When you can no longer bother your sister, mom or dad to do your pigtails for you, it’s time to take hair in your own hands and learn how to do braids on yourself. There is a problem, though — braiding hair is hard!
Not only does braiding take time but also a lot of skill. If you try learning braids yourself, you’ll cramp up, pull your hair out and just be angry at life in general. That’s no good, so here are a few foolproof tips to learn braids and a few easy braids you can do on yourself.
Easy Braids To Do On Yourself — Prepping The Hair
First off, your hair should be clean and dry. If it’s damp, that’s fine too, but it shouldn’t be dripping wet. Wait for it to dry out just a little bit and get to work. The reason for this is that wet hair tends to stick together and so does dirty hair.
Ideally, your hair would be smooth, without any knots or tangles, which brings us to prep tip #2 — brush the hair. If you have a comb, that works too, as long as you get rid of the major knots and tangles that can easily undo your braid.
When you’re finished, you can put some hair product on your hair. It can be anything, as long as it evens out the texture and makes the hair smooth. You would ideally put the hair product at the end of braiding to keep it all in one place but just don’t overdo it.
Too much hair product can make a real mess out of your hair, making it pop out of the braid as the product wears off. Don’t rely too much on chemicals to keep your braid tight; you should be able to do it with your hands and accessories alone.
Braid Types
Next up, decide on the kind of braid you want to do. You can look at fashion or hair magazines (that’s one of the reasons they’re printed!) or just at movies, shows, comic books or whatever else for inspiration.
When you find the type of braid you like, practice it. If you’re still stuck, here are the easiest types of braids. They can all be simplified or made more complex, so start out simple and ramp up the difficulty as you learn the strands.
Crown braids have a braid that goes around the top of your head, like a crown. There can be one braid that does the circle but you can also have two or more that meet at the back of the head. You can have bangs falling out of the crown, giving you a fantasy princess look.
Double Dutch braid has two braids going from the side of the head to the back, where they meet and stay together. Tilt your head to the side to make it easier to work on the hair. Making the braids tight is the most important factor that determines if the hairstyle will stay the same throughout the day. If it does, you’re sure to get a lot of “rock on, girl” compliments.
Low knot braid has two braids, one from each side of the head, meeting at the nape of the neck into a bun. It’s a quirky, chic style that’s sure to raise eyebrows and turn heads. It’s very easy to do while radiating charm and elegance — just pull the braids together and make a bun.
Milkmaid braids are similar to crown braids, except they start off from a bit further back on the head. That makes them more casual, hence the name. Still, they’re a more formal type of braids and can fit both casual and fancy occasions.
Accessorizing
When you’re done with the braid, you can embellish with all kinds of fun stuff. What you put on your hair should ultimately reflect your personality and the real YOU. That can be ribbons, strands, pins, clips or any other kind of accessory.
Cords, charms and beads are also a great way to spruce up the braids. They come in all sizes and colors, with fun combinations that can go great with any hair color you have. There are even braid jewels that look like made out of gold, making them fashionable, trendy and elegant.
However, you shouldn’t use just any rubber bands, since they tend to fray the hair and are a hassle to remove. Instead, use elastic hair bands that are just stiff enough that they keep your hair in place without pulling or fraying it.
Just be careful if you’re doing an exercise of some sort, since accessories can fly right off your head if put under enough force. When you’re ready to undo the braid, just remove all the accessories and gently shake the hair strands apart.
Practice All The Time
Practice is what makes the difference between an OK and an amazing braid. Whenever you practice, you release a bit of anxiety and self-doubt from yourself, so keep working on how you make a braid. You should practice a few minutes every day and you will soon feel confidence in your skills. When hair braiding comes naturally, you know you’re on the right path.
Easy Braids To Do On Yourself — Make Yourself Comfortable
The key thing with doing easy braids on yourself is to never feel fatigue or stress. Rather, make yourself as comfortable as you possibly can and you’ll have a blast practicing. Relax your arms and hands; shake them a bit beforehand if you must. When you’re done, stretch a bit, walk around and make sure you restart the circulation.
Lean against a sofa or place a pillow under your back if you need to. Your body should be at ease and you will feel how your mind relaxes as well, which is the best way to learn any skill, including braiding. If you feel like you could doze off any second, you’re in the best possible mindset to practice braiding!
