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I don't know which is better way to start any bracelet; clip in front of the knot, or behind the knot (pin the loop with a safety pin or tape it?) I don't know which one offers better results and how it reflects later on in the quality of the bracelet. Any suggestions?

Do you mean clip as in crimp ends?

If so, I usually leave a little bit of exposed string( you can make a large knot and cut it later, or do whatever you want) and pin it onto that. If I'm trying to weave it into the pattern( add it into the knot(s), essentially) I just slide the circular or loop part into one of the strings and continue knotting as usual. I don't know if people actually do that to start bracelets, but that's the most common method for adding beads.

Most people prefer to do a simple loop and braids with the string for beginning and ending bracelets. There's a tutorial somewhere around here for making your starting loop look nice by knotting it, if you want it I can try to find it.

I apologize I wasn't too clear. I mean if you're using a clipboard, would you clip in front of the knot, or would you use tape or a safety pin to secure the loop behind the knot?

Oh, I see!

When I begin the bracelet, I clip it behind the knot and work so that the whole bracelet won't get pulled out from under, so I work lightly but securely. After I've made a few rows, I put the clip in front of the knot so its more sturdy.

Thanks! Sorry to bug you with more questions, but since you clip the bracelet behind the knot when you're just starting, how do you prevent your knots from jumbling up? I've tried clipping behind the knot, yet my rows become all messy and jumbled. Do you make loose knots?

I usually separate each pair and knot them far away from the others so they won't get all bunched up, and starting the 2nd row I don't do the knots super tight but tight enough to make it sturdy, and around the 3rd or 4th row its fine to start knotting a little bit harder, depends on the pattern. The more you practice, the easier it'll be for you to figure out which row to make the knots harder, but doing the knots too tight in general can make holes in the bracelet.

I know that some people put the knot behind the clip and leave a bunch of excess string to go back and make braids or put in a button or whatever else they want to do, but I've never tried it. I feel like starting with the knot in front of the clip, and moving it back after you have a few rows, is easier.

Don't worry about asking too many questions, how would people learn without them? :)

Thank you so much for the help, I will definitely try out those strategies!

Good luck. :)

Whenever I don't start with a buckle, I always tape my strings down in the right order and finish the start of the bracelet after I've finished knotting the whole bracelet.
When I start with a buckle I just tape down the buckle itself, and attach a short piece of string to the buckle, which I put under the clip of the clipboard.

Another thing you can try is attach all of your strings onto another string or ,even better, onto a wooden stick or a knitting needle , with larksheadknots. Later on you can pull the string or stick out of it and finish the start. I like doing it this way with alphas.

If I use a buckle, I always use a safety pin and hook it onto my jeans. I personally prefer having a buckle and not starting with braids, although beginning and ending with braids are nice too. I just don't like using tape to begin the bracelet.