Help with TBL iii hair (please)

[thelambscottage]

My hair is very thick iii (5 inches) and I am trying not to be discouraged about wearing my hair up, but so far have been unsuccessful at every single try. I keep trying different ways to do my hair up, but each time I try, my hair ends up being too heavy to hold the style up, or else if I get it to stay up, it hurts. Not to mention that it usually looks like I have a large growth erupting from my head....so I usually end up taking it out and putting it back in a braid. If any of you have iii or have any ideas, please help! My hair is getting to the length where I need to have it up out of the way.

[princessp]

My hair is not as thick as yours, but I find splitting my hair works. So 2 or 3 buns, a couple of accent braids etc. And I highly recommend Quattro titanium sticks to hold your lovely locks.

You have spectacular hair btw. I'm interested to see what works for you. :)

[jeanniet]

You might try doing a simple braided bun--just coil your braid the way you'd do a cinnabun and secure (for you, using two hairsticks in an X shape might be best). I find that a braided bun tends to distribute the weight well. You may also need to "practice" wearing buns to give your scalp a chance to get used to them. So maybe wear a bun for an hour or two at first, then work up to longer periods of time. You have lovely hair! :)

[lapushka]

Have you tried a lazy wrap bun yet? Does that not stay put? Or a cinnabun? Have you tried using a Ficcare with both?

[white.chocolate]

I have no experience with very heavy hair, but I do understand how it feels when some styles and hairtoys pull the hair. Have you tried hair styles that evenly distribute the weight of your hair around your head? I am guessing that such hairstyles are the crown braid and the senco braid (not so practical). Perhaps you need to use more hair toys in your updos.

[Kelikea]

After trying a crown braid on my almost 4.25 circumference hair, I would not recommend it. Mine was too fat to look good. http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=117344

I like Amish woven braids, sectioned double rose bun, and Chinese bun.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=121631http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117347&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117348&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117346&albumid=8987&dl=1319762164&thumb=1

Heidi W. has a nice bun that I can wear all day with no problems. Here is the link: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=89834&highlight=Heidi+youtube

[misspurdy06]

I have similar problems. I do a regular braid halfway down my hair and then wrap the rest around that bit of braid and secure with a hair tie.

[AnqeIicDemise]

After trying a crown braid on my almost 4.25 circumference hair, I would not recommend it. Mine was too fat to look good. http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=117344

I like Amish woven braids, sectioned double rose bun, and Chinese bun.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=121631http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117347&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117348&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117346&albumid=8987&dl=1319762164&thumb=1

Heidi W. has a nice bun that I can wear all day with no problems. Here is the link: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=89834&highlight=Heidi+youtube


I rather love your crown braid, thank you very much. Its gorgeous AND delicious looking.

Now I'm craving this:http://www.fourseasonsbakehouse.com/images/breads-ring.JPG

ETA: there, image fixed.

[longhairedlady]

I do a cinnabun held with claw clips. Its not the prettiest, but its quick and its the most comfortable for me to do. Anything else and it is just to heavy and it pulls my hair.

[Amber_Maiden]

I have hip length iii hair (6in). I find it best to do a bun and secure it with two hairsticks... That's what usually works for me. At first, it was uncomfortable and didn't work. It took about a month of trying every day until I got it right and was comfortable.

[LornaDoone]

I have found that if I french or dutch braid my hair and then bun the length it helps provide an anchor and it doesn't pull or hurt. If you do a rather chunky french braid (only a couple of add-ins on each side) on the back of your head and leave the length un-braided, it isn't obvious that you braided before bunning.

One of the most comfortable ways I put my hair up is two dutch braids and interlacing the tails. Loepsie and Torrinpaige both have a tutorial vid.

[SheaLynne]

I have 4.5 or 4.75 circ (depending if it is newly washed or not), and I am now just hitting classic. I found that around tailbone, one stick no longer did the trick, and I had to invest in a fork for the first time (I have very little budget for hair toys, so this was big for me...). I wear my fork daily, and it holds great with lazy wraps and hypno buns. Nautilus buns will hold for a while but I do have to re-do them throughout the day, and cinnabuns hold ok with it. The weight definitely made a difference. Using double sticks should work, too, but I don't have that many matching sets, so haven't done that much.

[thelambscottage]

My hair is not as thick as yours, but I find splitting my hair works. So 2 or 3 buns, a couple of accent braids etc. And I highly recommend Quattro titanium sticks to hold your lovely locks.

You have spectacular hair btw. I'm interested to see what works for you. :)
Thank you dear, I did try doing a bun today with 4 accent braids, it was *a lot* easier, as it was easier to hold the bun tight with hair. Now I need to work on getting the bobby pins to stay in.

[spidermom]

My hair isn't quite so thick, but I find that 2 or more buns is more comfortable, plus when I do one bun, I supplement the sticks or fork I've used with a few long bobby pins (also called roller pins).

Braided buns secured multiple places are comfortable, too.

[thelambscottage]

Have you tried a lazy wrap bun yet? Does that not stay put? Or a cinnabun? Have you tried using a Ficcare with both?
I tried the lazy bun, which I think I might be able to get the hang of eventually, but am having trouble with coordination while wrapping because my hair is actually wider than the palm area between my thumb and first knuckle, so its really hard to hold it tight. I have not tried using a ficcare, but I would probably get one if I thought it would work. Are there any tutorials on how these are used or even an up close photo so I can get a better look at one. I am really new to the world of hair toys, especially the ones you all use on here. So far my experience has been department store type toys which get worn once and then end up in a drawer somewhere. So I'm also looking for toys that will work with my type iii hair, but for the price I want to make sure it's something I will actually use.

[thelambscottage]

My hair isn't quite so thick, but I find that 2 or more buns is more comfortable, plus when I do one bun, I supplement the sticks or fork I've used with a few long bobby pins (also called roller pins).

Braided buns secured multiple places are comfortable, too.
I need to get some of those long pins, I found some Amish ones on ebay, but I'm still debating what I need.

[thelambscottage]

After trying a crown braid on my almost 4.25 circumference hair, I would not recommend it. Mine was too fat to look good. http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=117344

I like Amish woven braids, sectioned double rose bun, and Chinese bun.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=8987&pictureid=121631http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117347&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117348&albumid=8987&dl=1319762290&thumb=1http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?pictureid=117346&albumid=8987&dl=1319762164&thumb=1

Heidi W. has a nice bun that I can wear all day with no problems. Here is the link: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=89834&highlight=Heidi+youtube
I love your hairstyle in this photo! It is so inspiring! I tried doing a braid bun like that but my braid was so thick that I ran out of length before I wrapped it around the second time. But I love your accessory braids, and I have a feeling I may need to come up with my own style of bun somehow and that accessory braids may be the key to getting mine to stay up.

[thelambscottage]

I have 4.5 or 4.75 circ (depending if it is newly washed or not), and I am now just hitting classic. I found that around tailbone, one stick no longer did the trick, and I had to invest in a fork for the first time (I have very little budget for hair toys, so this was big for me...). I wear my fork daily, and it holds great with lazy wraps and hypno buns. Nautilus buns will hold for a while but I do have to re-do them throughout the day, and cinnabuns hold ok with it. The weight definitely made a difference. Using double sticks should work, too, but I don't have that many matching sets, so haven't done that much.
Thank you for your response, I will look into hair forks, these are something really new to me so can I ask you, are they all pretty much the same, or are there some that work better with our thick hair? Could you maybe post a link for the one you use?

[lapushka]

I tried the lazy bun, which I think I might be able to get the hang of eventually, but am having trouble with coordination while wrapping because my hair is actually wider than the palm area between my thumb and first knuckle, so its really hard to hold it tight. I have not tried using a ficcare, but I would probably get one if I thought it would work. Are there any tutorials on how these are used or even an up close photo so I can get a better look at one. I am really new to the world of hair toys, especially the ones you all use on here. So far my experience has been department store type toys which get worn once and then end up in a drawer somewhere. So I'm also looking for toys that will work with my type iii hair, but for the price I want to make sure it's something I will actually use.

This is a perfect example of using a Ficcare (clamp) and Flexi8 (barrette type thing):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FWJSE-hujo&list=UUzmzRoTsGDkr4JBxpe21gUw&index=31&feature=plcp

Ficcares (esp. the large ones) are much bigger in size than the standard hair accessories that you can get in stores, so they are great for thicker hair. Also the Flexi8s come in very big sizes (megaflexi). It's worth looking into.

[Phalaenopsis]

Thelambscottage: I second the Dutch/French braiding and then bunning. It helps a lot!

The best hair forks I found were the 60th street ones, very comfortable shaped to your head :)

I have to disagree with lapushka on the Flexi's and the Ficcares... You won't find a ficcare that'll fit comfortably with that thickness and length. The flexi can be fun for half ups, but they have a tendency to sit uneven in a bun and I don't find that comfortable

I think your best bet to have a painfree updo is to french braid before bunning, and make a braid bun (makes your hair more compact) and use a hairfork with wider teeth like this: http://60thstreet.net/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=5_57

[Madora]

Thelambscottage, the secret to arranging thick hair easily is to section it. Sectioning also helps distribute the weight more comfortably.

For instance: a double braided bun

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=6554&pictureid=87274

Detangle hair thoroughly

1) Part hair horizontally from top of left ear to top of right ear
Comb out hair, divide in 3 sections and braid down to ends.

2) Coil braid in a bun, using crimped hairpins as you go. Tuck in tassle under bun

3) Take remaining hair, detangle, divide in 3 sections and braid to the end.

4) Take braid and wind it around braided bun, pinning with crimped hairpins as you go. Tuck in tassle.

Variations: double cinnamon bun, roped braids, twisted strands

Bobby pins are meant for tiny whisps of hair. Crimped hairpins (3 inches) would work better at holding your hair securely.

HOW you use the hairpins makes all the difference!

Good luck!

[spidermom]

I can never get crimped hair pins to work for me. My hair spits them back out within an hour or so.

[lapushka]

I have to disagree with lapushka on the Flexi's and the Ficcares... You won't find a ficcare that'll fit comfortably with that thickness and length. The flexi can be fun for half ups, but they have a tendency to sit uneven in a bun and I don't find that comfortable

Yeah, but I'm thinking the megaflexi8s are pretty big... They never sat uneven in my hair, not so far anyway. Could be a case of the OP having to find out on her own what she's most comfortable with. :)

[Phalaenopsis]

I can never get crimped hair pins to work for me. My hair spits them back out within an hour or so.
Big ditto!

I find spin pins a lot better.

[Kelikea]

I love your hairstyle in this photo! It is so inspiring! I tried doing a braid bun like that but my braid was so thick that I ran out of length before I wrapped it around the second time. But I love your accessory braids, and I have a feeling I may need to come up with my own style of bun somehow and that accessory braids may be the key to getting mine to stay up.


That's why there are two or three braids used for each of these buns. Actually, the woven amish braids are three-sectioned braids on each side of the head. the rose bun was one rope braid for the front section, and two rope braids for the bun. The Chinese bun uses two braids. My hair is just now long enough to use one rope braid for a rose bun, but it only wraps like 1.5x around. I use bunheads 3" pins.

[BlazingHeart]

I've got a little less length and a bit more thickness, so a pretty similar amount of hair. I have forks that I like a lot from jeterfork, mairzydozy, and Grahtoe studios. I find it is easier to get my hair up, stable, and comfortable with them. Also, for stick buns, have you tried the pencil bun?

[thelambscottage]

Thelambscottage, the secret to arranging thick hair easily is to section it. Sectioning also helps distribute the weight more comfortably.

For instance: a double braided bun

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=6554&pictureid=87274

Detangle hair thoroughly

1) Part hair horizontally from top of left ear to top of right ear
Comb out hair, divide in 3 sections and braid down to ends.

2) Coil braid in a bun, using crimped hairpins as you go. Tuck in tassle under bun

3) Take remaining hair, detangle, divide in 3 sections and braid to the end.

4) Take braid and wind it around braided bun, pinning with crimped hairpins as you go. Tuck in tassle.

Variations: double cinnamon bun, roped braids, twisted strands

Bobby pins are meant for tiny whisps of hair. Crimped hairpins (3 inches) would work better at holding your hair securely.

HOW you use the hairpins makes all the difference!

Good luck!
Thank you so much for the advice, I tried doing this bun this morning but quickly found I need the larger crimped hairpins like you suggested, so I now have them ordered and am waiting for them to arrive, I can't wait to try it! :)

[thelambscottage]

Thelambscottage: I second the Dutch/French braiding and then bunning. It helps a lot!

The best hair forks I found were the 60th street ones, very comfortable shaped to your head :)

I have to disagree with lapushka on the Flexi's and the Ficcares... You won't find a ficcare that'll fit comfortably with that thickness and length. The flexi can be fun for half ups, but they have a tendency to sit uneven in a bun and I don't find that comfortable

I think your best bet to have a painfree updo is to french braid before bunning, and make a braid bun (makes your hair more compact) and use a hairfork with wider teeth like this: http://60thstreet.net/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=5_57
Another question, if you're still following this thread, I see that I can order different lengths of forks...what length of fork would you get?

[Madora]

Thank you so much for the advice, I tried doing this bun this morning but quickly found I need the larger crimped hairpins like you suggested, so I now have them ordered and am waiting for them to arrive, I can't wait to try it! :)

Glad I could help, thelambscottage.

Be sure when you insert the hairpins that you don't just stick it straight in to the hair. It won't stay there long if you do it that way.

Just insert the hairpin straight down through the outside edge of the braid, "scoop" up a tiny bit of scalp hair, then pivot the end of the pin back into the braid, weaving it in to the braid in an up and down motion. The "weaving" motion helps the pin anchor itself more (rather than just sticking it in).

Try and pin at the 4 directions: north/south/east/west. You may need more pins. Good luck!

[PrincessBob]

Another question, if you're still following this thread, I see that I can order different lengths of forks...what length of fork would you get?
I would recommend forks with 4.5"-6" FPL. My hair is iii and I had to practice a lot and explore. Also, You may want to look at aircraft alluminum, bronze, and nickle-silver (aka Geran silver) for your forks. These metals tend to bend out of shape less easily than copper and some other materials I have tried, but are slim enough to not cause excessive pulling and are smooth. I also suggest getting some DPN and making wavelength pins (your finished product will be around 3.5". These can be used together to hold a bun from multiple sides and can be used to distribute and anchor weight for styles held with less than effective hair accessories and to re-enforce hold.
Practice is important. Use the same bun once a day while you are learning it for at least a couple weeks. when your hair gets a little longer, you may find the sweet-spot where your hair suddenly does buns you have been trying for years, but haven't been able to get to work. There are lots of challenges with thick hair. The taped braid in my siggy was three braids one down the back and two wrapped around my head. At the time it was the only way to get it to work because my hair was too thick. that was at tail bone. Now, at classic, I can wrap my full braid around comfortably and easily.
Slender and strong is better than chunky and bulky for when you are learning these styles.

[AnqeIicDemise]

I need to get some of those long pins, I found some Amish ones on ebay, but I'm still debating what I need.

My hair isn't as thick as yours, but it is thicker than most people I've met off boards.. bobby pins are the bane of my existence. They don't work. They get spit out and the tension just about give me migrains of Doom.

I found amish-styled pins at sally's. The large, jumbo size. They barely fit inside an old altoid tin box. I wasn't sure if it would stick so the gal at the store let me open the box to test them. They're quite strong and resilient. I haven't had a spit out yet.

The good grip pins are good but I need more of them per bun to make them work.
9-9

[princessp]

Thelambscottage: I second the Dutch/French braiding and then bunning. It helps a lot!

The best hair forks I found were the 60th street ones, very comfortable shaped to your head :)

I have to disagree with lapushka on the Flexi's and the Ficcares... You won't find a ficcare that'll fit comfortably with that thickness and length. The flexi can be fun for half ups, but they have a tendency to sit uneven in a bun and I don't find that comfortable

I think your best bet to have a painfree updo is to french braid before bunning, and make a braid bun (makes your hair more compact) and use a hairfork with wider teeth like this: http://60thstreet.net/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=5_57

Yeah I seem to be having a hard time with large ficcares now that I am at TB-classic. But I can still use them successfully in half-ups. So the top and side hairs back in a smallish bun held with a L ficcare and the rest down or in another updo/braid.

I know I already sort of alluded to it, but regarding materials if you can get titanium it is seriously good for this thickness/length because it is so light.

Thanks for starting this thread. Thanks Madora and Kelikea for the visuals. I really need to start learning some of these now that my longest hairs are at classic.

[Phalaenopsis]

Another question, if you're still following this thread, I see that I can order different lengths of forks...what length of fork would you get?
At least a 6 inch with hair like yours :) If you do compact braid buns... But I think you even would be better with bigger, like 6 1/2 or 7 inch.

[BlazingHeart]

For size of fork, the best way to decide is to make a bun and measure how big across it is. From there, people have a variety of likes on how long they like their functional prong length aka FP or FPL. I like mine about the same length as my bun is wide. Either that or .5" longer seems to be the preferred length.

As far as buying them goes, I'll note that Mairzydozy forks have a really deep head-curve, so I'd go towards the shorter end of that. Jeterforks and Grahtoe Studios, I like a little more prong length than the width of my bun.

~Blaze

Edited to add: with my hair at hip and a little more thickness than yours (about 5.2"), I wear a 4.5" or 5" fork the most comfortably.

[Avital88]

I have similar problems. I do a regular braid halfway down my hair and then wrap the rest around that bit of braid and secure with a hair tie.

This is what i do too, its the best i think

[heidi w.]

You MUST be told: you have beautifully thick hair as I see in your signature picture. You have the thickness that everyone desires!!

So, take heart, you're gonna make it!!

First, when putting hair in a basic bun. I'm gonna give you ideas for organizing a basic bun, and from there you can grow and experiment.

First, you need to form a ponytail. IF you have a hard time holding the ponytail while forming the bun, then tie it off to hold it in a ponytail. After a while, you won't need this help, but maybe til you learn all the other parts, it may help you. Most updos that are basic begin with a ponytail.

Then twist the hair length as you proceed winding the hair into a bun. This helps hair to kind of stay put, even if you still have bits sticking out.

Finally, and this is very important. If you're using bobby pins, you PIN AS YOU GO. A hairstick we put it in at the end, usually, but with any pinning, one pins the hair up as they proceed. You do not wait til the hair is formed and then pin it because then the interior hair will fall out even if you pin all else well.

Here's the info on pinning the hair. You're around mid-back with a braid, so likely a bit longer in length overall. With the thickness you have, you have 3 choices of hair pins to use and for your thickness I recommend using long, bobbypins -- what are technically known as hair roller pins. It's very important to use bobby pins that are in good stead, that is, they have the tips covered and there's no lifting of the material off of the pin. Once this occurs, that pin is dead and should be tossed.

So, here we are, ponytail the hair and kind of wind firmly perhaps a bit tightly (but not overly tight) the first spiral which will be very small, relatively speaking, and then pin this in a North, South, East, West pattern: 4 pins in all, around the circle. A bit of scalp hair should be taken up by the pin to anchor the bun to the head. If you have trouble getting the pin in, slightly wiggle the pin up and down while inserting the pin. These 4 pins will likely touch each other on the underside of the pinned bun, somewhat forming an interlocking pattern. Then you spiral the next spiral, and likely only need around 3 pins to anchor this hair down and also interlock with the pins laid as the foundation, and proceed in this fashion. When you reach the ends, you do not have to tie anything off.

Instead, simply tuck the length under the last spiraled hair and use a u-shaped pin, the kind that is the length of a bobby pin and kind of has a wiggle on each spike of the hair pin. Wiggle that in to help hold the ends under the bun.

If you like, you can tie a pretty ribbon around the circumference of the entire bun, or you can install a hair decoration of some kind in the hair as adornment.

This bun should hold. The most likely problem is one of tension. Until you get used to what works, you may have problems with either the bun being too loose or too tight. There is a certain amount of tension that's needed to help hair stay up all day. And pins can cause tension over time such as pulling on a given piece of scalp hair uncomfortably.

Once hair is all up and set in its formation, you can place palms on either side of the scalp hair, not on either side of the bun though, and press in and forward on the hair to ever-so-slightly loosen the hair.

When I used to wear my hair like this, sometimes I had to redo the updo at lunch or at 3 pm. Sometimes my hair bun kind of slid a bit during the day, and for this reason kind of pulled on forehead hairline hairs. It takes a bit of practice to know what works for you. But this is the basic way to create a basic bun. Once you have this bun down, then you can braid the length and spiral all of that in to a bun updo following just about these same instructions. In fact, you may fare better and have an easier time making a braided bun over a loose hair bun.

Practice makes perfect. You'll get it. Promise. Just set aside some time on some weekend and give it all a try. I had to learn that getting good at updo's really meant more about where my hands are, and less about the formation of the hair or where the hair is.

I wish you all the best, but I think this info may be helpful to you. Good luck!! I've helped lots of people, even those that are left handed with learning the art of Updos.

heidi w.

[heidi w.]

At the end of this video I demonstrate a simple updo using a single or two hairsticks, whichever one might prefer.

http://www.amazon.com/Naturally-Healthy-Hair-Treatments-Fabulous/dp/158017129X

heidi w.