How to Flat Braid
Friendship bracelet crafts are made by tying a series of knots into colored strings. Once completed, the bracelets are tied around the wrist of a friend so that she can be reminded of their special bond. The knots of a friendship bracelet can be made in a variety of color patterns but they all share one common characteristic -- the final bracelet yields a flat braid. A simple friendship bracelet pattern uses three sets of three strings to create a pattern with alternating diagonal bars.
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Instructions
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1
Arrange the strings side-by-side so three strings of one color are the left three strings (group A); three middle strings are a second color (group B); and the three right strings are a third color (group C).
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2
Grab all nine strings and create a loop near one end of the strings, then pull the ends through the loop tightly to secure an overhand knot. Spread out the strings so group A is on the left, B in the middle and C on the right.
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3
Pass the left-most string in group A over the middle string in group A, then pass the loose end of the left string through the loop formed and pull to tighten the knot. Repeat a second time. The left-most string of group A will now be the middle string of group A.
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4
Tie the same string -- now the middle string in the group -- around the right-most string of group A twice.
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5
Tie the knotting string around the left-most string of group B twice, then the middle string of group B twice and the right-most string of group B twice. The string which began as the left-most string of group A is now located to the right of group B.
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6
Repeat the tie with the new left-most string in group A, tying twice around the right-most string in group A, the left-most string of group B, the middle string of group B and the right-most string of group B.
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7
Repeat the tie with the remaining string from group A that is still on the left of group B, tying twice around the left-most string of group B, the middle string of group B and the right-most string of group B. The strings of group A will now be the center group of strings, with group B the left group. Additionally, the string in group A that was left-most is now right-most in the group, while the string which began right-most in the group is the left-most string of group A.
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8
Tie the strings in group C across to make group C the new middle group, and group A the new right-most group by reversing the direction of the tying. Start with the right-most string of group C and tie two knots around each string to its left in both group C and group A, then repeat for the middle and left-most strings. From left to right the groups are now group B, group C and group A.
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9
Repeat the knotting procedure, starting with the group that is left-most first, then the right-most group after the left group has become the new center group, until your braid is long enough to wrap around the wearer's wrist.
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10
Grab all nine loose ends and tie in an overhand knot.
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11
Wrap the bracelet around the wrist of the wearer and tie the loose ends together in a double knot. Snip any excess string after the knot.
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