Black Braided Hair Styles

The winter is here and in full effect in Michigan; which means a change of wardrobe, driving conditions and should mean a change in your hair care regimen. If you were lax in your hair care during the warmer months, you may have survived with minor damage, but if you do not take some serious precautions during the colder months, come Spring, you will definitely regret it. Because the winter months can wreak havoc on your hair, it's very important to choose low maintenance styles so that you do not have to comb or brush often. It's also a great idea to incorporate a routine that causes very little stress on your hair such as letting the hair air dry instead of blow drying it; finger combing the hair instead of using an actual comb; or if you do use a comb, use a wide tooth comb. Also, chose good moisturizing hair care products that do not contain mineral oil, paraffin, petrolatum, SLS or SLES, as all of these cause dryness.

The harsh cold and frosty winds can cause excessive dryness and dandruff, and if you don't retain or replenish the moisture in your hair, damage will soon follow. The best way to combat this is by protecting the hair. During the winter, I never leave out of my house without my hair being covered. I generally wear a satin or silk scarf under my winter hat to preserve the style as well as prevent direct contact with the harsh material most hats are made of.

In the winter the air becomes extremely dry and harsh; inside and outside. In order to retain moisture in your hair during the day, it is good to use a humidifier to emit humidity in the air inside of your home or office. This will not only combat dry and brittle hair, but can help prevent or minimize dandruff.

Many women opt to wear protective styles during the winter. Protective styles are styles that guard the ends of the hair from the elements; buns, braid extensions, and weaves are a few protective styles to consider. Each of these styles are generally low maintenance, and if maintained properly will allow you to preserve as much of your hair as possible throughout the winter months.

If you choose to wear a bun, it's important to make sure that the hair is not pulled back too tightly, as this may cause stress on the hair line. It is also a good idea to take the bun down every night and lightly mist the ends (about the last 2 inches of hair) with a good moisturizing spray such as Growth by Sweet Nature by Eddie; and then lock in that moisture with a heavy oil such as castor oil. This will leave the hair super soft, strong and moisturized in the morning.

Braid extensions are also a great choice for winter months. If you follow these simple tips, not only will you preserve your hair, but you will have much stronger, softer and healthier hair come Spring. If you are going to use synthetic braiding hair such as yaki, kanekelon or other synthetic fibers, it is best if you soak the hair in apple cider vinegar and then rinse in cool water before getting your extensions put in. Synthetic braids come coated with a chemical that causes our hair to become dry; this will strip the chemical away. Another way to reduce dryness is by spraying the hair with a braid spray every day, again the Growth Spray by Sweet Nature is an excellent braid spray. You don't have to drench the hair; a fine mist throughout the extensions will suffice

Weaves are considered protective only if they are sewn in and your own hair is cornrowed, out of harm's way. In this case, the only thing that is essential to retain moisture is to make sure that it is replenished on a regular basis. Depending on the quality of the weave, it's a good idea to run water through the hair on a regularly, followed with a good moisturizing spray.

Regardless of which protective style you chose to rock during the winter, it's important to make water your best friend; drink plenty of it and let it run through your hair often. You don't have to shampoo your hair every time you get it wet, but just letting water run through your hair will restore lost moisture. When I wear braid extensions, I let water run through my braid every other day; although I wash them only once a week. I also try to kick up my water intake to no less than sixty or so ounces a day.

The best way of all to combat winter damage is to be proactive. If you start out with your hair strong and healthy before the winter, it will be a lot easier to maintain and preserve during winter. Adopt a weekly routine of washing with a moisturizing shampoo void of SLS and SLES; a good deep conditioner, and good moisturizer that does not contain mineral oil, petrolatum or paraffin, as these ingredients lead to dryness.

Long or short hair can now have a great and sleek look when it is braided. Hair braiding is something that almost anyone can learn to do and enjoy doing for other people at the same time. Many girls like to have their mothers put braids in their hair for school or any reason. Having braids at any age is a cute and fun hairstyle.

Any women that have long enough hair to braid can enjoy this look for any occasion. There is so many different look that you can achieve with hair braiding. You can wear your hair this way for work, school, or even a special night on the town. You will feel more confident when you know that your hair looks put together and it is not hanging in your face.

Many younger girls like to have their mothers do some hair braiding for them. This is such a cute look on any school age child. They can wear them with some cute little ponytail holders or even some ribbon to keep them tight. Any kind of braids in the hair is cute for the smaller children and even some of the young adults.

There are so many forms of hair braiding. There are the French braids, the pigtail braids and even the long braid. It will depend on the length of the hair and the consistency to determine which braid will work better. The longer and thinner hair is going to be able to have the longer and fancier braids.

French braids can be on longer to medium hair. It is easier to do some hair braiding on this type of hair. A French braid is a braid that is made to look like it is inward in the hair. This is a tighter and sleeker look to any women's hair. Sometimes it is easier to do this type of braid when the hair is damp.

Long hair looks so nice when it is braided. There are girls who can do their own hair braiding and do not need to depend on anyone else to do it for him or her. This will take some skill, but it is a great feature to be able to do on your own. A long hair braid can be made to lye down the back or even be formed into a bun. Either way, this is a great way to keep your hair out of the face and keep it looking neat and attractive at the same time.

If you do not know how to do hair braiding, there are many books out there to show you the simple steps to a braid. Once you learn it, you will have no problem doing them. As you go, they will look neater and more attractive with each new braid that you do.

My wife is a hair stylist and she has mentioned to me how difficult it could be to do black hair braid styles. It is a time consuming project that, because of the uniqueness of the hair, must be done as close to perfect so as not to destroy the hair. Because my wife can have a perfectionist attitude, it can be nerve racking for her to attempt a type of hair style that she not confident in doing. Of course she knows that practice makes perfect so she does coax her black girlfriends to let her do black hair braid styles on them. As a stylist she wants to be able to do all hairstyles with expertise. She told me that the black hair braids can be elegant, relaxed, and have very easy going styles.

There are so many different black hair braid styles that there is a lot to learn if you want to be able to do them. If you are doing braids with your own real hair you can do, among others, waved braiding hair styles. Two examples are the New deep or the Water braiding styles. Nowadays you can find a lot of people using synthetic hair. There are curly braiding hair style that you could use. Two styles are the Afro kinky hair or the Marley braid. There are so many different styles. Of course you have the most common styles; weaves, simply braided or corn rolls. It doesn't matter the style when more often then not the finished product is a sight to behold. Of course, using the right hair care products consistently goes a long way in keeping the hair looking beautiful.

There are many different hairstyles for all different types of hair but I don't think that any style is as unique or more admired in the end as black hair braid styles. As long as we have it, I say we do our best to have great looking hair, no matter what the type.