Naturals who do braid outs...

[glamazon386]

What's your technique? I can't seem to get them to work on my hair. All they do is stretch out my curl pattern a bit but when I take the braid down there's still a million little coils. My hair doesn't take on the shape of the braid like it does with twist outs. I've tried on wet, damp, and dry hair and used a leave in each time. Does anybody have any tips? How do you do yours?

 

[turnergirl]

I just braid my hair wet and let it dry. I usually don't add anything to set it. When I do tiny braids they set themselves

 

[LynnieB]

bmore - for me it depends on the look i'm going for.

if i just want a more controlled looking (and virtually tangle free) wash n go, i go on and make a bunch of braids on wet/damp hair and let them set for about 15-20 minutes, take them out and gently rub about a quarter-sized amount of gel on the hair. the ends are damp enough to curl up on their on.

but when i want to wear just a straight braid out (which i'm not liking so much because my hair is so short and the set is stiff erplexed), i'll let my hair dry completely and maybe even let them stay in for a day or 2, use my spritz on the braids (especially on the ends to get rid of the stiff braided-end look) then take them down.

my braidouts have a really firm set the longer they stay in. maybe you need to leave them in a little longer to set them good - like a couple days?

 

[Priss Pot]

Bublnbrnsuga does braidouts on her hair. In her latest update, she wets her hair, applies Elucence conditioner (as a leave-in), some castor oil, and then she braids her hair in 3 big braids. She seems to have some really pretty braid-outs and twist-outs in her fotki; maybe you could shoot her a PM and ask.

 

[glamazon386]

Thanks Turnergirl and Lynnie. Turnergirl how long do you leave the braids in? Just until they're dry?

my braidouts have a really firm set the longer they stay in. maybe you need to leave them in a little longer to set them good - like a couple days?

Lynnie - Hmm... IDK. I don't have time for all that. I assumed that it was okay to take them out as long as the hair is totally dry. I did the braids yesterday on wet hair. They're dry now but I only took 1 out to see what it would look like. Maybe I'll leave them in another day or so.

 

[honeybadgirl]

Bublnbrnsuga does braidouts on her hair. In her latest update, she wets her hair, applies Elucence conditioner (as a leave-in), some castor oil, and then she braids her hair in 3 big braids. She seems to have some really pretty braid-outs and twist-outs in her fotki; maybe you could shoot her a PM and ask.

i dont know, that may work for my but i was having the same issue that bmore was having. i used to totally wear my hair like that in the summer WHEN i had a relaxer/texlaxed. but natural is a big difference! my hair just coils up and shrinks so so much! i probably would be better off just letting it air dry loose!

 

[glamazon386]

Thanks TSU. I'll go check her album out.

 

[Priss Pot]

Thanks TSU. I'll go check her album out.

No problem. I wish I could give some advice of my own, but my hair is too tiny for a braid-out.

 

[glamazon386]

No problem. I wish I could give some advice of my own, but my hair is too tiny for a braid-out.

You think so? I thought our hair was about the same length.

 

[Priss Pot]

You think so? I thought our hair was about the same length.

Your hair seems much more longer/thicker than mine. Also, you did the BC back in September 06, so compared to my April 07 BC, your hair should be bigger than mine. I could be wrong, but it just looks like it.

 

[glamazon386]

Your hair seems much more longer/thicker than mine. Also, you did the BC back in September 06, so compared to my April 07 BC, your hair should be bigger than mine. I could be wrong, but it just looks like it.

Oh okay... I just assumed you had more hair bc you transitioned longer. And my hairs fine. Your curls hang better than mines do. Very pretty.

 

[LynnieB]

here's a fresh twist out done the day before........please forgive the ***** mug shot.

and here's some box braids that i wore for 4 days....

can you see how much tighter the set is? i know twists and braids are to different things but i think you can still see the difference a couple days or more made.

Bmore, see what happens after 2 days or so - can you wear a temporary covering until it sets?

 

[ThursdayGirl]

I'm not sure how many twists you're making... how many do you make usually?

When my hair was shorter, I made at at least 16, did it on wet hair, added leave-in and a oil to seal. If I needed hold, I used a touch of garnier soft curl creme on each twist, orrrrrr smooth n' shine curl activator for extra dry hair. let it dry (usually o/n) and then untwist in the morning.

 

[glamazon386]

here's a fresh twist out done the day before........please forgive the ***** mug shot.

and here's some box braids that i wore for 4 days....

can you see how much tighter the set is? i know twists and braids are to different things but i think you can still see the difference a couple days or more made.

Bmore, see what happens after 2 days or so - can you wear a temporary covering until it sets?

Yeah... I wore a wig yesterday. I guess I'll just have to wear it again. Dammit and I was trying to look hot for my lunch date tomm.

 

[LynnieB]

awwwwww girl, i'm sorry

 

[bLackButtaFly]

I do mine on damp, not wet hair, an let it dry over night to get the best definition. I use a spray bottle either b4 or after I braid, that's filled with cheapo suave conditioner, castor oil and water, and dampen the hair, if it's dripping it's too much. then I wrap it or put it in a bonnet, and when I wake up I separate the pieces. if I want some more definition I might use put a little gel over each braid. When my haid was shorter I also could not get a good braidout to save my life, and I do almost the exact same thing now that I did then, so maybe it's a thing with shorter hair?

Also I sometime sit under the dryer for about 30 minutes or walka round in the braids while I'm cleaning on a sat so it'll be fresh when I go out that night.

 

[LynnieB]

Also I sometime sit under the dryer for about 30 minutes or walka round in the braids while I'm cleaning on a sat so it'll be fresh when I go out that night.

Now THATs a great idea buttafly!! Bmore, that should give you a good firm set!!

 

[glamazon386]

Thanks BlackButtaFly! I'll try it.

 

[bLackButtaFly]

no prob. Hope it helps! And don't forget to post some pics when you get it right.

 

[stargazer613]

I had the same problem when I tried to do a braidout on wet hair, so now I only do braidiouts after my hair is straightened. I'll do my usual wash, blowdry, press and flat iron, wear it straight for a couple of days, then the rest of the week I'll wear a braidout.

At night, I'll make 8 braids (4 on each side of my head), smooth a little leave-in like Phyto 9 or Redken Spin Curls (to help keep the braids from unraveling) and maybe some jojoba oil on the ends. In the morning, I'll take the braids out and rub some coconut oil on my hair for shine and that's it. I have a couple of pictures of my braidouts in my Fotki if you'd like to see. HTH

 

[Cheleigh]

Braids outs aren't cute on my hair. Braids seems to stretch my curl pattern unattractively, unlike twist outs which model my existing curl pattern. Twist outs look wonderful, but braidouts...

It's seems best if I can do twists outs from actual two strand twists I've had in for a while, or from sectioned twists on freshly detangled and washed hair. I twist with non-water based products.

I big twist or braid my hair nightly, and those will not give me a cute twist out or braid out.

 

[Dee-Licious]

Yeah... I wore a wig yesterday. I guess I'll just have to wear it again. Dammit and I was trying to look hot for my lunch date tomm.

No help except maybe trying something for hold (Garnier has a product)

annnnd we haven't forgotten about the lunch date.. don't leave us hanging

 

[EXSQUISIT]

When I do my braidouts, I wash then slightly blot dry, but it's still mostly wet. I do 6-8 braids applying shea butter shea moisture leave in to each section and then sealing each with kemi oil or any kind of oil I have on hand. I then take the towel and squeeze each braid after I'm done to remove any excess water and sleep on it overnight.

The next day I undo each braid and separate the curls in each section with my fingers. It always comes out very nice, and it should because that's really the only style I wear other than a pony....HTH

 

[cmw45]

This is my favorite style...and we have similar textured hair so...

I usually do braidouts on freshly washed, damp hair...I don't use a leave in (I mean I've tried it and it was OK, but the braidouts are stiff and not soft.) and butter (with shea butter) the hair lightly before braiding and then while doing the actual braid. I then put a little dap on the ends (because my hair is not even in every place I coil the ends a bit as if I were doing comb coils). I usually leave this in overnight (you could sit under a dryer but I'm not a fan of the extra heat) or until dry. When I take it out my hair has take the shape of the braid out, is stretched out, but what I like, it that because I butter my ends my ends (and twisted as if I was doing comb coils) are in a curl about the size of a magic marker. I ALWAYS get compliments when I wear my hair like this.

Tips: 1) Make sure that your hair is damp and not wet, wet hair makes for braids that aren't as tight/neat or are too tight. 2) Medium sized (pencil sized) or larger might work better on your hair because you hair is so coily. Anything else would just look like stretched out coils and not braids. So make sure NOT to braid too small. 3) Make sure the braids are COMPLETELY dry, you'll frizz if not. 4) You need to make sure you use enough butter...the difference between the shea butter (natural) and unatural leave-ins is that they shea will eventually evaporate leaving no coating on your hair, but leaving really soft braids. My BF can't keep his hands out my hair. 5) This is a style that gets better as it progressess. My second or thrid days ALWAYS look better than the first day. By then I've also seperated the braids a bit more and it just looks so full.

ETS: I definitely agree with Lynnie B, that the longer you leave the braids in the more defined the twist out is. I've actually started to like my braids so I leave them in there for a day or two...hey sometime three, and then rock the braidout the rest of the week. If you don't have time for this and need to cheat, I would suggest waiting until it is completely dry and then baggying your head while in the braids until your hair becomes moist again and then letting it redry, as long as you used enough shea butter the braid out should look very defined. HTH

HTH

 

[cmw45]

Have any of you guys that wear your braid outs for more than a day or two (I may rock my for up to five days...and then put a headband on a rock it for two more.) figured out how to keep the braidouts moisturized without frizzing. I usually scarf my hair overnight and fluff in the morning but I've noticed that by the forth day the hair is getting a little dry. I'm trying to baggy religiously(thanks to babygurl and Darkempress--who swear by it), however, I think baggying the braidout would result in a frizzy braid out.

This has been my staple style up until this point but I may have to abandon it unless I can figure out a way to moisturized without the frizz. I mean I would still rock it occassionally (the BF would not hear of completely abandoning it) but I think that the dryness that happens towards the end of the week is counter productive to my efforts to keep my hair moisturized.

 

[glamazon386]

Ummm so it looks like dry crap. I'm only halfway done taking the braids out. Maybe I better stick to twist outs.

 

[glamazon386]

Braids outs aren't cute on my hair. Braids seems to stretch my curl pattern unattractively, unlike twist outs which model my existing curl pattern. Twist outs look wonderful, but braidouts...

It's seems best if I can do twists outs from actual two strand twists I've had in for a while, or from sectioned twists on freshly detangled and washed hair. I twist with non-water based products.

I big twist or braid my hair nightly, and those will not give me a cute twist out or braid out.

This is EXACTLY whats happening with my hair.

 

[bLackButtaFly]

Ummm so it looks like dry crap. I'm only halfway done taking the braids out. Maybe I better stick to twist outs.

It might be yuor length. I swear I had the same problem when my hair was shorter, but now I love braidouts. Give it some time, it may deserve a second chance later tdown the line.

 

[Poohbear]

What's your technique? I can't seem to get them to work on my hair. All they do is stretch out my curl pattern a bit but when I take the braid down there's still a million little coils. My hair doesn't take on the shape of the braid like it does with twist outs. I've tried on wet, damp, and dry hair and used a leave in each time. Does anybody have any tips? How do you do yours?

My braidouts do this too. I like when my hair does this.

 

[glamazon386]

It might be yuor length. I swear I had the same problem when my hair was shorter, but now I love braidouts. Give it some time, it may deserve a second chance later tdown the line.

Darn... Looks like I'll be wigging it again. I don't feel like rewashing.