- Natural hair braid styles how to#
- Natural hair braid styles install#
- Natural hair braid styles full#
- Natural hair braid styles free#
Blow-dry the leave-in into your hair with a comb attachment, stretching the hair as you dry (stretched, moisturized hair is less likely to shrink and break in your braids, says Green).Comb a rich leave-in conditioner from roots to ends through wet hair until it’s evenly coated.Saturate your hair with a thick deep conditioner, leaving it in for 30 minutes to an hour before detangling and rinsing.Cleanse your scalp and hair with a sulfate-free cream-based shampoo.Not sure where to start? Check out Green’s pre-braid hair routine: Before braiding your hair, you have to prep it with a ton of hydration, she adds, which you can get from slathering on creams, conditioners, and oils beforehand to help keep your hair from drying out as quickly inside your braids. “If you’re not retaining moisture in your own natural hair beforehand, a protective style cannot do anything for you,” says Green.
Natural hair braid styles full#
“A protective style cannot do anything for you if your hair is damaged, if you need a haircut, or your hair is dried out,” says Green, so she recommends following a full routine to prep your hair for braids, which leads us to… Still, remember: Hair needs to be healthy and moisturized before your protective style.
Natural hair braid styles install#
If your goal with a fresh braid install is to protect and grow your hair, Green recommends styles that are “simple, easy, and don’t take too much time putting in,” like chunky box braids, jumbo cornrows, French or Dutch braids, and knotless braids, she suggests. So, yes, braids can be protective if they don’t lead to further damage.Īnd, of course, a protective style should also “be easy going in and easy to take down,” says Green, which means a million micro braids that take 15+ hours to install, or an intricate zig-zag-parted braid that breaks half your hair during the take-out process, won’t be protecting your hair as well as, say, a few short jumbo feed-in braids.
Natural hair braid styles free#
As a refresher, a protective style, at its core, is meant to keep your type-4 hair moisturized, tucked away (to minimize tangles and breakage), and free from manipulation (by being twisted, wrapped, or braided). Whether or not a braid is a protective style depends on a few factors: the style of braid, how tight the braid is to your scalp, the braiding method used, how long and thick the braiding hair is, and your own hair type and density.
Natural hair braid styles how to#
And if your saved folder on IG could use a refresh, I rounded up the best natural hair braids to try next, from jumbo braids to Ghana braids to braided updos, along with some tips from Green about how to prep your hair for braiding-plus, how long you should actually keep your braids in. So whether you’re looking to change up your style with box braids, micro braids, cornrows, or one of the zillion other options in your camera roll, you’re going to need more inspo before heading to your braider. And hey, even if the style isn’t protective (ahem, tight, butt-length braids with five pounds of braiding hair), it’s still temporary, right? “A lot of hair thrives on braids and protective styling,” says hairstylist and curly hair expert Jasmine “Jazzee” Green, since both the pre-braid prep, along with the actual style itself, can help your hair stay moisturized, detangled, and less prone to damage. If you’ve been thinking about trying a new hairstyle for your 4a, 4b, or 4c hair, you already know there are tons of natural hair braid ideas to try-and for good reason: Braids are one of the few styles that can be both a protective hairstyle and a whole new ~lewk~ at the same time.