Damage from French Braiding?

[Red'N'Curly]

Hi! I have the HARDEST time getting my hair into a french braid. Unless it is extremely dirty and greasy, it tangles something terrible. I just can't keep the sections separate and I think I'm probably causing damage by forcing my hair into this "protective" style.:p

Am I missing some trick? Or do others with thick curly/wavy tangle prone hair fight with french braids too?

[hennalonghair]

Absolutely. My hair has to be oiled down some or on the dirty side for me to get a descent French braid.
It takes me forever and then once I'm finished I usually get a bunch of loose kiss curls that want to show themselves. At the end of the day I also get loose hairs come out at the back of my neck that like to tangle .
IMO ..... For myself French braiding causes mechanical damage. I happen to like French braids but my hair doesn't.

[spidermom]

I've braided lots of different types of hair, and curly is among the easiest (and 1A straight is the hardest). Thoroughly comb out and detangle first, then after you cross each strand over and transfer to the opposite hand, run the fingers all the way to the ends of the strands to keep them separate with the free hand.

[Sharysa]

Nope, I find my thick 1c/2a wavy hair loves braids, especially since it's coarse.

A lot of curly-haired people aren't taught to take care of their curls, so they don't realize that curly/wavy hair is just more tangle-prone in general. It's not the hair itself causing the problem, it's how people try to braid curly/wavy hair like they'd braid straight hair--just automatically braiding straight down to the ends. So their curls/waves get grabby and tangled as consequence, and then they end up with a mess and give up after a few tries of braiding.

Most people with texture need to do the "keep running your hands down the strands to separate them after a few crosses" trick as mentioned above. It takes a lot more time at first, but once you're used to it, you can put up a braid in maybe five minutes and just leave it for a whole day. (But that's a bad idea if you don't like fuzzy braids. :P )

[meteor]

I can't really French-braid my hair either, my hair is very dense and sort of tangle-prone, it doesn't like manipulation. I was having massive problems with it even when it was much shorter, but the longer my hair gets, the harder any braiding gets, because the ends can start braiding together if I don't run my fingers along the strands after every one or two passes.

To "fake" the effect of French-braiding, I do some sort of "Luana braids" - a smaller/accent English braid braided into a bigger English braid. This principle is used in Amish braided bun and in Ellingwoman bun, for example.

I also like to do a "faux" French braid, made from 3 strands: one from the top hair close to hairline (from ear to ear), and two other two strands side by side from the bottom hair. Here is a Torrin Paige video that shows it (from 4:30): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kOyGD_KOoA

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Oooh, I love that faux French braid - it looks so simple, elegant, and it keeps the hair off your neck too! It would also make a neat Jamie Leigh bun. I can French braid but I think I prefer this, TBH. French braids are just too fiddly for me.

[Agnes Hannah]

You could try spraying with a little condish in a spray bottle or even a detangling spray beforehand. I find day 1 hair too slippery for many styles anyway, it is a nightmare! 2nd day hair is better. I tend to use french braiding for special occasions with a paranda for extra oomph anyway because it is so fine.

[Madora]

Hi! I have the HARDEST time getting my hair into a french braid. Unless it is extremely dirty and greasy, it tangles something terrible. I just can't keep the sections separate and I think I'm probably causing damage by forcing my hair into this "protective" style.:p

Am I missing some trick? Or do others with thick curly/wavy tangle prone hair fight with french braids too?

Red'N'Curly, since you are blessed with gorgeous red, curly hair, you're going to have to take French braiding nice and slow, and always rake out your strands with EACH crossover you make. That being said, have you tried French braiding using a clip? Here's how:
Tip for doing a French braid (using a one piece barrette or clip):
1) Detangle hair thoroughly
2) Make a horizontal part from the top of one ear, around the back of the head, to the top of the other ear.
3) Take all hair ABOVE the part, comb out gently. CLIP with a one piece barrette.
Now start the actual French braiding:
1) Make one complete cross over. Hold the braid with one hand
2) Take a thin section of hair from right and join it to the hair strands on the Right. Pinch the section. Then take it over and JOIN with the middle section. Pinch. Rake the strands!
3) Take a thin section of hair from the LEFT. Join with LEFT section. PINCH. Rake!
4) Repeat steps 2-3. Remember to Pinch and Rake each time you add a section
5) Braid to end. Fasten w/hair friendly elastic
Tips: Tension - don't braid too tightly
Angle - hold your hands up when braiding
Head angle - sometimes it helps to either lower your head or tilting your head back
Once you feel comfortable with braiding French and Dutch, try to do it w/o the CLIP.
Good luck!

[RapunzelKat]

Separating each and every strand as I go is the key for me (especially when adding in strands from the side!). It's actually impossible to French braid my hair without doing this - my 1a hair can tangle something fierce. shudder:

Practice is also key - it took me weeks to master French braiding, and my Dutch braid skills remain a work in progress. :lol:

[Red'N'Curly]

Meteor, that is awesome. It looks like a great last minute braid. Thanks!

Madora, thank you so much for the in-depth description. I will definitely try that. Guess it's just a case of me being frustrated that I'm not instantly a master at something... wouldn't be the first time! ;)

[GRU]

Curly hair is extremely difficult to self-braid, IME.

I absolutely love having my hair in a French braid, but I absolutely cannot do it on my own hair -- I have to have someone else do it.

With that being said, there is NO reason to "force" your hair into a braid "just" to be in a protective style (I don't think all the manipulation/raking involved in French braiding is protective at all, TBH). Toss it in a bun with a stick through it and forget it. Even with all my big curly hair, I can put it up in a modified Nautilus bun with a stick in under ten seconds, no extra manipulation necessary.