Ensure you are familiar with your tools and observe safety procedures. Cutting tools such as saws and lathes can be fatal if not handled properly. Make use of safety goggles to protect your eyes and gloves for your hands.
Select the right type of wood. Hard wood such as oak or mahogany is suitable because of its taut grains, which makes it easy to split. Examine your wood carefully for the direction in which the grains run, as this determines whether or not the resulting bracelet will split at the edges. A good block of wood has grains that run along the wood as opposed to across it.
Choose two pieces of wood 12 inches long and 3/4-by-1 inch wide. Mount the first piece of wood onto a lathe and work it into a cross shape. Place the other block of wood onto the lathe and work it to an H-shape. The head and arms of the cross should be of equal length with the hands and neck of the H-shape, 1/4 inch. Divide the piece of wood with the Cross-shape into sections of 1/4 inch thickness. Likewise cut into sections the H-shaped block.
Arrange your pieces so the crosses fit into the H-shapes. Ensure the pieces line up neatly in a straight line. Use tape to hold them together as you carefully place them in a clamp. Bore holes using a drilling gun where the H-shapes and crosses meet. Drill the holes from the edge inwards. Remove the tape. Insert an elastic string of roughly 1/16 inch to hold the shapes together and tie a knot. The number of pieces of wood you use depends on the length of the bracelet you desire.
Use sandpaper to make the pieces smooth. Paint the pieces with acrylic paint to whichever color you desire. Once the paint dries you can choose to decorate it further. You may paint various designs onto the bracelet. You can first draw the desired design with a pencil then proceed to paint them. Alternatively trace images on your bracelet using transfer paper. These come with a special pen that draws the images on surfaces. Put a coating of acrylic spray on the bracelet for the finishing touches. Suspend the bracelet and spray one side then the other.
Join the two ends of the bracelet with the elastic string when the spray dries up. Make a tight knot to ensure that the wood pieces do not loosen. Your bracelet is ready to be worn.