Caren Night Hair Brading

http://www.carennight.ning.com





I needed my hair done. The perm wasn't working on my hair anymore. The perm would not take to my hair. It looked bad. I went to the professionals for help. They suggested i get it braided. The heat of the sun ruins perms. It is very hot were i live. Natural hair is fine in the sun. So i asked the professional how much are braids. she said "regular block braids are $250, Cornrow to braids is $200, and basic cornrows is $100", That was cocky as hell! WTF that's a lot of money! That made me furious. I thought to myself i am black therefore i am a decedent of Africa, this is my heritage, i will learn this my self. Just like my ancestors braided hair i thought to my self i can do it too!



I went to the hair store and picked up 7 bags of Kanakelon 100%, a pack of spiral curlers,


a jar of conditioning gel,


and a ratail comb.


The total was $25. I got home and started to lay out my plan.
The first thing i did was wet the Kanankelon hair in hot water and lay it out on a towel. i separated my hair into four sections. I made a part ear to ear. and one straight down the middle. I then began to make even rows and tried to keep the same measurement for each block of hair. I picked up some of the wet kanakelon and wrapped it around the block of hair that i put some conditioning gel on. then i braided it down like the diagram. I kept even sections of hair between each of my fingers. When i got to the bottom of the braid i burned the end. The kanakelon would melt and seal the end to it wouldn't unravel. Since kanakelon is synthetic plastic it melted nicely and easily.







When i finished all of the braids i then heated up some water to the boiling point. while it was heating i was wrapping my hair around the spiral curler. I took the curler with the hair wrapped around it and dipped it into the boiling water. i waited for the
the curler to cool and then i removed it. it was curled! when i finished i covered it at night with the cap that i bought. This preserved my hairstyle so that it wont rub out on the pillow.


Here is my completed style























I haven't tried cornrows yet. That will be my next adventure i suppose.
Cornrows (or Canerow) are a traditional style of hair grooming where the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to produce a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often formed, as the name implies, in simple, straight lines, but they can also be done in complicated geometric or curvilinear designs. Often favored for their easy maintenance, cornrows can be left in for weeks at a time simply by carefully washing the hair and then regularly oiling the scalp and hair. Cornrowed hairstyles are often adorned with beads or cowry shells, in the African tradition. Depending on the region of the world, cornrows are typically worn by either men or women.



Whats your braiding experiences? Do you have any tips or pointers you can add? What Kind of natural African diaspora hair styles do you like best?