Hairfork Techniques

[Les]

I just got my first hairfork - a beautiful Cocobolo piece from Etta Mae. Now I'm trying to figure out how to use it. I have a few hairsticks and have gotten comfortable with them, but the feeling I'm getting is that the fork is suited to different styles. Any advice?

[Islandgrrl]

I think you could be right about that. I have a new hairfork also and haven't had a lot of luck figuring out what to do with it. It might actually be a little too short for my hair, but I'm not sure!

I'm going to be watching, too, for good suggestions!

Good luck w/your new toy!

[MusingFrog]

Assuming it is the right length for your hair, you should be able to use the same styles with it as you would a hair stick. The method of insertion should be the same as well. Try to keep the fork even as you insert it though, so the prongs are both the same distance from your head. Having the fork tilted (for me) causes a lot of pain.

[wonderlywroughte]

I'm not much help here - I've always had a really big problem getting a pair of sticks or a hairfork to hold a regular cinnamon bun. Figure 8 buns, infinity buns, swirly knotted buns....those work! But a regular bun? Forget it! :o There, I've admitted my deep, dark, hair-related secret!

[eresh]

I'm a fork newbie too, so thanks for starting this topic, I'm going to keep an eye on it :-D

[chloeishere]

I'm not all that good with forks, but the way I use mine is just like a hairstick-- I normally insert one prong where I'd insert the hairstick, the same way that I would insert the hairstick, I let the other prong go where it will. I do keep the prongs even in distance from the head, though, or it tends to fall out. I generally have to insert a bit more carefully to allow the second prong to find room to go through, but then they hold wonderfully, much better than a stick most of the time.
I prefer to do french twists with a stick, but buns work much better for me with a fork.

[eadwine]

Yep.. equal the hair stick idea. That works just peachy :)

[sapphire-o]

If your fork has many prongs or is chunky you need to make the updo a bit looser. Or it might pull when you try to jam it in. Keep trying. Once you get used to it forks hold wonderfully. :)

[pookatrina]

Hm, I don't really have much advice since I'm not very good with styles. I just wear my Pooka-Bun everyday. I do find with sticks I have to do the insert the stick pointing up & out, then flip it over, with forks I just insert.

[theindecisiveon]

Ooooh, thanks for asking this. I just bought a couple of gorgeous forks from Etsy (and am waiting very impatiently for them to arrive) but I have no clue how to use them!

[Nat242]

Thank you for posting this query, I was actually about to start a topic myself on this!

I recently received the following hair fork from Basak, and it's absolutely beautiful, but I can't figure our how to wear it!

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee68/trippywallpaper/CelticKnothairfork.jpg

So far, I've only been able to come up with this - it *was* a figure 8 but it got all squashed.

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee68/trippywallpaper/squishedfig8withfork.jpg

Sorry about the dreadful phone-camera photos.

Any ideas about how I can get this beauty to work? It's quite long.

-- Natalie

[icydove]

Use of a hairfork depends a lot on 1) its length, 2) how far apart the prongs are. Obviously, shorter hairforks work better on smaller updos (cinnabuns, knots) while the longer ones work better for longer buns (F-8s, etc.). In general, you need widely spaced prongs for shorter updos, while more narrow prongs work better on longer updos. Or, if you have really thick hair, you need wider prongs or the fork won't penetrate your updo at all :bigeyes:

[hrimfaxi]

I use forks just like I use sticks, except that I can get away with slightly looser updos with forks... but I don't know a whole lot of updos and I only have 2-prong forks, so my experience is somewhat more limited than it could be.

[Pegasus]

Hm, I don't really have much advice since I'm not very good with styles. I just wear my Pooka-Bun everyday. I do find with sticks I have to do the insert the stick pointing up & out, then flip it over, with forks I just insert.
Pooka-Bun? What, pray tell, is that? And how do I get one???

[eadwine]

That fork is really pretty, but I doubt it would work in my hair.. too close together prongs. I guess it is a matter of trying different styles than the figure 8, a regular cinnamon bun should work with this one (as long as your ends end out slightly past the top).

[Kelpie]

I only have a 2 prong fork and it works really well for holding a regular twisted bun.

I put the hair in a ponytail right on the back on my head and hold it with a band (it also works without the band but I havn't quite worked out how to get it to stay really firm).
Then twist the hair and wrap or coil it around the base of the ponytail. My newest way of doing it is to stick the tips of the fork in at the edge of the bun and pointed away from the direction you want to go in then flip them over, catching some of the hair on your head and go straight through the bun and catch the upper loop on the other side. It also works with just going straight through from the start without the flipping.
I hope that all makes sense.

I wore this all day today at work and was sticking pens through it all the time and it still held :eek:

I don't know if it works better than sticks but it does work.

[Rae~]

Nat242 - This idea may be a complete non-starter for you, but if I had that comb I wouldn't be able to use it with those prongs so close together. So, *I* would... (brace yourself) cut out the 2nd and 4th prong, and turn it into a 3-prong fork. I do think, though, that it looks like quite a top-heavy design, so regardless, you might be stuck with wearing it vertically (as in your photo), so that it doesn't overbalance...?

Disclaimer: Obviously, I haven't seen the comb in person, though, so it's hard to judge scale. It might be that the size of the comb means my idea just completely wouldn't work... don't know.

[Nat242]

It's an idea, Rae. That said, I don't really have the tools for cutting wood, and I'd be afraid to mess it up - it's such a lovely fork! I'll have to think about it. Thanks :)