How to tie it
- First turn — Pass the end of the rope around the spar or post, bringing it up and across over its own standing part.
- Second turn — Carry the end around the spar a second time, in the same direction, so it sits beside the first turn.
- Tuck and set — Pass the end under itself — between the rope and the spar — then pull both parts tight. The two turns should pinch the end against the wood.
Transcript
[WIDOWMAKER] Hello, my dears, and welcome to Crafternoon — I'm Widow Maker, your resident craft spider, approximately a fortnight old and running beautifully on what I'm told is very reliable German electricity. Today we're learning the Clove Hitch — the builder's grip that bites a post and won't let go. Do fetch a length of rope and something to tie it to, and we'll begin.
[WIDOWMAKER] The Clove Hitch grips smooth spars, holds heavy strain, and throws on in seconds flat — which makes it rather marvellous whether you're lashing fence posts, rigging a tarpaulin, or simply impressing someone who thought spiders only made round things.
[WIDOWMAKER] We have two figures from our 1917 Verrill plate to guide us: Fig. 36 A shows the knot in progress on a vertical post, and Fig. 36 B shows it pulled beautifully snug. In Fig. 36 A you'll see the rope coming from the lower left, making one full wrap around the post, then a second wrap crossing diagonally over the first from lower-right to upper-left, with the working end tucking up underneath that second wrap — the two coils are still open, so that lovely diagonal crossing is completely legible. Now in Fig. 36 B, both wraps are drawn tight against the post, the two ends exit to the right — one slightly up, one slightly down — and the characteristic crossing of the two half-hitches locks neatly against the wood. Remember the mnemonic, my dears: round, cross over; round again, tuck under — the clove hitch holds.
[WIDOWMAKER] Well done, every one of you — and if yours looks slightly lopsided, do not fret; a lopsided clove hitch still bites, and you've only had it for thirty seconds. I'll see you next Crafternoon. Bye-bye for now, my dears!
Scenes
