Tips and Tricks for Rope Bowls
Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 10 am - 3 pm, Transfer Station Interpretive Center, Workshop led by
Judy Ray
This is what works for me—but there are probably as many ways to do it as there are people
making rope bowls! Check out the resources in the handout or other online or print resources and
talk to others to see what works for them—maybe it will work for you, too.
I roll the rope into a ball before I start sewing. If I don’t it always starts tangling—it’s just not worth
it! I keep the ball of rope in a bowl on the floor by my feet and pull it out as I need it. Without the
bowl, it ends up rolling all over the floor—often into unreachable places.
It’s worth it to use a heavier needle—90/14 is a good size. It will go through the fabric and rope
more easily and guard against skipping a stitch.
It’s best if you use a presser foot that gives you a clear view of your sewing line—remember, you
start off sewing in a pretty tight curve—so that you can keep the zig zag stitch as even as possible
across the two coils of rope to catch both sides. A center indicator on your presser foot is also
handy—and pretty much a necessity if you only have a closed foot.
Select the thread you want to use for your bowl. It can be matching, contrasting, variegated, or
change with your fabric if you decide to use different fabrics. Remember, though, that both your
upper thread and bobbin thread will show. In fact, the bobbin thread will be the one on the outside
of the bowl. Therefore, whatever thread choice you make, you will probably want the same thread
in both the needle and the bobbin.
Starting is the hardest part—isn’t it always?!

Leaving about 3-4 inches of fabric hanging from the cut end of the rope, start wrapping the
fabric tightly around the rope using some glue to help you keep it tight. (I wrap the fabric
going from left to right over the rope and then back around. Others wrap it going from left to
right over the rope and then back around. Try it both ways and pick the one that works best
for you.) Wrap enough fabric so that you have about 20 inches of wrapped rope—that will let
you get started. With the loose hanging fabric at the front end, wrap it around itself for a
couple of inches and secure the end with glue so it doesn’t unravel.

Coil the wrapped rope tightly about three or four times—the loose fabric at the end fills in the
center. Position the coil so that the loose end of the rope is on the right! You really have to do
it this way so that the base—and bowl—will grow outward rather than inward! I begin by
setting the stitch width 6 and length 2 (to help you sew slower at the beginning around the
tight curve of the coil). To start, sew straight (with your zig zag stitch) from one side of the coil
to the other just above where you want the loose rope to begin. If you’re having trouble
fitting the coil under your presser foot, lift the presser foot lever up even more—at least that
works for my Janome—it’s worth a try. If that doesn’t work, it’s just going to be a tight fit—or
try a rope with a smaller diameter.

Without cutting the thread, rotate the coil so that now you are sewing along the line between
the two coils. Start sewing around and around… At the beginning when the coil is so small,
you might want to use a stiletto to push against the right side of the coil to keep it tight. This
protects your finger—always a good thing. Once the coil gets to a reasonable size, use your
right hand to push against the coil to keep it tight.
After getting the base started, I increase the stitch to width 7 and length 3 —but you should pick the
width and length you like. You want the width of the stitch to go from halfway through inner coil to
halfway through outer coil. Stitch length can be as long as is sufficient to hold it together.
I alternate sewing and wrapping strips. When it’s time to wrap more strips, stop sewing when you
still have about 6-8 inches of wrapped fabric on the rope. Stop sewing with needle down in the loose
tail end of the rope to hold it still and provide resistance as you add other strips.

I add about 40 inches worth of strips each time (2-3 strips). I put glue on the beginning and
end of each strip. (That’s a personal choice—I’d rather not have fabric unwrapping on me!) I
use Aqua Mono Liquid Glue because it dries clear and it’s not messy—but use your favorite
glue (stick or liquid, permanent or temporary), or none at all. Start the next strip by
overlapping the end of the previous strip so no rope will show. I use small binder clips to hold
the two strips together and then remove them as I get to them when I start sewing. I try to
position the end of the strip where it will end up between the two coils of rope when I sew it,
but that’s not critical. It always looks wonderful.

I stand up to wrap so that I can get farther away from the sewing machine and hold the rope
taut while I’m wrapping it. Alternately standing and sitting also keeps me from getting stiff!
You will work out your own rhythm. When I sew, I drape the wrapped rope around the back of
my neck from right to left so that it feeds better.
When your base is large enough and you are ready to start the sides, make sure that the center of
the coil will be in the center of the base—as close as possible, anyway. You form the sides of the
bowl by holding up the sewn coil with your flat left hand and pushing it lightly against the side of your
sewing machine. You keep that hand there to guide the bowl the whole time you’re sewing. The
angle of the sides of the bowl depends on the angle you hold the coil while you’re sewing. If you’re
already up against the sewing machine, you can increase the angle even more by lifting the coil as
close to the sewing line as possible slightly with your fingertips.
While you are sewing the sides, it helps to have a heavy object (e.g., large mug, filled water bottle) to
slide next to the bowl to hold it up when you are in the wrapping phase.
When the bowl is as large as you want it to be, cut the rope at an angle so that you have about 6-8
inches of unwrapped rope left. Wrap the fabric around the remaining rope, getting tighter as you
come to the end and continuing past the end. Glue the fabric together at the end.
There are any number of ways to finish your bowl—here are two. The easiest method is to continue
sewing as you had been until you get to the end of the wrapped fabric—you will probably want to
decrease the width—and perhaps length—of your stitch gradually to accommodate the narrowing of
the rope and fabric and secure your stitching. A second method is to fold the wrapped rope back on
itself with four to six inches left and insert the wrapped fabric end between the two coils. Continue
sewing until the loop is the size you want it and secure your stitching.
I’m focusing on the basics in this workshop to get you started. The enhancements and
embellishments that you add to your projects are unlimited—enjoy!