KOCHI: Macrame means ‘hand-knotted work’—a craft which is becoming quite popular among crafters. Gopika Das K R, an Infosys employee is turning heads with her nifty macrame houseplant hangers which come in vibrant colours and can transform your living space.For a month now, this young entrepreneur has been nurturing her venture ‘Wings of Artistry’. It has already become a huge hit among plant lovers and craft enthusiasts in the city. “I have never tried my hand in art and was never interested in it at the beginning. But, I loved gardening and have a lot of indoor plants.
For elaborating this project, I even started collecting scrap bottles. Few of my friends suggested making plant hangers since I had a good collection of indoor plants. This prompted me to browse online and look for ideas. Soon, I came across macrame, an eco- friendly, sustainable craft,” says Gopika, a self-taught craftswoman.
Gopika browsed through many macrame tutorials online to explore the different kinds of knots involved in macrame works. “There are simple and complex knots, like coir knots, feather knots, square knots and those done on tassels. Few of them take one day to finish while others take a month, depending on the type of knot,” says Gopika.
From wall hangings in Boho style with long tassels to indoor plant hangers, Gopika uses different kinds of yarns which are tie-dyed and procured from the artisans in Ahmedabad. “All the raw materials used in making these items are eco-friendly. For the small hangings, wooden rings used in curtains are used and for bigger ones, I use bamboo sticks,” shares Gopika. Besides the plant hangers, this entrepreneur also procures scrap wood from the furniture shops to make stands for the pots.
To reduce the plastic menace, Gopika uses only ceramic pots for her plants. So far, she has crafted about 16 macrame indoor plant hangers and about 30 are in progress. Besides this, Gopika also does bottle art. She says, “I have started doing paintings and making dreamcatchers.”
Gopika also loves gardening and has about 35 varieties of indoor plants in her collection and about 15 varieties of vegetables which she grows on her flat’s terrace. She is planning to give her customers macrame plant hangers along with the indoor plants.Gopika takes orders through her Facebook page titled ‘Wings of Artistry’ and intends to conduct an exhibition in Kochi soon.