Cosplay hair help needed

[lunasea]

A friend of mine is going to the Comic Con as Lagertha and has asked for my help with the hair since I'm good with braids. The side braids are no problem for me because they are clearly just cornrows. I'm confused though by that rat's nest that Lagertha typically has on the top of her head. Does anybody have a clue about what that is and/or how to do it? Most tutorials just have the hair teased up in the front without all those knotted pieces. I'd like to get that knotted look but am not sure how it's done.

http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/38100000/Vikings-Season-3-Lagertha-Official-Picture-vikings-tv-series-38125723-4000-2670.jpg

[lunasea]

Oh, and BTW, my friend does not have long hair so I will be braiding extensions into it. That obviously limits some of what I will be able to do.

[missblueeyes]

Perhaps you could just braid a couple messy 3-strand braids and knot them together? I'm bad at recreating hairstyles without a tutorial but that's the first thing that came to my mind c:

[endersworld]

I found this (http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/38200000/Vikings-Lagertha-Season-3-Official-Picture-vikings-tv-series-38232375-4912-7360.jpg) very large picture of what appears to be the same hairstyle, and upon looking a lot closer, it seems like there's some sort of braid coming from above one side, winding its way around, and then a few pieces of hair wound around/underneath the braid to keep it situated. Those pieces seem to be pulled back into the hair falling down her back, but there appear to be some layers there, so maybe you could do that portion without needing to put in the extensions, or make the braid out of the extensions? I could probably work it out on my own hair, but adding in the extension bit makes it a bit more complex.

[lunasea]

That seems like an idea missblueeyes and it's the first thing that came to my mind but I'm pretty sure that's not how it was actually done. I've been looking of pictures of this for weeks and it's driving me nuts.

[sumidha]

I think those three sections at the top are split into two and knotted before being joined into the weird mutant rope braid thing? :confused:

ETA: Oh my god that bigger picture, I know it's probably mostly extensions but some of those braids are making me cringe.

[lunasea]

I found this (http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/38200000/Vikings-Lagertha-Season-3-Official-Picture-vikings-tv-series-38232375-4912-7360.jpg) very large picture of what appears to be the same hairstyle, and upon looking a lot closer, it seems like there's some sort of braid coming from above one side, winding its way around, and then a few pieces of hair wound around/underneath the braid to keep it situated. Those pieces seem to be pulled back into the hair falling down her back, but there appear to be some layers there, so maybe you could do that portion without needing to put in the extensions, or make the braid out of the extensions? I could probably work it out on my own hair, but adding in the extension bit makes it a bit more complex.

I have very fine, thin hair so doing it on mine is not going to work. One small braid and I have nothing left. I have seen at least one pic where there seems to be a zig-zag braid on top but most of the pictures look like multiple smaller braids twisted or knotted together.

[endersworld]

Upon closer inspection, that sort of looks like a couple of chain braids that pull in new strands really haphazardly, and are arranged in a diagonal/hourglass-ish pattern.

[lunasea]

I think those three sections at the top are split into two and knotted before being joined into the weird mutant rope braid thing? :confused:

"weird mutant rope braid thing" is a great way to put it....what the heck is that???

[sumidha]

I think having a topsy tail type thing might help, so you could weave braids and hair sections together as needed to get the same kind of random look? It also kind of looks like there's another row of braid section things behind the first one...

[lunasea]

You guys, these are great suggestions. I may topsy tail the front and then try to do the chain link out of that. I've never tried to do a chain link with extensions...I hope it works.

[Ingrid]

No idea how to do it but I always thought their hairstyles were very historically inaccurate :lol: It looks like a cool modern style to wear though.

[missrandie]

Hmm.... looking at the nest, it almost looks like a fuzzy basketweave done with straight pieces and braided pieces. Other than that, I have no clue.

Eta.. on the side, by her ear, thats a braid made, then you hold one section and shudder: slide the other two back up while keeping the other section taut.

[lunasea]

Yep, I know about those slide braids and it won't be bad for my friends since, if I put one in, I will be doing it with extensions, not with her actual hair. The top is the part I'm most confused about. In some pictures it looks like the top is just tied in a bunch of knots.

[tigereye]

It's weird, because it kind of seems like a weird crossover between a waterfall that weaves back and forth (or at least something that drops hair and picks it up again when it weaves back) and a chain link, but I have absolutely no idea how that would even work.

[lunasea]

First attempt Lagertha hair....I think I used some suggestions from everyone. Lots of braid hair extensions. Thanks Folks! Prepare for photobombing.
http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o345/slashandfang/002_zpskmdiiim3.jpg (http://s340.photobucket.com/user/slashandfang/media/002_zpskmdiiim3.jpg.html)http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o345/slashandfang/005_zpsqflbxhum.jpg (http://s340.photobucket.com/user/slashandfang/media/005_zpsqflbxhum.jpg.html)http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o345/slashandfang/003_zpsg1mbpxlx.jpg (http://s340.photobucket.com/user/slashandfang/media/003_zpsg1mbpxlx.jpg.html)http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o345/slashandfang/001_zpsr0pjuyum.jpg (http://s340.photobucket.com/user/slashandfang/media/001_zpsr0pjuyum.jpg.html)

[sumidha]

Looks good! Do you have more extensions you could maybe clip into the back somehow to give it more loose hair volume?

Also, I think maybe braided sections over her ears could end a little sooner? But these are super nit picky suggestions and overall it looks great. :)

[lunasea]

You are right, the braids over her ears probably should end sooner. I was super focused on getting defined braids on the sides. Strategically placed clip-ins could be a good option. Can you get them inexpensively? Also, the hair in the clip-ins would need to match the braid extensions. The other option is tying them in. Part of the problem is that the extensions have to be in there really solid. The hair needs to be done on a weekend and to last through the Con. Hmmmm.

I'm thinking I have to shorten the ends of the braids and razor them for a more realistic look. I don't do a lot of complicated stuff with my own hair because it's so thin. This was all kind of an out-of-my-head conceptualization. I want all of the suggestions that I can get to do it better next time.