Have been really into milkmaid braids / crown braids lately

[DarleneH]

This is easy enough, gets my hair out of my way and prevents wear and tear on it, adds a touch more femininity than when slicked straight back in a twist or claw clip, and I can get some fullness around my face that's more flattering than that slicked-back look. My issue has been getting the braids to stay in place as my hair slides right out of bobby pins. I could try dry shampoo or something to make my hair less slippery, but I don't always want to have a lot of stuff like that in my hair. This past week I used three smallish jaw clips on the braids and that worked fine, so I'm hoping you all could recommend some pretty jaw clips that would be large enough to fit around two braids on the top of my head like that, and look fancier than the plain brown ones I currently have. The trick is finding the right size; too small is useless, and so is too large and it could look tacky and clownish too. Any suggestions for jaw clips the right size, that would look elegant and pretty rather than tacky?


On a related note, I found this really pretty look of a variant on the standard braids that I've been doing. I couldn't really do this with the jaw clips, but could if I'm doing a dry-shampoo day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtxK2jpKjfU


Found something intriguing: braiding a scarf into your hair, then tying those ends together at the top.
https://gina-michele.com/2017/07/easy-scarf-milkmaid-braids-2.html

[foreveryours]

Alternative to clips, have you considered hair taping? There's a youtube channel - historical hairstyles? I don't recall the woman's name atm

[Noetsie]

ooh I absolutely love using a scarf when I do milkmaid braids! I actually have a tutorial on the 3 different kinds I wear the most at the moment :) https://youtu.be/syvMPQ6S03I

And I thinkg foreveryours might mean Morgan Donner I also really want to try hair taping (and it seems to be a good alternative to your jaw clips) and have been rewatching her video for some inspiration: https://youtu.be/dpT86z93Ec8

Not too sure about where you could get some good clips tough since I don't really tend to use them, sorry!

[Flittingsis]

Noetsie nice video! I like your crown braid version; I have the hardest time switching directions around my head. I also like the scarf; I'm going to rewatch Morgan's video to see how she ties off braids without elastics.

[Noetsie]

Flittingsis Thank you! Omg yes if I think about it too much when switching hands I confuse myself, and if I think to little I also mess it up hahaha the struggle is real :D

[foreveryours]

ooh I absolutely love using a scarf when I do milkmaid braids! I actually have a tutorial on the 3 different kinds I wear the most at the moment :) https://youtu.be/syvMPQ6S03I

And I thinkg foreveryours might mean Morgan Donner I also really want to try hair taping (and it seems to be a good alternative to your jaw clips) and have been rewatching her video for some inspiration: https://youtu.be/dpT86z93Ec8

Not too sure about where you could get some good clips tough since I don't really tend to use them, sorry!

Yes, that's her

[lapis_lazuli]

I don't have any particular clips to recommend (about what width would fit two of your braids?), but I will say spin pins are my new favourite things to secure a coronet and other braided styles. They wind in and out so easily and the hold is really solid. The brand name ones in stores can be pretty expensive per pin, but there are much cheaper options you can buy in bulk online.

[shelomit]

A coronet takes longer to put in than straight-up milkmaid braids, but I find that it still looks good and holds fast after several days of wear. By "coronet" in this instance I mean the type that are French lace braided around the whole head, not dissimilar from the video you posted but creating a "pocket" for the excess hair to tuck into and thereby negating the necessity of pinning anything straight to the scalp. I usually put three bobby pins in mine the first evening I put it in, but after the hair dries fully it will stay in place on its own for 4-5 days.

[Kat]

You could use French braids with claw clips. It would actually give the clip something extra to "grip."

As far as bobby pins-- have you tried regular hair pins? Like the Amish sort, or the Good Hair Days (https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Hair-Good-Days-Color/dp/B0041TDMZ6?th=1), or the Bunheads (https://www.capezio.com/hairpins) type? They hold more hair and feel more secure (at least IMO; I deemed bobby pins useless years ago, but I use the Good Hair Days pins and my Heidi/milkmaid braids stand up to dance, gym, running, and any amount of bouncing around-- sometimes all in the same day).

I'm not sure what you mean by "jaw clips" as I could picture several different types of clips that could apply to-- claw clips, alligator clips, or perhaps this type of "sideways claw clip" (https://www.amazon.com/Scunci-Inner-Teeth-Hair-Clip/dp/B00NY4X0L0/ref=asc_df_B00NY4X0L0/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309733728867&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16243081665767667211&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9016829&hvtargid=pla-568566376440&psc=1) might work as you wouldn't have a lot of "clip volume" at the top of your head to deal with.

[spidermom]

I have the same problems, and hair taping didn't work at all. Of course I had never done it before, but I was so disappointed in how poorly it held that I abandoned it. Probably could have practiced to make it better, but I didn't.

[shelomit]

Kat's message made me realize that I wrote "bobby pins" above but really meant regular U-pins--whoops! If you haven't tried them with the style you're doing now, heavier-weight U-pins might be worth a shot.

[mermaid lullaby]

Here's the Good Hair Days that Kat was talking about. They are available at Sally's in the U.S. (not sure, if they are available anywhere else) and are usually where the bobby pins are.
For jaw clips, I tend to go with the medium size brown ones. I don't like the black or clear ones.

https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=46462&d=1639960484

[Kat]

Here's the Good Hair Days that Kat was talking about. They are available at Sally's in the U.S. (not sure, if they are available anywhere else) and are usually where the bobby pins are.
]

I've never seen them in-person anywhere but Sally's (and have never seen the company's other products anywhere), but there may be regional differences? The only thing about these is that some years back they changed the plastic they use, and it's more brittle now. The old plastic, it might bend/distort a bit from use, but it would take a lot before the pins would break. The new plastic breaks more easily. I'm not fond of that. Am thinking about becoming better friends with my Bunheads pins for that reason. The good thing about the plastic pins, though, is that they do grip very well since the "tines" actually touch. I've found the hard way in the past that I can't use the metal hairpins in quite the same way sometimes.

[ExpectoPatronum]

I tried milkmaid braids today and I'm currently using bobby pins to hold it together....mostly because I have nothing better. U-pins would probably be best, in my opinion.

[Priska]

Oh this hairstyle is so awesome! So pretty so easily, and so protective! And tolerates good hl hair. I so love this. And OP described well the strengths of this hair do :)

Sorry I just wanted to talk about the greatness of milkmaid braids. I pin them with tiny clips.