For many people, tying shoelaces is something they learn as children and never think about again.
But an expert has now revealed that millions of us may have been doing it wrong for years.
Jonathan Farley, a Scottish tailor known for sharing tips and tricks online, has revealed a ‘gamechanging’ tweak to the ‘around the tree’ method, which results in a much more secure knot.
This classic method usually results in laces that point towards your toes and ankles, with a loose ‘granny knot’ holding them together.
However, by simply reversing the direction of one of the loops, you can create a neater – and more secure – knot.
‘You’re never too old to learn something new or to admit that you’re wrong,’ Mr Farley, who has nearly 300,000 followers on his TikTok page, said.
‘I’ve been tying my shoelaces wrong my entire life.
‘I learned when I was six years old and I’m 53 now, and I’ve just learned that I’ve been doing it wrong.’
As he holds up a pair of shoes, the difference in shoelaces is obvious. While one has laces pointing up and down, the other’s go in a much neater side–to–side direction
In a video posted to his TikTok, he starts by showing a pair of laced–up shoes next to each other.
One of the shoes has laces pointing up and down, while the other shoe’s laces go in a much neater side–to–side direction.
‘As you can see, one of these looks quite smart and the other looks wrong,’ Mr Farley said.
‘This was commented on a previous video. I tied my laces as I always have done – loop, wrap it round and pull. I thought that’s how it went.’
He revealed that the commenter advised him to wrap his shoelace from the other direction to make a neater knot.
After trying it, he declares: ‘Oh my god, it’s perfect’.
If you tend to end up with ‘up and down’ shoelace loops, you only need to make a small change to make them sit much neater.
When you reach the final stage of tying the bow, try wrapping the second loop in the opposite direction before pulling it tight. This should make the finished loops lie across the shoe from side to side, creating a more secure ‘reef knot’.
Mr Farley starts by showing the way he usually ties his laces (left). But then he tries wrapping his shoelace from the other direction – which results in a neater knot (right)
‘Half of you will be saying you’ve tied your laces that way your whole life,’ Mr Farley added. ‘The other half of you, like me, will say that’s a complete gamechanger.’
Commenting on his video, one person said: ‘It’s also a stronger knot and won’t come loose like the original knot we were all taught as children. You don’t have to double knot anymore.’
Another joked: ‘It just takes 1,000 repetitions and you’re converted.’
And one added: ‘I’m re–tying my shoe as we speak.’
A reef knot is more secure because it is symmetrical. The two halves of the knot pull evenly against one another, allowing friction between the laces to keep the knot tight.
A granny knot, on the other hand, is slightly twisted and unbalanced, making it easier for the laces to work loose as your feet move.
Once mastered, the stronger knot takes exactly the same amount of time to tie as the weaker one.
And the simple tweak could save people from repeatedly stopping to retie their shoelaces.
