If so, I’d love to talk to you about it. I have a project and I don’t know diddly dip about what to do.
Thanks!
Your title drew me in, but it has been many years (1970’s) since I did my latest macrame’ project. If I can help you, I’ll be glad to try, but I can’t promise a great deal.
What’s the problem?
Yay! A response!!! 
See, I’ve always wanted a really cool style, 70s hippie hemp necklace. I’ve been on the look out for the right one for, it seems, forever. So I finally found it on, where else but eBay, for next to nothing. Like under 5 bucks. Anyway, to make a long story short, it’s length is much longer than I’d anticipated. And I tried to come up with some idiotic approaches to fixing it, but of course they all failed.
Therefore, I was wondering if some kind Doper could help me. Take it and shorten it somehow, whatever way y’all could work your magic. I’d pay for postage both to and from, plus the time it takes to mess with it, including any materials necessary. You think you could bail me out? Puleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze. To someone who doesn’t know jack about this, it looks simple enough. Like all I should have to do is un-twine it back to where I want and add a clasp or something. However, I know I’m an idiot and probably completely wrong.
What say you? If nothing else, I’m thrilled that you replied. If this might be doable, give me a holler. Oh, and just to let you kow, if the thing got cratered in the process of trying to fix it, I’d understand, because how it is right now is unwearable for me anyhow. It’d be a poor, dead little necklace. 
Thanks so much! I really appreciate it Zeldar.
I’d hate to mess it up, too, and all I did was pot hangers (for plants) and a few wall hangings. No jewelry or anything with small cord the size it sounds like you have. Any way to put up a picture of what you have? After seeing it, I might have an idea or two, but just the description makes me uneasy that I could do what you need.
I did some pre-macrame crafts as a kid with lacing for necklaces and bracelets, but no jute, hemp or other natural fibers. I suspect they’d be similar, but I wouldn’t want you to gamble sight-unseen on sending something to me for adjustments.
Hopefully other Dopers will come to your aid. I’m sure a picture would get you a taker.
Argh… I no longer have a digital camera. Somehow ours cratered and I’ve yet to be able to get it to work. And like I said, truly no one needs to worry about making it un-usuable. That’s what it already is. But if it helps, this isn’t some dainty little thing. In my limited wearing of such things, comparitively, I find this one to be freakin’ huge. Closer to a pot holder than one might think. 
Anywho, if it’s still something you wouldn’t be interested in fiddling with, I completely understand. However, to anyone else who might be playing along at home, I still got it really, really cheap and am not at all attached to it the way it is and if it did get all tore up during the process, I wouldn’t hold anyone responsible except me. For not being able to read ’ the details of the project’ quickly and not being able to comprehend 18" accurately. Wonder why that is? 
If you have no takers yet, I’ll give it a shot. Unless there’s some kind of really complicated knotwork in there, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.
Ooh,ooh,ooh!!
[ ::: does the Snoopy Happy Dance! ::: ]
Thank you Tikki! Since I don’t know my arse from knotwork on the ground, it doesn’t look like it’d be very complicated to me. But again, I dunno. It does this twisty thing, which makes it sorta like a ladder. The endings have 3 pieces of string interlaced and then tied off together. I think. I even might’ve been able to do it myself, but I’m terrified I’d end up with a huge unraveled mess on the floor. So I came to the experts.
I got your PM. Just let me know what we need to do from here and I can probably send off the little bugger on Monday. However, there’s no hurry for when you return it. Take your time and I’ll be grateful for whenever.
[ ::: goes off to celebrate with a game of Tetris ::: ]
Plus, I think I luuuuuuuuuurves you. 
All you’d need to do is untie the strings. Honest. Then re-tie them at the length you want. I PROMISE this is something you can do yourself. I’ll even talk you through it if you want.
Ginger’s right. You could probably do this yourself. That twisty part is easier that you might think and the rest sounds like it’s braided. I’m sure there are plenty of websites that will show you guide you through it, as well as Ginger herself. But if you still want me to do it, I’ll be glad to. Depending on how short you want it, a clasp might be needed, which would set you back about 3 bucks or so. As for paying for my time, there’s no need to. I like having something to keep my hands busy as I watch television in the evenings anyway.
Another PM is on its way.