The Chinese Button Knot - One Working End Method

紐扣結, 纽扣结, 玉結び, 연봉매듭

Warning! The big versions of the images below are really big while I conduct an experiment

Occasionally, in the midst of a compound knot design, the need may arise for a button knot in a single cord after some other knots have already been tied. At that point, instead of 2 working ends, consider yourself to have 1 working end and one fixed end.

These instructions were generated by tying the knot first, and then carefully unravelling the knot while documenting the state after each uncrossing.

Tying

  1. step 1 keeping in mind that in this image the green side leads to what is expected to be the fixed end, form this shape, since you are working with one fixed end, it is unlikely that there is a predetermined mid-point, but if there is, note the join that indicates the mid-point of the knot.
  2. step 2 fold the working cord over the fixed cord and then weave the working end across the structure so far.
  3. step 3 in this, the last interlacing step, loop the working end around again, up through the loop formed by the last step, then down through the diamond in the centre.
  4. step 4 adjust the cords so that the mid-point is under the diamond in the middle.
  5. step 5 push that section of cord up and smooth the edges of the knot down, continue to pull the centre loop up and the bottom ends down.

Tightening

  1. Nub Finish Chinese Button Knot with Small Loop, there is often a danger of the small loop at the top of the knot getting sucked into the body of the knot and lost, if that happens, just use tweezers or a knitting needle (crochet hook, etc) to fish the loop back out.