I Get Better Braidwaves When My Hair is Dry?!

[MissManda]

Okay, so I have taken to wearing a high ponytail and braiding it. I've been watching Torrin Paige's YouTube channel a lot and I have become quite fond of the look. It works better than normal English braids and French braids because I still have growing-out bangs (not to mention the fact that more hairs seem to be sprouting from my head and they are quite short, ugh) and layers so those just get annoyingly loose over the day.

I wear the pony-braids out in public and I wear them to bed sometimes if I don't feel like wearing a topknot.

So when I wear the pony-braids to bed and take them down the next day (if I'm feeling un-lazy, ha ha), I get the most lush, gorgeous braid waves. I absolutely love them. The strange part about this is I get better waves/curls when I do this when my hair is completely dry.

When I try to make braid waves when my hair is 90% dry after washing, it doesn't work nearly as well. When I braid my hair when it is barely damp, I will still have braid waves the next day, but they will not stay in nearly as well as the waves I get when I braid my hair dry. My hair seems to be taking to the waves much more easily when it is dry and I find this to be very strange (not in a bad way, though!).

I haven't changed my hair routine. The only major thing that I have done to my hair recently was hennaing it. I don't think my hair has ever done this before.

Has anyone else experienced this?

[Juneii]

it may be because your hair is still damp when you take your braid down so it weighs your hair down a bit and stretches out the waves? Pictures? :D

I find that I get the best waves if I braid my hair the moment it is dry - like the stage where it's barely damp and feels cool/cold to the touch :)

[jera]

Sounds really beautiful. Congrats on your discovery. :)

[MissManda]

I have a few pictures in my album if you would like to take a look. :) I don't know how to post pictures up here and I feel bad when I leave a URL.

Juneii, that might be possible. When my hair is 90% dry (after a wash), it feels like what you describe, but perhaps it takes much longer for my hair to dry completely than I thought. :eek: But when I get the nicest braid waves, my hair does not feel like that at all.

The pictures in my album were taken last Tuesday. I washed my hair on Sunday night and let it air-dry. So I'm pretty sure my hair was completely dry by the time I put it up on Monday night (I could be wrong...).

The same is true for today. I washed my hair on Tuesday night, let it air dry to 90%, then put it up. I woke up with braid waves, but they didn't stay. Then on Wednesday night, I braided my hair and have the same type of waves as the ones in my album, only without the spaghetti ends.

This is very strange, but I am very happy I discovered it! :cheese:

[marikamt]

it may be because your hair is still damp when you take your braid down so it weighs your hair down a bit and stretches out the waves? Pictures? :D

I find that I get the best waves if I braid my hair the moment it is dry - like the stage where it's barely damp and feels cool/cold to the touch :)

I agree with this....... my hair doesn't 'totally' dry when up/ braided/ etc, so if I take it down, the waves kinda "hang themselves out" (by the weight of my hair)......

[Leabhar]

I don't think it's weird, mostly because I have the same thing happening with my hair! lol. I get the best braidwaves with "dirtier" oiled, dry hair, too.

[HairColoredHair]

My hair is almost always still partially damp when it comes out of a braid (unless it's been in a few days, which it often is). Maybe that's it?

[Gothic Lolita]

I also get nicer braid waves when my hair is enitrely dry before I braid it. If it's still damp or wet, I get some strange strands that look wet or oily and feel coated. Don't know why it is but I only wear my hair up. Nobody sees the waves anyways!

[Barbie Diamond]

I suspect a little moisture (in the middle of the strands) is killing the wet braids. Some people have more porous than others. Which will make it dry even if bound together. My hair is not and it does not hold wet braid waves. Your hair does not look porous (which usually means good, strong, healthy, shiny hair).

[MissManda]

I suspect a little moisture (in the middle of the strands) is killing the wet braids. Some people have more porous than others. Which will make it dry even if bound together. My hair is not and it does not hold wet braid waves. Your hair does not look porous (which usually means good, strong, healthy, shiny hair).

That is a very good point! I hadn't considered this at all because I need to do more reading up on hair porousity and such. I have done some more observation of my hair and it does appear that it stays damp for much longer than I had previously thought. No wonder my hair refuses to dry completely when it is put up. Thank you!