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Two Stage Shoelace Knot
This knot is made in two distinct stages: Make and secure one loop, then make and secure the other loop. The result is slightly more secure because it's less likely for both stages to come undone.
Step 1:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 1

Tie a Starting Knot as shown, then make the right (blue) end into a "loop" by simply doubling it back onto itself.
Step 2:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 2

Take the left (yellow) end and pass it around to the right, going behind the right loop.
Step 3:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 3

Continue the left (yellow) end around the right loop to end up in front.
Step 4:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 4

Start to feed the left (yellow) lace into the "hole" that has just been made. Up to this point, the knot is exactly the same as the Standard Shoelace Knot.
Step 5:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 5

Unlike the Standard Shoelace Knot, the loose left (yellow) end is pulled all the way through the hole. The loop (blue) is now on the left with one long end (yellow) and one short end (blue) now on the right.
Step 6:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 6

Holding the left (blue) loop and the long (yellow) loose end, pull tight to secure the first loop. This completes the first stage.
Step 7:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 7

Make the longer of the two loose ends (yellow) into a loop by simply doubling it back onto itself. This puts the yellow loop and blue loose end into almost exactly the same position as the blue loop and yellow loose end in Step (2).
Step 8:

Two Stage Shoelace Knot diagram 8

Repeat steps (3) through (6) to wrap the blue loose end around the yellow loop, feed through the hole and pull tight to complete the second stage.

Finished Knot
Finished Two Stage Shoelace Knot picture The finished Two Stage Shoelace Knot ends up with two loops and two loose ends, similar to a Standard Shoelace Knot, albeit rather crooked.
This page is mainly intended to show how this knot compares to both the Standard Shoelace Knot and to other more Secure Shoelace Knots.

Technical Details
Two Stage Knot Concept:
The theory behind this knot is that the two loops are each created and secured in separate, distinct stages. This means that it also needs to be untied in two stages, making it slightly more secure. In the event that the ends are accidentally pulled, it's likely that only the latter of the two loops will come undone, leaving the knot half tied.
Variations:
There's a different way to make a loop: Instead of making the right (blue) end into a loop, leave it as a loose end. Then wrap the left (yellow) end around it and pull a loop through the hole, exactly as is done for a Standard Shoelace Knot. The first loop has therefore been made differently: Rather than starting with a loop and ending with a loose end, it starts with a loose end and ends with a loop. This leads to four possible variations:
  1. Method A to create both the first and second loop.
  2. Method B to create both the first and second loop.
  3. Method A for the first loop and Method B for the second loop.
  4. Method B for the first loop and Method A for the second loop.
Regardless of the methods used to form each loop, the finished Two Stage Knot is essentially the same, having been formed with two distinct stages.

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This page last updated: 26-Nov-2008. Copyright © 2004-2008 by Ian W. Fieggen. All rights reserved.
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