The Perfect Braidout

[jazzi]

This is one style that has never given me good results.  My hair either comes out too defined and spacey or too big and frizzy.  If you get nice braid-outs, please share your techniques!  Wet hair or dry? Cream or gel?  Fat or skinny?  Details please! 

[MissT.]

I get pretty good braidouts when I do them.  I braid damp hair using my shealoe mixture.  I usually wear the braids for  2-3 days but for a "day of" style I leave them in for a few hours, at least long enough for my hair to dry. HTH.

[shortycocoa]

My braidouts hardly ever come out highly defined.  I have had maybe one or two braidouts that I absolutely loved.  I think during those times (circa 2006) I was using shea butter to box braid my hair and I would wear the box braids for about a week or two then undo my hair for the braidout.

These days I find if I use conditioner or some kind of creamy type of styler like the cantu creams I braid my hair up, let dry/get damp overnight and then undo the next day, my hair will look like I didn't really do a braidout and just braided my hair down to stretch it out some.  Maybe it's not enough moisture or something.

I washed my hair one day this summer and put gel in it and braided it down because I was going to experiment and see if using gel for a braidout would yield better results but I actually ended up not doing the braidout to see. 

But you should give it a try!

what products are you using to give you the results you're getting now?  I think if you want your hair to "fill out" more then you have to do smaller braids and braid tight and if you want a looser texture then do fewer braids.

At least that's what I ended up figuring out back when I still had a relaxer and braidouts became my signature style when I switched to a no heat routine.  That ultimately led me to transition to natural.

[jazzi]

^ Usually something creamy, like conditioner.   It always comes out too spacey, then by the time I finish trying to fix it, it's a fuzzy afro...which is cool, but not what I'm trying to do.  The one time it came out halfway decent it looked like a wash n go, which kinda defeats the purpose.  I'm looking for a braidout that looks like crimps.

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[LadyLibra]

The few successful braidouts I've done have been on braiding wet hair (with a conditioner, an oil, or a gel mixed with a leave-in of some kind) that had time to dry completely (meaning hours if no dryer is used).  No parting as that makes it harder to hide the scalp after you take the braids down - I just grab areas and braid.  Once I've un-braided the hair, I kinda fluff the roots by massaging my scalp, but don't mess with the rest of the hair at all.

That's the best I've got, unfortuately.  Usually I just use my braidouts as a way to stretch my hair for something else (henna, picking hair out, flat-ironing, etc).

[shortycocoa]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

same here, LL.  I don't get the results I want from braidouts or twistouts anymore so I usually use them to stretch my hair.  right now I am using big braids all over my hair to make washing and detangling easier.  it also helps me fit my hair underneath my phony afro puffs that are too small for all of my loose hair to fit underneath when i baggy.

[jazzi]

Thanks for the input!  I'm gonna keep trying.

[shortycocoa]

I don't know how you're braiding Jazzi but you might also want to try using cornrows if you haven't already to see if that will give you the results you are looking for.  I am going to learn to cornrow this upcoming year if it kills me!

[jazzi]

I usually just try it with plaits@ Shortycocoa.  The best briadouts I've gotten have come with taking down my box braids so I figured plaits would work.   You're right about the cornrows though b/c it always looks nice after taking down tight cornrows.

[shortycocoa]

same here for the one or two braidouts i've had that were really really defined.  I just thought about how my mom used to cornrow/put my hair in two frenchbraids when i was younger and had natural hair. when she would take them out the texture was that heavily crimped/wavy look so i figured it wouldn't hurt to mention it to you.

i remember when i was about 17 i went through this moment with my relaxed hair when i would ask her to french braid my hair and I would wear that for a few days and then undo the braids to wear a crimped look.

it seems more popular now.  if I knew then what I know now I would have transitioned a long time ago...
but better late than never, right?

[pixie]

I was inspired to try the braidout by Jazzi's questions.  The pictures aren't the best, but you get an idea of how it turned out.  I think this is going to be my winter hairstyle.  I'm kind of loving it.
I took about an inch and a half's amount of hair, wet my hand a little, and slide it over the section.  If the hair gets too wet it won't dry by morning, and will be really fuzzy looking.  After kind of wetting the hair I put a small amount of Giovanni 50/50-PM The Conditioner-Castor Oil mix on it.  Rubbing my hands before sliding them over the section.  Wrap up the braids till morning and take them out after my shower. 
It's a great hairstyle for me.  I get to enjoy some of my length and not spend all morning with gels and whatnot.  My hair is dry for New York winter days.

*The forum is telling me the upload folder is full.  I'll try to add these to my Fotki.

[curlygem]

Here's the math:
Giovanni direct leave-in condish
+ shea butter (raw or refined)
+ Hairveda green tea hair & body butter
+ about 12 to 14 braids all over your head
+sufficient drying time (usually overnight)
___________________________________
= beautiful braid out for the winter

Really ladies, I could not keep my hands out of my hair!!!!

[jeamaria]

Thanks to advice on this forum I finally started being able to do decent braidouts from loose braids about a year ago. I was doing them too large before, and using iffy stuff like Boots creme so I would get very fuzzy roots with no braid pattern (about 4 inches of hair-very obvious) and ends that sometimes took, sometimes didn't.

I started doing more braids and using castor oil and gel (shinier more defined, less volume) or Giovanni Direct under Shea Moisture (for a fluffier look). It usually comes out nice and suits my flatter curl pattern better than twistouts. The only problems I still can't get rid of is how braidouts always give me an S-curl instead of the crimps I want, and how my roots look very obvious when I attempt to cut down on braids in order to get a wavier look. I think I do about 32 braids in all.

[jazzi]

I've finally got it!  and man does it look awesome!  You know, I'm starting to realize that nothing that works for most works for me.  I have to find my own way with everything that has to do with hair.  Frustrating as hell, but when I get it, I GET IT!  I need to write a pamplet just for naturals with baby fine hair b/c it is truly a job trying to figure out how to work with this stuff, but I digress.

Anyway, baby-fine super coily girls, here's my braidout technique:

-Wash and condition or co-wash hair
-Style with conditioner and oil
-Airdry to 80-90%
-Add a bit more oil all over
-Add butter to clumped sections and plait
*Very Important* DO NOT BREAK THE CURL PATTERN WITHIN THE CLUMPS.  Just pick them up and braid in the direction your hair falls.
-Seal the bottom of the plait with butter by twirling around your finger
-Tie down with silk/satin scarf

In the AM, add more oil to your plaits, shower, dress, then unbraid.  The most beautiful look ever!

The size of your braids depends on the kind of braidout you want...big, fluffy waves=larger plaits...narrow, flatter waves=smaller braids.

I really hope this will help someone with similar texture.  Braidouts seemed impossible for me until now. 

[curlygem]

So glad you got the results you wanted to see.