The French braid is an adorable, classic and beautiful hairstyle. Although the intricacy of the weave may look complicated, yet the creation of a French braid is a very simple process.
The secret lies in adding a strand of hair every time before braiding each section. Once you get it right which is the very base of braid, you can try as many twists as you wish for any fancy French braid.
Weaving a Classic French Braid
Preparing the hair. Brush the hair to get tangles out and making them smooth and ready to braid.
For a single braid, brush hair backwards to keep them away from the forehead. For two braid styling, braid down the side of head by parting hair and brushing them into sections.
You can braid hair either it’s dry or when it’s wet. But, braiding wet hair gives you soft, pretty waves when you take it out later.
Begin sectioning your hair. Start the process by taking a 3-4 inches wide chunk of hair from the top-center of head from the same “hair row.”
For bangs, bring them into the braid at this point or leave them loose. Choose what looks best. Grab hair from the very top-center of head to braid them right above forehead.
Start with a small section which will grow thicker as more hair are added.
Separate first “chunk” into three pieces. French braids use three sections of hair to make pattern just like traditional braids. Separate them by running fingers through the chunk held to create three even chunks. Ensure none of the chunks are larger than the other two.
Begin in a traditional braid. First get hand positioning right. Hold two strands in one hand, and the third strand in the other. Start in a traditional way by crossing the “right” strand over to the center and crossing the “left” strand from over to the center. Repeat until a few rows of a traditional braid.
Work in new hair. Continue with traditional braid pattern, but start bringing in other stands of hair. Grab hair from that side of head and include it in the cross-over, before crossing a section over to center. Every time cross over, work in small piece of hair.
Pick up the hair near face and neck for the best-looking French braid.
Bring all hair into the braid. While working down head, start running out of free hair to bring into the braid. You should incorporate every strand of hair till the nape of the neck.
Finish the braid. Finish it off as a traditional braid. Keep going until the end of the strands. Secure the braid with a ponytail holder.
Making a French Lace Braid
Prep the hair. Just like the normal French braid, brush the hair to smooth out the tangles of the hair. French lace braids work down either one or both sides of the head.
Start with a small section. Grab a chunk of hair from one side part, near the part itself. The size of this chunk does matter to determine the thickness of the braid. Grab a good amount of hair for a larger braid, and grab a smaller chunk for a dainty braid.
Split section into thirds. Divide starting section of hair into three even chunks. Angle downward to frame face. Do not pull them toward the back of the head.
Begin braiding. Start the French lace in a traditional braid by crossing the “right” strand, then crossing the “left” chunk over to center.
Start bringing in new hair. Only add hair from one side of the braid. Side doesn’t matter. The important thing is all new hair chunks comes from the same side of the braid.
Continue braiding around head. It will start to form a crown or halo shape around the head while moving further along with braid. Choose to braid over the top of ear, or under it. Wrap it all the way around the head.
With two braids, stop braiding after reaching the nape of the neck. Tie off the first braid with an elastic, then repeat the process to create second braid.
Finishing the braid. Eventually, running out of loose hair to work into the braid, keep working like traditional braid to reach the ends of the strands. Tie off hair with an elastic tie to secure French lace braid.