How to Braid Your Hair

When I bother to put my hair up in something other than a 2-second ponytail, there are usually braids involved.  Sometimes there are multiple braids, or french braids, or a braided bun, but there are almost always braids.

The other day someone asked me how to do a basic braid, so I decided to do a basic hair braiding tutorial this week and a french braiding tutorial next time.  I hope you like them!

The main concept to braiding is that you have 3 separate sections of hair and you alternate moving the right section into the middle and then the left section into the middle over and over again until you have a braid.

Here's a step-by-step guide:

1.  Brush your hair and separate it into 3 equally-sized sections.

2.  Move over the section that you are holding in your right hand so that it is now in the middle. Switch it to your left hand, so you are now holding two sections of hair in your left hand and only one section in your right hand.  Notice that I'm holding one section with my thumb and the other section with my pointer finger so that I keep the two sections separate from each other even though they're in the same hand.

3.  Now use your left hand to move the section that is the farthest to the left into the middle, and switch it to your right hand.

You've now learned everything you need to know to braid your hair!  Steps 4 through 6 are really just repeats of steps 2 and 3 so that you can see how it looks as your braid progresses.

4.  Move the right section into the middle and switch it to your left hand.

5.  Move the left section into the middle and switch it to your right hand.

6.  Move the right section into the middle and switch it to your left hand.  Continue bringing the right and then the left sections into the middle until you've braided your hair all the way to the bottom.  Secure it with a hair tie.

Now you know how to braid your hair!  Practice it a few times and it will get easier and easier.  If you have long hair, you now have all the skills necessary to make crown braids as well.

Happy braiding!
xoxo
Laura

Crown Braids

I sometimes like to wear my hair in a crown of braids like I did in this post back in September.  I think it's a fun look, and I don't think I'm the only one.  I find some of my other favorite bloggers rocking similar hairdos from time to time, like Elsie at A Beautiful Mess.

I used to struggle with the mechanics of these braids.  I couldn't make my hair lie flat when I pulled the braids up and over my head, and I always ended up with awkward poofing around the base of the braids (and everywhere, really). I used to give up and start over and over and over again before I could get it looking right.  That is, until this week when I had a bobby pin epiphany that's the key to getting this hairdo perfect on the first try every time.

Here's the deal:

1. Brush and part your hair.

2. While holding your hair tight against the first side of your head, insert a bobby pin behind your earlobe to hold your hair in place.

3. Add another bobby pin so that your hair is secured with an X.  I've highlighted the X in white in the picture above so that you can see how it should look.

4. Make another bobby pin X on the second side of your head as well. 

5. Braid the first side of your hair, holding it straight out instead of down, and secure the end of the braid with a small clear elastic band.

6. Pull the braid up and over the top of your head so it looks like a headband and secure it to your head with a bobby pin.

7. Braid the second side of your hair in the same manner as the first.

8. Pull the second braid up and over your head also, making sure to cover up the elastic band and the bobby pin on the first braid.  Secure the second braid with a bobby pin (or three) as well.

9. That's it!  

I hope the bobby pin X works as well for you as it does for me.  Suddenly this hairstyle only takes me 5 minutes to do, and it used to take me 20.  It even looks nice from the back, see?

Happy braiding!

xoxo

Laura

A French Braid into a Ponytail

Lately I've been loving wearing my hair in a french braid that leads to a ponytail like this:

It all started because I was reminiscing about my old skating competition hairdos.  I used to put my hair in two super-tight braids that met at the back of my head to form a bun, and then adorn it with some fake flowers or rhinestones and a massive scrunchie.  It was clearly awesome, as evidenced by the picture below:

So anyway, when I found myself thinking about that old hairstyle, I realized that it's actually quite possible to take the main idea of it and update it to be fun and modern.  I achieved the update by making one braid that is as thick and chunky as possible so it naturally wants to loosen up, giving it an easy breezy look.

Here's how to do it:
(Note: This tutorial assumes that you already know how to braid your hair.  Leave me a comment if that isn't the case and you would like me to do a tutorial on basic braiding skills.)

1.  Brush your hair to begin.

2.  Separate out the first section of hair starting at your temples, halfway between the top of your hairline and the top of your ears and begin to french braid.  (A french braid is the same as as regular braid, except you add a new section of hair to the braid every time you cross a piece of hair into the middle.)

To make your hair symmetrical and to keep the braid large, take sections of hair from the following points on each side of your head as you are french braiding:
     3.  The top of your ear.
     4.  Halfway between the top of your ear and the middle of your neck.
     5.  The middle of your neck (aka the last of the hair).

6.  Now grab the base of the braid in one hand, as close to where the braid ends as possible.

7.  Use a hair rubber band to make a ponytail where you were holding the end of the braid.

8.  You've now got a french braid into a ponytail.


If you want, you can turn that ponytail into a messy bun:

1.  Twist the ponytail around your fingers, then wrap it around itself.

2.  Add a second hair rubber band to secure the bun.

You don't want the bun to be too tight or perfect for the same reason that you want the braid to loosen up on its own; it makes it look more casual.

Happy braiding!
xoxo
Laura

Grownup Friendship Bracelets

Hello from Sandusky, Ohio!

I'm here all summer doing a really fun show at a really fun amusement park, and in one of the numbers in our show we get to dress up as ice skating crayons.  It's so funny!  Nothing gets me quite like dancing inanimate objects do.

In honor of our silly kids' number, for opening day I decided to make friendship bracelets for all my cast mates in their corresponding crayon colors.

Here's How You Do It:

1. Cut 3 strips of black embroidery floss and 1 strip of an alternate color to 40" each.  Fold each individual strand in half then put them all together and tie them in a knot where you folded them, leaving a small loop for later. Tape the loop to the edge of a table and separate the strands into 4 sets of 2 as shown. For instructional purposes let's call the black strands A B and C and the alternate color stand will be X.


2. Bring C over B and under X.


3. Bring A under C and over X.


4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you have braided the entire length of string.  It helps me to say "over under, under over" while I'm doing the braiding.  It also helps to hold all four strings in your hands at once, keeping them taut.  Once you let a strand or two start dangling, it's harder to keep the braid straight and even. Now begin your knot by looping the braid around your finger.


5. Pull the loose end through the loop.


6. Pull the knot tight.


7. You've made the bracelet!  I made all of my bracelets up to this point and then wrapped them up in the paper that crayons are wrapped in and brought them to work.  (The crayon paper was courtesy of my boyfriend, Justin, who is dressed up as the hunky orange crayon in the picture at the beginning of this post.)  Once I had given them to everyone, I sized them to their wrists and added the finishing touches.

Here's how to size and finish the bracelets:

1.  Wrap the bracelet around the recipient's wrist twice to measure how long it should be.

2.  Tie a knot in the bracelet to mark the spot where you want it to end.

3.  Cut off the original knot you tied at the end of the un-measured bracelet you made earlier.

4.  Separate the contrasting colored strands from the black strands. (In this case, the contrasting colored strands are the light blue ones.)

5.  Thread the contrasting colored strands through the holes of a small button.

6.  Thread the same strands through the button holes again so they end up on the underbelly of the button.

7.  Cut off all the excess strings so that they can only be seen beneath the button.

8.  Put a dab of Mod Podge or other clear-drying glue on the end of the strings on the underside of the button so the knot won't come undone later.

9.  Let it dry and you've now got a custom-sized grown-up bracelet for one of your friends!

Here's what a finished bracelet looks like:

Notice how the button that you attached to the end fits neatly through the loop that you made in the very first step when you started making the bracelet?  If your loop is too big, your button will slip back out of the loop while you're wearing it and the bracelet will fall off.  If you have that problem, just tie another knot next to the original knot at the base of the loop.  It will make the loop smaller.

Aren't these bracelets so fun?  They are basically just the same as the ones that I made when I was a kid, but the double-wrapping and the button add that little something extra that distinguishes the things we love as grownups from the things we loved as kids.

Until next time,
xoxo
Laura