I've felt embarrassed if my shoes became untied, its just kind of unbecoming. Ever tie your shoes and the damn knot goes sideways, with the loops coming from the top and bottom? Well here's the cure to all of your knot compulsions.
Notice just below the instructions on TFA:
NOTE: If your finished knot comes out crooked, it's probably because you tie your Starting Knot the opposite way to mine. This will result in an un-balanced “Granny Knot”, which both sits crooked and comes undone more easily. See my Granny Knot page for more information.
Good knot, and really easy. It'll take you about 15 minutes to master, an hour or so if you have poor dexterity.
At worst the knot will get a bit loose from time to time (like maybe once a year), and then it takes a few seconds to tighten it again.
I expect my shoes will fall apart (they're already pretty old) before this knot unties.
[1] - https://web.archive.org/web/20051203081429/http://web.ukonli...
The change it in how you tie it, not in the resulting knot.
If you're wearing hiking boots, you can go once around the back to reduce the lace lengths and then make the knot.
I recently about a shoelace-practice book [1] for my 4yo daughter. This book shows a couple of ways to knot, and one of them, called "bunny ear bow" [2] is easier than the traditional "double-loop". I hope these knot-inventors pay more attention to the ease side so that kids can start knotting by themselves earlier. That could be thanked more than inventing a tricky-but-fast methods for adults.
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Your-Shoes-Cottage-Door-Press/dp/1680...
[2] https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/local/hillcrest-fe...
Might these claims also fall victim to the replication crisis?!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgYYeJpo2fk
They are also selling retrofit kits
Normally a good way to ruin the back of the collar though, especially if they have achilles support structures (like some running shoes.)
Source: many of my shoes with ruined collars.
(Granted, that's potentially a nonstarter if you have a dress code to meet, but so is Velcro.)
Also the psychological benefits of doing something well.
TBH, its effectiveness depends on the friction of the actual lace material -- some of them are so smooth that it still requires loosely tying the loops across the resulting knot just to keep the pressure on it, but to me it still feels faster and smoother, and ultimately it makes me happy so I keep using it
Any pointers to improve that?
For centuries virtually every single person tied their shoelaces every day, and it can be done so much better! It took one guy to take a critical look and create a better way. That was a real eye opener. If true for shoelaces, it's true for a lot more things. That's your daily dose of inspiration ;)
I had no idea that Ian had invented this method of tying shoes. I've been using and loving it ever since i saw a gif of it on Reddit about a decade ago.
Super easy to untie, as well, if needed.
It really doesn't matter what knot I use to tie my shoes. The shoelaces make way more difference than the knot. I can triple-knot my laces, and if they've no tooth, they're gonna come undone. If they have tooth a-plenty and I use a single knot, they aren't going anywhere. It doesn't matter, because even if they come untied, I'll just tie them again. If I really want them to stay, I don't ship them, and weave the running ends back into the laces.
But now I'm also keeping an eye out for over-optimizing.
Why? Seems perfectly reasonable to me. It would be like a outdoor jacket manufacturer licensing the use of Goretex technology in their branded jackets.
(ETA I just slip my foot in and out of shoes without having to tie/untie them at all, saving even more time than this knot. This is known as the Hannifin Slip and I'm the inventor.)
After googling I figured out the problem, but it took me probably a month to internalize the new knot (the worst being the 3rd or so phase when the new move becomes natural and you don't have to think about it anymore, but sometimes your brain just flips a 50/50 coin as to whether it'll use the old or the new method).
loafers sole isn't usually strong enough for outdoor use. old sneakers with the rear part bent in and laces tightened enough to slip in with ease while not falling out are great for quick trips like to take out the trash or walk the dog, so you don't wear and tear your good shoes.
Also on my Solovair boots, I used quick tight lacing [0], which gives you the outer "straight lacing" appearance but also allows you to make the boots very tight without spending 5 minutes to tie them. The main issue with this technique is that the laces can shift, but I marked the center of the laces with a Sharpie to serve as a guide.
Even the Ian's knot demo uses an empty shoe. Since I haven't learnt his tying technique, can anyone please say if it works under tension?
In exchange I'll give you a free tip on how to dry your shoes. Remove the insoles and wedge inside a ball of absorbent paper such as kitchen towel for 10 minutes. Remove and then insert a vacuum cleaner nozzle inside. Switch on the vacuum and leave it running for 20 minutes or until dry.
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/782216-everything-is-intere...
(longtime user of the site, obvi.)
/Acey
Search for how to tie alpine butterfly for an example of a knot that are many ways to tie, but all are considered the same knot.
1. Pick up the laces. 2. Cross the laces over like this... (but don't have them looping into each other like in the picture) 3. and back, leaving loops either side 4. Take the left lace underneath... 5. then back over the top... 6. and wrap round underneath again... 7. and back over the top again. 8. Now similarly with the other lace... 9. underneath, but the other way... 10. then wrapping round as before. 11. Push the lace through the four centre strands. 12. And the same with the other. 13. Then tighten the knot up. 14. Finally, here is an alternate one with an extra turn (at step 10.5).
This is a great shoelace knot as it loosens and cinches tight without untying.
For laces.
I'll also point out, without one shred of irony, that the reason I bought those 32 brand boots is for their innovative boot lacing system (Boa). Maybe they licensed that, too
It's almost exactly like the "standard" shoelace knot I've used most of my life, but with just an extra tuck, and it virtually never unintentionally gets untied. It's fast, easy to put on and easy to take off. Highly recommended.
[1] - http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/turquoiseturtleknot.htm
I personally imagined much more of a "well we're a shoe company...anyone got any ideas for new models? Well then, how about one with fancy laces?" situation, and that seemed plausible enough.
