Am I the only one who calls them french braids?

rainbowknots · Aug 29, 2011

I have always called "cornrows" french braids. Actually, I never heard the term cornrows until I moved from WI. I never see anyone call them french braids either, so I'm wondering if it was just a local thing.

What do you call the braids below:

tryingto · Aug 29, 2011

cannot see pic

rainbowknots · Aug 29, 2011

tryingto I fixed it

Aireen · Aug 29, 2011

I assume by WI, you mean West Indies. I lived there too and we called those cainrows or cornrows. If it was 1 or 2 braids we called them french braids.

melissa-bee · Aug 29, 2011

To me, there is a difference between French braids and canerows.
Canerows are the pics that you posted but French braids are when it's only one or two braids that are done thickly...like there is a lot more hair in the braid.

cheryl26 · Aug 29, 2011

I've used french braid when it's just one braid down the middle like this

rainbowknots · Aug 29, 2011

@Aireen, no I meant Wisconsin
melissa-bee, when I googled both, the french braids were only 1 or 2 braids. I don't know why we call a head full of those braids french braids.

LiftedUp · Aug 29, 2011

Canerows.

It's only french braids to me if it's one down the middle.

ChristmasCarol · Aug 29, 2011

Here in Northern Ohio, we use both terms to describe the braids you pictured. But, one or two braids are ALWAYS called French braids. Don't know about Southern Ohio - we don't really consider them to be part of the state, lol.

hothair · Aug 29, 2011

We call it weaving. When I encountered people of West Indian heritage is when I heard it called cornrows. French braid to me are the large inverted plaits as shown above.

diadall · Aug 29, 2011

I grew up calling them French braids. I am from Chicago.

rainbowknots · Aug 29, 2011

Yes!!! I'm not the only one lol.

Your Cheeziness · Aug 29, 2011

One or two large braids I call french braiding. That you posted, I call cornrows. I hear people say cornROLLS and I'm like...where is this rolling you speak of??

jerseygurl · Aug 29, 2011

In Nigeria, we call them weaving and french braids are one or two inverted braids, which we also call matting.

pookaloo83 · Aug 29, 2011

I call them cornrows.

fletgee · Aug 29, 2011

I was always told the difference between the two braiding methods was in how the actual hair was braided. In one method you do what is called overbraiding. To overbraid you draw the side hair in over the top and braid overhanded-one hand over the other-plams facing down. Underbraiding is the reverse. To underbraid you draw the side hair in underneath and braid -with your palms facing up.

Coffee · Aug 29, 2011

I grew up only knowing them as French Braids. It wasn't until I was older that I started calling them cornrows.

BostonMaria · Aug 29, 2011

cheryl26 said:
I've used french braid when it's just one braid down the middle like this

Yes one braid is a French Braid

when its many rows of braids its called Corn Rows
I found this picture in Google Images. Hope its not anybody here!

greenandchic · Aug 29, 2011

fletgee said:
I was always told the difference between the two braiding methods was in how the actual hair was braided. In one method you do what is called overbraiding. To overbraid you draw the side hair in over the top and braid overhanded-one hand over the other-plams facing down. Underbraiding is the reverse. To underbraid you draw the side hair in underneath and braid -with your palms facing up.

That's how I was always taught the difference between French braids and cornrolls.

Though this is one braid, its a cornrow because its underbraided (and stands out instead of being inverted). It doesn't matter how many braids or rolls it has.

This is a French braid because its inverted.

Like an "innie" vs. an "outie".

faithVA · Aug 29, 2011

fletgee said:
I was always told the difference between the two braiding methods was in how the actual hair was braided. In one method you do what is called overbraiding. To overbraid you draw the side hair in over the top and braid overhanded-one hand over the other-plams facing down. Underbraiding is the reverse. To underbraid you draw the side hair in underneath and braid -with your palms facing up.

This is how I learned it. It was the size or the amount, it is how the hair is braided. If you braid the hair under it is a corn row. If your braid the hair over it is a french braid. If you take two braids the same size a cornrow braid looks different than a french braid.

GaiasDaughter24 · Aug 29, 2011

I'm from Brooklyn, NY and we call them cornrows. French braids are 1 or 2 big cornrows, basically.

FemmeCreole · Aug 29, 2011

French braid is when it's braided inverted. It doesn't matter how many... it's the technique

FemmeCreole · Aug 29, 2011

greenandchic said:
That's how I was always taught the difference between French braids and cornrolls.

Though this is one braid, its a cornrow because its underbraided (and stands out instead of being inverted). It doesn't matter how many braids or rolls it has.

This is a French braid because its inverted.

Like an "innie" vs. an "outie".

and you are exactly right

kittenz · Aug 29, 2011

Those are cornrolls. French braids go in :yep:

greenandchic and Val that's what I learned too.

PJaye · Aug 29, 2011

I agree with fletgee, greenandchic and Val.

If the braid was done in an under-handed fashion with the “row” on top, it’s a cornrow; if an over-handed method was used with the “row” being underneath, it’s considered French braid.

What differentiates each type is the approach, not the number of braids.

Rossy2010 · Aug 29, 2011

Val said:
French braid is when it's braided inverted. It doesn't matter how many... it's the technique

Val, I thought when its inverted is a danish braid :look:

.

FemmeCreole · Aug 29, 2011

Rossy2010 said:
Val, I thought when its inverted is a danish braid.

never heard of a danish braid

RoseGolden · Aug 29, 2011

Interesting. I never thought about the difference between them. I've always used both interchangeably :laugh:

.

nysister · Aug 29, 2011

That's what I've known as French braids as well. One or two large braids braided under not over.

Sent from my VM670 using VM670

Nonie · Aug 29, 2011

Whether underbraided or overbraided, if it's one (and sometimes two) meaning all the hair put in one row, then it's a French braid. If there are many rows whether underbraided or over, they are cornrows.

When I was growing up in Kenya, majority of cornrows I came across looked like this:

And it was only when I saw French braids (meaning one or two) that I saw the sort of braiding you see with the "rope" on the outside like this:

In fact, before I understood that a French braid was all the hair combined into one, I thought that it was the braiding where you can see the "rope" that made it a French braid and not the style.

But now I know cornrows are many, French braid is when hair is combined into one (or in some places two) rows whether under or over. In fact, this website shows the "rope" on the outside in its definition of French plait/braid: http://www.oxfordadvancedlearnersdictionary.com/dictionary/french-plait

Am I the only one who calls them french braids?

What do you call those braids

French Braids

Cornrows

Other

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