Zip Braid Bracelet

This is an easy bracelet to make and the design can be adjusted to suit your preferences. The technique used to make it is called zip braid because it resembles the teeth of a zipper.

You will need 3 strands of whatever you would like to use: bulky yarn, t-shirt yarn, scarp fabric strips, leather, etc. One strip will need to be longer than the other two. The white strand is my longest strand here.

I made fabric strips from old t-shirts. I cut off the hem of the shirt, then cut off strips 1 inch or smaller from the bottom of the shirt. I cut the sides of the strips because the shirt is a continuous tube. I pulled the strips to make them like yarn. This picture shows how it is done (https://chawedrosin.wordpress.com/2008/06/23/rugs-...

I put a safety pin through the ends of all the strands. You can use a clipboard, binder clips, or any other clamp to hold the ends. I closed the safety pin around a door knob to hold it while i pulled on the strands. A stack of heavy books over the ends also works.

Cross the middle strand over the strand on the left (or right if you are left-handed). Then cross it under the left strand and over the right. Repeat this pattern.

The bracelet will look like this. If you chose colored strands, the colors will show through the gaps. For an alternative look, you can push from the bottom of the braid, either as you go along or at the end of braiding, to compress the plaits.

Pull apart the unbraided strands at the end so it doesn't tangle beyond control.

Instead of taking the strand under the left strand, take it over and wrap around the back of it. Pull it between the two strands to make a loop. This loop can be used to hold the ends of the bracelet when you wear it or a button if you sew one on.

Pull up second to last loop and push other ends through. Glue or sew ends and cut off excess to finish.