Is there a way to put braids in that aren't visible?

[Magdalene]

Would twists (either a two strand or a simple rolled twist into your bun) be allowed? It seems like I've seen pictures of military personnel wearing twists but it could have been on tv which isn't the most accurate.

[Chromis]

I wore a sock bun when I was in the military much of the time or one of those whirl-a-bun contraptions. Before I discovered those I made a bun, securing it with a black hair elastic and *lots* of bobbypins or I made a folded braid, again, held in place with *lots* of bobbypins. It seemed I could never have enough of them. For PT I usually made a folded braid. Braid upwards so that it is neat when you flip it. Pin, pin, pin, fold it at the top, pin some more and fold again if needed, pinning yet more. It is much faster than it sounds. My hair was not yet knee length then, but is was a bit past classic by the time I got out.

Magdalene - You can do a twist, but it cannot interfere with your headgear. For the plain cloth caps this is fine, you can just go up in size, but it gets trickier with a beret or a Kevlar helmet.

[Narya]

And what about a braided bun like this one?

If your hair is shorter and thicker (as I seem to understand) you could do just "half" or do the dutch braided part smaller to be able to round it all.

[Kricket]

Hello again.

Quick note about cornrows, most of the women I know who get microbraids get a weave done of braids instead of cornrows -- which is treated like normal hair. It's less stressful on the scalp and needs less maintenance to keep looking polished.

Rusika1 you're right about sock buns. I stopped using sock buns once my hair was shoulder length -- they don't stay anchored and slide, and at shoulder length with a full rolled sock there was too much extra hair to wrap around the base. (As for a small sock, I have a hard enough time getting my hair to bend around a big one!) I looked into a rolled sock bun where you don't have the tricky ends, but my hair won't stay put. Socks are also incompatible with field time, it won't stay clean.

I will have to see if putting a French farther back will work.

Magdalene, I can't figure out how to get a French twist to stay in my hair now that it's past shoulder length and a twist with my thickness of hair if folded and pinned puts me out of regulation again because it is more than three inches off my scalp.

Chromis do you mind me asking what branch you served in/how long/etc? And also if you could elaborate on a folded braid? My hair is between waist and hip length right now and it's very thick, so the issue becomes the thickness of such a braid would be able to be under 3 inches in thickness.

Narya that is gorgeous. I wouldn't be able to do that exact profile because it would interfere with my headgear, but I've done something like that before with two French braids that I loved -- and that's actually what I'm trying to recreate since it was so stable in a way that is within the regulations.


I might just have to suck it up... Or become a slight hair deviant. But regardless, thank you all ladies for your input!!!

[Chromis]

I was six years active ARNG.

I don't have any pictures using pins for this style, but imagine it minus the Ficcare:


It works great under a patrol cap, and I was able to use it with Kevlar too, but it did not work for those stupid berets.

For the issue of too much hair to wrap around a sock bun, I did a variant called a kitty bun. It's just a single braid wrapped around the base:


More often I used a whirl-a-bun though, which worked well until about tailbone, when I switched to the kitty bun. That makes a bun like this:

I think I found both of mine at Claire's. I have used two different styles:
http://www.amazon.com/Whirl-A-Style/dp/B003E6JU5S
http://www.amazon.com/Amaranth-Twist...ref=pd_sbs_a_3
They are a very popular option and pretty much foolproof. The first one might be better for thick hair, but the second was easier at your current length for me. They are normally very cheap though, so I would pick them both up and see which you like better. Field friendly.

[Ava666]

My older sister is in the army and how she does her hair is a french braid and then she puts it in a bun. I will ask her what else she does, and if she has any other styles that might work for you.

[Anywhere]

Could you do a tucked french braid?

[BlazingHeart]

Twists are not the same as a French twist. I suppose they are a bit like a French rope braid. Might be something you can get away with. To make twists, you start with hair at the front of your head. Twist twice, then add in the section behind your starter section. Twist once, add the next section, and continue like that until you have all your hair in. Then you can bun the tail. 2 or more twists is the norm. With thick hair, I would start with 4-6 and maybe do something like a vortex bun with the tails.

I was going to suggest rolls, which are a similar idea but different execution. You start above your ear and work towards the center back of your head, same method as twists.

[Dragon Faery]

I saw a video on YouTube of someone (a dancer with red, curly hair) doing a cinnamon bun with three tails instead of one. She started with a ponytail, took a third of her hair, twisted for several inches, pinned part way around the base, let it hang, took a second section, twisted and pinned around the first, took the last third and did the same. Then she picked up the first again and continued. It gave a radiating spiral effect, but was close to the head and secure because of all the pins and the fact that her thickness was divided into multiple twists.

I can't find the video from my phone, but I had searched something along the lines of "long curly hair" ... The poster's name might have been Cinnamon Curls. Her demonstration was very easy to follow.

Good luck!

[Ava666]

Ok, sent question to my sister. here is exactly what I asked, " I have a question, for someone else... how do you do your hair for army stuff? she wants to know if her hairstyle would work ( 2 french braids then wrapped into a bun) and one of your pics (the one of sitting at the desk) it looks to me like you have 2 braids, maybe..."

And her response "I have 2 french braids, that I band together twice, then sorta flip up & bobby pin to my head. Yes, french beaus & then bunned is perfectly acceptable, so long as the bun stays off her collar & there's no hair in her face"

hope this helps.