Friends of Summer: Good Knits

Kicking off the Friends of Summer series is Lisa of Goodknits!  Lisa is a crafter and photographer with two adorable little boys (check out her Small Style posts and prepare to squeal) and a fantastic blog.  Today she is sharing a cute DIY to make perfectly summery friendship bracelets.  I love how she's made simple braids look so special!





I love friendship bracelets. I especially love the intricate ones with amazing chevron patterns. Unfortunately, I find myself with little time to knot up bracelets for myself or any friends. In my quest to make a nice looking two-tone braid, I braided a bunch of different styles and this one ended up being my favorite. It slightly resembles the chevron pattern I so admire in friendship bracelets and is a cinch to make!

You start with four 30" strands of two different colors.




Holding all 8 strands together, fold them in half and make a knot, leaving a 0.75" loop at the end. Use a push pin or piece of tape to hold down the loop when you get ready to braid. I use a thumbtack shoved into a piece of my Christmas tree stump from last year.

Each piece of the braid will be 4 strands each. Separate the pieces like so:




Follow the next four steps to get the chevron going (work clockwise from top left):







Repeat the steps, pulling gently after each to tighten things up a bit. Work this way for about 6 inches and then split the strands in half, by color, and make two separate 3" braids. Knot the ends of each braid tightly.




That's it! Use the little braids to fasten the end of the bracelet to the loop at the other end.




If you're running low on a specific color of embroidery floss, you can make a thinner bracelet using only two 30" strands of each color. The pink & mint bracelet was made like that.




If you find yourself busy, but still want to show a friend a little love, I suggest whipping one of these up for them! You can also use this braid technique with fabric (for a headband or chunkier bracelet), leather, or even rope. If you've wanted to make an easy striped/chevron braid, now you can!

Thanks, Lisa!  Don't forget to check out Lisa's blog, Twitter, and Etsy!  Have a great Friday!