CraftPatterns

Lightning bolt alpha bracelet pattern

A three-knot-wide lemon-yellow zigzag striking down a black ground, 12 knots wide; the 40-row chart makes about 8 cm of bracelet.

Preview of the finished lightning bolt alpha bracelet pattern
How it looks finished (rendered from the chart)
Pattern details
Size12 × 40 knots
Colours2 · DMC
Total knots480
DifficultyBeginner (1/5)
Finished size0.6 × 3.1 in (1.6 × 8 cm)
Strings12 base strings + 2 colours
LicenceCC BY-NC 4.0 — free for personal use with credit

Materials

ColourCodeNameKnotsShareAmount
310Black36075%360 knots · ~5.3 m
444Lemon Dark12025%120 knots · ~2 m

About this design

Black and yellow is the highest-contrast pairing in the thread box, and it gives this bracelet a lot of punch for a two-colour chart. A bolt of DMC 444 Lemon Dark, always three knots wide, swings from one side of the band to the other on a ground of 310 Black. It is a favourite for anyone who wants something louder than hearts and stripes, and it suits sports days, gig wristbands and comic-book fans alike.

How to work it

Set up 12 base strings for the 12-knot width, one black and one yellow working string. Black takes three-quarters of all knots, so wind plenty of it. Each zigzag is 10 rows: the bolt moves one knot sideways per row for four rows, holds its place for one row at the turn, then heads back. Those single held rows at each turn are what make the bolt look angular rather than wavy, so do not skip them. Black thread shows every slack knot, so pull each half hitch firmly up to the base string before moving on.

Length and finishing

At roughly 2 mm per row, the 40-row chart (four zigzags) is about 8 cm. Work it twice for an 80-row, 16 cm bracelet; for a longer wrist add one more 10-row zigzag. Plait the ties in black so the bolt is the only yellow on show, or use yellow ties for a matching edge.

Colour chart for lightning bolt alpha bracelet pattern with a bold line every 5
Colour chart preview. The PDF adds symbols, row and column numbers and the full key.

Colour plan

DMC 310 Black does the most work, 75% of the 480 knots, followed by DMC 444 Lemon Dark at 25%. Every colour is used at least 120 times, so there are no tiny one-off details to hunt for. Every square of the grid is filled.

Working notes

It is 40 knot rows of 12 knots; the busiest row changes colour 2 times. No square stands alone in its colour.

Anchor equivalents

The nearest Anchor colour for each DMC colour in this pattern, measured as ΔE 2000: up to 3 is very close, up to 6 close, up to 10 approximate.

DMCAnchor
310 403 ΔE 0.0 · very close
444 291 ΔE 5.3 · close

Row by row

All 40 rows written out, row 1 at the top, where you start knotting
  • Row 1 (left to right, forward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 2 (right to left, backward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 3 (left to right, forward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 4 (right to left, backward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 5 (left to right, forward knots): 7 310, 3 444, 2 310
  • Row 6 (right to left, backward knots): 2 310, 3 444, 7 310
  • Row 7 (left to right, forward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 8 (right to left, backward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 9 (left to right, forward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 10 (right to left, backward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 11 (left to right, forward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 12 (right to left, backward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 13 (left to right, forward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 14 (right to left, backward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 15 (left to right, forward knots): 7 310, 3 444, 2 310
  • Row 16 (right to left, backward knots): 2 310, 3 444, 7 310
  • Row 17 (left to right, forward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 18 (right to left, backward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 19 (left to right, forward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 20 (right to left, backward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 21 (left to right, forward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 22 (right to left, backward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 23 (left to right, forward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 24 (right to left, backward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 25 (left to right, forward knots): 7 310, 3 444, 2 310
  • Row 26 (right to left, backward knots): 2 310, 3 444, 7 310
  • Row 27 (left to right, forward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 28 (right to left, backward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 29 (left to right, forward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 30 (right to left, backward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 31 (left to right, forward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 32 (right to left, backward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 33 (left to right, forward knots): 5 310, 3 444, 4 310
  • Row 34 (right to left, backward knots): 3 310, 3 444, 6 310
  • Row 35 (left to right, forward knots): 7 310, 3 444, 2 310
  • Row 36 (right to left, backward knots): 2 310, 3 444, 7 310
  • Row 37 (left to right, forward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310
  • Row 38 (right to left, backward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 39 (left to right, forward knots): 4 310, 3 444, 5 310
  • Row 40 (right to left, backward knots): 6 310, 3 444, 3 310

This is an original CraftPatterns design, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0: stitch it, share it and gift what you make — please credit craftpatterns.app and don't sell the pattern itself. Want to change it? Open it in the alpha bracelet editor.

Retrobraceletalphalightningzigzagboldyellow

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