When solved, every face of Rubik's Cube is a solid color. Once you start turning, twisting and flipping, it's easy to mix up the colors. Not to worry - Rubik's Cube can be set right from any mixed-up combination. The following steps will help you solve the puzzle.

When you play with the cube you turn the LAYERS of it. But you want to make the FACES to have solid colors. There are 26 CUBIES outside of Rubik's Cube and an invisible "cubie" - which is a rotating mechanism to be correct - in the middle. There are 8 corner cubies with 3 colors, and 12 edge cubies with two colors. There are 6 center cubies with one color. The center cubies cannon move, they are FIX. So, if you have the original Rubik's Cube, the blue center cubie is always opposite to the green, red is opposite to orange, and yellow is opposite to white. The color of a center cubie determines the color of that face.

Note: we use the color arrangement of the original Rubik's cube (i.e. blue is opposite to green, red is opposite to orange, and yellow is opposite to white; if the blue side is on the top, then the red is on the left and the yellow on the right, and so on), because this is the one Erno Rubik prefers. The new Rubik's Cubes made by OddzOn since 1995 are colored differently (i.e. blue is opposite to white, green is opposite to yellow, and red is opposite to orange).

NOTATION



Moves:

Turn the front face clockwise (if you have the cube in your hands so that that face is towards you - this also applies to the turns below).	Turn the front face anti-clockwise.
Turn the back face clockwise.	Turn the back face anti-clockwise.
Turn the right face clockwise.	Turn the right face anti-clockwise.
Turn the left face clockwise.	Turn the left face anti-clockwise.
Turn the top face clockwise.	Turn the top face anti-clockwise.
Turn the bottom face clockwise.	Turn the bottom face anti-clockwise.

THE SOLUTION

1. Form a cross on the top of the Rubik's Cube so that the colors of the edge cubies match the colors of the center cubies!

Usually it is relatively easy to position the edge cubies of the top layer. You need only 2 or 3 moves. The easiest way is first to put the edge cubie to the bottom layer bellow its place, turning away the middle layer and the layer, which is opposite to the layer where it will fit. Then move the edge cubie to the top, and back the layers you moved away. Then position the top layer again, because it is possible that it is turned away.

2. Place the edge cubies of the middle layer with good color orientation!

Use the EDGE SWITCHER or the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence. If you want only to flip two neighboring edge cubies, but you don't want to change the color orientation of them, use the EDGE SWITCHER sequence. Find an edge cubie of the middle layer. The colors of two center cubies determine the colors of an edge cubie. The edge cubies that belong to the middle layer are in the middle or in the bottom layer now.

The EDGE SWITCHER sequence.
Hold the cube like this before performing this sequence. This sequence swaps two edge cubies, but keeps the colors untouched. It forces two corner cubies on the bottom layer to switch as well, but we don't care about them now. The sequence keeps every other cubies in place.

The moves of the EDGE SWITCHER sequence (advance from left to right):

If you want to flip the cubies as well, use the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence.

The EDGE SWITCHER WITH FILIP sequence
Hold the cube like this before performing the moves. This sequence switches two edge cubies and changes the color orientation of them, and forces two corner cubies to switch as well, but we don't care about them now. The sequence keeps every other cubies in place.

The moves of the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence (advance from left to right):

2.1. If the edge cubie of the middle layer is in its correct spot with wrong color orientation, move it to the bottom layer with an EDGE SWITCHER, then back with the proper EDGE SWITCHER sequence.

2.2. In case of an edge cubie, you would like to position, is just next to its place in the bottom layer, use the EDGE SWITCHER (or the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence, if you want to change the color-succession as well) once.

2.3. In case of the edge cubie you want to position is not next to its place, but is two steps away on the bottom layer (see the image below, where the original bottom layer is on the top because the whole cube was turned just to make you see the situation clearer), use the EDGE SWITCHER sequence to move it next to its place. You can use a simple quarter twist of the down face alternatively, because you don't have to worry about it now. After that goto 2.2.

2.4. If the edge cubie you would like to position is opposite to its location in the middle layer, then you have to move it to the bottom layer next to its place using the EDGE SWITCHER sequence (in the image bellow the whole cube is turned so that the original top layer - with the blue center cube - is the back layer). Then go to 2.1.

2.5. The last alternative case is that the edge cubie is in the other side of your Rubik's Cube in the middle layer. In such a case you have to use the sequence to move it closer to it's correct spot, then to place the edge cubie next to its correct spot with a quarter twist or an EDGE SWITCHER. Then another EDGE SWITCHER can go to fix the cubie.

Now your cube must look like this:

3. Place the edge cubies of the bottom layer with good color orientation!

To achieve this use one of the two EDGE SWITCHER sequences. Don't forget, now you have to position the 4 bottom edge cubes and work on the bottom layer only!

Hold your cube like this before performing an EDGE SWITCHER sequence. In this image the two edge cubies of the bottom layer can be seen on the right, because the whole cube is turner left.

First check that you can use one or two simple quarter twists to position some cubies or not.

There are two cases:
3.1. The edge cubie you would like to position is just next to its place. Use the EDGE SWITCHER (or the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence, if you want to change the color-orientation as well) once after you turned the whole cube as indicated in the image above.

3.2. If the edge cubie is opposite to its place, use the EDGE SWITCHER to position it next to its place, and then perform this or the EDGE SWITCHER WITH FLIP sequence depending you want to change colors as well or not.

If you are done with all that, your cube must look like a crusader. There are crosses on every face. Of course it is possible that some corner cubies are in their correct spots with good colors as well. It's all right!

4. Place the corner cubies, but do not worry about their orientation yet!

The SWITCH THREE CORNERS sequence will be of help to you.

The SWITCH THREE CORNERS sequence.
Hold the cube like this before performing this sequence. This sequence switches three corners, but keeps every other cubies untouched.

The moves of the SWITCH THREE CORNERS sequence (advance from left to right):

Again there are some cases:
4.1. If you find two neighboring corners, that you can position (do not worry about the color orientation) using the SWITCH THREE CORNERS move sequence. Be sure to hold the whole cube so that the three corner cubies you want to switch are on the top before performing the sequence.

If you are ready with that, the 8 corner cubies are in their correct spots. Some of them have right color orientation; more of them have it wrong.

5. Finally correct the colors of the corner cubies!

Use the CORNER FLIPPER RIGHT or CORNER FLIPPER LEFT sequence. The CORNER FLIPPER RIGHT rotates one corner cubie clockwise in place, and force the next corner to rotate to the other direction. The CORNER FLIPPER LEFT rotates one corner cubie anti-clockwise in place, and force the next corner to rotate to the other direction. Note that the CORNER FLIPPER RIGHT is equal to two iterated CORNER FLIPPER LEFT; so if you want to learn only 4 move sequences instead of 5, you can forget one of the two CORNER FLIPPER sequences.

The CORNER FLIPPER RIGHT move sequence. Hold the whole cube like this before performing the sequence. Let the corner cubie you want to make right-colored be in the front!

The moves of the CORNER FLIPPER RIGHT sequence (advance from left to right):

The CORNER FLIPPER LEFT sequence. Hold the whole cube like this before performing the sequence. Let the corner cubie you want to make right-colored be in the front!

The moves of the CORNER FLIPPER LEFT sequence (advance from left to right):

Here you have to advance step by step zigzagging all through the corner cubies. Choose the first to correct by chance or start from beside an already correct corner.

There can be three possibilities here:
5.1. If only one of the two corners rotated with the sequence get the right color orientation, turn your Rubik's Cube so that the wrong-remaining corner cubie be on the front and the top.

5.2. If both corner cubies get the right color orientation, use the sequence one after the other to the corner cubies. Select the holding position of the whole cube wisely.

5.3. If two opposite corner cubies are with wrong colors, but the other two corners of the same layer are right, don't get frustrated. Use one of the CORNER FLIPPER sequences in one of the wrong and in one of the right corner cubies. So you make one corner right and make the other corner wrong. Use the sequence in the now-spoiled corner and in the previously wrong corner.

Let the cubie you want to color-orientate be in the front on the top.

When only two corner cubies has the wrong color-orientation, it's sure that both will be all right if you used the proper CORNER FLIPPER sequence. If it is done, you solved the cube.

CONGRATULATIONS!