I guess braid waves aren't for me...

[Earelia]

I absolutely love the look of braid waves but I can't do them. My straight hair is about APL after I trimmed recently so when I just do a regular braid half of my hair is straight and the bottom half is wavy. I could see how it would look nice if my hair was longer and there was more of it to braid but even when I try to do a french braid or double french braids I don't like it. They always get too small on the ends and look frizzy when I take them out. I tried buns but I still have the half straight half wavy thing going on. I'm getting pretty tired of wearing my hair straight all the time and I'd rather wear it down. I'm not a big fan of curling irons/curlers or anything like that because it takes too much time and I'm really REALLY trying to be a good girl and take better care of my hair by not dying, using weird products or heat and things are looking good for my once straw-like head. I'm just bored. :undecided

So does anyone have some good ideas? I want to add some waviness and body to my hair. I looked around here for some ideas, I even looked up the deep wave thing on here where you use strips of fabric and wrap two strands around it almost braid-like to get the effect. I dunno. I was thinking of maybe trying a french braid and plaiting the ends a little looser so they don't get too frizzy. Not sure how that would hold up while I sleep though. Any thoughts?

[Dars]

I don't get nice braid waves unless I braid when my hair is very damp and leave them in till bone dry. Also, perhaps you could smooth the frizzes with a dab of conditioner or oil of choice? There are plenty of heat free curling methods on these boards, you can search them and there might be some in the articles section.

[MissEarlGrey]

I've gotten absolutely beautiful waves from a rope crown braid .

Also, I highly recommend strips of fabric, but don't roll them (I don't like the result) instead, grab a piece of hair (the size depends on how large you want your waves) and at the top nearest to your scalp, drape a long strip of fabric over the section so it is half and half, then start (sort of) braiding your hair around the two sections, sort of S-shaped and tie off the end with a small band. I usually get 8 in my hair, and they kind of end up looking like thick, clothy-hairy dreads. XD. There is a member on here with a tutorial on how to do it, I'm just blanking out on her name right now.

[Lianna]

I don't like regular braid waves either (not on my hair). You could try two rope braids. The result is straight near the roots and soft big ringlets near the ends.

[Arashi]

My hair used to not hold braid waves, but these things helped me:
-layers (I got layers cut for the purpose of styling wavy/curly hair even though mine is naturally pretty straight)
-braiding when hair is wet and taking out when completely dry
-multiple braids.. one braid, even two don't do much for me. I usually do 4-6 smaller braids, sectioned so that half of them are higher up starting at the crown, and the other half done underneath those(if that makes any sense)
-covering braids with a satin headscarf, additionally securing the finished braids into a bun, or taking the multiple small braids and braiding those into one large braid and securing that... so none of them come loose and leave me with awkward straight sections

Some of these might sound nuts but through a lot of trial and error I found these methods work well for me.

[spidermom]

1) Comb some gel or styling cream through your hair.
2) Do french or dutch braids from high on your head down to the very end (as close as you can). Wrap the ends with a piece of wet ribbon. Put your tie over the wet ribbon (it will grip those tiny ends better with the ribbon over them, plus it won't cut into your hair).
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c79/spidermom/tools.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c79/spidermom/agedbraid.jpg
3) Never comb through braid waves. It makes them go POOF! especially at the ends. Just use your fingers to unbraid and then leave your hair alone. They'll look piecey at first, but they'll blend as you wear them.

[Leah Polamalu]

I like to take my hair and gather it at the top of my head, bend over, and kind of push the hair close to the scalp as it can get and tie it. Kind of like plopping but don't use a towel. It helps my wavy hair get pretty curly throughout my whole head, roots and all, instead of just the ends being curly which happens when I braid it.

[ssjhotau2]

My hair always frizzed out and I didn't like the look of braid waves for a long time either.

I have very delicate natural waves (so delicate that if I comb my hair they are gone and my hair is just kinda poofy straight, and if I use any kind of cones then my hair just lays flat and lifeless no matter what I do).

However, I've found that if I dutch braid when my hair is damp and lightly oiled and keep it braided until completely dry then I have waves that I think look quite nice- like my avatar.

[Gulbahar]

French braiding definitely helps. And having longer hair! With APL hair the non-wavy part just will be too long compared to the rest. I'm sure you'll like it better when your hair is longer.

[gabee]

Since you have really thin hair (i) like me, i think your braidwaves are coming out so tiny because your hair makes a tiny braid. I know that for me, since my braids are so skinny, the resulting braidwaves look like I crimped my hair :confused: Not a nice look in 2011. However it does make it look like my hair is so much thicker from the poof!

Perhaps you could try to curl your hair using other methods, such as rag curls and pin curls. If you go on youtube there are many tutorials available.f

[julliams]

French braids look awful in my hair as braidwaves. I find the best is always one english braid down the back, or I seperate my hair into three and english braid each of those. The first gives me lose big waves and the second tighter ones.

The trick is to let them out, run some leave in or oil through hair with flat palms but don't rake through - this will cause frizz.

[racrane]

My braid waves fluffy, too. If I braid them while still very damp, it helps. And then, not to touch the hair when I take the braids out. I remembered brushing my hair after a braid and it looked so silly. I looked like I was in a cloud of hair.

[dRummie]

Since you have really thin hair (i) like me, i think your braidwaves are coming out so tiny because your hair makes a tiny braid.This was my first thought as well. If you do like the shape of the waves you get, and just want them to blend better with the straight half, try substituting a section of your braid with a thick ribbon or scarf. So two sections of hair (half your hair in each) and an artificial third section. That should help you get looser waves.

[Peggy E.]

The only way I can get braid waves to survive for any time at all is to make multiple braids around my head, using wet hair.

Then after they've thoroughly dried, carefully unbraid and arrange as little as possible. The least amount of arranging will keep the waves in longer.

You can also try the rag curls which is the only way I can give my hair uber wave/curl! This is really comfortable to sleep on, too - but you do end up with lots of curl!

I don't like it, but you could also try hair spray on the waves after taking them down.

Good luck!

[Earelia]

I've gotten absolutely beautiful waves from a rope crown braid .

Also, I highly recommend strips of fabric, but don't roll them (I don't like the result) instead, grab a piece of hair (the size depends on how large you want your waves) and at the top nearest to your scalp, drape a long strip of fabric over the section so it is half and half, then start (sort of) braiding your hair around the two sections, sort of S-shaped and tie off the end with a small band. I usually get 8 in my hair, and they kind of end up looking like thick, clothy-hairy dreads. XD. There is a member on here with a tutorial on how to do it, I'm just blanking out on her name right now.

I did try this one but I dunno, the waves looked insane and really exaggerated.

[Earelia]

My hair used to not hold braid waves, but these things helped me:
-layers (I got layers cut for the purpose of styling wavy/curly hair even though mine is naturally pretty straight)
-braiding when hair is wet and taking out when completely dry
-multiple braids.. one braid, even two don't do much for me. I usually do 4-6 smaller braids, sectioned so that half of them are higher up starting at the crown, and the other half done underneath those(if that makes any sense)
-covering braids with a satin headscarf, additionally securing the finished braids into a bun, or taking the multiple small braids and braiding those into one large braid and securing that... so none of them come loose and leave me with awkward straight sections

Some of these might sound nuts but through a lot of trial and error I found these methods work well for me.

That third one is a really good idea, I don't know why I never thought of it! I guess doing them more towards the front would hide the straight parts well. I'll have to try this maybe using rope braids or something. but I just know that my boyfriend is gonna be making fun of me having a bunch of hair dangling in front of my face. XD

[Earelia]

French braiding definitely helps. And having longer hair! With APL hair the non-wavy part just will be too long compared to the rest. I'm sure you'll like it better when your hair is longer.

I'm sure I will too. =)

[Earelia]

Since you have really thin hair (i) like me, i think your braidwaves are coming out so tiny because your hair makes a tiny braid. I know that for me, since my braids are so skinny, the resulting braidwaves look like I crimped my hair :confused: Not a nice look in 2011. However it does make it look like my hair is so much thicker from the poof!

Perhaps you could try to curl your hair using other methods, such as rag curls and pin curls. If you go on youtube there are many tutorials available.f

Maybe I need to look over the hair types list again. My hair isn't really all that thin, it's kind of medium. Althought it may have been when I joined because I had just taken my dreadlocks out and my hair was a lot thinner then... I guess I forgot what my straight ol' hair was like after having it all knotty for so long!

[MychelleC]

Try two or four smaller buns. Section hair and do two at the crown and two at the bottom. That will help with the half straight half wavy thing. I do this all the time and get "babe waves" according to my hubby.

[GlennaGirl]

My hair never looks good with braid waves either. I love how it looks in cinnabun waves, though.

[YepLilly]

Since you have really thin hair (i) like me, i think your braidwaves are coming out so tiny because your hair makes a tiny braid. I know that for me, since my braids are so skinny, the resulting braidwaves look like I crimped my hair

This is exactly what happens to me too. I've tried with two regular braids and also with two rope braids. The results are similar to yours. Next time I'll try with just one braid or rope braid and see what happens, but I don't think that will help much either.

What works the best for me is putting it up in a cinnabun, twirling it every now and then as it dries, or both. That's the best way to air-dry my hair I have found.