my first pair of hairsticks

[mamaherrera]

I just got my first pair of hairsticks, and I'm been playing with them all day, they come loose, I take them out and redo. It's been fun, especially when I feel a firm hold. Just a question though, is there any sort of learning curve on them, can they do any damage to the hair?? Sometimes I stick them in whereever, I have no "skills" with them, and sometimes they get like stuck in a tangle (is that what it is? and I just shove them through. Is there any way, that they can break hairs, or any tips for using them or are they pretty "dummy" friendly (for me, the dummy) as in I can stick them in wherever, however and no prob???? thanks, just curious.

[MINAKO]

hey, congratulations!
i think it really depends on the type of hairstick, something like acrylic ketylos is almost impossible to damage hair with, because they are so smooth and also not very thick. however, it also depends on the hair, how tighltly you twist and it should be detangled well i think. shoving it through when you feel resistance is never a good idea. just wiggle the stick gently back and forth to get the hair moving out the way rather then breaking it.
also make sure you secure it first through the bun, then pick up some hair from the scalp underneath and exit through the bun again. i think that pretty much goes for any styles exept center helds.
have fun with trying out your sticks! :)

[mamaherrera]

the only thing with me, and thanks by the way for your help, is that I don't detangle/brush as I'm a curly wurly. So that's out. I think they are thick sticks, they are made of "Acrylic hair sticks PAIRS you pick water colors 5" 6" 7"" from ETSY, so they are thick-ish but they are of acrylic . https://www.etsy.com/listing/120525385/acrylic-hair-sticks-pairs-you-pick-water?ref=sr_gallery_1&ga_search_query=hair+sticks&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_ref=auto2&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery

I guess I'll just have to wiggle more and not just force through.

[meteor]

Congratulations on new hairsticks, mamaherrera! :happydance:

I agree with MINAKO, don't force the sticks: that can break hair and/or sticks. No pushing or torquing, just wiggle them in slowly and don't bun super-tight.

Here is a great quick video by Torrinpaige showing how to pin a bun with sticks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWf4ElyLAAE

[lapushka]

If you come across a tangle, back out, try a different insertion point - never push through.

[yogagirl]

Mamaherrera, have fun with your new sticks! It's funny, I just ordered two acrylic sticks today from the same etsy shop. Those will be my first sticks too, so I'll be watching this thread closely :)

[mamaherrera]

Thanks, yeah I'm still playing with them. I did have it too tight, it was giving me a headache, but like yesterday I did two buns with spin pins and i did them loosely so that no pain, but after my exercise, they were hanging/pulling and had come out. So today i tried to do it tighter, but now I will stop if I fill resistance, pull out and retry. Thanks for the link, I'm watching now!

[Avis]

I love Ead sticks! They're so smooth and beautiful. I see that we're the same hair type, and I can be very tangle prone because my hair is kind of grabby. I fingercomb every morning and while it does loosen waves a bit, I always wear it up so it doesn't bother me. If you plan on wearing your hair up a lot (like every day) you can always consider fingercombing gently everyday before styling. But you can always do as Lapushka says and try inserting the stick in a different spot. I honestly think my hair would be a tangled mess if I didn't detangle at least once a day despite wearing it up all day and braiding at night, so I just do it. Plus I like how much body my hair has after I fingercomb.

[mamaherrera]

I like the body too from fingercombing, but I just feel that if I fingercomb on my dry hair, I hear too many sounds, that I think means breakage. I guess I've got my hair too spoiled with wet detangling with conditioner and then my fingers just slide right through. I just am too lazy now. but is it good to put hair sticks in , not just by pushing/sliding, but should you also be twisting them the whole time they're going in, kind of like when you put an earring in? And I think these sticks are beautiful but they are "fat"/thick, the ones that Torrin had are more like metal, no, thinner, oh well, I'm using them, just bought them. I think they should be ok. Who knows if thicker sticks are better for coarse hair or fine??? I would imagine coarse, no?

[mamaherrera]

Just another question, are thick hair sticks better than thinner ones?? I just noticed that the seller I bought from has different thicknesses of his sticks, all of this I should've probably investigated beforehand, Anyone know the difference or why you should pick one over the other?

[Taenarian]

Congratulations, I trust you will find your hairsticks as awesome as I do mine. I found there were two learning curves for me to move through. The first was the basic "how does this work?" until I figured that out with cribbing here, the 'Tube place and practice. Many more months elapsed before I dinged on the "OH I see now."

What I seldom see here In Real Life are other women who use sticks or forks at all. When I do see one in the wild, I see the bun is secured with elastics and bobby pins with the fork stuck in for decoration.

[mamaherrera]

Yes I don't see women with hair sticks hardly ever. I just hope I made a good purchase getting these "thicker" sticks, although now I'm kind of regretting I didn't get 'thinner" ones and I hope I don't have to break a million hairs before learning, but I've definitely got the "out before going down thing. " I don't think I can run with these though, and they're kind of giving me a headache. I think I bunned too tight, now to learn how tight is too tight!

[EdG]

What I seldom see here In Real Life are other women who use sticks or forks at all. When I do see one in the wild, I see the bun is secured with elastics and bobby pins with the fork stuck in for decoration.


Yes I don't see women with hair sticks hardly ever. Now imagine a man wearing sticks. :bigeyes:

I have been considering sticks from the same seller. :)
Ed

[Taenarian]

Now imagine a man wearing sticks. :bigeyes:

I have been considering sticks from the same seller. :)
Ed

I am totally never playing poker with you, EdG :toast:

[EdG]

I am totally never playing poker with you, EdG :toast:I have a lot of fun on this board demolishing hair-related gender stereotypes. :rollin:

Enjoy your new sticks, mamaherrera! :)
Ed

[Hootenanny]

What kind of bun(s) are you doing, mamaherrera? When I first started using sticks, I needed to do buns that are really easy to hold with sticks, such as the disc bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Y5sSEBy7HQ , until I got used to using them. I still can't get a good hold on a cinnabun with sticks. My point is that you might need to experiment with bun styles till you find one that holds easily and comfortably for you.

[jacqueline101]

Congrats on the hair sticks. My first ones were made by my little brother. I treasure his made items. I'm sure you will treasure yours. I do have to agree torrinpaige has a great bun she does and short film on how to use sticks. I need to watch them again since I have sticks. Try learning to use them myself. I do wish you good luck on your hair stick journey.

[Avis]

The oversize sticks are nice. I use mine in the shower because when my hair is full of conditioner, one thin stick just won't hold it all. It also works nicely in center-held buns. I tried it in a cinnabun once and the result was painful. I probably bunned too tight, but the oversize stick is thicker than what I was used to using so it was painful for me. They're both great. I can get a LWB to stay with one thin stick and the oversize but I make sure to bun a little looser when I know I'm going to use my oversize. Have fun with your sticks. :)

[dreamer152]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltIpMdKZu9g&feature=youtu.be&spfreload=1

I'm new to hair sticks as well, someone posted this on my thread. It's been working fairly well for me. I do a version of it, since my hair isn't terribly long yet and I have a lot of layers still. I also twist my hair before starting to wrap, again, because of my layers. But the twisting seems to create a firmer hold with the stick as well.

[dreamer152]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltIpMdKZu9g&feature=youtu.be&spfreload=1

I'm new to hair sticks as well, someone posted this on my thread. It's been working fairly well for me. I do a version of it, since my hair isn't terribly long yet and I have a lot of layers still. I also twist my hair before starting to wrap, again, because of my layers. But the twisting seems to create a firmer hold with the stick as well.

[Aleahcim]

I think it comes all dowin to preference.

I think some ladies with a lot of long thick hair like thicker sticks because they feel more sturdy? (I'm sure people with actual long thick hair can ring in about this) and some people with lighter/finer hair (or extremely thick and extremely long) perfer thinner sticks because they are easier to insert/and or are lighter?

My self, i've used both thin and thicker acrylic sticks, with success.

Both work well, but you do need to be careful while inserting either way but I did notice more resistance with my thicker acrylic then my thinner. Then again, my oversized ONN was my very first acrylic stick and I could chalk that all up to inexperience inserting sticks at all.

I know a member on here (with very long and very thick hair ) once told me how she liked her hair toys bigger/thicker up till a certain length (I'm thinking she was getting close to mid thigh or knee) then starter perfer in very thin (yet still *very* strong) hair toys from then on.

hopefully other people can chime in, i'm only nearing bsl and i've had success with sticks and forks since a bit before apl When I first tried.

Either way, I tried to be helpful! :)

[dreamer152]

I have thick almost waist length hair. I don't like thick or heavy hair toys. But it also hurts to put my hair up sometimes. It makes my scalp sore. Mainly because I didn't put my hair up for over a year at one point so my head isn't used to having all my hair pinned up. I have Ead sticks, I just got them about a week ago, they're perfect for me. They aren't too thick or heavy and hold great once I figure out a good bun.