My Messy First Try at Parachute Cord Braiding
Okay, folks, so I decided to finally try braiding parachute cord myself. Saw some survivalist videos, looked cool and kinda useful. Grabbed a spool of cheap cord from the hardware store – didn’t wanna ruin the good stuff first go.
Started simple: cut three pieces, maybe a meter long each? Thought that would be plenty. Used different colors – orange, black, green – so I could tell ’em apart. Cleared a spot on the kitchen table, kinda bumpy, but whatever.
The plan:
- Pin one end under my heavy phone book (yep, still got one!).
- Keep the three cords separate.
- Start crossing like the videos showed: middle one over to the side, then bring the new middle one over.
Sounded easy. Was not easy. Those cords kept sliding. They felt slippery and stiff at the same time. Kept pulling too tight or leaving it too loose. Got them crossed over wrong twice. Had to undo it completely, which was super annoying because the ends kept fraying where I’d cut ’em.
Took deep breath, pinned them under the book again. Told myself to pull gently but consistently. This time, watched the middle cord like a hawk. Focused on moving it sideways – right over left, then the one that became the middle? Over to the other side. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Got into a rhythm for about a dozen crosses. Felt pretty good! But then I looked closer… my braid wasn’t lying flat. It was twisting like a damn barber pole! My tension was all over the place – tight on the orange, loose on the black. Messy.
Kept going anyway. Figured I needed to see how the braiding worked before worrying about perfection. Finished the whole length. Made a simple overhand knot at the end to stop it unraveling.
Held it up. Yup, pretty ugly. Twisted, uneven, felt bulky where I messed up the tension. But… it was a braid! It held together. I managed to make the basic pattern after a few screw-ups.
Big takeaways:
- Need a MUCH better anchor point. Phone book wasn’t cutting it; cord kept slipping.
- Gotta measure lengths more carefully next time. Some ended up shorter.
- Tension is tricky. Pulling too hard makes it lumpy, too loose makes it floppy.
- Cheap cord maybe wasn’t the best call? It felt kinda plastic-y and slick.
Okay, first attempt done. It wasn’t pretty, but it worked. Feels like something I can improve. Maybe find a clip or something to hold it tight next time? And practice keeping that pull steady. Honestly felt kinda satisfying just seeing the pattern emerge, even if it looks homemade. Onwards!