TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR BEST BRAID OUT AND TWIST OUT

Hi guys!!

How is everyone holding up?? I know these coronavirus times are really scary and worrying. We are all hoping life gets back to normal soon! In the mean time, I urge you ALL to please self isolate as much as possible, especially if you have symptoms. A lot of people are also asymptomatic (have no symptoms) so you might have it and be spreading it around without knowing. Please stay at home and try to stay as healthy as possible! So many people are fragile health-wise so we must all look out for each other and not put each other in jeopardy!

Well since we are all at home (HOPEFULLY), I figured some blogposts might be helpful. This one was requested on Instagram and it is definitely a good one. Getting a braid out or twist out right can be really tricky and what works really depends on your hair but there are a few universal tips and tricks that I’ve found:

• Do it on clean hair – I’m not saying you can’t get a good braid/twist out on ‘dirty’ hair but you will definitely get your BEST braid or twist out on clean, freshly washed hair. The products will soak into the hair properly and the hair will hold the style a lot better. You will also get more definition. HOWEVER, if you don’t mind a big, slight frizzy braid or twist out, do it on day 3 or 4 hair. I do it all the time when I want big fluffy hair instead of defined hair.
• Use the right products – this is really important when it comes to the success of your style. If you use the wrong combination of products, you could end up getting flakes in your hair or hair that just looks off! I tend to use the LOC method (liquid, oil, cream e.g. Shea Moisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Leave In Conditioner, Nature’s Locks Reparative Hair Growth & Sealing Oil, Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie) or, if I want more definition, I use a cream, an oil and then a gel styler (e.g. Camille Rose Naturals Almond Jai Twisting Butter, Nature’s Locks for Kinky Apothecary Replenishing Body & Hair Oil Blend, Camille Rose Naturals Curl Maker).
• Make sure you get the technique right – this is really key for getting the style you want. This one takes a bit of trial and error. For me, my braid outs and twist outs work best on damp hair. For others, they need to do them on soaking wet hair while others do them on dry hair. Play around with all three and see what works best for your hair.
• Make sure your hair dries completely before you take down the braids or twists – this one is NECESSARY. To get the best style, your hair needs to dry completely for the style to set properly. If you take the twists or braids down before they dry, your hair is likely to get really frizzy and lose all definition. I like to just let my hair air dry but you can use a hooded dryer if you need your hair dry faster. I also like sitting in front of a fan or AC to dry my hair quicker.
• Leave the braids or twists in for as long as you can – this is just another way to ‘set’ your style. I find that the longer I keep my braids and twists in, the longer my braid/twist outs last. What I often do is do my twists/braids on wash day (usually Sunday), I keep the twists in until Thursday or Friday and then I wear my hair out for the weekend. My twists get loads of time to settle in, my hair stays moisturised because it’s been in a protective style all week and I get lots of definition.
• Don’t make the braids and twists too big for a longer lasting braid/twist out – if you want your styles to last longer, keep your twists and braids more on the medium or small side. If they are too big, your style won’t really last beyond a day or two and you won’t get much definition. I always do medium sized twists because I like the results I get and they don’t take too long.

Those are my top tips guys! I hope that helps you guys a bit! Feel free to share more tips if you have them!

Love,

Tara xXx