what are some protective style I can do without alot of hair toys?

[Zhennni(:]

Hi everyone! :) I know that putting your hair up in a protective style will reduce tangles and breakage; however I am a poor highschool student who does't have the money to buy expensive hair combs, forks, and sticks etc. All I have are hair ties, bobby pins, and claw clips. I used to be able to secure a french twist with a claw clip but now my hair is getting too long( waist length and pretty thick) and the clip doesnt secure it well. Also my hair is heavily layered :/ I can't even do a french briad without pieces of hair sticking/falling out :( Do you guys have any suggestions of styles I can do? or maybe recommend really cheap hair toys that i can afford? thanks alot!:)

[HintOfMint]

Spin pins are pretty cheap and available at most drugstore type places (CVS, Target... etc.)

I swear by them, I don't even own any hairtoys, and I'm perfectly happy with the styles I can create.

[Zhennni(:]

are they easy to use?:o I suck at using pins:P I have trouble using the U shaped pins :/

[HintOfMint]

are they easy to use?:o I suck at using pins:P I have trouble using the U shaped pins :/

They are ridiculously easy. Try a cinnabun first and use two spin pins, one where the ends tuck in, and another on the opposite side. Think of it as "sewing" your hair; as you twist the pins in, they thread through your bun and the scalp hair and hold it together.

It's pretty intuitive, once you see them, you'll understand.

U shaped pins are a pain in my booty, I can imagine they're difficult for most people.

[Zhennni(:]

I will give those a try then :) but for some reason I am afraid to screw/twist things in my hair because before I tried to use pencils and chopsticks as a hairstick, and as I twisted them in i hear and feel hairs snapping O.O is there a special technique to twising hair toys in your hair?

[B-L]

Gibson tuck (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKubj63ksC4) is easy. How are your braiding skills? Braids are good and there a many styles. You could try a braided bun, holded by bobby pins. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-J4LmVfbQw)

[darklyndsea]

You can find hair sticks for pretty cheap online if you look, though most of the cheap ones aren't the sturdiest of things. And it might not be the height of fashion, but anything relatively hair stick-shaped works as a substitute: chopsticks, pens, pencils.

[fridgee]

Spin pins are amazing and totally nondamaging and sooo easy to use and hold fantastically (yes I love spin pins!). They are really thin and smooth so you shouldn't get the snagging you got from chopsticks. Chopsticks are a great alternative to hairsticks tho, just make sure you sand any rough bits really smooth because that could be what was catching your hair before.

As for styles, try a dutch braid instead of a French as it can contain layers a bit better. A sock bun could also work well for you. The flower bun can be done with bobby pins and a hair band and is a pretty style. ETA: I just realised there are several buns called a flower bun, but they are all pretty and can all be done with what you already have!

[allmixedup88]

Sock buns are super easy.

[furnival]

I am afraid to screw/twist things in my hair because before I tried to use pencils and chopsticks as a hairstick, and as I twisted them in i hear and feel hairs snapping O.O is there a special technique to twising hair toys in your hair?

You shouldn't have to twist sticks into your hair- they should slide in smoothly, with no snagging. I find pencils tend to catch in my hair, but a Bic biro is my favourite pen-hairstick. :)
What kind of bun/ updo were you doing with the pencils/ chopsticks?

[Coan-Teen]

I would second the braided bun suggestion and also toss out the option of using actual chopsticks in your hair. I do. They're very cheap and when you buy the round ones they have no seams. If there are any asian markets around you can usually pick up a pack of 8 for only a few dollars and some of them are quite pretty.

[haibane]

You can make cheap hair forks by bending double pointed knitting needles in half. If they're short enough you can also use double pointed knitting needles as they are as hairsticks.
Great for making lazy wrap buns.

[Madora]

are they easy to use?:o I suck at using pins:P I have trouble using the U shaped pins :/

As far as using hairpins (not bobby pins), it is how you insert it that makes the difference.

You insert the pin --points facing the scalp - down through the outtermost edge of the braid or bun and try and "scoop" up a tiny bit of scalp hair, then pivot the pin inward towards the braid (bun) weaving the pin into it in and up and down motion.

Pin at the 4 points (north/south/east/west) and wherever needed.

Crimped hairpins come in various sizes, are very flexible and gentle on your hair..and easy to remove.

[jacqueline101]

I have layers to at the side so I got where I put my hair up in a pony tail bun loose and sort of messy. All you need is a scrunchi.

[Kelikea]

Doing two french or dutch braids is easier with thick, layered hair. You might also be able to do a chinese bun (one hairstick required). I got 4 hairsticks in a pack at Sally's for around $4 or $5. I have good luck using 3" bunheads hairpins. They are great for holding thick hair. I have never bought spin pins because they don't look long enough for me and you only get 2 in a pack for $5 and I like to use 4 pins to hold my buns. The bunheads pins have around 8-10 pins per pack (I'm guessing because it does not say on the package, but I bought mine YEARS ago and still have around 8 pins) and cost between $5-$7 depending on where you get them. Just google "bunheads" and you can find them:)

[XcaliburGirl]

I bought my plastic hairsticks at Claire's a few years ago when my hair was long. They don't have to be expensive hand-carved wood. I don't know if Claire's still carries them, but if you have one near you, it is worth a try.

[torrilin]

Kelikea, I can hold many buns with a single spin pin. Some of the iii thicknesses prefer 4 spin pins, but a fair number seem to do well with just 2 or 3. They're a rather impressive bit of engineering, since they work well in thinner hair too.

The one time where I'd lean towards wanting more pins is for stuff like braided figure 8 or infinity buns.

[jojo]

I have layers to at the side so I got where I put my hair up in a pony tail bun loose and sort of messy. All you need is a scrunchi.

Id go for this too, cheap and easy to use!

[Madora]

Kelikea, I can hold many buns with a single spin pin. Some of the iii thicknesses prefer 4 spin pins, but a fair number seem to do well with just 2 or 3. They're a rather impressive bit of engineering, since they work well in thinner hair too.

The one time where I'd lean towards wanting more pins is for stuff like braided figure 8 or infinity buns.

For the sake of your hair, please consider that if your bun is relying on a single spin pin, all the weight in that bun is relying on it too.

Your hair's weight should be properly supported so the bulk of it isn't dependant on that one pin. It puts too much pressure on that one particular place...especially if you're wearing it up all day.

[Seeshami]

I claw clip the end of my bun to the rest of my bun and that works pretty well.

[Kelikea]

Kelikea, I can hold many buns with a single spin pin. Some of the iii thicknesses prefer 4 spin pins, but a fair number seem to do well with just 2 or 3. They're a rather impressive bit of engineering, since they work well in thinner hair too.

The one time where I'd lean towards wanting more pins is for stuff like braided figure 8 or infinity buns.


I think I do have a bit more hair than you, it is hip-TBL right now and 4-4.25 pony circumference. My buns are quite large and a spin pin is shorter than the width of my bun.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117347&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117346&albumid=8987&dl=1319762164&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=118422&albumid=8987&dl=1320806462&thumb=1 These are pictures of my rose bun, Chinese bun, and knot bun, all from this fall. I don't have any more recent pictures of buns, but you can see that 1. I have quite a bit of hair, and 2. I don't need many hair toys besides pins and a stick:) But I don't think 1 spin pin would hold it.

[gracenotes]

Claw clips work pretty well for buns-- when my hair was at waist (with layers), they were the only thing that would hold my hair for a while. If you make a bun (braided buns work best, I found, particularly braided buns that started from a french or dutch braid), and then wind it into a bun, putting claw clips around the edge as necessary, it should hold your hair fairly well. Something like this:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8323&pictureid=121369

[Ack! I didn't realize the picture would turn out so big!]

[Zhennni(:]

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone! :) I might go out and buy more claw clips and try to find spin pins or cheap hair sticks:p I hope I can learn how to use them because I have a lot of hair; when I try to use bobby pins/hair pins to hold my bun it doesnt work :( I am pretty sure I inserted it the right way-I pushed it out grabed some scalp hair and pushed it in the other direction.

[amandacv86]

I also suggest spin pins. I loved them when my hair was longer, and I can't wait to use them again. I would split my hair into 3 sections, twist the middle one into a bun and twist the outer ones around the middle bun. It looked cool, too! I hope my explanation made sense.

[fridgee]

On the spin pin front it takes at least 8 normal hair pins to hold a cinnabun properly for me, but its rock solid with 2 spin pins. One from either side, so it doesn't matter if they don't reach the whole width of your bun. Basically every twist of the spin pin is like an extra pin securing the bun hair to your head hair. So hopefully even with such thick hair they will hold for you.

[nobeltonya]

Hair sticks. Or, smooth pens work, too. :) Lazy wrap bun is easy [just wrap it around your hand and secure with a stick.. youtube has tutorials].

[Zhennni(:]

But isn't putting your hair in a cinnamon bun damaging since you are twisting the hairs quite tightly? do you twist in different direction each time?

[Zhennni(:]

& now I really want to try the spin pins x) hope I can find those!

[Madora]

But isn't putting your hair in a cinnamon bun damaging since you are twisting the hairs quite tightly? do you twist in different direction each time?

It probably would be, if you did it every day, in the same place on your head. If you vary the location each time you do it, it is better for your hair.

[zombi]

As far as using hairpins (not bobby pins), it is how you insert it that makes the difference.

You insert the pin --points facing the scalp - down through the outtermost edge of the braid or bun and try and "scoop" up a tiny bit of scalp hair, then pivot the pin inward towards the braid (bun) weaving the pin into it in and up and down motion.

Pin at the 4 points (north/south/east/west) and wherever needed.

Crimped hairpins come in various sizes, are very flexible and gentle on your hair..and easy to remove.

thanks for this explanation... I always have trouble with hairpins, too. I will try it following these directions. Hopefully it will help!!

for the OP... they sell Spin Pins at Target/Walmart/Walgreens/CVS type places in the USA. I will add my vote to those who say "yay, I love them!" because they hold my layered hair really well.

[torrilin]

For the sake of your hair, please consider that if your bun is relying on a single spin pin, all the weight in that bun is relying on it too.

Your hair's weight should be properly supported so the bulk of it isn't dependant on that one pin. It puts too much pressure on that one particular place...especially if you're wearing it up all day.

M'dear, I have about HALF the hair you do in terms of thickness. Nevermind length, where you've got a solid extra foot or more. Using 2 spin pins in my hair means that I need to do rather weird pin arrangements so they don't interlock, or I need to be wearing a bun that makes my hair giant, like a braided infinity bun, because 2 pins provide about 6-8" worth of support length, and my cinnabuns are not large enough to require that much. 3" worth of pin sewn into my hair the way a spin pin does is enough for many of my favorites.

And yes, if the one pin is placed incorrectly, it doesn't catch scalp hair on every turn. And then my hair spits out the pin and falls down. The joys of fine and slippery hair :P. I don't usually have to worry about my hair staying up if it's insufficiently supported by the pins. Too slippery!

For a U shaped pin, yes, I'd totally agree with you. There I usually need more like 3, or my hair will slither out. But spin pins are not U shaped pins.

[Zhennni(:]

For spin pins, are they all the same size? If there are different sizes what size is better for waist length hair?

[Jessibear2854]

You can make cheap hair forks by bending double pointed knitting needles in half. If they're short enough you can also use double pointed knitting needles as they are as hairsticks.
Great for making lazy wrap buns.

This is what I do, since I'm a poor college student. JoAnne's Fabrics has super cheap, bendable knitting needles that work well.

[kidari]

For spin pins, are they all the same size? If there are different sizes what size is better for waist length hair?

Spin pins come in a pack of 3 for the minis and a pack of 2 for the regular. I have one of each. Personally I prefer amish pins. Conair makes them and I got mine at CVS. I think they were a pack of 12 for about $5 or so.

[Eirelin]

Spin pins are very cheap on eBay.

littleizz's tucked braid updo is very pretty and can be done with only an elastic and bobby pins or spin pins: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?p=2003780#post2003780

Added: Since your hair is rather longer, you could start it a bit higher up on your head and maybe let the braid hang down more, if that makes any sense to you.

[Zhennni(:]

Spin pins are very cheap on eBay.

littleizz's tucked braid updo is very pretty and can be done with only an elastic and bobby pins or spin pins: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?p=2003780#post2003780

Added: Since your hair is rather longer, you could start it a bit higher up on your head and maybe let the braid hang down more, if that makes any sense to you.

wow very pretty up do :) but she used a hair fork, how do I do it with elastic and pins? :o

[blondie9912]

Sock buns are good! Also, try twisting your hair into a Cinnabun and secure it with a claw clip (takes 1-3 depending on the size of the clip and thickness of your hair). I prefer the large ones where you only need one. Good luck :)

[zombi]

wow very pretty up do :) but she used a hair fork, how do I do it with elastic and pins? :o
I think you'd just secure the tail of the braid with the elastic and then after you roll it up use the pins to hold the braid inside the tucked part, if that makes sense -- she used a fork to hold the rolled up part in but you could just stick bobby pins or spin pins inside instead

[kidari]

almost any bun can be secured with your choice of hair tools- a figure 8 bun can be secured with a hair stick or bobby pins or amish pins or a flexi-8 or a ficarre... this is something I discovered recently lol it's so simple of a concept but I finally realized it

also any bun can be done as a half-up although that's not really a protective updo.

if you get spin pins or amish pins I love doing three mini cinnamon buns at the nape of the neck or doing three down the center of your head like a mohawk. simple, cute, easy, and a good protective style

I like to browse the thread "how are you wearing your hair today" for ideas and inspiration since I tend to stick to only 2-3 same styles all the time.