Photo of woman displaying repurposed rope wreath against black & white rope background

Repurposed Rope Wreaths

Repurposed Rope Wreaths

20 Dec, 2022

Enjoy the holidays with some winter weaving!

The NOAA Teacher at Sea Alumni Association got together “virtually” last week to create wreaths from old crabbing lines as part of TASAA NOAA Fellow Denise Harrington’s focus on marine debris. As an avid ocean kayaker, she wanted to do more than just pick up the derelict fishing gear she found along hard to access Oregon beaches and rocky shorelines. So, she partnered with the Huntsman Marine Science Centre in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada, to expand their work, launching the first ever virtual rope repurposing workshop with the Teacher at Sea Alumni.

Weaving your own holiday wreath is a small but impactful way to join the efforts during a time of year when curbing consumption can be a challenge. Follow these instructions to make your own holiday wreath (a more detailed presentation can be found here).

You will need approximately 44 feet of approximately 3/8” unwanted fishing line, climbing rope, or other rope to make a wreath. Enjoy the holidays while advocating for a healthy ocean this year with a DIY wreath!

Person displaying white repurposed rope wreath
  • Zoom meeting for Repurposed Rope Wreath workshop
  • Marine debris including rope
  • Rope wreaths and rope basket plus raw materials
  • Laying out rope to make repurposed rope wreath
  • First knot in making repurposed rope wreath
  • Green repurposed rope wreath with Science is Cool bumper sticker above
  • Finished repurposed rope wreath in natural color

A woman in a blue Teacher at Sea shirt posing in front of marine debris art.Denise Harrington is the 2022-23 Teacher at Sea Alumni Association NOAA Fellow. She sailed as a Teacher at Sea in 2014 aboard the NOAA Ship Rainier and in 2016 aboard the NOAA Ship Oregon II. She welcomes any questions about this blog via email.