DIY Nautical Rope Necklace

I was super inspired by this gorgeous J.Crew Hyacinth necklace, but I wasn't so thrilled about the $150 price tag, so I decided to make my own version! All that's required is some basic knowledge of crochet (really basic, I promise), and a few materials, and you can make one too. If you don't want to make one yourself, these will also be available in my shop very soon.

Here's what you'll need:

- 1 cone of #18 Nylon Mason Line (you should be able to find it in any hardware store, including right here at Home Depot). You can also use any string/twine/rope of your choosing (I made a few necklaces with this stuff, which is much heavier weight than the mason line). Just remember: the thicker your cord, the larger your necklace will be, so adjust the number of stitches if necessary.

- A size N 9mm crochet hook

- Heavy, gold plated chain (about 12" per necklace)

- 4 jump rings (I used 10mm gold plated)

- 1 lobster clasp

- A tapestry needle

- Needle nose pliers

This pattern uses several very basic crochet stitches: a single crochet, a half double, a double, and a triple. They're not scary, and if you can do one, you can do them all (the only real difference is the number of times you wrap the yarn over and pull up loops. The technique is the same for all of them). There are tons of great illustrated and video tutorials around the web, but here's a place to start.

Prepare your materials: we're going to use three strands of mason line held together, so you'll need to be able to pull from three separate sources. The easiest way I found was to wind some onto pieces of cardboard to make little bobbins, but you can also just wind it around your fingers and make a small ball.

Step 1: Make your foundation chain

Holding all three strands of mason line together, make a slipknot, leaving several inches of tail to weave in later. Chain 16.

Step 2: Your first row

Skip the 1st stitch, then single crochet in the next 2 stitches. Double crochet in the next 4 stitches. You can already see the crescent shape emerging...

Step 3: Mirror image

Triple crochet in the next 3 stitches. Now you're just going to mirror what you did in step 2: double crochet in the next 4 stitches, then single crochet in the last 2. At this point, your necklace should look like the picture above, in the lower left corner. Chain 1 stitch and turn.

Step 4: Your last row

Your last row will be exactly like your first, but instead of using double and triple crochets, you'll use half double and double. So: single crochet in the first 2 stitches, half double in the next 4. Now you'll double crochet the middle 3 stitches, half double in the next 4, and single in the last 2 stitches.

Cut your string, leaving several inches of tail to weave in. Weave in the tails using your tapestry needle. If you're concerned about them coming loose, you can dab a little superglue on the end, but it's never been a problem for me. Once the ends are woven in, it will look like this:

Step 5: Attach the hardware

Detach two 6-inch pieces of chain from your spool or strand. Open two of the jump rings with pliers and slip one into each end of your crocheted crescent. Slip chain onto jump ring, then close ring with pliers. Repeat on other side. Attach the other two jump rings to the ends of the chain, slipping your lobster clasp onto one of the jump rings. Close with pliers.

The crescent will be quite malleable, so you can manipulate it into more of a u-shape if you'd like.

Aaand...voila! You're done.

Photos by Michael Hudson for Is + Was

Note: this pattern is for personal use only. Please don't sell the finished product.

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