I did some kind of double crown braid :D

[Ilenora]

... and I was stupidly proud of it, despite the fact that it was messy, had bobby pins poking out every which-way and I had to take it down a few hours later when I went out in the rain :(

It's one of the first times I've successfully gotten my hair 'up'. Apparently it's neater and stronger to french or dutch braid the hair around the head, but I don't know how and my hair is far from cooperative - it's got a ton of grip (you could describe it as almost velcro-y) and separating strands is a huge pain. Even when my sister french braided my hair yesterday, she had a lot of trouble getting all the strands and it ended up pretty messy. I'm not super dexterous with my braiding so I can't imagine I would do a good job.

Anyway, so I just did two normal braids behind my ears, wrapped them around the head and used almost an entire packet of bobby pins to hold it in place - like this (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-THqk5zSmr10/Uq5NbyOU-DI/AAAAAAAADQc/QFea3RBASg8/s1600/DIY-Crown-Braid-Hairstyle%20%281%29.jpg). I think it's called a double coronet or double crown braid, I don't know what the difference is.
It was surprisingly pretty firm. My braid are rather fat though so it was rather large and lumpy. I can't figure out how to get the pins in so the ends don't show, which is annoying.

Unfortunately it's a dark, rainy day so I couldn't get a photo. It was pretty messy anyway. I'd like to try again since it seems to be quite a protective style.

Has anyone else tried this hairstyle, and if so, any tips? I couldn't get ends totally tucked in and the elastics were showing.

[gthlvrmx]

I tried something similar before, except I didn't cross over the braids in the back initially, I just wrapped my hair around my head and secured the ends with mini spin pins. They did hold for a good while.

[Ilenora]

Oh, with hair as long and heavy as mine, securing it along the whole length is definitely necessary. I wish it were a little easier to french or dutch braid because it would take half as many pins to keep it up.

[meteor]

... and I was stupidly proud of it, despite the fact that it was messy, had bobby pins poking out every which-way and I had to take it down a few hours later when I went out in the rain :(

It's one of the first times I've successfully gotten my hair 'up'. Apparently it's neater and stronger to french or dutch braid the hair around the head, but I don't know how and my hair is far from cooperative - it's got a ton of grip (you could describe it as almost velcro-y) and separating strands is a huge pain. Even when my sister french braided my hair yesterday, she had a lot of trouble getting all the strands and it ended up pretty messy. I'm not super dexterous with my braiding so I can't imagine I would do a good job.

Anyway, so I just did two normal braids behind my ears, wrapped them around the head and used almost an entire packet of bobby pins to hold it in place - like this (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-THqk5zSmr10/Uq5NbyOU-DI/AAAAAAAADQc/QFea3RBASg8/s1600/DIY-Crown-Braid-Hairstyle%20%281%29.jpg). I think it's called a double coronet or double crown braid, I don't know what the difference is.
It was surprisingly pretty firm. My braid are rather fat though so it was rather large and lumpy. I can't figure out how to get the pins in so the ends don't show, which is annoying.

Unfortunately it's a dark, rainy day so I couldn't get a photo. It was pretty messy anyway. I'd like to try again since it seems to be quite a protective style.

Has anyone else tried this hairstyle, and if so, any tips? I couldn't get ends totally tucked in and the elastics were showing.

Hi! :waving: Congrats on finding a new, cool style! :applause
Sounds very much like my experience with double coronet braids - they slide quite a bit along scalp, unless I pin heavily.
Yes, these are called "coronet" braids (done from English braids). "Crown" braids appear similar but require some french braiding along the scalp in a circle, and that style doesn't need as much length, but a lot more skill.

For coronet braids to hold much better, I start them with 2 smaller English braids (close to hairline) - it looks like this (https://rapunzelsresource.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/luana-braids/).
You don't even need to finish off these 2 braids - just braid enough until you reach nape and then incorporate the thing into the bigger braid.
Do the same on the other side.
Then fold braids in circles to do coronets and either pin with U-pins/bobby-pins/spin-pins/Amish pins or use small claw-clips. (But I don't know how to hide them, sorry, they really show! :oops: ) The grip from those "Luana braids" really helps.

To hide elastics, you could do a Frida Kahlo braided style using a scarf (and possibly accent flowers or something): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxltmgagKeg

Another thing you could do is this hair-taping technique for great hold (presented by torrinpaige):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlwnlfDYzk8

A while ago, I started a thread on securing coronet braids: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=130088 and folks shared some amazing ideas there, like using a fishing line (Quasiquixotic), Ficcares/fakkares (darklyndsea) for those who have those tools, and many pinning tricks and many other awesome ideas. You could check those out.
HTH! :flower:

[Lirona]

I did the same style recently! I have trouble doing one braid around my whole head, so I am very happy I can get a similar look from pinning two braids. Now I know they are called coronet braids, thank you meteor! :D

I do have a few tips: I like u-pins to secure this style instead of bobby pins. The advantage of using u-pins is that they are built to hold more hair than bobbies and thus you don't need as many of them. Here's a tutorial (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b_v4zU3uY0&t=0m24s) on how to use them.

That said, the only way I can get u pins to stay in my 1a/F hair is by inserting them lengthwise inside the braid (as opposed to across it, perpendicular), and making them "face" each other, like so:

http://i.imgur.com/am3eQhr.png

I like the mini spin pins that gthlvrmx mentioned above to secure the ends of the braids underneath. Spin pins can grab more hair than bobby pins, and they can also grab hair from the scalp and the underside of the braid you're trying to attach it to, all in one go. They screw in and really stay.

I also use those tiny, clear, silicone elastics to tie off the ends of the braids. Way easier to hide, and if they do end up sticking out it's not that noticeable. Only thing with those is that you have to be careful removing them (I always cut them out).

If you have trouble with your hair gripping itself, maybe some oil or a leave-in on your fingers while braiding, or applied beforehand, could help? I have no experience in that area, as my hair is the complete opposite of grippy, but I've heard of people doing that to make braids look smoother.

Here's mine! I did two dutch braids instead of two english braids though. :)

http://i.imgur.com/vF93cxs.png

ETA: The Torrin video meteor posted makes me want try hair taping again. I think that would be more comfortable than pins. My first attempt just wasn't so great. :lol:

[meteor]

^ Wow! That's gorgeous! Thank you so much for sharing the U-pin tips, Lirona!

What a stunning style! It looks amazing on you! :thud: And wow, your pinning is invisible! :applause Yay!

[Lirona]

Thank you so much, meteor! :blushing: I think the fact that the pins are the same color as my hair definitely helped.

[Ilenora]

Thank you Meteor!

The Luana braids technique seems good. I just can't quite figure out what this means: "3. Begin a regular braid, crossing the part-side section first, then the ear-side section." Does it mean you should start by crossing the back piece (towards the back of the head), then the front piece?

The Frida Kahlo one definitely looks dramatic! I think it's a bit much for me, I'm too shy for any really over-the-top hairstyles :o

I like the idea of the hair taping version, if I could just figure out how to french and dutch braid my hair! I don't think I'll try it until I get a clarifying shampoo to give my hair some more slip; it's just not silky enough at the moment to get all the strands without it turning into a mess.

I haven't checked out the securing thread yet but I definitely will!

Lirona, your one is beautiful! I'm glad I didn't photograph mine, it really pales in comparison XD I tried leave-in conditioner recently and it was pretty disastrous so I won't be trying it again soon. Some oil might make the hair smoother and get rid of all those fly-aways though.

[-Fern]

I did the same style recently! I have trouble doing one braid around my whole head, so I am very happy I can get a similar look from pinning two braids. Now I know they are called coronet braids, thank you meteor! :D

I do have a few tips: I like u-pins to secure this style instead of bobby pins. The advantage of using u-pins is that they are built to hold more hair than bobbies and thus you don't need as many of them. Here's a tutorial (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b_v4zU3uY0&t=0m24s) on how to use them.

That said, the only way I can get u pins to stay in my 1a/F hair is by inserting them lengthwise inside the braid (as opposed to across it, perpendicular), and making them "face" each other, like so:

http://i.imgur.com/am3eQhr.png

:applause: Another thanks for the tip on pins!! My hair spits them out, so I will have to try this! :D

[meteor]

Thank you Meteor!

The Luana braids technique seems good. I just can't quite figure out what this means: "3. Begin a regular braid, crossing the part-side section first, then the ear-side section." Does it mean you should start by crossing the back piece (towards the back of the head), then the front piece?

Oh I think there is no need to cross anything in the back, it's only a-smaller-braid-into-a-bigger braid technique.
I'd do it simply like this:

1) Split hair in 2.
2) Working with only one half now: Take some hair from the front (e.g. from ear to your forehead to the part) and English-braid it down for a while (not necessarily to the end).
3) Continuing to work with the same half: Add the remaining (in the back) hair from that side and English-braid the lot together to the end.
4) Do the same thing working on the other half of your hair now.
It will result in 2 Luana braids. :D

It's just a small English braid inside a bigger English braid.



I like the idea of the hair taping version, if I could just figure out how to french and dutch braid my hair! I don't think I'll try it until I get a clarifying shampoo to give my hair some more slip; it's just not silky enough at the moment to get all the strands without it turning into a mess.

Oh, you don't need French/Dutch braids for that. Torrinpaige does it because she knows how, and it adds lots of grip. But you could do this with simple English braids or with Luana braids technique (https://rapunzelsresource.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/luana-braids/) mentioned above. :D
HTH! :flower:

[Ilenora]

Thanks Meteor! I think my question was just as confusing as the tutorial; I think by 'crossing' it means whether you should start the braid with the right piece over the middle, or left over the middle. But don't worry, I get it now XD

Oooh, if hair taping doesn't require French/Dutch braids, I could totally try it right away! I'm sure my mother has the right kind of needle.

My hair is long enough that I can wrap it all the way around nicely with just a single braid, as I found the two braids side-by-side made the whole thing very wide, but I can't figure out how to stop a lump forming at the bend where the braid starts when wrapping a single one around. Any suggestions?