For this paracord cross, I used two strands of paracord. I used a couple of strands that were about 3.5 feet for the vertical section with six knots and 2.5 feet for the horizontal section with four knots. The inner strands were left in, but this could be done with the cord gutted.
With one strand, from the center, I made a small loop then tied six lanyard knots for the vertical section. Each knot is worked up as close as possible to the previous one, except for a bit of space left between the second and third knots for the cord of the second strand to pass through.
The second strand has four knots, the first two knots tied and worked close together, then I pulled the two working ends through the space in the vertical section, and tied two more lanyard knots, working them close together to eliminate any slack. The working ends from both sections are trimmed and tucked back into the knots.
And a another one made with gutted cord and used as a pocket knife fob.
The knots are tied one after the other, with the slack between them worked out before tying the next knot.
22 comments:
Hello i'm posting this comment because i don't know how to get in touch with you otherwise> I am trying to make silk cufflinks and I found out that they use a monkey fist knot or turk's head knot. I would be very grateful if you could make some instructions on how to make them. I have not found it anywhere on the internet. Thank you!
Neat cross design, I like it!
Cool. I like how it looks like a bunch of little paracord balls stuck together.
you are the man! I don't know where you come up with your ideas..but they all look great. I'll have to start practicing my lanyard knots now ;) Thats definitely a skill to get them that close together...off to find some scraps!
Very nice SD. I like using the lanyard knot as a starter and for finishing projects. Looks great.
do u sell any of this stuff.
I used to sell some online, but no longer do so. I have health problems and sometimes my hands bother me, so that limits my time spent with knot work, it was getting me burned out on my hobby, and considering the time I was putting into making requested items and the cost of materials and shipping, I ended up spending more than I took in. So I rarely offer anything for sale online.
There are plenty of folks that do sell online though, a few are in my links list and others can be found among various forums and on ebay.
But, I suggest that people spend a little time and learn to make their own, using listed references, tutorials, and links here on my blog and found on/in other knotting type online sites or knot books from your local library. Making something yourself and learning a new skill makes you appreciate it that much more. :)
Stormdrane i would like to let you know that you have created a monster in me. since finding your blog a couple days ago i have now done 4 lanyard knot crosses. i'd been making the solomon bar bracelets and have now begone to make necklaces with the crosses. i would like to thank you for showing me a fantastic hobby.
SD. you are "The Man!" i was turned on to your links a few months ago, and have thoroughly enjoyed every project you have posted. I have since begun tying my own paracord projects. I have copied as many of your projects that i can, an have checked many library books to discover as many possibilities as i can. you are a huge inspiration. Thank you!
Can you post directions or steps on how to do this. I love the design and can do one knot but can't figure out how to do multiple knots on one String. Thanks for the Help
Andrew, think of the first lanyard knot you tie as the center of the cord and tie the next lanyard knot with the two working ends coming from it. Once it's tied, you have the cords in between the knots, which is slack, and you work that slack out through the knot you just tied, making the lanyard knots closer together. It may take a couple of times to work all the slack out. Then tie another lanyard knot and so on.
Photos added to the blog post.
Dave, you have inspired me bro! I saw this cross and it immediately got my creative juices flowing. I had seen your cross of Lorraine and it got me to thinking that maybe I could do a "Russian Cross". I was recently baptized into the Russian Orthodox Church and the symbols in our religion are very iconic. I considered using the square or round sinnets as you did with your cross of Lorraine but, for the life of me, I could not come up with a way to make the diagonal crosspiece at the bottom of the cross. So when I saw this cross made with the lanyard knots and separately tied cross pieces, I thought this might be the solution. I still could not come up with an elegant way of producing the diagonal crosspiece though. I considered bending and gluing, inserting a wire through the tied crosspiece, and other goofy ideas. But it was not until I was sketching out the design on graph paper (in order to gauge overall dimensions) that I came up with what I think is an elegant solution. The trick is that the knots are round. So by tying a single knot above and one below the center of the bottom crosspiece, it creates the illusion of a diagonal line. I dipped the finished cross in liquid starch to stiffen it up a bit. I am very pleased with the results. Here is a pic:
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g86/Shifty41/IMG_0350.jpg
So thank you for inspiring me and helping me to perhaps bring a small amount of glory to God through my new hoby.
Alan
Alan,
That looks great, thanks for sharing!
Someone else had asked me about adding a slanted section to a cross, but I didn't have any ideas on making it work. Hopefully they'll come across your solution. :)
Hey -
I'm having trouble - I have a short end and a long end... and it seems no matter which end I start with.. the short end gets so much shorter than the long end!! Thoughts?
-PS... I'm the Should've-Been-An-Alien-Moment lady.
Thanks!
Hmmm.. Are you tying the short cord and long cords together?
The lanyard knots are tied first with the long cord by itself, for the vertical part of the cross, with a little space left between the 2nd and 3rd knots.
The short cord is used to tie the horizontal section of the cross, first tying two knots, then pull the cords through the space left in the vertical section, and tie two more lanyard knots to finish. I hope that's what you were looking for. If not try me again. :)
Hi, Stormdrane. I'm not sure if you're still receiving comments for or responding to these older posts, but I'll give it a shot just in case you are. I found a couple of youtube videos last night on orthodox prayer ropes and crosses, which look to me like lanyard knots, but the method of tying them is unbelievably convoluted. The difference between the two techniques seems to be that the knot is much tighter, and can be slid down against the previous knot in the row (kind of like a fake sliding lanyard knot), which leaves two loops leftover and once the slack is worked out of those you just pull on the two leads and the knot is complete. I don't think I'm explaining this well at all, so here's a couple of videos:
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lTwPCgwj4c
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KgnRmtJWII&feature=related
I'm just wondering, is there an easier way to tie just a regular old lanyard knot that can be slid against previous knots in this fashion?
Thanks for your time.
Sorry, just sort of answering my own question. I think I've worked out how to uncomplicate the orthodox lanyard knot prayer rope method. Just tie a lanyard knot the usual way, and use the first two loops that are formed during the carrick bend stage to slide the knot down against the previous knot (helps if you put your thumb through the left one and your middle finger through the right one), and then use the two loops formed during the diamond stage (when you pull the leads through the diamond in the middle of the carrick) to tighten the knot. I'm not really great with knot terminology yet, but I think this is how it's done. Unbelievable that someone should complicate something relatively simple!
hey stormdrane, how do i do the horizontal section and how do i hide the ends of the paracord? this picture here looks really neat and i cheched out all your videos :) great work there..
For the horizontal section use a separate cord, tie a couple of lanyard knots, pull the working strands through the vertical section - between the knots, and then tie a couple more lanyard knots, trim and melt the ends to finish.
This will earn me awesome brownie points with the GF for her birthday next week.
SD, love the blog and all you're ideas. I will be making full use of most of them in the near future I fear.
I just stumbled across your blog and wanted to say you do amazing work! I see you're in McDonough I was near there a couple of months ago laying a pipeline. Really nice area.
Great work as usual Stormdrane.
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