The small forefinger nooses are the brims of the hat. The Witch's Hat is made by taking the middle of the near thumb string (the top of the cup) in your mouth and pulling it out, without releasing the thumbs, until a large triangle is formed. Stretched out by bringing thumbs and forefingers closer together, the Cup can pass for A Boat on water. Several other very simple figures can be made from Cup and Saucer. View 2:36 minute video with audio: Slow dial-up, Dial-up, Broadband View 27 second video: Slow dial-up, Dial-up, Broadband Release both little fingers and extend thumbs up. You can remove each bottom string with the opposite hand, or you can use your middle fingers to remove the bottom near thumb string up and over the thumbs (at the same time) while leaving the upper string nooses in place (or use your mouth to remove the bottom near thumb string from the thumbs). Now remove the lower of the two strings, the original thumb nooses, from both thumbs. Move both your thumbs over the near forefinger strings and pick up both far forefinger strings (pulling the hands apart to make the strings tight is something you should do after each step unless told not to). View video: Slow dial-up, Dial-up, Broadband Cup & Saucerĭo Opening A. The string will go right through their arm! Let go of the strings on your little fingers and forefingers again, and pull your thumbs apart. Tell them to put their hand back up, from below, into the center of the figure. You have now caught the other kid's hand.ĭo Opening A again with the far string still around the other kid's wrist. Now release the strings on both little fingers and forefingers, but keep the strings on the thumbs. Have them put one hand through the center of the figure. Here's what the strings in Opening A are called.ĭo Opening A. ( Opening B is the same except you start with the left forefinger picking up the right palm string.) View video: Slow dial-up, Dial-up, Broadband Unless told otherwise, tighten the strings after each step with palms facing each other, and fingers pointing up and spread apart. The left forefinger then moves right, goes through the right forefinger noose, and picks up the right palm string. Use your right forefinger to move left and pick up the left palm string on the back of the forefinger. View video: Slow dial-up, Dial-up, Broadbandĭo Position 1. (If told to grab a string, you would curl your finger around it and either hold it with the fingerprint side or, if instructed to, twist it 180 degrees towards or away from you as directed to take the string up on the finger or thumb.) Now just spread your hands and fingers apart to tighten the string and you have Position 1. Now, using your little fingers, pick up the far thumb string on the fingernail side of the little fingers. The string closest to you is called the near thumb string, and the farthest one is called the far thumb string. The string now goes from one thumb to the next without any twists in it. Pick up one short section of the string loop on both thumbs without twisting it. First, you will need to learn Position 1 and Opening A, as these are commonly used to begin figures. The following figures give some idea of the great variety of string figures you can learn to do. Be sure to go to the main menu and look on other pages for more video clips.
#Figure 1 action strings download
If you want to view better quality clips, Right Click on the Dial-up or Broadband link (even if you don't have DSL or other high speed connection) and select "Save as" to download the clip to your computer for fast, high quality viewing anytime you want. To view the clips you will need Window's Media Player.
#Figure 1 action strings how to
If you have difficulty following a description of how to make a string figure, look at the end of the description and click on Slow dial-up, Dial-up, or Broadband. Video clips have been added for most figures. String figures are really fun to make! Long before TV, or even books, people were using string figures to illustrate the stories they told around the campfire. If you can already do some, then why not learn a few more and teach your friends how to do them?ĭid you know that in some parts of the world kids know how to make dozens and dozens of amazing string figures? Making string figures is a pastime that kids and adults throughout the world have enjoyed for thousands of years. Maybe you already know how to do Cat's Cradle and a few other string figures? If not, then you can learn to make some string figures now.