A treasure trove of knot instruction and lore! The Craft of the Knot introduces you to the skill and beauty of knot tying. Filled with detailed instructions, history, and lore, you'll discover a wide range of uses for ordinary rope. From camping and climbing to crafts and sailing, this charming guide also includes knot illustrations for every occasion to show you how to master any tie. Whether you want to brush up on the basics of hitches and bends, or create complex and beguiling decorative knots, The Craft of the Knot provides you with the information you need to fasten the perfect knot every time.

Des Pawson has been a professional ropeworker for more than 25 years. His passion for knots goes back to the time when, aged 7, he was given a book with some knots in it. He has studied knots and sailors' ropework ever since. Over that time he has built up a number of recipe books containing the information required to make each item, whether it is a key fob, fender, mat or knife lanyard. Des Pawson's Knot Craft contains a selection from those recipe books, giving the reader the basic designs, illustrating which knots and sennits are used to make them. Here is a step-by-step breakdown of how to put the knots together as well as the size and lengths of materials required. Many books have been published on how to tie practical knots but not many books give help in putting the knots together to make an object.

What's the difference between a square knot and a granny knot? What kinds of knots do fishermen use? How do you make a rope ladder? A tourniquet? What's the best way to secure a boat to its mooring, or pitch a tent? How do you tie stretcher knots? These questions and many others are answered in Allan and Paulette Macfarlan's encyclopedic work on the practical art of knot tying. Knowing how to tie a variety of useful and reliable knots is a necessity for weekend sailors and campers: it's a passport to safety and success. Rock climbing, horseback riding, and other outdoor activities also inspire the enthusiast to pursue the requisite knots. In unusually clear illustrations rendered by artist Paulette Macfarlan, accompanied by precise written instructions, the authors of this book explain how to tie hundreds of knots, including basic knots, stopper knots and hitches, toggled knots, knots for joining two ends of rope, hitches and knots for typing ropes to things, whipping, seizings, loop knots, horsey knots and hitches, decorative knots, lashing, and splicing. Practical applications are also discussed: rappelling, raft building, tracking a canoe or small boat, heaving line, log rolling, making a travois, and rope tent-frames, beds, and bunks. In addition to discussing the practical side of knot tying, the Macfarlans cover the entertaining end of the craft: knots and ropes in history and literature, knot mystery and magic in ancient and contemporary times, and games, tricks, and stunts with ropes and knots. Nearly every aspect of knot tying is represented in this comprehensive and concise reference work. Boaters, campers, boy scouts, and others interested in practical or decorative knots will want to add this volume to their bookshelves.

A treasure trove of knot instruction and lore! The Craft of the Knot introduces you to the skill and beauty of knot tying. Filled with detailed instructions, history, and lore, you'll discover a wide range of uses for ordinary rope. From camping and climbing to crafts and sailing, this charming guide also includes knot illustrations for every occasion to show you how to master any tie. Whether you want to brush up on the basics of hitches and bends, or create complex and beguiling decorative knots, The Craft of the Knot provides you with the information you need to fasten the perfect knot every time.

This wonderful collection of Des Pawson's personal ropecraft recipes combines an expanded and now full-colour collection of projects from Des's popular Des Pawson's Knot Craft, together with 20 new and brilliant mat designs. Readers can learn how to make 60 different ropework projects, including mats, bellropes, key fobs, fenders and doorstops. Along with fascinating titbits of nautical history as background to many projects and guidance as to how they can be the starting point for many other items, Des gives step-by-step instructions on how to put these knots together to form the finished article, and advice on the size and lengths of the materials required - just as you would find in a recipe book. Full-colour illustrations, clear and practical tips on technique, and photos of the finished products mean that this book is ideal for all abilities. With this book to hand, readers will have the confidence to start making desirable objects with knots because, as Des says, this is the book that makes all other knot books work!

Knot tying has always been one of those key outdoor skills that the inexperienced take for granted. The experienced outdoorsman, however, has had enough success and failure to know that there are right and wrong knots for certain jobs. But first, it helps to know a few strange terms. Put it simply, a knot is some kind of fastening or splice made by intertwining one or more ropes or some other flexible material. After tightening a knot, it should hold on its own. A hitch is a little bit different. It's like a knot, but it generally involves another object like a stick, a post, a ring, or occasionally another rope. Properly tied, hitches can hold their place, or they may be able to slide, depending on the hitch you choose. A lashing is like a hitch, but slightly more complex. Lashings involve the use of a rope or similar material to secure two or more objects together. To grossly oversimplify all this, the knot is just rope fastened together; the hitch is a rope fastened to an object; and a lashing is a rope fastening multiple objects together. A good knot can save lives when you're dealing with a survival situation, performing first aid, and when working over heights or water. But, you have to know how to tie it. So make sure you know what to do with your rope the next time you head into the wild by learning these 20 essential knots.

* Clear step-by-step instructions and photographs