Jumbo Braid
A jumbo braid can be a great hairstyle, especially for the summer when you want your hair out of your face. To do a jumbo braid, you will need a long, thin hairpiece. You will then attach the hairpiece to a ponytail and braid your real and artificial hair together. When you're done, add fun embellishments like colorful hair ties and clips.
Contents
Steps
Attaching the Hairpiece
- Attach a rubber band to the center of the hairpiece. Spread your hairpiece across a flat surface. Place a rubber band at the center where the hair thins. Stretch the rubber band into a thin line and wrap it around the thinned hair. Feed one looped end of the rubber band through the other looped end. Pull the loop through until the rubber band is wrapped tightly around the hairpiece.
- This creates a small loop in the center of the hairpiece, which you will use to secure your braid to your hair.
- Some hairpieces are sold with a loop already in place, in which case you can skip this step.
- Apply shea butter to your hair. Place a small amount of shea butter in the palm of your hand. Use your hands to work the butter through your hair evenly. Seek to smooth out the edges of your hair so it's easy to brush.
- Most hair will benefit from shea butter being applied before the hair piece. However, if your hair is already oily, skip this step.
- Pull your hair back. With one hand, use a brush to brush your hair in an upward direction. With the other hand, gradually gather your hair as you brush it out. Once all your hair is brushed out and gathered in one hand, secure this ponytail with a rubber band.
- Your ponytail should rest near the top of your head.
- Use the rubber band to secure your hairpiece to your ponytail. Take the hairpiece from earlier. Using the loop sticking out from the rubber band, attach the hairpiece to your ponytail. Wrap the rubber band around your ponytail twice to securely attach the hairpiece.
- Push your natural hair underneath the hairpiece. Once the rubber band is attached, use your fingers to push your natural hair under your hairpiece. Keep pushing your hair under the braiding hair strand by strand until it's no longer visible. When you're done, you should only be able to see the hairpiece poking out from your ponytail.
Braiding Your Hair
- Separate your hairpiece. Once the hairpiece is in place, you can begin the process of braiding it. To start, use your fingers to separate the hairpiece into three roughly even strands. Try to get the strands as even as possible, as this will make your braid look uniform when you're finished.
- Incorporate your natural hair as you begin the braid. Start the braid at the base of your ponytail. As you weave your braid together, incorporate your natural hair. Each time you grab a strand of the braid, incorporate about an inch of your natural hair with that strand. Keep incorporating your natural hair in small amounts until it is all woven into the hairpiece.
- Braid to the end of the hair piece. After incorporating your natural hair, continue braiding. Braid your hair until you reach the end of your hairpiece. Only a small amount of hair should be left unbraided at the end of the piece.
- Tie the end with rubber bands. You can use either use clear or black rubber bands to secure the braid. If you have lighter hair, clear rubber bands work best. Black rubber bands work better for dark or black hair.
Adding Variation to the Style
- Use color. You do not have to stick to your natural hair color when jumbo braiding. If you want to add some color, find jumbo braid hairpieces in exciting shades. You can go for a light natural shade, like blond, or something unusual like pink or blue.
- Use hair charms. If you want to add a pretty feminine flare to your braids, try clipping in hair charms. Hair charms can be secured at various points on your jumbo braid. You can also put charms in the hair surrounding the braid.
- Coordinate hair charms with your outfit. If you're wearing pink, for example, style your hair with pink hair charms.
- Use colorful hair ties. Try tying a hair tie around each groove in your braid. This will create a fun, striped appearance that will make your jumbo braid pop. Use brightly colored hair ties, especially if your jumbo braid is a darker shade, so they stand out.
