How to Make a Friendship Bracelet With a Horizontal Heart
Making and sharing friendship bracelets with your friends is always a meaningful experience, especially when you create a customized item to show that friend just how extraordinary she is to you. Take that personalized element of the creation process one step further by adding a multitude of hearts to your next bracelet. This design is an ideal way to show your love and appreciation for an exceptionally significant person in your life.
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Things You'll Need
- 3 strings in a single color, 60 inches
- 1 strings in a second color, 60 inches
- Scissors
Instructions
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1
Gather the strings together and fold in half. Tie a knot at the fold, leaving a 1-inch loop. Arrange your strings from left to right in the following order: four strings of the first color, two strings of the second color and two strings of the first color. Number them one through eight, beginning on the left. The knots made with the first color will make up the background of the bracelet, while the knots made with the second color will form the heart pattern.
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2
Take string two and tie a double backward knot onto string one. Tie string four onto string three in the same manner. Tie string five onto six using a forward knot, and finish the row by tying string eight to string seven with another backward knot. Always use double knots, and always number the strings again when you complete a row.
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3
Begin the second row by skipping over string one. Tie string three backward onto string two, and repeat with strings five and four. Tie a forward knot with string six onto string seven and leave string eight unused.
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4
Start the third row with three backward knots: string two onto one, string four onto three and string six onto five. Begin the final knot as though you were tying a forward double knot with strings seven and eight; tie string seven onto eight a single time. Finish the double knot by reversing your knotting direction as though tying a backward knot, so that string seven ends up on the left of string eight again. Remember this “forward/backward” knot, as you will use it again in the project.
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5
Leave out string one, then complete the row with three backward knots using strings three and two, five and four and seven and six. Do not use string eight.
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6
Begin the first knot of the fifth row as though you were tying a backward double knot with strings two and one, but stop after the first half of the knot is complete. Finish your double knot by switching directions, tying a forward knot so that String two ends up to the right of string one where it began. Repeat this “backward/forward” knot to tie string four and string six onto the strings immediately before them. Finish the row with a backward knot, trying string eight onto seven.
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7
Use only forward knots for the sixth row; tie strings two, four and six onto the strings after them. Leave out strings one and eight.
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8
Complete the seventh row by tying three forward knots -- using strings one, three and five -- and a final forward/backward knot.
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9
Leave out strings one and eight when making the eighth row. Tie string two forward onto string three, and repeat with strings four and five. Knot string seven backward onto string six.
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10
Make three forward knots to begin the ninth row, tying strings one, three and five onto strings two, four and six, respectively. Finish the row by tying string eight backward onto string seven.
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11
Repeat step 9 to make the 10th row.
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12
Start the 11th row by tying string one forward onto string two. Use a forward/backward knot for strings three and four and another forward knot for the pair of strings five and six. Round out the row with a backward/forward knot for strings eight and seven.
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13
Repeat Step 3 to make the 12th row.
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14
Repeat the entire 12-row pattern until the bracelet is as long as you would like. Tie the extra strings in a collective knot just below your finished pattern. Trim excess strings to a 1 1/2-inch tail.
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15
Separate the tail strings into two sections. Insert one section through the loop you made at the beginning, and tie it to the other section with a double knot to secure your bracelet.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Tape your bracelet to a table or counter top to hold it still as you work.
Do not attempt complex patterns such as this one until you have mastered simple friendship bracelet designs.
References
- Friendship Bracelets: Pattern #45969
- Friendship Bracelets: Knots Used for Bracelets
- “Friendship Bracelets;” Laura Torres; 1996
- Photo Credit George Doyle/Stockbyte/Getty Images
