Half & Half Straight Bar Lacing

Half & Half Straight Bar Lacing (icon)

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
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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:

  1. Lace one shoe with one color shoelace and the other shoe with the other color, both using regular Straight Bar Lacing;
  2. In each shoe, adjust the lacing until the end lengths are equal;
  3. 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”.

Shoe lacing photo

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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 pairs112 cm44 in+10.5 cm+4.1 in
7 pairs109 cm43 in+6.9 cm+2.7 in
6 pairs96 cm38 in+8.2 cm+3.2 in
5 pairs93 cm37 in+4.6 cm+1.8 in
4 pairs80 cm31 in+5.9 cm+2.3 in
3 pairs76 cm30 in+2.3 cm+0.9 in
2 pairs63 cm25 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 pairs65 cm25 in+2.2 cm+0.9 in
6 pairs56 cm22 in
 “Shortens”
this end by
4 pairs48 cm19 in–2.4 cm–0.9 in
2 pairs40 cm16 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 pairs58 cm23 in+8.8 cm+3.5 in
6 pairs50 cm20 in+6.5 cm+2.6 in
4 pairs42 cm16 in+4.2 cm+1.7 in
2 pairs33 cm13 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 pairs66 cm26 in+0.5 cm+0.2 in
7 pairs60 cm24 in+1.9 cm+0.7 in
 “Shortens”
this end by
6 pairs58 cm23 in–1.8 cm–0.7 in
5 pairs51 cm20 in–0.4 cm–0.2 in
4 pairs50 cm20 in–4.1 cm–1.6 in
3 pairs43 cm17 in–2.7 cm–1.1 in
2 pairs42 cm16 in–6.4 cm–2.5 in
Second half-shoelace – Even eyelet rows
Pairs of
eyelets
Approximate
length needed
“Lengthens”
this end by
8 pairs60 cm24 in+7.1 cm+2.8 in
7 pairs58 cm23 in+3.5 cm+1.4 in
6 pairs51 cm20 in+4.8 cm+1.9 in
5 pairs50 cm20 in+1.2 cm+0.5 in
4 pairs43 cm17 in+2.5 cm+1.0 in
 “Shortens”
this end by
3 pairs42 cm16 in–1.1 cm–0.4 in
 “Lengthens”
this end by
2 pairs35 cm14 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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This page last updated: 11-Nov-2023. Copyright © 2014-2023 by Ian W. Fieggen. All rights reserved.

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