Shoelace and Knotting Links

Here's some links to other shoelace and knot related websites. Providing links is good “Netiquette”, enabling the Internet to effectively become its own index.

NOTE: Links should open in a new browser window, leaving current page active.

Shoe Lacing Links

Double Helix Lacing Method

http://www.lukefisher.com/lacing

Monte Fisher has developed and patented a method of lacing shoes, especially boots, that makes them easier and faster to tighten and loosen. I've reproduced this lacing on my own Double Helix Lacing page so that you can compare it to the other lacing methods on my website.

How to lace a Dehner 9 Eyelet Boot

http://www.dehner.com/lacing_guide.html

The Dehner 9 eyelet Field Boots and Bal-Patrol Boots are unusual in that the widest part of the boot that pulls together is in the middle of the lacing rather than at the top. This page shows how to run the laces in order to finish with the lace ends emerging from the middle set of eyelets. I've reproduced this lacing on my own Riding Boot Lacing page so that you can compare it to the other lacing methods on my website.

Shoe Lacing for Problem Feet

http://walking.about.com/cs/shoecare/l/aa120600b.htm

On this page, Wendy Bumgardner presents a few specialized lacing techniques for problem feet.

Shoe Lacing Article

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/...2747164.php

In 2002, Burkard Polster published some mathematical research into the huge number of ways of lacing shoes. This spawned a number of articles, one of the most informative and readable of which is reproduced here on the San Francisco Chronicle's website.

Shoe Lacing Article Re-visited

http://education.theage.com.au/cmspage.php?intid=147&intversion=31

The mathematics of shoe lacing (see above) was revisited by Burkard Polster and Marty Ross in their “Maths Masters” column in The Age newspaper's education section.

Boot Lacing ASCII Illustrations

http://www.chaosreigns.com/lacing.html

Darxus uses the simple yet effective mode of ASCII art to illustrate a couple of ways of lacing boots.

Shoelace Knot Links

The FreedomKnot page

http://www.freedomknot.com

This page uses some fun graphics and rhymes to demonstrate the “FreedomKnot”, another more secure shoelace bow. I've reproduced this knot on my own FreedomKnot page so that you can compare it to the other knots on my website. It's one of the knots on which my own Ian's Secure Shoelace Knot is based.

“Tibetan Trekking” Shoelace Tying Technique

http://becomingtheparent.com/the-best-way-to-tie-kids-shoelaces/

This page demonstrates the traditional method of tying a “Surgeon's Knot” by passing the loop through a second time. I've reproduced this knot on my own Surgeon's Shoelace Knot page so that you can compare it to the other knots on my website. My own Ian's Secure Shoelace Knot is a further refinement that forms the identical knot a little more evenly.

Howard Cheng's knot

http://www.cs.uleth.ca/~cheng/tieshoes.html

Howard has an unusual shoelace technique that does each bow individually, ending up with a knot that, if subjected to an accident tug, is likely to remain half tied. It's one of the variations of the Two Stage Shoelace Knot, which I've reproduced so that you can compare it to the other knots on my website.

Greg Smith's shoelace page

http://www.shoeknots.com/

Greg demonstrates the difference between a “Reef Knot” and a “Granny Knot”, which gave me the inspiration for my own Granny Knot page. If you can't follow my explanations, Greg's page could be worth a visit.

Ian Knot translated into Russian

http://softdroid.net/yen-ut-uskorennyy-shnur-yana

Vlad kindly asked permission to reproduce my Ian Knot on his blog with translated instructions for Russian audiences.

HemiHelp – Alternative / One-Handed Shoe Lacing Methods

http://www.hemihelp.org.uk/families/everyday_living/shoe_lacing/

This page shows various techniques of lacing or tying shoes for people with Hemiplegia or other difficulties, as well as offering some alternatives. My own One Handed Shoelace Knot is a composite of these and other techniques that I've found in my research.

Kids Shoelace Tying Links

Tying Shoes: Collection of Songs and Poems

http://teachers.net/lessonplans/posts/1952.html

This page on the Teachers.net site is great for picking up memorable songs and poems to make the process of learning shoelace tying easier for young kids. I guess I'll have to develop one for my Ian Knot!

Kids Running – Shoelace Mania

http://www.kidsrunning.com/school/krschool0106shoelaces.html

This page on the Kids Running site contains thoughts about shoelaces from both kids and teachers. Fascinating reading!

Shoelace Stories and Lyrics

Shoelaces Parable

http://www.kevinfitzmaurice.com/response_shoelaces_parable.htm

Kevin FitzMaurice's self-help website uses an interesting parable about the difficulty of learning a hypothetical new shoelace knot (and un-learning your old knot) as an analogy for the difficulties you would face changing any of your life habits. It was fascinating to see how closely his ideas mirrored my own real-life experience when learning my Ian Knot.

“Inconspicuous Consumption”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/.../AR2008011603129.html

A delightful true story of how a broken shoelace initiated a classroom discussion on whether to repair or replace, followed by the actual shoelace shopping trip and the resulting trivial $0.51 purchase.

Pink Shoelaces by Dodie Stevens

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gFOzaSQY6Q

“Pink Shoelaces” is a fun song by Dodie Stevens, which made it to #3 in the charts in 1959. This well produced YouTube video scrolls the lyrics just ahead of the music so that you can sing along with Dodie.