Ian's Shoelace Site – Half & Half Straight Bar Lacing

This combination of Half & Half Lacing and Straight Bar Lacing forms a series of horizontal “bars” of alternating colors.

Eight pairs of eyelets, variation 1

Pairs

8

7

6

5

4

3

Flip

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Lacing diagram Copyright (c) 2023 by Ian Fieggen

Step

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Lacing Technique – Variation 1 – Bi-color shoelace

• Start with a bi-color shoelace, where half the length is one color and the other half is a different color.

• Begin on the inside with the ends emerging through the bottom-left eyelet and the next higher eyelet.

• Both ends run straight across on the outside and in through the adjacent eyelets, then continue straight straight up on the inside, each skipping one eyelet and emerging two eyelets higher up.

• Alternate running across on the outside and up on the inside until lacing is completed.

Variations

• Variation 1 uses one full-length shoelace, with half the length colored differently.

• Variation 2 uses two half-length shoelaces of different colors knotted together.

• Variation 3 uses two half-length shoelaces of different colors secured separately.

Features

Decorative look

Comfortable

Hard to get bi-color laces

Notes

• This method is asymmetrical. Lacing the left and right shoes in reverse (flipped horizontally) creates a functionally symmetrical pair.

• Where bi-color shoelaces are not available, an alternative is to use two half-shoelaces of different colors, either knotted together to form a full-length bi-color shoelace (as per variation 2), or each half-shoelace tied off with a stopper-knot and fed separately through the bottom two rows (as per variation 3). For shoes with an odd number of eyelet pairs (eg. 3, 5, 7 pairs), variation 3 is preferable because it's the simplest solution to the odd eyelet pair limitation of Straight Bar Lacing.

• Variation 2 has the join between the two colors hidden inside the shoe at the bottom-left. This requires “halves” of different lengths because one colored end travels further than the other. The easiest way to “halve” the shoelaces is as follows:

Lace one shoe with one color shoelace and the other shoe with the other color, both using regular Straight Bar Lacing;
In each shoe, adjust the lacing until the end lengths are equal;
Cut each color shoelace half way between the bottom-left eyelet and the next higher eyelet.

All four “halves” can then be removed from the shoes, with the different colors knotted together before re-lacing the shoes. Alternatively, remove only the shorter “halves” and swap them to the opposite shoe, where they are knotted to the (still-laced) longer “halves” of the opposite color before re-lacing.

TIP: See also my Shoelace Length Calculator, which will theoretically give an accurate length for each of the “halves”.

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Shoelace Lengths for Half & Half Straight Bar Lacing

Variation 1 – Bi-color shoelace

Pairs of eyelets	Approximate length needed		“Lengthens” ends by
8 pairs	112 cm	44 in	+10.5 cm	+4.1 in
7 pairs	109 cm	43 in	+6.9 cm	+2.7 in
6 pairs	96 cm	38 in	+8.2 cm	+3.2 in
5 pairs	93 cm	37 in	+4.6 cm	+1.8 in
4 pairs	80 cm	31 in	+5.9 cm	+2.3 in
3 pairs	76 cm	30 in	+2.3 cm	+0.9 in
2 pairs	63 cm	25 in	+3.6 cm	+1.4 in

Variation 2 – Knotted half-shoelaces

First half-shoelace – Odd eyelet rows
Pairs of eyelets	Approximate length needed		“Lengthens” this end by
8 pairs	65 cm	25 in	+2.2 cm	+0.9 in
6 pairs	56 cm	22 in	–	–
			“Shortens” this end by
4 pairs	48 cm	19 in	–2.4 cm	–0.9 in
2 pairs	40 cm	16 in	–4.7 cm	–1.9 in
7, 5, 3 pairs = (N/A)

Second half-shoelace – Even eyelet rows
Pairs of eyelets	Approximate length needed		“Lengthens” this end by
8 pairs	58 cm	23 in	+8.8 cm	+3.5 in
6 pairs	50 cm	20 in	+6.5 cm	+2.6 in
4 pairs	42 cm	16 in	+4.2 cm	+1.7 in
2 pairs	33 cm	13 in	+1.9 cm	+0.7 in
7, 5, 3 pairs = (N/A)

Variation 3 – Separate half-shoelaces

First half-shoelace – Odd eyelet rows
Pairs of eyelets	Approximate length needed		“Lengthens” this end by
8 pairs	66 cm	26 in	+0.5 cm	+0.2 in
7 pairs	60 cm	24 in	+1.9 cm	+0.7 in
			“Shortens” this end by
6 pairs	58 cm	23 in	–1.8 cm	–0.7 in
5 pairs	51 cm	20 in	–0.4 cm	–0.2 in
4 pairs	50 cm	20 in	–4.1 cm	–1.6 in
3 pairs	43 cm	17 in	–2.7 cm	–1.1 in
2 pairs	42 cm	16 in	–6.4 cm	–2.5 in

Second half-shoelace – Even eyelet rows
Pairs of eyelets	Approximate length needed		“Lengthens” this end by
8 pairs	60 cm	24 in	+7.1 cm	+2.8 in
7 pairs	58 cm	23 in	+3.5 cm	+1.4 in
6 pairs	51 cm	20 in	+4.8 cm	+1.9 in
5 pairs	50 cm	20 in	+1.2 cm	+0.5 in
4 pairs	43 cm	17 in	+2.5 cm	+1.0 in
			“Shortens” this end by
3 pairs	42 cm	16 in	–1.1 cm	–0.4 in
			“Lengthens” this end by
2 pairs	35 cm	14 in	+0.2 cm	+0.1 in

NOTE: These are approximate shoelace lengths for using this lacing on an average sized sneaker. For more accurate lengths, use the Shoelace Length Calculator.

Comparative length – Bi-color shoelace

• Shorter shoelaces needed than those for basic Criss Cross Lacing.

• If the original shoelaces are re-used, this method effectively lengthens the ends.

Comparative length – Half-shoelace variations

• Generally, shorter shoelaces are needed – unless the shoes have few eyelets.

• If the original shoelaces are re-used, this method effectively lengthens the ends – though it may shorten the ends if the shoes have few eyelets.

The difference in length is based on the assumption that two different color shoelaces of the original length would be cut in half, with those four half-length pieces then either knotted into bi-colored pairs or laced separately. Any “lengthening” due to the reduced length needed by the straight lacing technique is offset by some “shortening” due to the extra length needed for the joining/stopper knots. On shoes with few eyelets, the end result is more “shortening” than “lengthening”.

More details about length comparisons.

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Half & Half Straight Bar Lacing

Lacing Technique – Variation 1 – Bi-color shoelace

Lacing Technique – Variation 2 – Knotted halves