Braidtastic Week: Heart Braid

Since it’s wedding season, we thought it would be a good idea to do a post on flower girl hair. Wee ones need beauty too! It’s a very “sweet” look and will keep a flower girl’s hair out of her face all day. This braid may be a little “young” for some, but  it will probably come in handy at some point! To be totally honest, I’ve worn it and you can’t tell it’s a heart until you’re standing above it. It just looks like two braids running down the back of your head. The hardest part about this braid is starting it, so if you’re doing it on yourself, you may want to enlist a friend who’s good with braiding help you get it going. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Part your hair into two sections by splitting it down the middle.
2. Starting at the crown of your head, make the curve from the top of the heart. Stop at the back of your ear. Don’t worry about going all the way to the bottom of the heart, only go to your ear.
3. Clip that hair out of the way as seen above.
4. I like to do this braid using an “inside out french braid” instead of regular because it shows the shape more, but you can do either! Start french braiding at the part (as seen above) and curve the braid around to your ear. At this point you’re only using hair from outside the heart shape, not the hair that’s in the clip.
5. Braid it down to the back of the ear and then take the clip out. Now you can start joining in that hair. NOTE: don’t start joining in hair from the inside of the heart until you get to the back of the ear. That’s the trick!
6. Braid all the way down to the nape of the neck and clip it off.
7. Do the exact same thing (or have someone help you do the exact same thing  on the other side.
8. Once you get to the nape of the neck on the other side, it gets a little tricky. I like to take my 6 pieces (3 pieces from the left braid and 3 pieces from the right braid) and join them all together. Then I split it back in 3 pieces and do a regular braid all the way down.
9. Tie it off with a clear elastic and you’re done.
10. For added texture, I like to pull gently at each piece of the braid!

Good luck little ladies!

Braidtastic Week: Fishtail Braid

STEP 1 

Brush & Section

Detangle and brush out your hair so it's easy to handle. If you need to, smooth out flyaways and frizz with a grooming cream. You don't have to have stick straight locks to rock this look, just keep things knot-free! Divide the hair into two even sections starting from the middle of the scalp.

STEP 2 + 3

Weave From The Right

You can begin braiding from either side, but we're starting from the right. Use your pinky and ring finger to grab a small section of the hair (approximately 1/4" inch) from the back of the right side. Add this section to the left side by folding it over with your left hand.

STEP 4 + 5

Weave From The Left

After you've added a strand to your left side, take your left pinky and grab a 1/4" strand from the back of the left section. Fold it over and add it to your right section. Make sure these first few strands are tighter so you get comfortable with the process and nothing falls loose.

STEP 6

Continue Weaving and FInish Up

Continue weaving strands from the left and right. You're going to be weaving more or less depending on the thickness of your strands. But trust us—the fishtail effect looks so much better when you weave thinner pieces instead of thicker. It make take longer, but it's worth it!

Once you're at a comfortable place to end your braid, secure it with an elastic band or a clip. If you feel like your braid is too tight, loosen it by gently massaging the strands with your hands. Grab both hands simultaneously and gently pull away from the braid. This technique gives the braid that casual and effortless look.

OPTIONAL

Add Personal Touches

Styling elements add a dash of whimsy to this relatively simple design. Incorporate ribbon, feathers, barrettes, headbands, or whatever hair flair you may own. For Beauties with longer hair, don't stop with a basic side braid—experiment with different styles! Try twisting your fishtail into a gothic-looking updo or add more flair by adding a headband. With a handful of bobby pins and hairspray, the possibilities are truly endless.

Braidtastic Braid: The Cascade/Waterfall Braid

STEPS 1 + 2

Section Off

This style works best on straight or loose waves. Brush out all the knots with a wide tooth comb. Part your hair how you normally would, and begin your braid on the right side of your part. Grab the top section and divide into three strands.

STEPS 3 + 4

Braid As Usual

Braid your strands regularly three times, beginning from the right strand. When you get to the left strand (the part closest to the middle of the scalp), add more hair to it like a French braid and fold that strand to the center.

STEP 5

Drop the Strand

This is where it gets tricky. After you've French braided your left strand (now center), drop the right strand and let it fall down. Pick up another small section of hair next to where your original strand fell—that's your new right strand.

STEP 6

Step and Repeat

Repeat this process—French braid the left strand, drop the right strand, and pick up an adjacent new piece. Gradually cascade the style towards the middle of your head.

STEP 7

Pin and Secure

Once you've reached a comfortable point to stop your braid, secure it to your scalp with bobby pins. You don't have to pin up your hair perfectly in this section since you'll cover up the pins with a hair accessory later.

STEPS 8 + 9 + 10

Fishtail It!

Braid the remaining piece of hair left from your cascade into a fishtail braid. Not sure how to create this mermaid-inspired style? It's easy with this helpful fishtail braid tutorial. Secure the braid with a thin hair tie.

STEP 11

Accessorize

Add a cute bow or flower to hide your bobby pins and give this look some extra hair flair. Secure your barrette tightly to your scalp and braid for a firm hold. 

Take the extra strand of hair on the opposite side of your face and pin it back into the flower barrette so it blends in with your cascade. Spritz with a light-hold hairspray, and you've got yourself a beautiful and romantic summer hair style!

Braidtastic Week: Simple Three Strand Braid

1) Begin with neatly combed hair. There are few things more aggravating than snarly hair.

2) Separate your hair into 3 equal strands and hold them apart with your fingers.

3) Cross the far right strand over the middle strand. This is the new center strand, and the center strand is the new far right strand.

4) Cross the far left strand over the center strand. This is the new center strand, and the center strand is the new far left strand.

5) Continue in this manner (alternately crossing the far right and far left strands over the center strands) until you reach the desired length.

6) Tie off the braid with a ponytail holder, small rubber hair bands, ribbons, or whatever you wish.

This skill is the basis for many different hair styles.   Experiment by making two equal-sized braids,  making two small braids on either side of your head and gathering them together at the center of your head, coiling the braid into a bun, etc. Be creative!

Braidtastic Week: How to do French Braid

 A beautiful and classic hairstyle, the French braid is a little challenging to learn at first. To French-braid, follow these steps.

Make sure you know how to do a basic braid. Otherwise, the more complicated French technique will be difficult for you.

Brush or comb the hair thoroughly. Remove any knots or tangles using a wide-toothed comb or favorite brush. Comb out each part, combing the hair straight.

Separate a section of hair from the rest of the hair at the point where you want to begin the braid. A high French braid, for example, should start at the very top of your head.

• It's a good idea to imagine making your hair section V-shaped, with the point of the V going towards the back of your head.
• Though high French braids are common, feel free to vary the location and starting placement of your braid. For example, you can choose to start lower on the head with a section that includes all the hair above your ears. While this will make it easier (less braiding to do), it will result in a thick (rather than an intricate) braid.

Slip the section of hair into three even strands. Be sure that the strands are completely separated all the way to the ends or they will become entangled in each other as you work.

One way to separate the hair into three strands is to hold the section of hair in one hand and use the index and middle fingers of the other hand to separate it into three strands, as shown. Note that, while this article provides some suggestions, you may find your very own variations that work more comfortably for you, or create more desirable results. With practice, you'll get the feel for it.

Cross the rightmost held strand over the middle strand.

• If you're French braiding your own hair, your finger placement will depend on the size of your hands, the length of your fingers, and the thickness of your hair.
• Hold the leftmost strand with your left pinkie while moving the rightmost strand from your right hand to your left. Shift the new rightmost strand (used to be the middle strand) from your left hand to your right.

Cross the leftmost strand over the middle strand. Grasp the rightmost strand with your right pinkie, then rotate your left hand so that you can grasp the leftmost strand in your right hand. Shift what used to be the middle strand (and is now the leftmost strand) to your left hand. You now have the beginnings of a regular braid.

Add some hair from the right side of the head to the (new) rightmost strand. Use your right index finger to pick up a section of hair from the right side of the head and add it to the new rightmost strand.

Cross the rightmost strand over the middle strand. Grasp the leftmost strand with the left pinkie, then rotate your left hand so that you can grasp the rightmost strand. Shift the new rightmost strand to your right hand.

Add hair from the left side of the head to the (new) leftmost strand. Use your left index finger to pick up a section of hair from the left side of the head and add it to the leftmost strand.

Add hair from the left side of the head to the (new) leftmost strand. Use your left index finger to pick up a section of hair from the left side of the head and add it to the leftmost strand.

Cross the leftmost strand over the middle strand. Grasp the rightmost strand with your right pinkie, then rotate your right hand so that you can grasp the leftmost strand. Shift the new leftmost strand (used to be the middle strand) from your right hand to the left.

Add some hair from the right side of the head to the (new) rightmost strand and cross it over the middle strand. Use your right index finger to pick up a section of hair from the right side of the head, adding it to the rightmost strand currently held in your left hand.

Add some hair from the left side of the head to the (new) leftmost strand and cross it over the middle strand. Use your left index finger to pick up a section of hair from the left side of the head and add it to the leftmost strand in your right hand.

Continue French-braiding. Add hair to and alternate between the right- and leftmost strands until there is no more hair to add.

Braid the rest of your hair normally as far down as you can reach. If you have longer hair, bring the braid forward over your shoulder and braid in the opposite direction (instead of folding the strands towards you, you will be folding them away from you).

Tie off or clip the end of the braid with hair tie or clip. You're done!