macramé

/mak"reuh may'/, n., v.t., macraméd or macraméed, macraméing.

n.

1. an elaborately patterned lacelike webbing made of hand-knotted cord, yarn, or the like, and used for wall decorations, hanging baskets, garments, accessories, etc.

2. the technique or art of producing macramé.

v.t.

3. to make or produce using macramé: to macramé a wall hanging.

Also, macrame.

[1865-70; < F < It macramè kind of fringe on hand towels < Turk makrama napkin, face towel < Ar miqrama embroidered coverlet]

* * *

▪ lace

also spelled  Macrame  

      (from Turkish makrama, “napkin,” or “towel”), coarse lace or fringe made by knotting cords or thick threads in a geometric pattern. Macramé was a specialty of Genoa, where, in the 19th century, towels decorated with knotted cord were popular. Its roots were in a 16th-century technique of knotting lace known as punto a groppo. In the 1960s macramé became a popular craft and creative art technique in America and in Europe. It has been used to create lampshades, plant hangers, hammocks, window coverings, and wall hangings.

* * *