Protective style dilemma

[Flossiebell]

Hi
I really need to put my hair in protective styles to try and grow out the mess the stylist made of it but I have some issues due to:
1. I have fine fragile hair
2. I cannot wear buns (high or low) because they hurt.
3. I have layers and lots of different length hair all over my head.
I like 2 braids but my hair sticks out all the way down the braid from top to bottom so that (in my opinion) it is not protective.
Does anyone have any advice on how I can get through this and grow my hair out? The only solution I can think of is a silk hat or scarf I could wrap around my head or something which I can't wear at work and my dbf will just laugh at me all the time and say I'm weird.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated, thanks x

Oh, by the way my hair is wavy and at bsl length overall and I usually have evoo on all the time. I also use henna to try and strengthen my hair but it doesn't seem to be making any difference :(

[florenonite]

What types of buns are you doing, and how are you securing them? I find a lot of buns are uncomfortable or pull at my hair if I try to get them to hold with a single hairstick, but with some large pins the weight is better balanced and it's more comfortable.

I would still consider braids with the hair sticking out protective (though I'm not sure if you're okay with how that looks) because it's still restraining the hair and keeping it from tangling or getting caught in collars or bag straps. Lightly oiling your hair before braiding or braiding whilst damp can also help keep it contained.

[CurlMonster]

I think braids with hair sticking out are still protective. Try different types of braids too, you may find that different types make your hair look quite different. Also different braids may hold you hair in better - maybe try fishtail braiding, rope braiding, and similar. Another option would be to French braid your hair and then tuck the braid end up, that way the weight is a bit more distributed, but the hair is all 'up' and protected. :)

[Flor]

French twist?

As for buns, try disk bun. I cannot praise it enough, the most comfortable bun ever.

[verenikiscoma]

Fishtail worked really well for layers for me, so maybe that's an idea. How do you feel about dutch/french braid? Also, have you considered hair forks? I find they distribute the hold a bit more and are a bit more gentle.

[pocketsmall]

I have baby fine fragile hair. I find either french braiding or wearing it up in a large octopus clip works best. Buns do not more for me either, too much tugging and my hair is too fragile to be twisted into a decent looking bun.

[Flossiebell]

What types of buns are you doing, and how are you securing them? I find a lot of buns are uncomfortable or pull at my hair if I try to get them to hold with a single hairstick, but with some large pins the weight is better balanced and it's more comfortable.

I would still consider braids with the hair sticking out protective (though I'm not sure if you're okay with how that looks) because it's still restraining the hair and keeping it from tangling or getting caught in collars or bag straps. Lightly oiling your hair before braiding or braiding whilst damp can also help keep it contained.

I usually do a ponytail and then twist my hair around it and secure with clamps. My hair spits bobby pins out and hair sticks won't hold it, sigh. I guess I will have to try and ignore my tatty braids. As long as they don't get any worse I guess I can live with them :)

[Flossiebell]

French twist?

As for buns, try disk bun. I cannot praise it enough, the most comfortable bun ever.

I think I will have to practice a very long time to be able to do this one (and get the hair stick to stay put). Just watched a tutorial on youtube - very nice looking bun!

[Flossiebell]

Thanks for all your replies, I don't feel quite so despondent about my hair now :)
I think I will try fishtail and french braiding but I have noticed lots of snapping noises when I do these - French in particular. I guess I am doing something wrong? Snapping can't be good?

[verenikiscoma]

I found that if you take the time after each turn to separate and smooth each section it helps. When I was learning to fishtail I would do it over my right shoulder really slowly, separating after each step, it reduced damage. Once your fingers learn the drill you won't even need the mirror.

[SerinaDaith]

Double braids with U pins to tame the braid shread? You may have to pin it within an inch of it's life though. What length is your hair?

[Kaelee]

French twist?

As for buns, try disk bun. I cannot praise it enough, the most comfortable bun ever.

This!!! :D

[florenonite]

I usually do a ponytail and then twist my hair around it and secure with clamps. My hair spits bobby pins out and hair sticks won't hold it, sigh. I guess I will have to try and ignore my tatty braids. As long as they don't get any worse I guess I can live with them :)

Hmm, the bun you're doing sounds like a cinnabun. I know it's a classic, but I can never get it to hold (which is weird, as it was my standby years ago. Must have had different layers then or something). How thick is your hair? The fact that you said buns hurt suggests to me you have thick, heavy hair, unless it's an issue with your hair being brushed in a different direction (can you do ponytails without pain?). I would definitely recommend seeking out new buns to try. There are loads of hairstyling tutorials on YouTube, for instance.

As for hairsticks, how are you using them? The best way to secure a bun with a stick is to insert it perpendicular to the bun, catch some scalp hair, then turn the stick 90 degrees and weave it through bun and scalp hair. They can take some practice to use effectively, and some people find they need two sticks to hold styles securely, but it's worth practising if you get the chance.

[Flossiebell]

Double braids with U pins to tame the braid shread? You may have to pin it within an inch of it's life though. What length is your hair?

Overall my hair is at bsl. I don't understand what you mean about the u pins though, could you explain please? Thanks

[Flossiebell]

Hmm, the bun you're doing sounds like a cinnabun. I know it's a classic, but I can never get it to hold (which is weird, as it was my standby years ago. Must have had different layers then or something). How thick is your hair? The fact that you said buns hurt suggests to me you have thick, heavy hair, unless it's an issue with your hair being brushed in a different direction (can you do ponytails without pain?). I would definitely recommend seeking out new buns to try. There are loads of hairstyling tutorials on YouTube, for instance.

As for hairsticks, how are you using them? The best way to secure a bun with a stick is to insert it perpendicular to the bun, catch some scalp hair, then turn the stick 90 degrees and weave it through bun and scalp hair. They can take some practice to use effectively, and some people find they need two sticks to hold styles securely, but it's worth practising if you get the chance.

I have fine hair and lots of it. Ponytails hurt because it starts feeling like it's pulling my hair out (I usually find shed hair every time i take my hair down after a pony. I usually keep them low because high ponies really hurt. I will have to keep trying with hair sticks but they feel like I'm ripping my hair out when I am putting it in. Hopefully I will get there in the end, and I will definitely check out tutorials on youtube. Thanks :)

[furnival]

What kind of hair sticks are you using? They should slide smoothly through your hair, not feel like they're ripping it out. The surface should feel smooth to the touch.

[AmyBeth]

Try using a paranda for the braid, that helps to protect the hair. Putting a braided paranda into a bun is very comfortable and protective. I have the same fragile hair and tender scalp that you have. Sometimes I can't stand to put my hair up at all and parandas provide protection and style. Do make sure your hairstick is smooth if you use one.

[Flossiebell]

What kind of hair sticks are you using? They should slide smoothly through your hair, not feel like they're ripping it out. The surface should feel smooth to the touch.

They are smooth to the touch. I think it is a case of operator error...so practice, practice, practice I guess :)

[BlazingHeart]

From the way you're describing things, it sounds like you're doing everything too tight. That'd cause the sheds, the broken hairs, the snapping noises, and it certainly causes me nasty headaches. Try to do things looser and with less force. It will feel weird and like it's going to fall out, but when you get used to it, it's one hell of a lot more comfortable. I say this as someone with a sensitive scalp and who easily gets tension headaches, so I do have a lot of trouble finding styles that work, and then tend to do that style over and over.

In another thread, I saw Madora make a recommendation that makes a lot of sense to me - when you do a ponytail, can you put a finger in between the band and your head? If not, try loosening it.

Once my hair was long enough, I found that a Nautilus bun is pretty comfortable, but I don't know what your length-to-thickness ratio is. Most people can do it by about waist length.

As for other styles - have you tried a Gibson tuck or a Gibson roll? Those are pretty gentle. I particularly recommend the tuck, because by its nature you have to make it looser or you physically can't do the steps.

[Katrine]

I'm so glad to see you started this thread, Flossiebell. My scalp has been feeling very tender of late and the buns that I wore comfortably through the summer are causing me real pain now. I had to find a detangler (with cones) and serum for my length and ends so I can wear my hair down because I don't know what else to do with it.

I can definitely feel your frustration about braiding too! I don't like to hear that snapping sound either. sigh. I was thinking that maybe I could secure the buns with pins. I've heard mention of amish pins to secure buns. I don't have any and was thinking of buying some to secure the buns with them instead of hair sticks. Here are a couple of threads about them (below) There are more threads, you can do a search on google and it will pull them up for LHC.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=88477
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=112040

HTH :)

[Flossiebell]

Wow. I hadn't thought about that. That makes a lot of sense BlazingHeart. I have tried to do a Gibson tuck several times but I struggle with it and I probably do things tight because I don't have a lot of confidence with updos and thought if they were loose they would fall out. I will make a huge effort to loosen up. Hopefully that will help. Thank you x :)

[Kaelee]

From the way you're describing things, it sounds like you're doing everything too tight. That'd cause the sheds, the broken hairs, the snapping noises, and it certainly causes me nasty headaches. Try to do things looser and with less force. It will feel weird and like it's going to fall out, but when you get used to it, it's one hell of a lot more comfortable. I say this as someone with a sensitive scalp and who easily gets tension headaches, so I do have a lot of trouble finding styles that work, and then tend to do that style over and over.

In another thread, I saw Madora make a recommendation that makes a lot of sense to me - when you do a ponytail, can you put a finger in between the band and your head? If not, try loosening it.

Once my hair was long enough, I found that a Nautilus bun is pretty comfortable, but I don't know what your length-to-thickness ratio is. Most people can do it by about waist length.

As for other styles - have you tried a Gibson tuck or a Gibson roll? Those are pretty gentle. I particularly recommend the tuck, because by its nature you have to make it looser or you physically can't do the steps.

Good advice. I tend to do things too tight because if it's loose it feels WEIRD. And my OCD can't tolerate weird feeling things on my head. I'm working on it though.

[Magalo]

If your buns hurt, it's not because they aren't for you, it's because you aren't doing them correctly! Try different hair toys, different buns and different tension. I'm sure you'll find at least one that you'll like!

[Flor]

The method I use for correct bun tension is when you pull your hair into a ponytail, before you begin wrapping it in a bun style, twist your head every each way to make sure you're not feeling any strain. If you do, then loosen up your grip a bit to adjust. And only THEN start wrapping the bun. If in the end it still feels too tight, then start all over. Practice makes perfect! :)

Also try making them higher or lower, sometimes the position makes a difference too.

[Lyv]

Have you tried spin pins to keep your buns in place? If I try to use any kind of hair elastic to keep it up it ends up too tight and I get head aches but spins pins seem to do a decent job for me. I have bsl/layered hair so my braids don't look the best sometimes but I've started using aloe vera and that seems to keep the layers smoothed down so it looks better, and it gives me really nice shiny braid waves so that's nice too :D

[Kaelee]

The method I use for correct bun tension is when you pull your hair into a ponytail, before you begin wrapping it in a bun style, twist your head every each way to make sure you're not feeling any strain. If you do, then loosen up your grip a bit to adjust. And only THEN start wrapping the bun. If in the end it still feels too tight, then start all over. Practice makes perfect! :)

Also try making them higher or lower, sometimes the position makes a difference too.

I am going to try this. Thank you!

[SerinaDaith]

http://www.amphigory.com/hair-hairpins-bobbypins.html
The very top pins, they work well in braids to tame the wild braid shred for me.

[chen bao jun]

braided vortex bun?
dutch flutterby?

[YamaMaya]

French braids contain layers quite well if you can manage to do them nicely.

[Not Lynn Merely]

French twist?

As for buns, try disk bun. I cannot praise it enough, the most comfortable bun ever.

Yes yes yes on disk bun! I would also recommend the chameleon bun (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr1gwxHBgRM) (link is a video) when you have a more length. (I can't speak the language, but the video is very clear. I usually insert the stick the way she does the first time through. As my hair is not nearly so thick, the bun looks completely different on me. This is a bun where you will definitely need to start out looser.)

Another note on hairsticks: being smooth isn't enough. They must also have a good point on them, almost sharp, so that they can slip between hairs and not just push on them. If you poke your palm with it hard, it should hurt but not puncture the skin.

When forming buns, I find that I cannot start out by inserting the hairstick perpendicular to my bun, as many do, because that causes the first piece of scalp hair picked up to tug mercilessly.

[florenonite]

How far down your braids do you tie them off? I'm at BSL, too, with layers, and I find if I tie my braids off three or four inches above the bottom they not only look neater, but they're actually more hair-friendly because the layers aren't getting roughed up and pulled out. Maybe you could try these half-braids, too?

I also find layers are contained better if I French braid with small sections.

[Flossiebell]

How far down your braids do you tie them off? I'm at BSL, too, with layers, and I find if I tie my braids off three or four inches above the bottom they not only look neater, but they're actually more hair-friendly because the layers aren't getting roughed up and pulled out. Maybe you could try these half-braids, too?

I also find layers are contained better if I French braid with small sections.

I tie my braids off about 3ins from the bottom. My hair looks roughed up all the way down the braid from top to bottom. I had my hair in 2 braids today, by the time I got to work I took them down as they were scratching my face - really annoying. I don't think I can post a pic of it. It is quite literally sticking out everywhere all the way down the braid from top to bottom, in fact the only part that looks ok is the end that isn't braided. Now in a loose(ish) botched french plait. Still practising on that one. Have even tried a paranda using 30 strands of dk wool and my hair just explodes out of it. My fav option right now is to stick it all in a hat! Lol

[Kaelee]

Yes yes yes on disk bun! I would also recommend the chameleon bun (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr1gwxHBgRM) (link is a video) when you have a more length. (I can't speak the language, but the video is very clear. I usually insert the stick the way she does the first time through. As my hair is not nearly so thick, the bun looks completely different on me. This is a bun where you will definitely need to start out looser.)

Another note on hairsticks: being smooth isn't enough. They must also have a good point on them, almost sharp, so that they can slip between hairs and not just push on them. If you poke your palm with it hard, it should hurt but not puncture the skin.

When forming buns, I find that I cannot start out by inserting the hairstick perpendicular to my bun, as many do, because that causes the first piece of scalp hair picked up to tug mercilessly.

Wow!!! That's a heck of a bun!!! :lol:

I can't insert the stick perpendicular either, I have the same problem. It feels like it's trying to rip out one small section of my scalp. :bigeyes:

[sagremus]

I have layers too and have BSL hair. With my braids I will use a hair masque or oil on the hair to prevent the ends from "sticking out." Sometimes it takes quite a thick coating. I then will wear my braid until next wash, re-doing it when necessary.