Round shoe laces

[perfectparanoia]

It's been maybe ten years now since these have been around. Who thought they were such a bright idea!

They don't stay done up. The flat kind used to work just fine.

I am so tired of tying my shoes. Arg!

[StealthHit06]

Whether round or flat, shoelaces always untie for me. If I tie them so tight that they don't come untied, then I can never untie them.

Shoelaces are the devil. Power laces are where it's at. But those won't be around until 2015.

[Algorithm]

My round shoelaces work perfectly. I don't even tie in a double knot.

[Giraffe]

I hate when the strap on my football helmet comes loose so that I end up banging my head on the floor every time I fall down.

[Chessic Sense]

I haven't untied my laces in about 6 months. I just pull off my shoes and slip them back on. Just tie a double knot and never untie them.

[minor7flat5]

I'm a runner and I always use...

Ian's Secure Shoelace Knot (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/secureknot.htm)

You can see some other alternative shoelace knots on his site as well.

Ian's Shoelace Site (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/index.htm)

[Lord Ashtar]

I hate when the strap on my football helmet comes loose so that I end up banging my head on the floor every time I fall down.

This explains so much.

[h.sapiens]

For some reason, with every pair of tie-up shoes I own, one shoe is much more prone to coming untied than the other. The pair I'm wearing now, it's the left. I have to re-tie it at least once a day, but the right stays put. On other pairs, it's the other way around. What's up with that?

[R. P. McMurphy]

For some reason, with every pair of tie-up shoes I own, one shoe is much more prone to coming untied than the other. The pair I'm wearing now, it's the left. I have to re-tie it at least once a day, but the right stays put. On other pairs, it's the other way around. What's up with that?

When you start to tie the left shoe, in making the first knot tie it the opposite of how you are used to doing it. In other words, if the string on the right is usually on top start with the string on the left on top. Tie the right shoe the way you are used to. Your untying problem will be reduced. The problem is that changing the habit of the way you make your knots might be more trouble than it is worth.

And yes, round laces oftentimes look better but they don't work better.

[The Tao's Revenge]

I had slip-ons for 2 years! They were great! Put them on and forget em! They looked classy.

I take the slip-on built shoeing paradise for granted, and buy a pair of laced shoes because they look nice. Bah. Too high maintenance. They're like a clingy girl/boyfriend who wants you to call/check up on em every 20 minutes 'just because', or they might trip you.

[scout1222]

I don't know whether that shoelace site is awesome or insane. "Bringing you the fun, fashion & science of shoelaces" Oh really?

[minor7flat5]

Does it matter which, as long as you find a knot that works for you? :)

I have been using that "secure knot" for years on long runs and never had a lace come undone. And it's far easier to untie than a double knot.

[Ichini Sanshigo]

I always tied my shoes "the hard way". I didn't learn how to do "bunny ears" until high school. Now, that's all I do, and I never have to unlace my shoes. I haven't unlaced my shoes in months, possibly years. And the laces are round, because round laces rock.

[Rand Rover]

Laces are for suckers. I'm moving in a very slip-on direction in my work footwear here lately.

[Rhythmdvl]

Round shoelaces? Flat shoelaces? Bah. Gots me a set of trans-dimensional laces.

[Lucky 13]

I only know how to do "bunny ears" laces, and they are always coming loose unless I double-knot them.

[Ponch8]

I love the newfangled round shoelaces much more than the flat kinds. I've always double tied my shoes. The old flat kinds were a bitch to untie, but untying the round kinds is much easier. So the answer to the OP is that I thought they were such a bright idea.

[Cicero]

Flat shoelaces forever!

[Idlewild]

This thread is the best thing on the internet. I like to think of the great computer scientists of yore (your what? I dunno) toiling over their vacuum tubes and picturing the day when people could come together regardless of race, sex or religion, and explore the wonders of tying their shoelaces.

Really, we've come a long way, baby.

[Boyo Jim]

Round shoelaces hav been around (heh heh) since at least when I was a teenager, which would make them at least 30-40 years old. They were thin, and they were like... waxed or something, and they were used on dress shoes.

[kaylasdad99]

I'm a runner and I always use...

Ian's Secure Shoelace Knot (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/secureknot.htm)

You can see some other alternative shoelace knots on his site as well.

Ian's Shoelace Site (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/index.htm)Bandwidth Limit Exceeded
The server is temporarily unable to service your request due to the site owner reaching his/her bandwidth limit. Please try again later.Geez, what did you do, cross-post this to slashdot?

[cantara]

Now that the Ian's website is back up, this (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/slipping.htm) describes the problem and the solution very clearly.

If your tied bow lies across your foot, you're solid. If your bow lies ankle to toe, you'll be retying shortly.

[Vinyl Turnip]

Round, eh? That does pose a problem. Still, a single snip with a good pair of scissors should bring things back into order, shouldn't it?

[Ogre]

Double knots, people. Sheesh. Tie your shoes as per normal, then, take the two loops and yank a simple overhand knot. It never comes untied. I use this habitually, whether running, hiking, walking around, caving, whatever.

And you don't have to learn a new knot.

[OtakuLoki]

Round shoelaces hav been around (heh heh) since at least when I was a teenager, which would make them at least 30-40 years old. They were thin, and they were like... waxed or something, and they were used on dress shoes.

Thanks for this. I was reading this website with a growing bewilderment thinking, but the flat shoelaces were the 'new' style.

[gigi]

Round, eh? That does pose a problem. Still, a single snip with a good pair of scissors should bring things back into order, shouldn't it?

Not just round, but with a twist in it. Mobius strip laces confound me.

[Rocketeer]

Whether round or flat, shoelaces always untie for me. If I tie them so tight that they don't come untied, then I can never untie them.

Shoelaces are the devil. Power laces are where it's at. But those won't be around until 2015.

I used to have my shoelaces come untied all the time, until I realized I was tying a sort of granny knot. Try this: when you're tying the last part, cross the bows over the other way (from the way you're currently doing it).

I retrained myself and my shoes stay tied all the time. Independent confirmation: My friend God of Citroens, whom I retrained to tie his shoes properly, thinks I'm a genius.

[constanze]

A lot of my real shoes only have openings for round laces, not flat ones. Those few that come undone, I do a normal knot after the lace knot. But It's interesting to see other knot possibilities.

[Brown Eyed Girl]

Yankz (http://www.yankz.com/), my friends.

[DogMom]

Double knots, people. Sheesh. Tie your shoes as per normal, then, take the two loops and yank a simple overhand knot. It never comes untied. I use this habitually, whether running, hiking, walking around, caving, whatever.

And you don't have to learn a new knot.

<cynical laugh>
I used to think that, until both DogDad and I got new shoelaces. I'd hassle him for not knotting his laces after tying, because his were always coming undone. Finally he got pissed and said, "fine, YOU do it for me then." I tied his laces, did the overhand-knot thing with the loops, pulled them as tight as I could.
I swear to you, fifteen minutes is all it took for those damn laces to untie themselves.

I've emailed him Ian's solution and I'm hoping it works.

[corkboard]

I think it depends on the material used to make the laces. I've had some round laces that stay put with a single, common bow knot, and others that come untied when you look at them sideways. The laces on the shoes I'm wearing today are round and they stay put. The laces on my daughter's sneakers, even when her mother or I tie them, come untied 4-5 times a day.

[Richard Pearse]

Now that the Ian's website is back up, this (http://www.shoe-lacing.com/shoelace/slipping.htm) describes the problem and the solution very clearly.

If your tied bow lies across your foot, you're solid. If your bow lies ankle to toe, you'll be retying shortly.
That's interesting. It took me a couple of goes at tying my laces in slow motion but I eventually figured out that I tie a good knot and probably always have done. I was a bit bemused at all this talk of laces coming undone.

[PopeJewish]

One word: velcro

[Reply]

Oh, oh, oh, a chance to plug the best thing to set foot in the world of accessories in the last decade:

"Bubble" Sure-Lace (http://www.strabell.com/scripts/prodview.asp?idProduct=202) Laces. Or check out the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vs_ZirRtew).

Got a pair as a gift a few years back and now I put them on every pair of shoes. They fucking work wonders, no new knots required.

[yandoodan]

Keeping your shoeslaces tied is easy. Just put a drop of glue on the knot. (No, not Gorilla Glue. That blue Children's Glue that dissolves in water.)

[Black Sunshine]

Oh, oh, oh, a chance to plug the best thing to set foot in the world of accessories in the last decade:

"Bubble" Sure-Lace (http://www.strabell.com/scripts/prodview.asp?idProduct=202) Laces. Or check out the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vs_ZirRtew).

Got a pair as a gift a few years back and now I put them on every pair of shoes. They fucking work wonders, no new knots required.

Wow, thanks for that. I need some of those for my skates. Tripping over a shoelace is embarassing. Skating over a skate lace (and falling immediately flat on your face) is painful.

[SciFiSam]

This thread is the best thing on the internet. I like to think of the great computer scientists of yore (your what? I dunno) toiling over their vacuum tubes and picturing the day when people could come together regardless of race, sex or religion, and explore the wonders of tying their shoelaces.

Really, we've come a long way, baby.

It's great. :D I don't know why a mild rant about shoelaces pleases me so much, but it does.

BTW, yore means 'long ago.' I didn't know they had vaccum tubes in the days of yore. The Straight Dope - you learn something new every day!

I am going to start a related thread in MPMSIMS about when you learnt to tie your laces.

[Casserole]

Keeping your shoeslaces tied is easy. Just put a drop of glue on the knot. (No, not Gorilla Glue. That blue Children's Glue that dissolves in water.)

Great! Now your shoes will only untie at the worst possible time - when you're walking outside in the rain ;)

[constanze]

One word: velcro

The only reason I can see for using velcro instead of proper laces is either for children too small to tie a normal bow-knot (and at age kindergarten, they should start learning and practicing it), or for elder/handicapped people.

If you're a real adult capable of tying knots, wearing grown-up shoes for real activities like walking or any kind of sports, laces are far better at adapting to your individual foot shape than one or two velcro bands.

[constanze]

I think it depends on the material used to make the laces. I've had some round laces that stay put with a single, common bow knot, and others that come untied when you look at them sideways. The laces on the shoes I'm wearing today are round and they stay put. The laces on my daughter's sneakers, even when her mother or I tie them, come untied 4-5 times a day.

I agree with this - while special knots help avoid problems, sometimes, the material is so slick that they come easily untied (mostly city shoes that have to look nice). In that case, maybe buying plain cotton laces and swapping the slippery laces, in addition to special knots, might help.

[PopeJewish]

The only reason I can see for using velcro instead of proper laces is either for children too small to tie a normal bow-knot (and at age kindergarten, they should start learning and practicing it), or for elder/handicapped people.

If you're a real adult capable of tying knots, wearing grown-up shoes for real activities like walking or any kind of sports, laces are far better at adapting to your individual foot shape than one or two velcro bands.

psssh, y'all just be jealous :D

Seriously though, I use velcro shoes for my indoor shoes (I live in Japan) and they're great, easy to slip in and out of and it doesn't destroy the back of my shoe like it's been doing to my outdoor shoes, which have laces (granted they have to be tighter than my indoor shoes generally are). Situationally it makes much more sense for my slip-ons to be velcro sneakers than sneakers with laces*

*cause "laced sneakers" just sounds drug related