite on ETSY


design and photographs © copyright 2016

four custom copper neck rings 3789

Polished solid heavy 4 gauge copper formed and finished with squared domed ends. Four pieces designed to make a slightly tapered stack. Openings are about 1" as shown, must be stretched to place on neck then re-formed to size.

Inside circumference varies to allow nesting when worn 13 1/4" (337 mm) to 14" (366 mm) Ends may be left open or overlapped slightly

No finish so will acquire a patina with wear.

Available by special order ArtiFactSite





design and photographs © copyright 2015

coil neck piece in hand dyed rope

This animation shows the formation of a custom made neckpiece made out of hand dyed cotton and a pair of polymer clay buttons. This was a project that started out with the customer considering the metal neck coils worn by members of traditional cultures and evolved into this realization in cotton fiber.

A higher res image of the finished coil.
14" circumference (average)
3 1/2" height

Here's an alternate design of three discrete pieces

Three soft neck rings with a magnetic clasp

button and loop details to secure the bottom and top loops.

Custom work like this is available on ARTiFactSite

design and photographs © copyright 2015

knotted multi wrap bracelet necklace 3647

More material from the rope machine…this time the design is a long loop with an eye-splice on one end and a sliding barrel knot on the other. This allows adjustment of the length of the loop to form a multi wrap bracelet or a medium length necklace. The end of the rope is not cut, it's a naturally terminated twist that can't fray or come undone.

Splice on the left, adjustable barrel knot on the right.

 loose fitting multi-wrap bracelet about 8 5/8" (2189 mm) x 3 (can be made smaller with a tighter loop)

This one is sold but you can find other unique bracelets online WhatKnotShop on ETSY


design and photographs © copyright 2015

handmade rope multi wrap bracelets or choker style necklace 3528

A versatile casual accessory for summer 2015

A group of multi-wrap bracelets that just came off the rope machine.

Each one is a three ply rope with a cotton floss color accent and cork button.

Each kit is a made-to-order length with a loop placed at the specified length per customer preference.

 Shown here in the double wrap choker style necklace length.

A finished version looks like this.
A slightly thicker rope design looks like this.
An eye-splice loop design looks like this.

The color accents are very subtle. Each one of the three rope plys has a single strand of floss.

These and other unique bracelets can be found online WhatKnotShop on ETSY

or make a custom request


design and photographs © copyright 2015 WhatKnotShop

handmade rope necklace with eye splice and button 3400

 Using a bench top rope machine with some cotton twine and a custom made three hole button this nautical rope necklace project shows off several techniques.

The rope is made from a single piece of #18 cotton twine looped through the button six times (three doubled strands) and wound on the machine.

The button is positioned at the standing end of the rope. The doubled loops hold it securely without extra knots.

 The button is polymer clay made in a countertop toaster oven with three oversize holes to accept the doubled strands of cord.

The eye-splice is a three part overlap  terminated with a coach whipping made from waxed thread.

Inside circumference is 26" fully extended or about 7 1/2" when wrapped three times.

Finished rope is a square section about 1/4"

Made on commission this piece is an example of the handmade rope accessories available through WhatKnotShop

click here to view similar items



design and photographs © copyright 2014 WhatKnotShop

distressed cord choker style necklace 3380

 Simple geometrical shape choker style necklace made from recovered distressed nylon cord. The material was salvaged from an ocean beach, washed and sanitized then made into this simple everyday accessory.

The material has an even frayed texture from the hard wearing sea-duty as a pot warp.

 The ends are connected with a snap-together barrel fastener. Size is approx 16 1/2" (420 mm)

Materials are naturally rugged so this accessory can go climbing, swimming, or wherever without care.

Color is an off-white or light grey. The barrel clasp is black.


Available here



design and photographs © copyright 2014 WhatKnotShop

double loop handmade rope necklace 3311

 This handmade rope was made in an extended length on the table top rope machine. The extra length allows for a double loop with a generous dimension of 20 1/2" (520 mm)

The rope is a three ply construction in a natural color cotton twine.

 The closure us a three hole custom made poly clay button and loop. The loop doubles the cord and is bound with a waxed thread coach whipping detail.

The cord is terminated with another  coach whipping detail.

Double coil results in a 9 1/2" (241 mm) wrap bracelet, rather large for the average adult wrist...






design and photographs © copyright 2014 WhatKnotShop

handmade rope choker necklace with button 3310

 Three ply rope manufactured on a small rope machine out of cotton twine is combined with a custom made three hole button to create this small choker style necklace.

Size is "small" about 14 1/2" (368 mm)

 Three hole button anchors the three pairs of cotton twine. The button is positioned on the inactive end of the rope machine while the yarns are wound up.

The loop is created by a simple coach whipping made with waxed cotton thread.

color is a natural cotton white, button is a "pearl white" poly clay





design and photographs © copyright 2014 WhatKnotShop

handmade rope wrap bracelet necklace 3298

 What makes this piece special is the rope is actually assembled on a rope machine from cotton yarns in a two-stage process.

The first stage creates a thin cotton cord from three plies of cotton twine. The second stage uses three of these cords to create the rope shown here.

                 available here

 The handmade poly clay button is placed on the inactive end of the rope winding machine with the cord threaded through the holes in the button.  As the rope is made the button is secured by the natural twist in the yarns

The loop is made with an eye-splice detail with a coach whipping securing the end of the splice. This is a traditional method of creating open loops that can carry heavy loads imposed by rigging on sailing ships.

The extra length creates a four wrap bracelet for a large wrist, five wrap for a small wrist. Two wraps makes a nautical choker style necklace or leave the single loop for an extra long draped necklace.

Color is a natural off-white, material is cotton.



design and photographs © copyright 2014 WhatKnotShop

double loop rope bracelet necklace blue 2696

 This design is both a double wrap bracelet and a choker style necklace but not at the same time...

Here's the double wrap bracelet shape measuring about 7 3/4" (197 mm) inside circumference in size. The waxed whipping secures the loose ends and the double loops.

A monkey fist knot rests inside the loops to secure this bracelet without the need for hardware.

 The entire piece is made from a single piece of #24 cotton cord. The color is a darker shade of teal blue.

This view shows the necklace a simple relaxed circle about 16 3/4" (416 mm)

                       Available here



Custom sizes can also be made by special order.


design and photographs © copyright 2013 WhatKnotShop

knotted choker style necklace with glass bead 2684

 This is a really simple and popular design for a choker style necklace. It's made with a pair of sliding barrel knots and a small cylindrical glass bead.

The cord is a 2 mm black leather lacing material that can be easily tied. The leather has a natural friction that holds the knots firmly one they have been worked up to a firm condition. Here's a tutorial explaining how to make this knot.

The knots can be made with as many wraps as you want. This is a smaller 13" necklace so the knots have four wraps. Bigger beads and larger necklaces can have 5 or more and still look proportional. Anything less than three wraps risks the knot coming apart.

Adjustment is made by sliding the knots on the standing part of the cord.

Here's a look at a selection of barrel beads that have the correct internal hole size. The glass beads must have a 2.5 mm or larger hole to accommodate the cord. I use beads from India that come in one pound buckets and must be sorted out. Many of them are the wrong size or have internal cracks that cause them to fall apart.

This necklace was a custom design but you can see similar designs here.

design and photographs © copyright 2013 WhatKnotShop

Geometry in Fashion collection on Etsy

Geometry in Fashion by Yana captures the fun of mathematics and the whimsey of colorful design. More color and whimsey in her shop WineCountryLife filled with handmade cards, jewelry, and other gifts created in her home studio in Napa Valley of California.

What geek lover can resist this Geometry Tshirt Math Geek Tee WOMENS Shirt one of a larger collection of Science Tshirts Map T shirts Unique Shirt Designs Tees available in Josh Saathoff's shop nonfictiontees. Guys there are plenty of cool tees in here for you as well.

Fans of the movie Men In Black will appreciate this Five Spiral Galaxies Polymer clay Necklace made by  Albina Manning and sold in her shop AroundBeads. Remember the cat with the universe in the vial on the collar? Check out the Tutorials/Ebooks section for illustrated guides on how to make a wide variety of beaded items.

The featured item in this geometrical collection is the white cotton wedge bangle GEOmetry series med 1640 one a series of geometrical constructions made from cotton cord and waxed nylon thread. See the other items in this collection including this Blue rope geometry bangle and this clothesline cuff rep bracelet 1734. 

catch this sailor's catch collection on Etsy

What a great Sailor's Catch this collection is made by Habby an Etsy promoter. See other collections here.

I like KarensRopeWorks and these Cotton Nautical Doorstops which are monkey fist knots (from huge monkeys!) More mats, boat accessories, and rope work in her shop.

More knotty art Big Sailor's Knot Necklace made by Cristina Olariu an Architect and knot artist. Check out her shop elfinadesign for more great work.

The featured item in this catchy collection is this navy blue turks head knot sailor rope bracelet made from hand dyed cotton cord. There are more designs and colors available in WhatKnotShop on Etsy and if you don't find something you like there visit WhatKnotShop on Zibbet for an even bigger collection.

WhatKnotShop shopping guide part two

Design - Two shops have different stock of these unique bracelets. Some have beadwork, some have toggle closures, some are small, some are large. Each one is handmade from cord, beads, & cotton floss, held together with four ply nylon thread. All are special
Shop design on Etsy
Shop design on Zibbet

Fiber wrapped jewelry - An offshoot of the knot business that came about from a creative use of the leftover pieces of cord that are created when a knot bracelet is made. These are "up cycled" slip on bracelets and choker style necklaces made by wrapping deconstructed string and floss around core materials.
Shop for wrapped fiber jewelry on ArtFire
Shop for wrapped fiber jewelry on Zibbbet

Beaded rope bracelets - Another offshoot of the knot tying work that has recently expanded into other experimental forms. Some bracelets incorporate beads in traditional turks head knot designs like the example shown on the left while other pieces are more about the beads.
Beaded knot bracelets on ArtFire
Beaded knot bracelets on Zibbet

Extra wide cuffs - These are the most dramatic wide slip on cuff bracelets available. Each one is a carefully made knot requiring many hours of work to lay out and then work up to the finished shape. This example is ready to slip on your wrist and tighten up to a comfortable custom fit.
See extra wide cuffs on ArtFire
See extra wide cuffs on Zibbet

choker and bangle set hand dyed fiber wrapped 163

These fiber wrapped bracelets and necklace are made with nylon cord cores that have been wrapped with hand dyed cotton fibers. Some of the fibers are made from pieces of dyed three ply cord that have been unwound.

The dye penetrates the cord from the outside during immersion in the dye bath leaving the interior of the cord white. This accounts for the differences in color and the spiral pattern seen on some regions of pieces.

Choker style necklace is closed with a small monkey fist knot and loop.

Check your slip-on size click here then select your favorite color from one of the three online shops:


Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/WhatKnotShop
ArtFire: http://www.artfire.com/users/WhatKnotShop
Zibbet: http://www.zibbet.com/WhatKnotShop

Design and photos copyright 2010 WhatKnotShop

choker style necklace in hand dyed cotton 221

Cotton fiber wrapped choker with a nylon loop and monkey fist knot toggle closure. Colors are purple, scarlet, grey, and white.


Nylon core is laid out and hand dyed strands of cotton are wrapped tightly around. The taper is created by extra nylon cords near the center. Ends are tucked in and secured.


This and other hand dyed cotton fiber wrapped accessories are available in the ArtFire studio - click here to see this collection 




design and photos copyright 2010 WhatKnotShop