hanging pots

With a green-fingered husband, one of the attractions of where we live now is the lengthy balcony, perfect for lots of potted plants.

We have 23 potted plants on our balcony at the moment and lots of space for more. However to create even more space, we decided to hang some from the railings as we did in our previous place, which meant I have had a creative project to get stuck into this afternoon: I have been making hanging baskets for the pots H said he wanted to hang.

Using hemp string, I first crocheted a circle using an 8mm hook - magic loop; 2 ch, 10 db (US) into loop; 2 ch + 1 db in 1st db, then 2 db into each db, sl st to join; 2 ch + 1db in 1st st, then patterned 2db, 1db, in sts around, sl st to join; 2 ch + 1db in 1st st, then patterned 2db, 1db, 1db in sts around, sl st to join and tied off. After that I cut three lengths of slightly thicker hemp string (five for the slightly larger pots) and attached the middle of each string evenly spaced around the circle, creating six (or ten) strings. I then tied a knot in each adjacent pair of strings, a palms width away from the circle. Next I took one string from each knot and tied it to the adjacent string of the next knot, another palm's width, or more for taller pots, away from the first knot. Finally I hung the pot from the railing to adjust it's balance and distance from the floor then used a reef knot to secure the length and trimmed the ends. 

Voila! Homemade hanging baskets. Total cost €2 and 20 minutes per pot.