KNOTS AND ROPES Macramé artist Yvette Mommsen talks tangles, glamorous women and local culture
HI owned an online store showing handmade products by South African designers and this made me want to make something of my own. I stumbled across the most beautiful macramé plant hangers by a designer I follow on social media, and I just knew I had found something I would love to make! I taught myself how to do the various knots and came up with my own designs, which I continually develop into new collections.
What’s the best thing about working with rope? You only use your hands. You don’t need tools, which means you can work wherever you are with anything that resembles rope.
And the worst? It can get tangled up if you are not careful. Also, because you are working with fibres, you often need to work with a mask. So it’s not as glamorous as it may seem.
An item you’d love to create? Something wearable that would be both timeless and sentimental.
The most ambitious item you’ve made?
A really large custom macramé wall hanging that was layered and dip dyed in a colour that was harder to obtain than we expected. That and a hanging chair.
Your goals for 2018? This year I had the opportunity of offering occasional work to unemployed women and teaching them creative skills. One of my goals for next year is to expand on that.
Your favourite designer? I have so many, but locally my favourite is Victoria Verbaan. I love how she has taken her art and made it into something that can be worn or used practically, such as her fabrics, umbrellas and wallpaper. Plus, she always makes women look strong, beautiful and glamorous. A piece of advice for home decorating? Make sure your home has warmth and personality. Have pieces that tell a story, or have history. It’s lovely to walk into a home and know who lives there just by the way it’s been decorated.
The best thing about being a designer in South Africa? I love that SA is discovering new things and that it has so much diversity and culture from which to draw inspiration. We have so many possibilities to explore and we get to add our own rich and unique culture into the mix.
— By
Roberta Thatcher
For more, go to www.artesense.co.za