How to Make Friendship Bracelets

Perhaps you exchanged bracelets with your friend when you were young, but have you ever wondered how to make friendship bracelets? There was something special about tying a bracelet to your best friend’s wrist as a sign of your everlasting friendship. And it was always one of the highlights of the summer camp crafts each year. 

• Tips on How to Make Friendship Bracelets
• Learning the Different Patterns of Friendship Bracelets
• Take a Class & Learn How to Make Friendship Bracelets
   

Perhaps you’re a beginner trying to learn basic string art techniques. Or may you’re a parent trying to teach your kids this fantastic DIY project. Either way, it’s key to know what supplies you need and the best string to use. And understanding the different types of knots and patterns, you can choose from will have you creating friendship bracelets in a flash.

With the multiple options of strings and patterns available, you might feel overwhelmed. But we’ve compiled a brilliant guide on how to make friendship bracelets. And with this guide, you’ll become familiar with this craft in no time. 

Tips on How to Make Friendship Bracelets

We cover everything from choosing your supplies to the different patterns you can try out as a beginner. So, let’s dive in and learn how to make friendship bracelets.

Choosing Your Supplies

Making friendship bracelets doesn’t require a whole lot of supplies. All you need is string and masking tape or a clipboard. When braiding your bracelet, you need to attach it to a solid surface to ensure it doesn’t unravel. A clipboard or masking tape would help you do just that. 

Choosing the correct supplies is essential while learning how to make friendship bracelets. And using beads or charms can make your friendship bracelet unique and special. But the most crucial element of the bracelet is the type of string you choose. 

Selecting the Best String for Friendship Bracelets

There are many types of strings that you can use while learning how to make friendship bracelets. Most strings work perfectly if they are not too thin, thick, or weak. 

Embroidery floss is a popular string type manufactured or hand-spun for embroidery or needlework. It is excellent for making friendship bracelets as it’s made from cotton and is six-stranded. The thread is available in various colours and is widely available in the market.

Pearl cotton is another popular kind of thread used to learn how to make friendship bracelets. It is made of 100% cotton and is available as twisted braids, making it easier to handle. You can choose a 3mm or a 5mm thread to braid your bracelets. 

Some people prefer using yarn to make bracelets. These are also available in a wide variety of colours. However, they are a little thick compared to the other two types of strings. Also, they might irritate your hand when worn for a long time. People prefer using yarn because they are readily available in the market and can also be found in their homes.

While you can choose any of the three strings mentioned above, I prefer the embroidery floss for learning how to make friendship bracelets. It has the perfect thickness and comes in a wide variety of colours.

Learning the Four Basic Knots

Before you start learning how to make friendship bracelets, you should be familiar with the four basic knots. These knots are common in all the patterns you will learn in our guide later. Understanding these basic knots will help you design your friendship bracelets in no time.

Forward Knot

1. Take one string in your left hand and the other in your right hand. Cross the left-hand string over the right-hand one.
2. Bring the left-hand string under the right-hand string and pull it up the loop.
3. Tighten it to make a knot. This knot is called a forward hitch.
4. Now, repeat the process to make another forward hitch.
5. Two forward hitches together form a forward knot.

Backward Knot

1. Cross the string in your right hand over the string in your left hand.
2. Bring the right-hand string under the left-hand one and pull it up the loop.
3. Tighten it to make a knot. This knot is called a backward hitch.
4. Now, repeat the process to make another backward hitch.
5. Two backward hitches together form a backward knot. 

Forward-Backward Knot

1. Cross the left-hand string over the right-hand one.
2. Bring the left-hand string under the right-hand string and pull it up the loop.
3. Tighten it to make a knot. You have made a forward hitch.
4. Now, bring the left-hand string over the right one in a P shape.
5. Bring the left-hand string under the right one and pull it up the loop.
6. Tighten it to make a knot. You have created a backward hitch.
7. A forward hitch followed by a backward hitch forms a forward-backward knot.

Backward-Forward Knot

1. Cross the string in your right hand over the string in your left hand.
2. Bring the right-hand string under the left-hand one and pull it up the loop.
3. Tighten it to make a knot. You have made a backward hitch.
4. Now, bring the right-hand string over the left one, in the shape of a 4.
5. Bring the right-hand string under the left one and pull it up the loop.
6. Tighten it to make a knot. You have created a backward hitch
7. A backward hitch followed by a forward hitch forms a backward-forward knot.

Once you have learnt and practiced the four basic knot techniques, we can move on to the patterns. This is the most exciting part of learning how to make friendship bracelets.

Learning the Different Patterns of Friendship Bracelets

There are a few different basic patterns that you should be familiar with. All these patterns will include the four basic knots. You’ll learn a few different designs with our guide on how to make friendship bracelets. And, in doing so, you’ll have gained enough experience to mix, match, and create a unique design for your bracelet.

Simple Braided

Before moving on to the more complex patterns, you should first try out the simple braided bracelet with our how to make friendship bracelets guide. It does not require any knots and is the most straightforward project you can take up as a beginner. 

Prepare the Thread

1. Choose three different colours of strings and cut them about 72 inches long. Gather all of them together, ensuring to line up at the same length. Now fold these strings into half and make an overhand knot. Lay them on a flat surface and secure the knot with masking tape.
2. Lay them out flat on the surface and group the same-coloured strings together. 

Create the Braid

1. Place the far-left pair of strings over the middle one. Now take the right couple of strings over the new middle string to create a braid pattern.
2. Keep braiding your strings until you are happy with the length of your friendship bracelet.
3. Once you have completed the bracelet, tie an overhand knot. Pull on it tightly to secure your bracelet. Your Simple braided patterned bracelet is now ready. 

Candy Stripe Pattern

The candy stripe patterned bracelet is easiest to make while learning how to make friendship bracelets. You need to know the basic forward knot to create this pattern.

Prepare the Thread

1. Choose four different colours of strings and cut them about 36 inches long. Gather all of them together, ensuring to line them up and at the same length. Secure the threads by making an overhand knot. Lay them on a flat surface and secure them with masking tape. 

Create the Candy Stripe Pattern

1. Spread out and separate the four strings. Now pick up the string to the far left and create a forward knot with the string right next to it.
2. Now use the original far left string to create a forward knot over the third and the fourth string. The original left string is not your far-right string.
3. Lay the four strands in front of you again. Now use the new far-left string to make a forward knot with the string right next to it.
4. Using the new far-left string, create a forward knot over the third and the fourth string. Pull your knots tight.
5. Keep repeating the same procedure. It might take a few knots before your pattern starts to show up. Continue until you have your desired length, which is approximately 6 inches.
6. Once you have reached your desired length, form an overhand knot. Pull it tightly to secure your bracelet. Your candy stripe patterned bracelet is now complete. 

Chevron Pattern

The Chevron bracelet is a little complicated as compared to the first one. However, it unveils a unique pattern, which you should try while learning how to make friendship bracelets. You need to be familiar with both forward and backward knots to create this pattern.

Prepare the Thread

1. Choose four different colours of strings and cut them about 72 inches long. Now fold these strings into half and make an overhand knot. Lay them on a flat surface and secure the knot with masking tape.
2. Spread out your strings and line them in a way that each side is a mirrored image of the other. For example, your coloured strings can line up as Red, Purple, Orange, Yellow or vice versa.

Create the Chevron Pattern

1. Pick up the string on the far left and create a forward knot with the string right next to it. Pull the string under the right-hand string again to create a double forward knot. It will help you to make your coloured strips more defined.
2. Next, using the original far left string, create a double forward knot on the third and the fourth string. Stop once you reach the fifth strand.
3. Pick up the string on the far right and create a backward knot with the string next to it. Pull the string again under the yarn to make a double backward knot.
4. Using the original far-right string, create a double backward knot on the sixth and fifth strings.
5. Keep repeating the procedure of making forward knots from the far left to the centre and create backward knots from the far right to the centre. Keep forming knots until you are happy with the length of your friendship bracelet.
6. Once you have completed the bracelet, tie an overhand knot. Pull on it tightly to secure your bracelet. Your chevron-patterned bracelet is now ready. This is one of the most popular patterns that beginners prefer while learning how to make friendship bracelets.

Knotted Pattern

Knotted patterns form a unique cylindrical bracelet that is fun to create when learning how to make friendship bracelets. You should be familiar with forwarding knots to create this pattern.

Prepare the Thread

1. Choose four different colours of strings and cut them about 72 inches long. Gather all of them together and ensure to line them up at the same length. Secure the threads by making an overhand knot. Lay them on a flat surface and secure them with masking tape.
2. Now lay down your strings on the table and separate a single strand from the other seven strings. 

Create the Knotted Pattern

1. Now create a forward knot using the string on the left with the yarn cluster on the right. Repeat the procedure to develop seven forward knots with the same-coloured strand, making a spiral look.
2. Pick out another coloured string and repeat the procedure by creating seven forward knots with the cluster of strings.
3. Keep repeating the procedure by picking out different coloured strands until you are happy with the length of the bracelet.
4. Once you have completed the bracelet, tie an overhand knot. Pull on it tightly to secure your bracelet. Your knotted patterned bracelet is now complete.

Take a Class & Learn How to Make Friendship Bracelets

Perhaps you want to perfect yourself in braiding advanced friendship bracelets to sell to your audience. In that case, you should look for a professional course on how to make friendship bracelets. You might find a few resources on YouTube or learn through multiple blogs.

However, taking a 1:1 lesson from an online tutor would help you become familiar with the beginner and advanced knotting methods and the different patterns you can try on with them. You can also connect with other braiding and knotting enthusiasts and take inspiration from their work.

Lrnkey, an online tutoring platform, offers online tutorials for beginners and advanced jewelry makers. These one-on-one lessons hosted by expert tutors will help you learn everything about how to make friendship bracelets.

Besides basic knots and patterns, you also need to look for new inspiration to make friendship bracelets. When you are learning and practising how to make friendship bracelets, you can search the web and a few popular social media websites, including Pinterest and Instagram. They will give you a new perspective on the designs you can try out.

Creating friendship bracelets with your kids or on your own is a fun and exciting craft. You can use your vivid imagination to think about battens and knot them together to make a unique bracelet. With this brief guide on how to make friendship bracelets, we have tried to make you familiar with the supplies needed and the basic bracelet patterns.