Intricate Cornrow Updo on Natural Hair

By Aisha of Braid with Me

We're back!! I haven't blogged much lately because we've been enjoying the summer and getting some much needed family time by taking a vacation!! 

This time we decided to do a beautiful updo that can be worn for any special occasion. A pretty updo is a must for the hot summer months when you want the hair to be protected! If you want to see more fabulous updo styles, head on over to Beads, Braids, and Beyond and check out Miss A's Natural Flower Girl Updo with Cornrows and Twists.

Now let's talk about the style! I started with clean, moisturized, and detangled hair. Next, I began parting the hair. I made an off-centered part in the back and I also created a smaller section of hair in the front that led  down to the lower left side of her head. I then began to make free style cornrows as if I were making a Mohawk. I did not continue the braid all the way to the end. Once I reached the center part, I discontinued the braid and let the rest of the hair remain free. The hair that remained free was later formed into one large cornrow that started from the nape and continued to the front of her head. The cornrow was then formed into a rosette and pinned into place. I also used the remainder of the hair on the left side to form more cornrows and two more rosettes.

Day 1:

Day 2: 

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Products used: 

Spectrum Organic Virgin Coconut Oil

Carol's Daughter Healthy Hair Butter

Hair pins (for rosettes) 

Natural Flower Girl Updo with Cornrows and Twists

Another updo! I know you're probably sick of them at this point but we have been loving them! Miss A thinks she's Princess Tiana! (hmm, possible Halloween costume?) I know how hard it is to find natural flower girl hair styles or special occasion hairstyles done on curly hair so I'm going to try my best to showcase styles fit for the occasion. 

Let's begin with instructions, shall we?

Miss A's hair was already moisturized and stretched from her previous bantu knot-out. I parted a half moon shape on the top middle section of her hair and tied it off. I started by parting a curved section near her left ear for the first cornrow. I added a little Bee Mine Curly Butter to the section and braided. If you don't know how to cornrow you can do a simple two strand flat twist or check out our Cornrowing for Beginners post. I used a rubberband to secure the cornrow once I got to the end and left the remaining hair out. I only wrapped the rubberband about 3 times, just enough to secure the cornrow but not tight enough to cause breakage.

I continued beginning my parts at the nape of her neck, slightly curving each part and cornrowing until I reached the other side.

I banded all of the loose hair into three separate banded sections and had her sleep with a sleeping cap overnight. Not sure what banding is? No problem, check out our Banding F.A.Q. post.

The next morning I removed the banded and created three large two strand twists with the top section of loose hair. I played with the twists for a few minutes to see how I wanted the updo to look. I wrapped the left twist around to the right side and secured with a bobby pin then I wrapped the right twist to the left side and secured. I decided to do a twisted cinnabun with the last twist. As you can see I made it sit on her forehead a bit. A little bit of an old school feel.

To bring the entire flower girl look together I had her put on an old dress and placed a single flower clip bought from Claire's on the side of her updo. See below for more pictures!

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Bantu Knot-out

I recently posted a picture of a gorgeous bantu knot-out done on shorter natural hair on our Facebook page.  I haven't done a full bantu knot-out on Miss A since she was about 4 years old and it didn't go very well but I felt inspired to try it again and although we had some issues this time as well I still love the look and she does too! 

Bantu Knot Instructions:

1. I began by working on freshly washed hair. For her full routine, click here.

 2. Using a wide tooth comb, I parted a medium to large size section by her forehead. I added a small amount of Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer to her wet/damp hair then added a little Bee Mine Curly Butter from root to tip.

3. I began to twist the entire section to the right, all the way down to the ends.

4. Once the entire section was twisted, I started to twist the section into a circle near her scalp. Each time I twisted the section around, I tucked it under the previous one. I tucked her ends under the entire bantu-knot. Please be careful not to twist the section too tightly. I actually hold on to the knot and twist the entire bantu-knot the opposite way just to make sure it's not tugging on her scalp.

 5. There you have it! A bantu knot! Continue parting with a comb and twisting until you're done.

Bantu knots complete!

 The back view.

I gently removed the bantu knots after a few hours. Here's the end result of her bantu knot-out:

I like the results but it didn't come out as I expected. Next time I will work with dry, moisturized, stretched hair (from banding). You can see some of the parts in the back began to frizz up, this is because they were still wet. I will also use less product next time. I'm going to try another bantu-knot out on her within the next month to stay tuned!

Now it's YOUR turn! I'd love to see your bantu knot-out's! If you have pictures, feel free to post them on our Facebook wall. I'd love to see them!

Let me know what you all think of the new look. I changed a few things. Hopefully it's easier to find what you're looking for. I'm still working on it and I'm totally open to suggestions. Also let me know how you like the picture tutorial. Was it helpful or can you do without? 

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Big Carefree Natural Curls

I received several questions on our Facebook page about how I got Miss A's curls to look like this and how she was able to achieve her second day hair so I thought I would make a quick post explaining how we achieved her big carefree curls.

After washing and detangling her hair, I applied a generous amount of Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer through her wet/damp curls with my fingers, from root to tip. I did not brush the product through. I continued to rake the product through (raking is key!) until I felt it had been evenly distributed. 

Once her hair dried it looked like this:

Later that night I gathered her hair in a loose ponytail on top of her head and created a messy bun, tucking the ends under. It's important for her to not sleep with her curls out. Once she lays on them they will tangle up terribly and become matted pretty quickly. When we want second day hair I will either place it in a high bun or put a few loose braids in her hair. 

The next day I removed the bun and her curls looked like this (see picture below). The only change I made was pinning the middle section of hair back for a different look.

Please note that if you try this (just using a moisturizer and raking) the curls will not be perfect. There will be frizz. Embrace it and learn to love it! As you can see, it's a beautiful thing.

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Natural Hair Updo: Twisted Cinnabuns with Cornrows

We have been loving updo's over here lately! Can you tell?  Miss A will be attending her Aunt's work event this weekend so I decided to give her a style to fit the occasion. This style is perfect for both little and big girls. Great for holidays, formal events or just to feel like a princess! 

As always, I washed, detangled, moisturized (with Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer) and banded Miss A's hair. For full washing instructions click here.

I removed the bands once her hair was almost dry, just slightly damp. I began by parting the hair from ear to ear and tying the top section off. I started working on the back section at the nape of the neck, cornrowing from the right into the middle and from the left into the middle until I was done with the back. I used Bee Mine Curly Butter on each cornrow. 

Once I got to the top I parted a fairly large section in the middle and tied it off. I added a few cornrows to the side sections going up into the middle of her head. Once those cornrows were complete I gathered a large section of hair in the front, tied it off with a ponytail holder and did a loose two strand twist. Once the twist was in I began to create the cinnabun. I simply wrapped the twist around the ponytail holder, making sure it laid flat the entire time. Once the twist was wrapped around into a cinnabun, I placed 1 or 2 bobbypins flat, straight through the cinnabun. I continued this process until she had 5 twisted cinnabuns. I added some cute flower clips I bought from Claire's and there you have it, a beautiful natural updo!

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Criss-Cross Cornrows with Two Strand Twist Out

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a nice 4th of July. I decided to keep Miss A's 4th of July hair style fairly simple and go with criss-cross cornrows going half way back into two strand twists. Read below for more info on how this style was achieved. 

First, I washed, detangled, moisturized (with Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer and Virgin Coconut Oil on top) then banded. You can read all about how I do that and what products I use by clicking here.

After Miss A's hair dried I removed all of the bands and parted her hair from ear to ear. I tied the back section off and began working on the top section. At an angle, I parted two straight sections and in those straight sections I parted 3 individual sections to begin the criss-cross cornrow. You can see how I criss-cross cornrow by clicking here. I used Bee Mine Curly Butter on each cornrow. 

I left the remaining hair loose at the end of each cornrow until I had 2 cornrows side-by-side then I applied a generous amount of Bee Mine Curly Butter to the remaining hair and twisted the two sections together.

After the top section was complete I moved on to the back. I parted large squares, applied some curly butter and twisted each section together. I rolled the ends of each twist between my fingers to make sure the twist did not unravel.

After a couple of hours of letting the two strand twists set I carefully unraveled each twist, starting from the end of the twist and working my way up and viola- A beautifully defined twist out! See pictures below.

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Beautiful Nubian Princess Braids

By: Aisha of Braid With Me

Beautiful!! This is the word that comes to mind when I look at my baby girl with this style! The design + the wooden beads + the Anisa in her natural beauty = Beautiful Nubian Princess Braids! 

To achieve this style, I removed Anisa's previous Box Braids that can be seen here and here. Next, I finger detangled her hair using coconut oil in preparation for a cowash. I continued by using our routine and by banding her hair overnight. 

I began by parting her hair from side to side directly behind each ear. The back portion of her hair was secured with an ouchless band while I braided the front. The front section was styled with free-form braids and adorned with wooden beads. 

I left the back section down for a little while before I placed it into a huge puff. 

 Harajuku Mini for Target: http://www.target.com/p/harajuku-mini-for-target-girls-one-shoulder-top-pink/-/A-14010059

For bedtime, I finger detangled the back section with coconut oil and made several large, two-strand twists. I rolled the ends of the twists with satin covered sponged rollers and protected her hair with a satin bonnet. 

The next day, I removed the rollers and twists and was a bit surprised to see that the back of her hair was basically flat. We had a fun day planned so it was okay. 

As you can see, Anisa was VERY active at the festival that we attended. 

 Before bedtime on day 2, I decided to add flat twists to the back instead of regular two-strand twists. I also used flexi-rods instead of the satin covered sponge rollers. 

Similar Styles

Braid with Me - New Protective Style

Charlotte's Avenue - Choca's NUBIAN INSPIRED Beaded Style!

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