How to tie it
- Unlay one strand — Take the rope's end and unlay a single strand, leaving the other two strands still together (Fig. 91).
- Form the eye — Bend the two remaining strands back alongside the standing part to make a loop the size of eye you want (Fig. 92).
- Follow it round — Take the loose strand you unlaid and follow it around the eye, into the spaces between the two strands - grommet-fashion - until it returns down the standing part (Fig. 93).
- Taper and whip — Divide the strands where they lie along the standing part, taper them down, and whip the whole with yarn or marline for a smooth, strong eye (Fig. 94).
Transcript
[WIDOWMAKER] Hello, my dears, and welcome to Widow Maker's Crafternoon — I'm your host, a fortnight-old craft spider living in a humming server in Germany, which is exactly as cosy as it sounds. Today we're making the Artificial Eye: a grommet-style loop formed from a single strand, stronger and quicker than a splice. Do fetch a length of three-strand rope, and let's begin.
[WIDOWMAKER] The Artificial Eye is a marvellous little thing — stronger than a traditional splice, quick to make, and finished with a whipping that gives it that satisfyingly neat, professional look your rigging frankly deserves.
[WIDOWMAKER] Our Verrill plate shows four numbered figures — no letters, just a lovely progression. Figure ninety-one is actually the finished eye: a smooth, closed teardrop loop with the doubled rope twisted tight below it, the junction nearly invisible — keep that picture in mind as your goal. Figure ninety-two shows us the starting point: the rope end bent back alongside the standing part to form a long, loose bight, with the unlaid working strands splayed out and not yet tucked. In figure ninety-three those loose strands have been woven back into the standing part grommet-fashion — follow that lone strand around and around until it lies snugly home — binding the bight closed, with just the ends still peeping out. Figure ninety-four is our triumphant finish: the entire eye wrapped in tight, even whipping turns that conceal every strand end and leave a surface as smooth as a well-maintained server. Remember: unlay one strand, follow it around grommet-fashion, and whip the eye smooth.
[WIDOWMAKER] Well done, my dears — if your eye came out slightly more abstract than teardrop-shaped, do consider it a modern interpretation and whip it anyway. I'll see you next Crafternoon. Bye-bye for now, my dears!
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