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View Full Version : I FINALLY sorted out how to do a topknot bun with classic length hair! (with pics)



candlesandfish
December 30th, 2012, 04:57 AM
Maybe someone's worked this out before me, but I've been wanting to wear this style for ages but cursing (for once) my insanely long hair - it looks great on girls with mid-back to waist length hair, but not me - it just ends up looking huge and messy and then sagging down backwards from the weight.

Then someone on another forum I'm on with shorter hair posted a picture of an upside down braid (french braiding with your head upside down, starting at the nape) going into a bun and that gave me an idea. So I did that, using lots of little sections and pulling firm but not tight, although it got tighter as I started to work up the head and no longer had a curved surface to pull hair from (I took my hair from the edge of my hairline at the point of the braid, if that makes sense - it got further out as I got further out from the nape). once I'd got to just past the top of my head where I wanted the knot, I braided another few sections, then grabbed the other third of my hair that hadn't been added to the braid yet and put all of it into a ponytail with a thick elastic at the point at the centre of where I wanted my bun. the extra braiding gave the braid on my head (which is for support more than anything) more security. Then I finally got to put my head up the right way instead of upside down, and twisted my length to medium-loose (so it looked soft, but was manageable), and twisted that around the ponytail a couple times. I actually ended up with a two-level topknot, with the bit straight out of my ponytail higher than the next wraps which were actually on the top of my scalp hair. Three bobby pins later (at 1 o'clock at an angle, 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock, through the outer wraps of the bun and into the scalp hair and the first wrap of the ponytail) and I had this, completely with lots of curly face framing hair - my hair insists on doing this, and for once it actually adds to the style.

So, this is what it looked like right after I did it (sorry for webcam pic quality):
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/734890_10151209375387717_513601104_n.jpg

From the side:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a36/kyrieflutter/private/Photoon30-12-12at506PM_zps8fee3f67.jpg

From the back:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a36/kyrieflutter/private/Photoon30-12-12at506PM2_zpseb4b85df.jpg

and when I got in tonight after wearing it for five hours or so:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a36/kyrieflutter/private/Photoon30-12-12at910PM2_zps1cd5abf5.jpg

And, because it's really tall, I thought I'd dip my head forward and get a shot too:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a36/kyrieflutter/private/Photoon30-12-12at910PM4_zps776af96d.jpg

The only issue I found is that it hurt like mad at the front after I took it out, so I'm going to use more bobby pins to support it from the sides and back next time, so it doesn't pull so much.

Mischamiu
December 30th, 2012, 05:10 AM
Congrats! I love this look and it looks great on you :o maybe I'll get to use it in many many years :blossom:

Kizuna
December 30th, 2012, 06:04 AM
It looks great! I love how it looks from the front :)
I might try this myself even though my hair is not as long as yours. :)

KittyBird
December 30th, 2012, 06:52 AM
Great updo, it looks beautiful on you! I've never done a topknot before, but it does look very pretty and practical.

jacqueline101
December 30th, 2012, 10:25 AM
I love it. I will have to try it.

spidermom
December 30th, 2012, 11:01 AM
Nice! Mine would always slide down, too; have never overcome that problem. But I refuse an elastic because I hate the dent that they make in my hair when I take it down, which ruins the look of what are otherwise lovely bun waves.

Sillage
December 30th, 2012, 11:09 AM
Wow I love this look on you! I'm going to have to try this tonight :)

Shepherdess
December 30th, 2012, 12:48 PM
Very lovely! Thank you for sharing this idea! I have thigh length hair, and it can be trouble for sure trying to keep it up on top of my head!

That style looks great on you! :o

melusine963
December 30th, 2012, 03:25 PM
This style really suits you! I feel your pain with cursing your long hair. I'm currently trying and failing to make a seashell bun (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=65935) (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=65935) on my TBL hair. :(

Ivybelle
December 30th, 2012, 03:50 PM
It looks really elegant. I like it. :D

AnqeIicDemise
December 30th, 2012, 03:57 PM
This style really suits you! I feel your pain with cursing your long hair. I'm currently trying and failing to make a seashell bun (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=65935) (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=65935) on my TBL hair. :(

I wrap my ends around my hand first, coil the next section around four fingers, then the next around three and the last around two. I do need to give it half a turn or so to tighten everything up and carefully fold the very tips of the end into the center of the bun but it works. :D Ps: My hair is just past hip, two more inches left to TBL. The hardest part I have is securing it properly though I noticed two sticks work perfectly as does the mega jumbo bobby pins. I prefer the sticks.

theemeraldskull
December 30th, 2012, 04:19 PM
Looks fabulous! I just discovered this style myself a few days ago, and I love it! (I have tailbone length hair) It was more comfortable than most other buns (since the pony didn't have to be too tight), though it was somewhat painful letting it down, as it was accustomed to the upward flow rather than downward... but I shook it a bit and it felt fine after a minute or two. :)

melusine963
December 30th, 2012, 08:18 PM
I wrap my ends around my hand first, coil the next section around four fingers, then the next around three and the last around two. I do need to give it half a turn or so to tighten everything up and carefully fold the very tips of the end into the center of the bun but it works. :D Ps: My hair is just past hip, two more inches left to TBL. The hardest part I have is securing it properly though I noticed two sticks work perfectly as does the mega jumbo bobby pins. I prefer the sticks.

Thank you, AnqeIicDemise! It never occured to me that I could make more coils as needed. With only two it was impossible to stuff the remaining tail beneath the bun while maintaining the seashell shape. I will give this another go. :flower:

ETA: I find that two spin pins do a good job of keeping the bun up. I insert one from the top down unto the central coils to anchor them in place, and the other from the bottom up into the outermost coil.

spirals
December 30th, 2012, 09:34 PM
It looks romantic on you, as if you were a victorian heroine.

candlesandfish
December 30th, 2012, 09:39 PM
Thanks all! :D And yes, I got the victorian vibe from it too. Very gibson girl.

PixxieStix
December 30th, 2012, 09:45 PM
Ooooo, pretty! Very well done, and the looks really suits your facial features splendidly. So elegant and practical, I love top knots, and wear one nearly every day.

AnqeIicDemise
December 31st, 2012, 01:08 AM
Thanks all! :D And yes, I got the victorian vibe from it too. Very gibson girl.

I was thinking just that actually. :D

MaryO
December 31st, 2012, 03:10 AM
That looks super cute, glad you managed to pull it off! :-)

Lippytoes
December 31st, 2012, 03:29 AM
That looks so awesome on you! Suits your face perfectly. :) And I love the wisps, too!

melusine963
January 2nd, 2013, 12:51 AM
I wrap my ends around my hand first, coil the next section around four fingers, then the next around three and the last around two. I do need to give it half a turn or so to tighten everything up and carefully fold the very tips of the end into the center of the bun but it works. :D Ps: My hair is just past hip, two more inches left to TBL. The hardest part I have is securing it properly though I noticed two sticks work perfectly as does the mega jumbo bobby pins. I prefer the sticks.

Success!!! Thank you for your advice. Adding extra coils certainly did the trick. :flowers:

woolyleprechaun
January 2nd, 2013, 01:41 AM
I love it! It looks wonderful on you. I will be giving this a try once my hair grows out of its grumpy stage (its about an inch off waist and refusing to do ANYTHING all of a sudden).
Thanks for sharing!

Anex
January 2nd, 2013, 10:25 AM
Nice! It looks like it is actually staying too! I hate how when I try to do mine in a bun it is just this big heavy blob that falls down or looks like I have a cone coming out of my head xD

Now if I only knew how to french braid..