Non-heat waves that don't involve rags, rollers or socks for a Tolkien meeting?

[SwordWomanRiona]

Hi! I'm going to a Tolkien meeting this week, and we always have a festive dinner which includes us dressing 'Middle-earthian' and doing all kinds of healthy nerdy stuff :). Here's the thing: I'd like to do something like this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CE7N9RBGfI&list=FLlcwa5MHZ2_ay1c_oEbsFPA&index=2), but coiling the braid to form a half-updo, so I can use a Hairjems stick that has dangles and cobalt crystals to match the blue of my Elvish dress :).

So far, so good. Only thing is, I'd like some waves/curls too, but I'll be spending all day with activities, and I can't really walk around with coccons or rollers or rag-curls, can I :lol:? Heat isn't an option for me, so the only thing I can think about is bunwaves from a seashell bun (I haven't mastered the sock bun yet, and I don't think it would really fit with a ranger attire, anyway...). A seashell bun, if I keep it all day with hair that's a bit damp, does give me some nice waves, and maybe if I used some hairspray once in a lifetime, I could get those waves to stay for the night? My hair's very fine and lacks volume, so I really want to have some waves to boost the volume, especially seeing as I want to sacrifice some of my hair for the mini-half-updo...And I'm currently quite obsessed about my hair looking as full as possible :rolleyes:.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8526/8570477828_56c25ab2a9.jpg http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8233/8468631977_51702d2aa7.jpg
This is what I did at our last Tolkien meeting, when we went to see The Hobbit opening. I think that the hair I have in the braid is more or less the one I'm willing to get into the mini-half-updo, so long as the stick stays in there (the stick is the one int he right-hand pic), and I have some loose S-waves in my lower length and ends from a (dry) seashell bun. Only this time I'd like my hair to be wavier. Maybe bunning damp hair will make the waves more defined, maybe I should use hairspray? I don't like to use products like hairspray, but once in a while can't hurt, I suppose...

Thoughts? Does anyone know about some other way to get waves/curls while looking presentable AND in theme with a Tolkien meeting ;)?

I'm also really not an expert with waves/curls, still experimenting and fighting with my fine straight hair. Any tips to help the waves/curls to stay for as long as possible will be gladly welcomed! My stubborn straight hair usually laughs at my attemps after a couple of hours. So far, the seashell bunwaves are the ones that lasted longer without adding any curl mousse or spray or anything (which I normally prefer not to use).

Thank you :flower:!

[kittengirl]

I don't have any advice but your hair is GORGEOUS! I am so envious! One of my big reasons to grow out my hair is to look more Elvish, and your whole outfit is so lovely!

[ejking2]

What about braid waves with a paranda? You could even do three braids and then braid them together for lots of waves and a more intricate look.

Edit: To make it last longer, maybe you could spray the hair with water to dampen it before you braid. I find my braid waves last a long time when I braid it damp. You could also coat the braids in a tiny bit of aloe vera gel for more hold.

[HylianGirl]

Your hair is gorgeous, and so is the half up!

Have you tried rope braiding it? It gives some wonderfull waves



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNA_GkKlF1I

[abbatabba1137]

What about braid waves with a paranda? You could even do three braids and then braid them together for lots of waves and a more intricate look.

Edit: To make it last longer, maybe you could spray the hair with water to dampen it before you braid. I find my braid waves last a long time when I braid it damp. You could also coat the braids in a tiny bit of aloe vera gel for more hold.

I second the braids waves idea, AND the aloe gel....
Granted my hair is nothing like yours, I have had great success with beautiful and even braid waves when I add a little aloe gel to damp hair.

Something you could do is style your hair in the half up you want, then braid the rest. Since you're a ranger during the day, you could just bun the braid(s). That way your hair will stay out of your bow... ;)

on a side note, I just came across this site (http://myelvenkingdom.tumblr.com/post/35218935016/my-hair-for-the-lotr-matathon-this-year-fishtail) a few days ago and thought of you!

[melusine963]

What about braid waves with a paranda? You could even do three braids and then braid them together for lots of waves and a more intricate look.

Edit: To make it last longer, maybe you could spray the hair with water to dampen it before you braid. I find my braid waves last a long time when I braid it damp. You could also coat the braids in a tiny bit of aloe vera gel for more hold.

Phalaenopsis did a tutorial for this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFjxuuVh80A

[Iolanthe13]

I love rope braids for this. I get the best curls by making just one rope braid and making sure both strands are really compact, if that makes sense - you want them to be as short and fat as possible before roping them together, because if they are longer and sort of stretched out, they tend to be tangly and not pretty. I generally get bouncy ringlets if I'm careful and take my time with this method.

[Bagginslover]

I would go with 3 braids, with or without paradas, which are then braided together into one big braid. I'd sure Arwens hair was done in a similar fashion at the battle of Helms Deep (which was sadly cut from the movie), it would work well for a female ranger as well as an elven sheild maiden ;)

[MasCat]

Yep, when I want good waves I opt for french or dutch braid. that Arwen braid would be perfect, but if you don't want to spend hours braiding you could just do two or three french braids and braid them together. And maybe do some hair taping with a leather cord.

After french/dutch braiding I walways get the best waves and my hair has volume, also near the skin :)

[MaryO]

Don't have any hair tips but am intrigued by your Tolkien meeting! I have only discovered the addiction (and genuis!!) that is Tolkien so I'm feeling a bit jealous of your fun- do enjoy and let us know how you wore your hair! :-)

[animetor7]

Well whenever I want Galadriel curls I just braid my hair in two plain but loose English braids when damp(about 80-90 percent dry) and sleep on it. That usually stays for me and we have a similar hair type, however yours is much longer than mine so it might not last as long. To keep it you could try just using some sugar or salt water (used in a spray bottle), that sometimes helps things stay and isn't damaging (cool fact that's what many victorian women used as hairspray) or just plain hairspray always works too. I have trouble getting any sort of curl to stay in my 1a/1b hair as well unless braided when damp. like the "waves" from a single english braid in my signature picture.

[neko_kawaii]

I'm also going to suggest rope braid waves. If you want to put the end of a braid in a rag curl but worry about wearing it all day in a rag I just want to say that I have successfully hidden rags at the end of a braid behind a bun. You probably saw this already, but here is my braid wave comparison experiment (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/entry.php?b=107254) to give you some ideas.

[Amygirl8]

I'm going to jump in and offer a different method that I saw some time ago.

What you do is make a ponytail where you want a bun to be, and taking one small piece of hair roll it up in your fingers (like a pin curl) and then pin (but pin so it fans outwards, not flat on the scalp). Do this for all the hair in the ponytail.
It looks nice, with all the bobby pins it should be secure, and it will also give you some beautifully defined waves/curls when you take it down.
For added hold , before you make the bun spritz a little bit of water on your hair and run through it with a tiny bit of body lotion. I find the lotion acts almost like gel, holding hair, so using just a little is great for it stay (but too much will make the hair hard and crunchy)

Good luck and have fun at this meeting! It sounds awesome c:

[Ambystoma]

I don't have any hair advice for you (and there's lots of great suggestions here anyway :)), I just wanted to say how lovely your outfit looked!

[SwordWomanRiona]

Thank you so much for all the great tips and methods!! And thank you for the sweet compliments, too :flowers:
I haven't read all the replies throroughly, but the spritzing my hair with salt water and the aloe vera gel sound like a great and healthy alternative to hairspray! Initially I was trying to try bunwaves instead of braidwaves, which in my case do not turn out so voluminous, but I have to admit that a braided style is much better for a ranger look than a seashell bun...So I think I might be going for a braided 'do and probably bandanna-curl the ends a couple of hours before the dinner. I haven't decided what kind of braids, though. Rope, maybe, or a combination of French and lace three-strands braided together. I really like Daenerys' Pyre hair, but it's a bit daunting. Maybe I'd have time to try it on Friday morning and take it off on Saturday afternoon...

I'm off to my sword-fighting class now, but when I come back I'll read through all the replies and decide what to do with my hair on Saturday :)

[WaitingSoLong]

I don't get any curl from rope braids. Hmm.

I use parandi to get curl. I have a spritz I use that is AVG and water. It sets the curls quite nicely but you must decently dampen the braids and they must thoroughly dry. My hair needs overnight or an entire day to do this. 3 parandi braids is definitely my best:
http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/DSC01971600x800_zps999ffe39.jpghttp://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/DSC01979600x800_zpsaae875c6.jpghttp://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/DSC01981600x800_zps977d06c0.jpg

[ejking2]

WSL, that looks lovely!

SwordWomanRiona, a sword-fighting class and a Tolkien meeting? :disbelief You must live somewhere great to have those opportunities!

[AspenSong]

I agree with the Parandi idea for waves.

But totally off topic I just must say between your braids and waves WSL and then the pics SWR posted at the beginning...this is a THUD hair thread. You ladies have it all! My dream blonde hair and my dream dark hair. Stunning and magnificent!!! :) :thud: :inlove:

[SwordWomanRiona]

Wow, WSL, such gorgeous braidwaves (and hair, of course) :thud:!!

@ejking2, It's true, I can't complain, I've got a Tolkien Society and an ancient sword-fighting academy handy :)

@Aspensong :flower:

Tomorrow I'm going to try the paranda rope braid with the salt water, and see how it turns out. On Friday morning I'll wash my hair and probably (also depending on the rope braiding results) attempt Daenerys' pyre hair.It's a nice ranger-y 'do, and maybe it can stay until Saturday afternoon, something which could result in nice defined waves. Wheee! Then I'll go for the half-updo at the festive dinner.

Thank you so much for your great suggestions! I'll let you know how it turned out!

[nakima]

check out cacooning(spelling) on you tube, its really easy and turns out pretty cool, just found it the other day if you try it let us know what you think and by the way you do have beautiful hair!

[WaitingSoLong]

I have been tempted to try the cocooning but the amount of work is unappealing to me. I get such decent waves from parandi I just stick with that.

[SwordWomanRiona]

I tried the cocoons once, and I got nice spiral waves, but I did a lopsided work :D. I'll have to try again sometime.

At the end I did a multi-braided hairstyle, as many of you suggested, a French braid with a paranda and two smaller lace braids intertwined around the larger French braid. I braided my hair just after washing and drying it, and misted it with salty distilled water. The afternoon before the dinner I curled my ends a bit with a sock :P
I made two more tries the days before the Tolkien meet, with aloe vera gel, seashell buns and rope braids misted with salt water, but at the end I chose the multi-braided 'do because it suited my ranger attire the best. I wore my hair like this for a day and a half and took the braids off at the festive dinner. I got some nice braidwaves, but my hair is just SO stubborn I of course didn't get defined S-waves or anything, just general braidwaves. Until now, I've only gotten more defined waves with the coccons and bandanna waves and bunwaves, but those are processes I couldn't do while dressing as a ranger :).

I still haven't got many pics from the dinner, but this is the style:
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8242/8596198260_a059aa1308.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8518/8596198732_d15c0ca187.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8251/8595097313_77e04991e6.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8368/8595097427_caba03d733.jpg