All About the Jean Plant Hanger
The Jean macrame plant hanger is my personal tribute to the grand 70s where iconic macrame was born. Macrame did not originate from this decade, but it is definitely responsible for making it well-known and popular. I just had to include one plant hanger in my collection that paid a modern homage to that macrame hanger.
The Backstory
When designing the Jean, I wanted a hanger made of materials from old but crafted with techniques of new. I decided on using jute material with a modified wall-hanging pattern. Jute was BY FAR the most-used material for macrame in the 70s. Jute is a natural fiber (a BIG check for Fringe & Free) that can be made shiny or course. It is also the same fiber used to make burlap. I most familiar with course jute, and that's what I use in the Jean (nearly 120 feet of it per hanger!).
Her Polished Design
Since I was using such a coarse fiber, I wanted the design to be very clean and polished. I wanted this tribute to the 70s to be something that said "I love my roots" AND "look how far I came!" I went back to my favorite knot, the clean square knot, and did an alternating pattern that was spaced out. This created a beautiful lattice look, and also reminded me of some of the more ornate mid-century modern tile work that was popular. I decided to stick with this one pattern, and doubled it and create a pocket for the pot to fit into.
There were few versions that came before the present-day model. Some of the features I had to fine-tune were what size ring to make her off of, how much space to add in between the rows of knots, and what overall length would make her ratios look best.
One of my favorite ways to style her is to pair her with a glass bowl to propagate from. The clear glass just lets the plant hanger get more attention and it further accentuates that pocketed bottom.
The Namesake
Are you curious about her namesake? When the Jean came to be, I had already made a few other plant hangers styles. I was proud of the other styles, but this style was special. It took much more time to design and also to make. She still takes more time than most of the other plant hangers in our collection. This plant hanger was also just notably beautiful. I was also excited about this style in a way that superseded the prior styles. For all of these reasons, I couldn't wait to share her with my mother. When she confirmed that she loved it, I decided to name her after my mom, a tough woman who is also of notable beauty.
The Jean is one of the few plant hangers that does not came in an array of colors. She will only be made in jute! Go order a few today, she makes a lovely gift.
<3 Nathalie
