Half Hitch Bag Strap

There are many ways to make attractive straps for bags and purses. Sometimes, a common-looking bag can be "spruced up" by a surprising strap that doesn't follow the expected road. You could use this hitch stitch even to decorate a bag, but it is used most often for bag straps.
It is very easy to make, and if you make it in two colors, it's very attractive and calls attention to the bag.



To make it, you will need:

Two crocheted ropes, the color of your choice, (please search for the braiding tutorials to find how to crochet the cords or ropes) approximately twice the size of the length of the strap, leave one end of the crocheted rope attached to the ball of yarn, just in case you need to make it longer after all,
and work with the opposite side that you've already finished. This will save you problems, if for some reason, you wind up with more cord or less cord than you need for your strap.

Half hitches are a macrame stitch. It is one of the basic stitches and one of the most used to make bag straps. The strap we will be making is an alternating half hitch chain, made with two ropes or cords. To make it, proceed as follows:

1- Pin the working end of your ropes to a piece of cardboard or to a pillow securely.
Then hold the inactive cord straight down, keeping it somewhat taut. Bring the opposite, or working rope across and place it in front of the inactive rope, then
bend it around the inactive cord, and then out of the bend above the working rope, moving it towards you. Then lift the working rope's end and tighten a bit.

2- Now, making the second half hitch running on the opposite side. To make that one you will put the working rope behind the inactive rope, bring it around from back to front, forming a loop and insert the end of the working rope towards the back of the working cord. Pull to tighten into place.

To make the strap you will alternate these two half hitches back and forth for as loong as you need to.












Don't forget always to alternate the strand until you get the length of strap you want. Now, sew the ends of the strap firmly around a purse ring, or if you prefer, for added strenth, join a bit of yarn to one edge of the strap and crochet 1 or 2 rows of sc, across, thus joining the cords to one another, and then, bend the end of the halft hitch strap around the purse ring and sew it across this little strip of sc stitches.







That will make it stronger for daily wear. Do the same thing with the opposite end of the strap.



You're done!


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From STRESS to Joy