Braiding Methods Part Two : Adding on the Add on

Braiding Methods Part 2: Adding on the Add on

Now that you have mastered the art of basic braiding ...We can move along the some fun protective styling with adding on the add on. There are many variations of these basic ideas but today I am going to go over a few of my favorite basic add on braiding techniques: Rope braiding with add on and French Braiding with add on. Of course there are so many more methods of using basic braiding techniques that go beyond the scope of this article. Look forward to my future postings to have in depth explanations of even more braiding techniques.

Rope Braiding with Add on

First pick your favorite add on synthetic or human hair and separate it into several equal chunks, each about one half of the size of the full size braid you would like to have . You will need u to two packs of human hair and up to five packs of synthetic depending on the variation of your client's head. Now part the client's scalp with your desired method about the size of the braid you want to have in the end and take the hair and spit into two. Take two of the pre separated pieces of human hair or synthetic hair and cross over like an "X". Attach at the base of the scalp with three fingers in a space of the "X" you made and the part you made int the client's scalp. Now split the hair into three sections. Hold two sections in your right hand ad the last section in your left. Cross the right section over the top of the middle section( while stile keeping a grip on the middle section with your right hand) and this will become your new left end . Repeat this process for the left end ( cross over to the right as this will become your new right piece). Keep crossing over the side pieces towards the middle until you reach the end of your newly created braid. Repeat this process over the entire head.

Special note 1: To end your braids for micros you may glue the hair( Human or synthetic) at the end of the braid that you made and have the rest of the hair free flowing..or you can tie a small knot with the hair itself.

Special note 2: To end box braids or pixie braids(braids in which you continue down to the very end) you can burn the ends  or dip them in scalding hot water( if you have used synthetic hair)

French Braiding( Corn rowing) with Add On

The only difference between french braiding with add on and corn rowing with add on is the amount of parts you have. To start a basic french braid with add on first part the front of your natural hair into three parts and make 3 rotations of the basic french braid. Hold your fingers in this place and grab your human or synthetic hair chunk in an "x" again, stretching the hair before you begin the braid ( the amount of hair needed will vary from head to head but a good start is about two packs for human or synthetic)and gradually  feed the fake hair into the clients real hair while french braiding talking a small amount of hair at first and adding a little more as you com down the braid.

This same concept is used for corn rows . Do the exact same thing as you did for a large french braid and just scale it down to the size of the smaller parts you have created for this style. You would still start by braiding slightly the clients own hair first and feeding in the fake hair until you get to the end. Don't forget to strech the hair before you add it in and you're set to go.

These are only some fundamental braiding concepts. In my future series I will go into detail about using cornrowing methods to begin protective styles such as sew ins, and advanced rope braiding techniques of tree braiding to help everyone out there who want to understand the methods of these styles . I hope you have enjoyed my braiding series thus far. NOW GO AND BRAID AWAY!;)

By M Kyles of Kyles Natural