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How to Start a Boxed Lanyard

Many beginning lanyard makers start off by learning the box stitch. Even for those who have mastered the basic box stitch, however, starting a box lanyard can seem too difficult. In truth, the first stitch of a box lanyard is almost exactly the same as the other stitches, except that the lanyard strands are not fixed in place yet.

Things You'll Need

Two lanyard strands
Sharp scissors

Instructions

- 1
  Make sure that the lanyard strands are the same size and about 12 times the size that you'd like the completed lanyard to be. To do this, measure the length that you'd like the completed lanyard to cover (such as around your ankle, for an anklet), and cut the strands to about 12 times that size.
- 2
  Hold both ends of both lanyard strands and slide your fingers down the strands until you reach the looped end. This technique identifies the exact middle of each lanyard strand.
- 3
  Cross the lanyard strands by laying one horizontally on a flat surface and the other vertically on top of it, crossed at their centers.
- 4
  Lift the right end of the horizontal strand and flip it over the vertical strand. This should form a loop.
- 5
  Lift the left end of the horizontal strand and flip it in the opposite direction over the vertical strand to form a second loop. Hold these loops in place with the fingers of your less dominant hand.
- 6
  Lift the top end of the vertical strand and slide it over the loop closest to it and under the other loop.
- 7
  Lift the bottom end of the vertical strand and slide it over the loop closest to it and under the other loop.
- 8
  Grasp the upper vertical strand and the right strand in your right hand and the lower vertical strand and the left strand in your left hand. Pull with both hands to tighten the first stitch.

Sewing