PDA

View Full Version : Hair stick/fork tension????



diamond_storm
October 30th, 2015, 11:03 AM
Hi guys!

So I've recently purchased a few buffalo horn hair sticks and a 2 prong hair fork. I can't do many updos at the moment because my hair is thick and super slippery and I'm not to waist yet. I can do a disc bun and I really like putting it up with a hair stick.

However, I've noticed that each time I do it, although I am very gentle and careful not to make the bun too tight, I feel a weird tension pulling on a small clump of scalp hairs on the back of my head. It's not horrible, but since I am tender-headed, I do notice it. The tension is 'there' with a hair stick, but worse with the hair fork. It almost feels..... cold? Like maybe I am simply 'feeling' the hair stick against my head and I'm not used to it? Regardless, after a few minutes, I usually end up taking the bun down because I'm afraid of traction alopecia.

I am just wondering if that is normal and I am just not used to wearing my hair up (I typically wear it in braids tied with a satin scrunchy), or if I'm doing something wrong.

Should you feel a bit of tension with a bun held with a hair stick/fork or not? I'm a bit frustrated because I really love having my hair up out of my face and my ends protected (not to mention want to use my beautiful hair toys:boohoo:), but I'm worried I'm causing possible damage.

I am almost positive my bun is not too tight. I have made it way too tight before, so I know that feeling. I'm also pretty sure that the hair toys are not the problem because I checked them all for sharp edges/blunt ends/etc prior to using them in my hair.

meteor
October 30th, 2015, 11:16 AM
MBL is kind of short-ish for bunning thick hair, to be honest. Maybe that's why it feels too tight? It gets easier to bun more loosely with more length. (Personally, I couldn't do it comfortably at that length, but it's very YMMV.)

Have you tried Peacock twists / Gibson tucks / French braid tucks? Also, maybe claw-clips (e.g. these half-moon claw-clips with 9 teeth (https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSzYC-bsfHJoYxvepFSYXinOxuFSVhYx_yZIwI1_6Hd1XWqp6_BwCFso 14) are pretty sturdy) will help you put hair up with less tension?

Another thing to try is sectioning buns (this makes it lighter and distributes the weight a bit, requiring less stick/fork tension): bun just the top section (half-up), and then twist/braid and wrap the remaining hair around that half-up bun. Torrinpaige shows it well with a few buns here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZvXrEOfJ4w

Also, you could do double/triple/multiple buns, either side by side or stacked vertically on top of each other, a-la Faux-hawk (https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/47/02/84/4702844754368ee256a4a651f21f121c.jpg) - this feels *a lot* lighter and more distributed than just one bun.

Also, have you tried just pinning up your braid(s)? It's much easier than bunning and since you are already used to wearing braids, it might be easier for you. If you scalp feels tired, you can take the bun down and still have your hair contained in a braid this way. ;)

I have to say, my own scalp was very uncomfortable with bunning at first - I had to take it down after 30 min, slowly building to an hour, then 2-3-4 and eventually a whole working day. It does take a bit of time for scalp and follicles to get accustomed to the tension and to hair being placed in very new directions.

HTH! :flower: And happy bunning! :cheer:

Arete
October 30th, 2015, 11:24 AM
Meteor has some good advice. Another thing I find that helps is to twist the while bun back the opposite way you twisted down a quarter turn (if that makes any sense at all. It loosens up any pulling spots for me usually. Also make sure you're picking up enough hair with your stick/fork. If you only get a little bit it can really pull

Anje
October 30th, 2015, 11:27 AM
I have a lot less hair than you in terms of thickness, but I don't feel any clumps of hairs in a good updo. (In a badly done one, yes. So I redo it or put in a braid for the day.)

First thing I'd suggest you try is moving the whole thing lower on your head. Sometimes you can get pulling higher up. Also, is your stick horizontal? I get terrible problems with vertical sticks.

Nique1202
October 30th, 2015, 11:28 AM
The only non-sectioned bun I'd recommend you do at your length (if your profile is up to date and you're at midback) and thickness is the disc bun, because anywhere near iii thickness you just don't have the length for enough twists to add stability without doing your bun so tight that you risk damage to the hair, the fork/stick, or your scalp. You MIGHT be able to do a spin pin bun more loosely with your sticks or forks as decoration in them, but I highly recommend against using sticks or forks for holding cinnabuns or anything except the disc bun (or lazy wrap/nautilus if you can do them WITHOUT them feeling tight) until your hair is quite a bit longer. I have deep layers and I still struggle with cinnabuns and sticks some days at 32 inches.

diamond_storm
October 30th, 2015, 11:55 AM
Thanks, everyone, for your advice!!!

I think you are probably right about me not having the length for buns yet. I'll probably just have to wait till I get to waist (or maybe longer?:confused:) before I can do them. But it's oh-so-unfair because I want pretty buns NOWWW:wail: haha!

But hey--there's a plus side.... Before I got on LHC I wondered why my hair seemed so much 'shorter' than everyone else who was at my length and why they could do cool styles and I couldn't. I was happy to find out it was more a thickness issue than a length issue.

I will definitely give some of those styles you all suggested a try! And this may sound silly..... But I've never really understood how to pin up a braid! I'm sure the problem is that I'm way overthinking it. I'll try to do some research and figure it out, because my hair seems to love braids.

meteor
October 30th, 2015, 12:01 PM
I will definitely give some of those styles you all suggested a try! And this may sound silly..... But I've never really understood how to pin up a braid! I'm sure the problem is that I'm way overthinking it. I'll try to do some research and figure it out, because my hair seems to love braids.

Fear not! :D Here is a perfect tutorial for that: Braided Beehive (section hair into 3, braid each section, and pin it in a circle): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsQ15IxkWMA
Alternatively, the Vortex Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DF5HXky3B8

They are perfect for thick hair, because they utilize sectioning. The more sections you do, the shorter/thicker the hair length can be to pull it off! ;)
Happy Bunning! :cheer:

diamond_storm
October 30th, 2015, 12:27 PM
Fear not! :D Here is a perfect tutorial for that: Braided Beehive (section hair into 3, braid each section, and pin it in a circle): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsQ15IxkWMA
Alternatively, the Vortex Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DF5HXky3B8

They are perfect for thick hair, because they utilize sectioning. The more sections you do, the shorter/thicker the hair length can be to pull it off! ;)
Happy Bunning! :cheer:

Ah! You saved me the research ;) Thanks so much! You're amazing :)

Those a both really gorgeous and look so intricate! Very excited to try!! That makes more sense now. When I heard people talk about pinning up braids, I always pictured just kind of arbitrarily pinning braids onto your scalp with no real rhyme or reason.:p:p

meteor
October 30th, 2015, 12:59 PM
^ Sure thing, diamond_storm! :D You can definitely pin braids up with no rhyme or reason :agree: - it actually tends to look way cooler that way! :thumbsup: There are some interesting ways out there, especially if you start with many small-ish braids (accent braids). However, the more braids, the longer it takes and the more manipulation is involved.

Some ways of pinning braids:
Heidi / Milkmaid / Braids (on top of head): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7hFcRsWliA or Frieda Kahlo Braids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxltmgagKeg
Horseshoe Braides (at the nape): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvPFfymrK5M
Boho Braid Diagonal Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jclvp_VYxAo
Braided Chinese Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n98D0j8Ypfg
Simplified Ellingwoman Braided Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_biroGTJ7A
Amish Braided Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1ms8ODU42k

And if you can French/Dutch-braid, the options become pretty limitless. :)
Some examples:
Easy Braided Serpentine Updo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDV2xI6rLIM
Interlaced Dutch Braids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lG4MTltnX7M
The Masara: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj5QW8uzUXU
Upside Down French Braided Bun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nk-q-pJdkyg
The Braided Wheel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOE5-2ZvcH4
etc. etc.

lapushka
October 30th, 2015, 03:25 PM
If you feel tension at all - your hair is just not long enough. It took me until waist/hip to be able to do a lazy bun without it pulling an awful lot. It got the most comfortable at hip/TBL! I feel no tension at all in my buns! It sucks to have thicker hair, I know. You need lots of length to be able to even do basic updos.

gthlvrmx
October 30th, 2015, 04:02 PM
You've gotten good advice here so far. Try spin pins if you want. I find that spin pins don't cause as much tension as a hairstick, at least for my shorter hair right now. There are mini spin pins and regular sized spin pins. Twin disc buns might work for you, that's what my best friend did with her hairsticks.

therebelqueen
October 31st, 2015, 09:40 AM
I know the feeling of wanting to do the pretty buns, but having too much hair. I'm just past waist and I was only able to do a lazy wrap bun this week! (It was very unstable and didn't last the hour, but I was very excited!)

From my own struggles, I have two pieces of advice. The first is to pick the right buns. At thick MBL, I would second the disc bun suggestion, and add the chinese bun. They both section out the thickness so that it'll wrap better. Maybe try playing with the orchid bun as well? I follow the directions up through that first twist over, and I just keep twisting until the ends are hidden. Basically, head to the Bun & Braid Reference Thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=112682&page=3&p=2608650&viewfull=1#post2608650) and keep trying until you find some you like.

My second piece of advice is to pay attention to your sticks. You're looking for the tension to be distributed evenly over your head, and not in just one section. As you're putting in the stick/fork, make sure you're picking up a big chunk of scalp hair. Also, use more sticks and pins if you need to.

Good luck, and happy bunning!

Sarahlabyrinth
October 31st, 2015, 10:08 AM
Also if you are not used to bunning, you may find that forks hold much more securely than sticks. 60th st in particular are wonderful.

spirals
November 1st, 2015, 05:07 PM
Also if you are not used to bunning, you may find that forks hold much more securely than sticks.
Yes, this. Just figured this out today. I guess it's the same principle as the fact that twin sticks work better for me than just one.