My New Micro Braids

[Nonie]

For those that don't know, I do my own micro braids. I've always worn them about shoulder-length using human hair extensions because that length felt most comfortable to me. Up until about July of this year, I would curl the ends of the braids with a curling iron to shape and style them - part of why I love human hair extensions. However, in July I had to put away my curling iron and find no-heat ways to style my micros because my own hair caught up in length with the extensions.

For months I've been anxious to redo my hair and replace the shorter extension piece with one that extends a good length beyond my own hair, so that I could go back to using my curling iron again. Well, I finally did. And although I'd been looking forward to it, for a while, the longer piece felt so awkward and made me very uneasy.

Having not worn extensions this long in ages, I felt like I had just donned a pink Rapunzel wig that was so obviously fake.

Anyway, three weeks later, the new length is growing on me and I just wanted to share the pics with you:

http://images4.fotki.com/v51/photos/3/31573/328991/MicroBraidsDec2003-1-vi.jpg

 

[juju]

Your braids looks nice.

 

[SweetNic_JA]

really nice nonie. They can definitely compete (and win) with a professional's work

 

[Nonie]

Thank you Juju and Sweet_Nic.

 

[lthomas1]

It looks so nice, and I bet they look great on you!!!
http://public.fotki.com/ugogirl/
pwd: Goodhairday

 

[Nessa]

It looks great.

 

[TBC72]

Hey Nonie!! Your braids are so purty!! Gosh, I wish I had the patience to do mine like that. Keep up the good work.

 

[biyanna]

You do not look like Rapunzel. Those braids are a very realistic length. You do great work! What type of hair do you use and how long will your braids last?

 

[cybra]

Hey Nonie!

Your braids look great! How long did it take for you to do them? I have only done cornrows, I've never tempted to do micros...I don't think they'd look right if I did them anyway

You are so talented to be able to do that. Great job!

 

[Nonie]

Lthomas1 & Nessa, thank you.

Tonia2002, thanks, but I've gotta tell you, I seem to be less patient these days than I used to be. I usually rent several movies to distract me from what my fingers are doing so that time flies without my noticing it, but for some reason, I couldn't sit through more than one movie this time without getting restless. Not tired, just bored. So I postponed completing them a few times.

Aww...Biyanna, thanks for the assurance.

I used Human Hair Wet and Wavy from hisandher.com. I don't usually care much about the texture as long as it's human hair. So the Wet and Wavy texture wasn't a preference. I wanted the longest piece I could get that didn't cost an arm and a leg. Well, it wound up costing an arm and a leg alright

but I was shopping in a rush so just went for the first hair that was of the length I was looking for. Why I wanted the longest length is coz I fold it exactly in half when braidig and wanted to end up with at least 14 inches of hair so that I'd have enough hair extending beyond my own to toy with. Oh and how long will I keep the braids in or the hair? One year, two... Just depends on how fast my hair grows. I had kept the previous piece in for about as long so... (That's why I can ignore the amount of dough I fork out to buy the piece initially. Pays for itself in the long run.)

Cybra,

that coming from you is truly an honor, Oh Thou Queen of Braids.

Thanks. I didn't do them all in one sitting. I'd get bored and don a hat until I felt like doing them again. Usually, when I did the shoulder length ones, it took me eight hours or 4 movies (I'm not that fast). So I imagine this took longer since they were longer. Plus I was trying to make diamond partings as opposed to my usual square ones (ie parting diagonally instead of horizontally and vertically) so I'm sure slowed me down a touch too.

 

[LiqueXX]

You braids look good. I know how to braid but I have never done my own (I have little patience to sit for 8 or more hours).

 

[Nonie]

Thanks LiqueXX. I have the opposite problem. No patience doing anyone else's. Only coz I can't stop when I please.

The secret to doing your own is to rent a few good movies and not to worry about how your partings look in the back since the many braids will hide that. Then start braiding from the back. By the time you get done with the movies, you'll probably be almost done. Then you can use a mirror to help you make neat straight partings in the front where you might be parting the braids when styling. That's how I do it.

And if the movies end before you're done, that's where your creativity comes to play then and you learn to tie scarves in fancy ways or you get yourself some neat hats that you can wear until the mood hits you again...ie the next day when you rent another set of movies.

And if you catch a serious case of HIH (Hand in Hair) disease like I have, you start to enjoy retouching them so much every time you're watching anything such that you keep them looking neat at all times.

That's how I keep them in forever.

 

[EXSQUISIT]

just gorgeous nonie!! excellent job!

 

[Nonie]

Aww...thank you Jennifer.

BTW, sth else I forgot to mention. I always use just two packs of human hair and usually I don't finish the packs. (With the synthetic hair, one used to suffice. I think if I remember correctly.) But when the two I ordered from hisandher.com arrived, I thought they'd seen me coming because the hair seemed half the amount of what I get for about 1/4 the price from Sally's. I was afraid I'd ran out before I was done, but turned out that not only were the two packs enough, but I had about a 1/4 of each left over.

I had completely forgotten about that until someone PMed me asking how many pieces I used. The answer: about one and a half packs.

 

[sassygirl125]

Looking good, girlie!

 

[Karonica]

Those are gorgeous, nonie!

 

[BlkHoneyLuv2U]

They look really good. You are blessed that you can do braids at all. I can bearly do plaits. Shame on me.

 

[miss_brown]

Very pretty, nonie

 

[asummertyme]

you did a great job!!!
cybra you should be able to do them with ease, your corn rows come out great, i think u would be great at boxbraids!!

 

[Nonie]

Thank you Sassygirl, Karonica, Ladydee, Miss Brown and Asummertyme.

I agree with you, Asummertyme. Cybra is just not giving herself 'nuff credit. I think her singles would be da bomb.

 

[mermaid]

2 packs?? Wow! How lucky! It takes me 7-8 packs of that pricey hair to do my head, and it takes 15-16 hours for my initial braiding (I think I do it quicker because my hair is half in and out of braids, so I'm compelled to finish faster!!) and when I am doing the new growth, it takes around 17-20 hours.

 

[KinksnCurlz]

You did a good job nonie

. To all the ladies that braid their own hair, i definately applaud your patience