Making barrettes work for thicker hair!

[may1em]

Today, I wanted to wear my hair down, but also wanted it off my neck. A ponytail sounded like a good idea, but I also didn't want to use an elastic or a scrunchy.

The barrette I wanted to use only holds enough for a half up, which wasn't what I wanted. :(

But! If you do this, then you can use an hairtoy too small for all your hair. It works on the same basic principle as the Dianyla braid.

1. Gather the top half of your hair and move aside (to the right).
2. Take the hair on the left bottom quadrant and pull it over your left shoulder.
3. While still holding the top half of your hair away from your head, grap the bottom right quadrant hair and move it over your right shoulder.
4. Let the top half fall down your back again.
5. Gather the bottom quarters, bring them up so that they meet ABOVE the top half.
6. Secure just the hair you just gathered with your hairtoy of choice. The bottom quadrants will hold the top quadrant back enough.

[Capybara]

This is a super cool trick! :D

It'd probably be possible to do buns like this too ... *scurries off to the mirror*

Thanks!

[klcqtee]

A little confusing explanation, but I don't think I could've described it any better. Also, that's such a cool trick!

[Phalaenopsis]

Great trick! I must try that :eek:

[Fiferstone]

I used to do just exactly that to make one of my beloved buch and deichmann barrettes work to hold my ponytail ;).

[GRU]

A variation on this, if you want to "lift" your hair off your neck for a higher ponytail effect:

Criss-cross the left and right sides (behind your head) before you bring them up to the top to be fastened. It creates a little "shelf" that you top hair sits on, so you can still get a breeze on the back of your neck.

[hemolymph]

Very cool!!!! I have thick hair so this will come in handy =)

[Gypsygirl]

I have just tried this and I really like it, thanks! :)

[Charlottchen]

I'm slightly confused here. Do you have a photo? :)

[GRU]

I'm slightly confused here. Do you have a photo? :)

Think of it this way:

With your hair all down the middle of your back, use the index finger of each hand to make a part/division from the top of your ear straight back to the middle of the back of your head (the two fingertips should meet in the middle in the back). While you do this, let your thumbs glide along the back of your neck, underneath the hair at your nape.

When the fingers meet in the middle, bring each thumb up to meet its matching index finger, so each hand is grasping a small ponytail's worth of hair. I usually have a few hairs right at the center that get missed when I do this, so just kind of feel around with your thumbs/fingers to grab all the little strays.

Then bring each hand (and the hair it is holding) out from underneath your nape and circle them up and around to meet in the middle of the back of your head, above/over the top of the hair that you did NOT grab. Combine the two sections into one and fasten.


In other words, it's kind of like a "half up" only the half that you're putting up is the BOTTOM half instead of the top half.

[Ivy~Rose]

Thanks for the smart tip! :D

[MissManda]

This is an excellent idea! :D I've gotta try this!

[SheaLynne]

I never stop learning things here! All those years I just bemoaned that I couldn't put my hair in a ponytail with just a barrette......