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FrayedFire
January 15th, 2018, 01:38 PM
As the title says... is there a wiggle technique that's particularly good for avoiding damage, but is still secure without being overly tight?

Sarahlabyrinth
January 15th, 2018, 01:44 PM
If the sticks are nicely pointy and smooth, they shouldn't be snapping hairs unless it' s a very tight bun.

EdG
January 15th, 2018, 01:47 PM
In my experience, snapping hairs when putting in sticks is a sign of the hair being tangled. Removing the tangles should eliminate the snapping.
Ed

lapushka
January 15th, 2018, 02:05 PM
As the title says... is there a wiggle technique that's particularly good for avoiding damage, but is still secure without being overly tight?

First make sure you aren't making your buns too tight. When I was waist and *pushing* making a bun (too tight), I used to come across this issue. Then came hip (at iii) and that problem totally disappeared. The longer it got the less and less you get this as you can do your bun a little more relaxed.

How thick is your hair, and how long is your hair now? Can you bun comfortably? Or is it tight?

FrayedFire
January 15th, 2018, 02:19 PM
I'm pretty sure my hair is either 1a or b, fine, not terribly thick, almost tailbone length...

I can't do tight buns, no way, but the problem i'm finding is when I push the stick through, the tip will hit the side of a hair and if I don't feel it in time, I'll end up pushing it and it breaks. This happens when I put in the stick before twisting the hair, as well as after. It's only during placement/securation.

Zesty
January 15th, 2018, 02:30 PM
Are your sticks blunter or irregular at the tip? (Where did you get them or do you have pictures?)

FrayedFire
January 15th, 2018, 02:53 PM
Are your sticks blunter or irregular at the tip? (Where did you get them or do you have pictures?)

They're short chopsticks, a little blunt, I guess?

https://www.forsmallhands.com/media/catalog/product/cache/2/image/550x/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/g/2/g268.jpg

Kinda like these.

Sarahlabyrinth
January 15th, 2018, 02:58 PM
That's it then, they have blunt square ends. You need pointy rounded ends, those blunt ends are pulling and snagging and breaking your hair.

lapushka
January 15th, 2018, 03:08 PM
Yes, chopsticks aren't ideal. Most hairsticks are quite pointy. I mostly use Quattro sticks and forks and snagging never happens to me since I started wearing these. They're very thin, but sturdy.

I'd invest in a few nice sticks; since your hair is TBL already, high time to do so! ;)

FrayedFire
January 15th, 2018, 03:30 PM
I'm so surprised that they aren't pointy enough, but... well, now that I think about it, when I used full-length chopsticks that were pointier, it did snap less, but I thought it was just because I was being more careful not to stab my scalp. XD

What materials are good for hairsticks? I know that there's wood and glass, but a lot of the sticks I've seen are HUGE.

Sarahlabyrinth
January 15th, 2018, 03:51 PM
Wood, or acrylic, plastic, metal... There are many hairsticks for sale online on Etsy :)

If you are crafty you could make your own.

lapushka
January 15th, 2018, 03:54 PM
I think there's a hairtoy link thread on here, where you can find a lot of Etsy shops that do sticks & forks. I myself love Quattro sticks & forks, but they are quite the investment. For starters I'd go with Eads (Eaduard hairsticks). I'm sure someone could provide the link (I can't find the store).

Zesty
January 15th, 2018, 04:10 PM
I think there's a hairtoy link thread on here, where you can find a lot of Etsy shops that do sticks & forks. I myself love Quattro sticks & forks, but they are quite the investment. For starters I'd go with Eads (Eaduard hairsticks). I'm sure someone could provide the link (I can't find the store).

Ead is no longer selling. But Outnumbered Novelties or Acrylic Candy Shop's simple sticks might be a good way to start. Or just look at the Conventional Products section and see which hair toy makers have threads and look through those.

akurah
January 16th, 2018, 12:53 AM
I would suggest acrylic, in my experience they are most hair friendly and least likely to cause snaps. My second suggestion would be to use Quattros, they're very thin, and metal.

I've had less luck with metal knitting needles and wooden stuff. Quattros and acrylics have been the kindest to my hair. Wood is fine if it's explicitly carved for hair, it's a bit riskier when you use chopsticks for eating.

quattro: https://www.etsy.com/shop/quattro

some acrylic makers, but not the only ones:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/WoodEverIImagine
https://www.etsy.com/shop/LadyIdun
https://www.etsy.com/shop/HairSticksNMore
https://www.etsy.com/shop/OutNumberedNovelties

lapushka
January 16th, 2018, 01:41 AM
Ead is no longer selling. But Outnumbered Novelties or Acrylic Candy Shop's simple sticks might be a good way to start. Or just look at the Conventional Products section and see which hair toy makers have threads and look through those.

I am so behind with this. When did that happen? He was so popular for people just starting out too.

FrayedFire
January 16th, 2018, 02:29 AM
https://www.etsy.com/listing/567686692/turned-acrylic-hair-stick-celestial-blue?ref=shop_home_active_11

This looks similar to my glass pipe Zenith that I broke. :(

enting
January 16th, 2018, 02:46 AM
I have this problem too. Sharp, pointy things that are also thin seem to be the best bet for me. I don't think I've ever snapped hairs with my skinny size 7 dpn, but I have with my wider tipped OTHM stick and I have with my HandyHelen leaf stick. The former has an edge rather than a single point, and the former is very pointy and sharp but widens out to decently thick and that part ends up catching hairs unless I go very slowly and carefully. I have some disposable chopsticks that I nailpolished. The ones that are sharper and tapered over more length have less issues. And my hair is not tangled when I have this problem, it can be as smooth as I can make it when it happens.

Simsy
January 16th, 2018, 03:29 AM
Just from personal experience, I found using a screwing motion when inserting sticks gets a lot of hairs out of harms way.

Zesty
January 16th, 2018, 03:41 AM
I am so behind with this. When did that happen? He was so popular for people just starting out too.

I want to say it's been a few months. I get the impression that he left rather abruptly and not on good terms, but the folks in the Ead thread would have known better than I do. At any rate, his shop is off Etsy completely.

I liked his work and my first hair sticks were from his shop -- I think he was a great newbie recommendation. But I can say from experience that his customer service wasn't always the best.

Anyway, ONN is the shop that comes to my mind as the natural successor, but I see that akurah has very helpfully linked to several popular makers that OP can look into.

lapushka
January 16th, 2018, 08:37 AM
I want to say it's been a few months. I get the impression that he left rather abruptly and not on good terms, but the folks in the Ead thread would have known better than I do. At any rate, his shop is off Etsy completely.

I liked his work and my first hair sticks were from his shop -- I think he was a great newbie recommendation. But I can say from experience that his customer service wasn't always the best.

Anyway, ONN is the shop that comes to my mind as the natural successor, but I see that akurah has very helpfully linked to several popular makers that OP can look into.

Yikes. I had one order from him, back when his sticks were still only short (he later included longer sticks to his range) and he included an extra stick for me then, I guess he always did so.

Yes, I've heard a lot about his bedside manner not being all that great.

ONN I quite like for a newbie rec, though I haven't ordered from them before.

Kat
January 16th, 2018, 09:31 AM
If the sticks are nicely pointy and smooth, they shouldn't be snapping hairs unless it' s a very tight bun.

Seconding this. I've only heard/felt damage when using rough or blunt sticks.



I'm so surprised that they aren't pointy enough, but... well, now that I think about it, when I used full-length chopsticks that were pointier, it did snap less, but I thought it was just because I was being more careful not to stab my scalp. XD

What materials are good for hairsticks? I know that there's wood and glass, but a lot of the sticks I've seen are HUGE.

I also use metal double-pointed knitting needles. :) Not too expensive, durable, thin (so, for me, less likely to create pressure against my scalp), pointy, for me a pretty good length for the size of my buns (they can be a bit long but just enough so I feel it's secure, not that it causes issues like chopsticks might), sometimes come in interesting colors, and double as a weapon if need be!


Or, if you have chopsticks you love, you can always DIY a bit: grind the end sharp, and sand/finish/wax/whatever to make them smooth.

FrayedFire
January 16th, 2018, 02:01 PM
Just from personal experience, I found using a screwing motion when inserting sticks gets a lot of hairs out of harms way.

Thanks for the tip!

DoomKitty
January 17th, 2018, 02:49 AM
https://www.etsy.com/listing/567686692/turned-acrylic-hair-stick-celestial-blue?ref=shop_home_active_11

This looks similar to my glass pipe Zenith that I broke. :(

The purple one is gorgeous...DH will have that one pointed out for my bday 😆

FrayedFire
January 18th, 2018, 02:28 AM
The purple one is gorgeous...DH will have that one pointed out for my bday ��

I wish I had made this post before spending my money on CV bars, I would rather have a nice stick! But it looks kind of big, though there's no comparison in the pictures.

WavyWannabe
January 28th, 2018, 11:33 AM
I almost always use pencils to put my hair up, and I sometimes snap a few unlucky hairs doing so ... However, I've found that putting a bit of oil (or shea butter) over the pencil and "screwing" it into my bun prevents this.

lapushka
January 28th, 2018, 02:54 PM
I almost always use pencils to put my hair up, and I sometimes snap a few unlucky hairs doing so ... However, I've found that putting a bit of oil (or shea butter) over the pencil and "screwing" it into my bun prevents this.

If it can "snap" a hair that means that there is some tension on that hair already, so this ultimately means it is too tightly wound in the bun. Might be the odd hair, but might also mean that the style is too tight.

Ever since I could comfortably wear buns (got enough length for it), I have never had that issue of a hair being too "wound up"; I however, don't ever do my buns tightly.

FrayedFire
January 29th, 2018, 01:44 PM
If it can "snap" a hair that means that there is some tension on that hair already, so this ultimately means it is too tightly wound in the bun. Might be the odd hair, but might also mean that the style is too tight.

Ever since I could comfortably wear buns (got enough length for it), I have never had that issue of a hair being too "wound up"; I however, don't ever do my buns tightly.

I was managing to snap hairs with the sticks even before I've started winding my hair, and my buns are usually loose, regardless of when I insert the stick, but having, um, repurposed the stick from my brother's baking thermometer, I have in fact determined that the issue was the sharpness. But tension definitely is an issue to look out for when putting the stick in after the bun is wound, so I'll just have to make sure I'm careful and to use good tools.