Step 2: finish the first layer (white corners)
With the white cross done, turn the cube over so white is on the bottom. Yellow is now on top. Keep it this way for the rest of the method.
This whole step uses one four-move sequence: R U R' U'. Cubers call it the "sexy move" because it's quick and comes up everywhere.
The goal
The whole white face is done, and the bottom row of every side matches its centre.
How to do it
- Find a white corner in the top layer. Read its two other colours. For example, white-green-orange.
- Turn the top until the corner sits directly above the place it belongs: between the two side centres of those colours. Then turn the whole cube so that place is at the front-right-bottom. The corner is now at the front-right-top.
- Repeat
R U R' U'until the corner drops in correctly. It always takes 1, 3 or 5 repeats, depending on where the corner's white sticker points.
White sticker facing right: once
R U R' U'
White sticker facing up: three times
R U R' U' × 3
White sticker facing you: five times
R U R' U' × 5
Don't worry when the other pieces get mixed up in between. They come back once the corner is in.
A corner is in the bottom layer, but wrong
It's in the wrong place, or in the right place but twisted.
- Turn the whole cube so that corner is at the front-right-bottom.
- Do
R U R' U'once. That lifts it to the top. - Carry on as above.
R U R' U'
Common mistakes
- Stopping too early. The other corners look messy during repeats 2–4. Keep going until the corner you're placing is right.
- Turning the cube between repeats. Hold it still until the corner is in.
- Not lining up first. The corner must be directly above its own place before you start repeating.