Hair Sticks...any damage risk?

[CosmoCat]

My hair is so fine that I’m questioning everything now. Is it ok for me to bun with a hair stick? I know the basics of do & don’t, but feel free to offer suggestions. Thank you.

[GrowlingCupcake]

If the hair stick is smooth, and snag free when you run your fingers over it, it should be fine. If you feel it snag in your hair, then you can either sand/buff/something out the snags, sell (with a disclaimer) or discard it. I do find some sharper hairsticks will make noises like they've snapped something but they go in smoothly, and if I were to brush/run my fingers through my hair, no hair comes out.

[elsiedeluxe]

My hair is very fine, and I bun with a stick confidently. Some work better than others. One of my best ones is a heavy hammered wire with a spiral at the end. It was sold as a shawl pin, but I find that it is perfect for a disc bun on my almost-apl hair.

[czech it out]

It’s one of the least damaging styles, but that doesn’t mean there are no drawbacks. Sticks put tension on the “scalp hair” that they anchor to, and twisting can also cause mechanical damage over time. Change up your bun daily (high, low, double buns, etc) to further minimize damage!

[AutobotsAttack]

You can always opt for metal sticks. Completely smooth. Rather cheap if you decide to buy a few. And lightweight if you get the thin ones.

[lapushka]

My hair is so fine that I’m questioning everything now. Is it ok for me to bun with a hair stick? I know the basics of do & don’t, but feel free to offer suggestions. Thank you.

I would not start bunning, even with a ii thickness at APL, risk of things being *way* too tight, and then yes it can cause damage, but rather from the bun being too tight and not so much the stick (easy culprit though).

Why not try and look into things like a peacock twist, or a French twist. With a claw clip.

I wore a peacock twist all the way from APL to hip, because that's the length I could bun at with iii thickness. You want to make sure a bun is never tight once you start doing one.

[cjk]

ANY is a dangerous word. It's up there with always and never.

Is there any risk of damage? Absolutely!

But a stick is one of the least damaging ways to mechanically secure your hair.

Even the friction involved with putting your hair in a protective style like braids can theoretically cause damage.

Ultimately you have to analyze it, cost versus benefit. Is the reduced wear and friction to your lengths sufficiently beneficial to risk the wear and friction from a small stick being used to secure a protective style?

For me it is.

[MusicalSpoons]

It’s one of the least damaging styles, but that doesn’t mean there are no drawbacks. Sticks put tension on the “scalp hair” that they anchor to, and twisting can also cause mechanical damage over time. Change up your bun daily (high, low, double buns, etc) to further minimize damage!

They can, but it's also possible for it not to be any noticeable problem. If you can't feel your bun, its definitely not pulling :)


I would not start bunning, even with a ii thickness at APL, risk of things being *way* too tight, and then yes it can cause damage, but rather from the bun being too tight and not so much the stick (easy culprit though).

Why not try and look into things like a peacock twist, or a French twist. With a claw clip.

I wore a peacock twist all the way from APL to hip, because that's the length I could bun at with iii thickness. You want to make sure a bun is never tight once you start doing one.

Stray_mind I think was comfortably bunning before APL, IIRC? :hmm: ii is just as much a spectrum as iii, and bunning ability depends on all aspects of how the hair behaves, including slipperiness and compressibility. A low ii could probably start bunning comfortably a couple of milestones before a high ii, and I'd imagine F hair would compress more than C hair and (probably) make it easier to bun as well.

For shorter lengths I do recommend forks though; they can usually hold a bit looser buns than sticks can.

[Zesty]

As has been said, the greatest risk is breakage from tight bunning or putting stress on the same place continuously (i.e. wearing the same tight bun every day). Just about anything in life is at least slightly damaging to hair, but if it's not tight and you switch up placement it'll be very minimal and unnoticeable. Hair sticks are very safe in the context of hairstyles in general, as long as they're smooth etc.

[milosmomma]

I agree with everyone else, any damage that may happen would most likely be from rough handling or tight twisting rather than from wearing a stick itself. I also agree that for apl hair I personally had much better luck with forks. I'm not sure your location, but "over the hawaiian moon" on etsy has some light smooth aluminum and wood 2 prong forks for relatively cheap. I want to say they are about 15$, but he only ships to the US. OTHM was my first etsy/hair fork purchase and I have returned 3 or 4 times to snag more toys from this vendor. They are great quality and the owner(Jim) is such a great person to work with and will make sure you are happy with any purchase through him.

[lapushka]

Stray_mind I think was comfortably bunning before APL, IIRC? :hmm: ii is just as much a spectrum as iii, and bunning ability depends on all aspects of how the hair behaves, including slipperiness and compressibility. A low ii could probably start bunning comfortably a couple of milestones before a high ii, and I'd imagine F hair would compress more than C hair and (probably) make it easier to bun as well.

For shorter lengths I do recommend forks though; they can usually hold a bit looser buns than sticks can.

I realize that, but just as a warning, I thought it was good to mention that. Because I don't know if she *can* bun at APL and for all we know she might be trying and blaming it on the stick when it's the length in fact. Always good to mention, IMO.

My mom is i and she can barely bun at APL. So... IDK.

[milosmomma]

I think I was about apl when I could manage a comfortable cinnabun. With a fork though, a stick would always unravel at that length

[CosmoCat]

Oops, double post.

[CosmoCat]

Thanks so much, everyone! The sticks are inexpensive acrylic ones. How “tight” is too tight? It feels like a squishy level of tightness...moderately twisted it and wrapped around. Is that still possibly too much? It’s concerning about varying my protective styles, because I’m really awful at doing my hair in any fashion. I was happy that I could do this basic bun, lol.

[Suortuva]

Is it uncomfortable, then is it uncomfortable and not a good idea.

But I think it's actually important to mention that it's possible to bun before APL, I think it's quite common, because not everyone has a thick hair, but if you have, you don't know how it's to have a thin hair. So just try and see if you can bun or not.

I was able to bun and use sticks long before APL comfortably, and all styles in my album are done with max APL hair, and we have that thread for max BSL updos, it shouldn't be hard to find because it has been very active lately, and there are lots of bunned styles.

It's not dangerous to experiment and see if you are able to bun and use hair sticks or not.

[CosmoCat]

This was the first one for today, but I took it out to perfect it and couldn't do any better. By the way, I made that same mistake yesterday...taking the first one out to redo. Anyhow, my repeated attempts are always worse and, therefore, looser. :p

https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=37438&d=1561580836

[milosmomma]

Cosmocat, your bun looks good, neat and shiny. Kind of dark and I cant tell what the stick looks like though :lol: I have that same problem when my style doesnt look quite perfect and I redo only for the first attempt to be better. We must learn to leave well enough alone :)

[MusicalSpoons]

I realize that, but just as a warning, I thought it was good to mention that. Because I don't know if she *can* bun at APL and for all we know she might be trying and blaming it on the stick when it's the length in fact. Always good to mention, IMO.

My mom is i and she can barely bun at APL. So... IDK.

I agree it is good to mention; maybe I misread as I thought you were warning her off completely trying to bun yet :flower: as for your mum .. I don't know. It's always going to vary with individual heads, including because people's proportions for body markers can be just as variable as the hair!


This was the first one for today, but I took it out to perfect it and couldn't do any better. By the way, I made that same mistake yesterday...taking the first one out to redo. Anyhow, my repeated attempts are always worse and, therefore, looser. :p

https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=37438&d=1561580836

Wow, that's the most perfect little cinnabun I ever did see! How did it feel?

Btw I should just mention (prompted by the bun I'm currently wearing) that buns can be 'snug' and still comfortable; those are probably not advisable for all day every day wear but they are okay to wear - it's when they feel uncomfortably tight or are pulling on a particular part of your scalp that they are damagingly tight.

[lapushka]

Thanks so much, everyone! The sticks are inexpensive acrylic ones. How “tight” is too tight? It feels like a squishy level of tightness...moderately twisted it and wrapped around. Is that still possibly too much? It’s concerning about varying my protective styles, because I’m really awful at doing my hair in any fashion. I was happy that I could do this basic bun, lol.

I can generally still put a finger between my bun and my scalp, without anything "pulling" on both sides. So that is how I gauge it.

[Vijikanth]

My hair is so fine that I’m questioning everything now. Is it ok for me to bun with a hair stick? I know the basics of do & don’t, but feel free to offer suggestions. Thank you.

I have been using a home made wooden hairstick on daily basis. In fact sometimes I sleep with it as it is not very long
Hair sticks are the easiest way to hold your hair until you want. they wouldnt come out that easily.
Test your comfort level and go for it

[Lady Stardust]

Thanks so much, everyone! The sticks are inexpensive acrylic ones. How “tight” is too tight? It feels like a squishy level of tightness...moderately twisted it and wrapped around. Is that still possibly too much? It’s concerning about varying my protective styles, because I’m really awful at doing my hair in any fashion. I was happy that I could do this basic bun, lol.

My hair is a bit shorter than yours and I can’t vary my styles too much at the moment, because the nape hairs fall out if I try to bun higher up. I sometimes do a peacock twist instead of a bun but it flaps about so I save it for the days when my hair just won’t stay up (too slippery).

I use a fork from Over the Hawaiian Moon (3.5 inch functional length) and I can make looser buns with that than I can with a stick. As long as buns don’t feel like they’re pulling it should be fine. It’s actually so comfortable with a fork that a peacock twist feels uncomfortable in comparison.

[CosmoCat]

Thanks so much for the help and bun complements, everyone. :crush::blossom: