spread the love: heart pattern friendship bracelets

Growing up, I spent countless hours making colorful friendship bracelets. Their resurgence prompted me to rediscover this summer pastime. Here are instructions for one of my favorite patterns – hearts!

You will need embroidery thread in two colors. Measure the thread using twice the length of your arm (from your fingertips to your shoulder and then back to your fingertips) for each string. Cut it. Do this two times for each color, fold them in half and knot them to form a loop. You should have a total of eight strings to work with, four of each color. Secure the loop using a clipboard or a safety pin attached to a pillow, your jeans… whatever works as long as it is held tightly and securely.

The basics:

Hold the second string with your left hand as you use your right hand to take the first string over and then under the second string. Pull the first string through so that it forms a 90-degree angle as you guide it away from you, towards the knot holding together the bracelet. Do this two times to make each knot. Hold on to that first string with your right hand! For the next knot going right, repeat these steps holding the third string in your left hand. Keep working with the first string as you work your way to the middle – for this pattern you will need to make three knots across in each direction. After three knots, make another knot to join the first and eighth strings in the middle.

Hold the seventh string with your right hand as you use your left hand to take the eighth string over and then under the seventh string. Pull the first string through so that it forms a 90-degree angle as you guide it away from you, towards the knot holding together the bracelet. Do this two times to make each knot. Hold on to that first string with your left hand! For the next knot going left, repeat these steps holding the sixth string in your right hand. Keep working with the eighth string as you work your way to the middle – for this pattern you will need to make three knots across in each direction. After three knots, make another knot to join the first and eighth strings in the middle.

The pattern:

1: Lay your strings out as shown. The color of the first and eighth thread will be the color of the heart shape.

2: Make your first row by following the instructions for making a row of knots going right and then left. Remember to join the two threads you were knotting with in the middle.

3: Make a second row of knots in the same way, this time with the second color.

4: Take the second string and knot it around the first string going left. Then, take the seventh string and knot it around the eighth string going right.

5: Fill in the space between the knots you made in step 4 with the first color by knotting the second string around the third and fourth strings going right and then the seventh string around the sixth and fifth strings going left. Join them in the middle. This step forms the top of the heart.

6: Take the second string and knot it around the first string going left. Knot the seventh string around the eighth going right. This step forms the outermost points of the heart.

7: Fill in the heart with the second color by making two knots to the right with the second string and two knots to the left with the seventh string. Join them in the middle.

8: To form the bottom of the heart, take the first string and knot it around the second and third strings going right. Next, take the eighth string and knot it around the seventh and sixth strings going left. Join the first and eighth strings in the middle.

9: Keep repeating these steps until you’ve made a bracelet. Have fun!