Pinky pain ffom braiding

[guska]

How do you guys braid really thin braids? I am talking about <0,5cm wide English (accent) braids.

I tend to wrap my little fingers around the two outer strands which always results in pinky pain. I feel like I am soon going to develop arthritis if I don't change my technique lol.

Thanks for any suggestions!


Edit: The title has a typo, sorry for that.

[spidermom]

I don't think I use my smallest fingers that much while braiding.

[lapushka]

Hmm, no that's true for me too, spidermom!

[AmaryllisRed]

I'm trying to *imagine* it without actually doing it... I think I do use my pinkies when I do tiny braids and that's one reason I never do tiny braids!

[MusicalSpoons]

I haven't for a long while, but I do recall some of my fingers aching when I used to braid a bit more often. Not sure which ones (little finger or ring finger, etc) but it was definitely from braiding thinner hair, e.g. 2 braids instead of one. I can't even imagine attempting accent braids :bigeyes:

:idea: I should wind the strands around lace bobbins!!! That might actually make an accent braid possible without my fingers falling off from the mere thought of it :D

[guska]

Glad to see that I am not the only one suffering from this "problem". I love accent braids but the aching pinkies I get discourage me from doing them.

[Hairkay]

I tend to keep my plaits bigger than 5mm. Doing less than 5 of them won't give aches. I don't wrap hair around my little finger either. I let that finger stay free.

[Reyn127]

I think I know what you’re talking about with the finger pain, I get it sometimes too with very tight or very small braids. The only thing I’ve found to really help is to braid in a way that is less tight/cramped in the working zone - either by making the braid itself ACTUALLY less tight by pulling on the strands less, OR by just sliding my fingers a little further down the strands as I’m braiding. Like, rather than gripping the working hair directly below where the bottom of the braid is forming, I’ll slide my fingers about 3 inches down from the point where the hairs are crossing. If I do it that way, pulling the hairs tight will still result in a tight braid, but the hand movements just get more space to operate.

I hope that makes some sense, and can help a bit.

[Hairkay]

I think I know what you’re talking about with the finger pain, I get it sometimes too with very tight or very small braids. The only thing I’ve found to really help is to braid in a way that is less tight/cramped in the working zone - either by making the braid itself ACTUALLY less tight by pulling on the strands less, OR by just sliding my fingers a little further down the strands as I’m braiding. Like, rather than gripping the working hair directly below where the bottom of the braid is forming, I’ll slide my fingers about 3 inches down from the point where the hairs are crossing. If I do it that way, pulling the hairs tight will still result in a tight braid, but the hand movements just get more space to operate.

I hope that makes some sense, and can help a bit.

I don't plait tight and usually my fingers are further down. I only have them closer up for the start of cornrows. My first model for learning to plait was watching my mother. She didn't plait tight and I am thinking that's because she couldn't. She started getting pains in her hands from the age of 21. It's arthritis and it runs in the family so I am watching out for it. I enjoy plaiting all of the time.

[guska]

I tend to keep my plaits bigger than 5mm. Doing less than 5 of them won't give aches. I don't wrap hair around my little finger either. I let that finger stay free.
Do you wrap some other finger around the strands?


I think I know what you’re talking about with the finger pain, I get it sometimes too with very tight or very small braids. The only thing I’ve found to really help is to braid in a way that is less tight/cramped in the working zone - either by making the braid itself ACTUALLY less tight by pulling on the strands less, OR by just sliding my fingers a little further down the strands as I’m braiding. Like, rather than gripping the working hair directly below where the bottom of the braid is forming, I’ll slide my fingers about 3 inches down from the point where the hairs are crossing. If I do it that way, pulling the hairs tight will still result in a tight braid, but the hand movements just get more space to operate.

I hope that makes some sense, and can help a bit.

I tried to do as you described but due to my straight and slippery texture (=the hair strands can not grab onto each other) the result was still a loose braid. Thanks for the suggestion though :blossom:

[AmaryllisRed]

Hmmm what if you could put something on the end of each strand to make it easier to hold?
Not sure what...
I wish there were an easier way. I think I would do tiny braids more often. I definitely get that pinky pain.

[lithostoic]

I use my thumb, forefinger, and middle finger to braid.

[blackgothicdoll]

I use my thumb, forefinger, and middle finger to braid.

Same. I practiced doing a really tiny braid and still used just these three fingers. My pinky and index finger just naturally curl up, so I couldn't figure out how to even use my pinky finger.

Unfortunately I'm having a hard time picturing how you're trying to use yours, OP, but I figure you could go without? I do still get crampy hands with little braids though, but if I'm just doing one or two it's not too bad.

[Alexandrina]

Seems like the solution to me is for your significant other to do all the accent braids for you!
Haha just kidding, I wish mine would, but he looks at me like I'm crazy if I ask him to try a braid on me. :rolleyes:

[Hairkay]

Do you wrap some other finger around the strands?

:blossom:


I use my thumb, forefinger, and middle finger to braid.


Same. I practiced doing a really tiny braid and still used just these three fingers. My pinky and index finger just naturally curl up, so I couldn't figure out how to even use my pinky finger.

Unfortunately I'm having a hard time picturing how you're trying to use yours, OP, but I figure you could go without? I do still get crampy hands with little braids though, but if I'm just doing one or two it's not too bad.

I too only use 3 fingers to plait. I can't work out why hair is getting wrapped around the little finger.

[Reyn127]

I use my thumb, forefinger, and middle finger to braid.

I use all of my fingers kind of, but this made me remember it’s BECAUSE my fingers get tired/cramped.

Maybe OP could try using different fingers to braid as certain ones get tired?

[guska]

I use all my fingers when I braid. The thumbs, index and long fingers are the ones crossing the three strands of hair. The pinkies and ring fingers wrap around the two outer strands but the pinkies are the ones actually holding the strands (thus only my pinkies hurt/cramp up). I can't curl my pinkies without also curling my ring fingers so that's why my ring fingers wrap around the strands.

If that makes any sense.

[AmaryllisRed]

I use all my fingers when I braid. The thumbs, index and long fingers are the ones crossing the three strands of hair. The pinkies and ring fingers wrap around the two outer strands but the pinkies are the ones actually holding the strands (thus only my pinkies hurt/cramp up). I can't curl my pinkies without also curling my ring fingers so that's why my ring fingers wrap around the strands.

If that makes any sense.

Yes, exactly this.
If it's a bigger braid, it doesn't hurt because my ring and pinky fingers don't have to curl up tiny to hold the hair.
I'm curious how people braid without using their ring and pinky fingers.
I will try it for myself and report back. :)

[MusicalSpoons]

I actually think my fingers might have been curled up tightly to keep out of the way (and I always used to braid as tightly as possible in an attempt to make them neat).

[Reyn127]

This is a really interesting conversation! I actually don't use my pinkies at all, but I do still get finger cramps from the way I braid... I hold one strand between each thumb and first finger, and the third strand between middle and fourth, or sometimes sandwiched right between my first finger and my middle, so I have a bunch of squished fingers sprouting hairs in one spot.