Can't figure out how to use hair sticks

**Spinder** · December 9th, 2015, 05:21 AM

I've tried and tried and for the life of me I cannot figure out how to actually insert hair sticks so that they actually stay IN my hair. I've tried every angle and position and they don't hold at all and pretty much just fall right out.

I've been told to "thread it up and down slightly like a sewing needle", but when I try that I end up just painfully pulling at strands. And it's still too loose and falls out.

Do you need to use other bits and bobs besides just the stick? I really dislike having to use a dozen different clips and pins and whatnot, so I was hoping I'd be able to use a stick and nothing else.

**bunneh.** · December 9th, 2015, 05:29 AM

https://youtu.be/ZHQwLBvwoZE?t=3m8s

I tried this with a pencil and it worked. If it pulls on your hair too much, your bun might be too tight, try making it looser. I did a loose bun and sticked a pencil in and it was very comfortable, not tight at all and it didn't pull on my hair.

**Wosie** · December 9th, 2015, 05:40 AM

The first thought which popped into my head was "how long is your hair?"... Because the length of your hair really determines how easy it'll be to use hair sticks without them pulling really hard at your scalp (or them falling out). When my hair was around APL it was really tough to use hair sticks, and they often fell out in the middle of walking somewhere (due to the bobbing motion of one's head when walking). ´xP

**neko_kawaii** · December 9th, 2015, 05:42 AM

It really depends on the construction of the bun. Easy ones to start with are center held such as the Nautilus. It took me a few months of practice before I could hold a cinnabun with a stick using the in-out technique.

**neko_kawaii** · December 9th, 2015, 05:43 AM

Originally Posted by Wosie

The first thought which popped into my head was "how long is your hair?"... Because the length of your hair really determines how easy it'll be to use hair sticks without them pulling really hard at your scalp (or them falling out). When my hair was around APL it was really tough to use hair sticks, and they often fell out in the middle of walking somewhere (due to the bobbing motion of one's head when walking). ´xP

This too. If your hair is shorter, try the Disc Bun.

**Nique1202** · December 9th, 2015, 05:52 AM

It depends on the type of bun you're trying to do.

For a basic cinnabun (twist the hair up on itself until it coils up into a bun shape on your head) as long as your ends are tucked underneath, the video bunneh. linked to above is basically it. You grab bun on the first insertion, grab scalp hair, and weave between bun and scalp all the way back through. If this doesn't hold, your hair may not be long enough to do these buns. Don't get discouraged. Give it six months and try again.

For center-held buns (disc, lazy wrap, nautilus, etc) you just go in one "hole" where your fingers are, under the middle lump (this is where you get the scalp hair), and back out the other side where your fingers are. If you're having trouble with cinnabuns, try the disc bun. This is the first bun I was able to do reliably.

**lapushka** · December 9th, 2015, 06:59 AM

First of all, how long is your hair and do your buns stay put well? Can you manage a bun? Only then can you blame inserting the stick wrong.

**Knifegill** · December 9th, 2015, 07:02 AM

I couldn't do it at first, took about two weeks to get it to stay! Watch like 30 tutorials! I liked the twist and poke under type when my hair was too short, but now that I'm longer than shoulder, I can twist into a real bun and do the stick up through and then over and down, I have to redo it sometimes because it's easy to overtighten.

But don't believe any lies about your hair being too slippery or smooth, it's all technique.

**Anje** · December 9th, 2015, 07:11 AM

Originally Posted by neko_kawaii

It really depends on the construction of the bun. Easy ones to start with are center held such as the Nautilus. It took me a few months of practice before I could hold a cinnabun with a stick using the in-out technique.

This. Some buns hold much more readily with sticks than others. Look for some videos for the Lazy Wrap Bun and Disc Bun on YouTube and try those. This one is exactly how I do mine; the twisting helps it hold better for my slippery hair. https://youtu.be/b3LWSGiDBbk

The "sewing" thing doesn't really work for me either. It's just uncomfortable.

**meteor** · December 9th, 2015, 08:35 AM

A lot depends on the length, thickness, texture, type of ends (layers or FTE or blunt), how slippery the hair is and the structure of the bun... So it's hard to tell what's going wrong without knowing more about your hair and without knowing specifically which bun you are trying to do.

The basic pinning motion with hairstick is this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWf4ElyLAAE but if the hair is too short or too long for this, you might have better luck with claw-clips (more teeth for more grip) or forks (the more prongs the better it will hold on shorter hair) or Ficcares/Fakkares and other clips with clasping action...

Twisting hair and especially braiding it before bunning really, really helps, as it creates more textured grip for the stick to hold onto. Accent braids or braiding at the scalp area helps for the same reason. Check out the simplified Ellingwoman Braided Bun, it's almost self-holding.