I'm getting micro braids & I need advice

[LoveLiLi]

My hair is natural (3c/4a) and bra strap length in the back - to my boobs in the front. I'm getting micro braids (maybe micro twists?) and I need to know:

1. What type of hair should I use? Synthetic or human?
2. What brand of hair is the best for micro braids/twists?
3. How long should the hair be? (I'd like all my hair braided w/the fake ends loose, either straight or with a slight wave, but I don't want to look ridiculous. Keep it gully, do you think that would look over the top?)

I plan on keeping them in for a month, possibly a little longer but I'll be surprised if I can make it to 2 months since I'm not sure how bad the frizz will be.


Any advice will be greatly appreciated since I haven't had braids w/hair added in for over ten years.

 

[Keen]

Wow, that's going to be a lot of hair. I take it you want your entire hair braided. Micros is a lot of work and money just for one month. Anyway, I don't have much input. I miss micro braids. I hope you come back with pictures.

 

[LoveLiLi]

Wow, that's going to be a lot of hair. I take it you want your entire hair braided. Micros is a lot of work and money just for one month. Anyway, I don't have much input. I miss micro braids. I hope you come back with pictures.

Hmmm, I haven't had braids in a while and I've never had micros so I think reality will hit me hard when my butt goes numb in the chair.

I've never kept braids for longer than a week (they were medium sized though), but if the micros look nice for longer than a month then I'll keep them longer.

I'll keep the braids covered at night, be gentle when shampooing etc, but they're coming out the minute they start to look frizzy or old.

 

[Foxglove]

I think your hair is too long for traditional micros. They'll have to braid at least past your hair which will make them look like box braids anyway. Do NOT let them stop before going past your hair or tie a knot anywhere near your hair. And if you're only keeping them for a month I would just go for some box braids

 

[DrC]

Most women who get micros leave them in for more than a month since it is a very time consuming process to install them. If you plan on going for longer than a month human hair would be best. It stays intact longer, or so I think. Synthetic tangled in my hair.

 

[hothair]

If you want the ends lose use human hair if braiding to the end you can use synthetic. For me synthetic withstood dcs and washing better without looking rough or slipping off.

 

[LoveLiLi]

I think your hair is too long for traditional micros. They'll have to braid at least past your hair which will make them look like box braids anyway. Do NOT let them stop before going past your hair or tie a knot anywhere near your hair. And if you're only keeping them for a month I would just go for some box braids

Oh no, I definitely do not want the regular box braids look. I don't want large, bulky looking braids.

So, what about small Senegalese twists? Would they last a month or so and would the same type of hair be used?

I need something that will last a month or so because I'm frustrated with my hair right now. It's too hot and humid for me to straighten and wearing it out is tearing up my ends.

 

[naturalagain2]

^^^They will last more than a month they can last up to 3 months. I currently have them in (yesterday will be 2 months). Synthetic hair is recommended. If you are getting Senegalese I recommend you keep them in at least for 2 months otherwise your time and money will feel wasted.

 

[Allandra]

I've never seen anyone with hair your length get micro braids. I bet twisting your own hair would be very pretty.

I don't know much about micro braids, but I've read horror stories about them on this forum.

 

[LoveLiLi]

Thanks, I think I'll go with the twists instead. Can anyone suggest a good brand of hair?

 

[Foxglove]

any kanekalon hair will be good for senegalese twists. You can get some ideas from here
http://iloveboxbraids.tumblr.com/

 

[LoveLiLi]

any kanekalon hair will be good for senegalese twists. You can get some ideas from here
http://iloveboxbraids.tumblr.com/

Now I'm confused. erplexed Someone just told me to be sure to avoid the Kanekalon because it will break me out.

 

[BlaqBella]

I don't know why because its supposed to be the best synthetic hair to use in our hair, as opposed to yaki and whatnot. But maybe some people are allergic to it for some reason, or another.

 

[shenitab]

OP whatever hair you get, you need to make sure that the braider braids longer than your hair. You might need to take a little hair out the pack and make sure the hair will be longer. The braider may need to add in some hair further down the braid to make sure that it will end up longer than your hair.

If you are not planning on keeping them in too long, I would suggest synthetic hair or a human hair blend.

Have you thought of getting latch hook braids with the pre-microbraided synthetic hair? It would be less time consuming and should last for a month. I did this technique on my daughter - I used wavy hair. I may try it on her with the pre-microbraided hair. It can be done with "real" microbraids around the perimeter of the hair and the rest of the hair can be cornrowed and latchhooked/crochet braided. You can find some videos on Youtube about the technique.

 

[Sosoothing]

I do my own microbraids. My hair is about BSL and I like waist length braids. I use synthetic hair because I like the way it looks. Also, with synthetic hair, only the root, with all the new growth, starts looking old as time goes on. The length of the hair always remains looking neat. I keep mine in for 2 to 4 months depending on how small I make them.

 

[MsDee14]

Now I'm confused. erplexed Someone just told me to be sure to avoid the Kanekalon because it will break me out.

Just do an ACV soak on the hair before installing and you won't break out. Some people are allergic to the chemical coating on the hair, but ACV will remedy that.

 

[AMAKA127]

Also make sure to do a protein treatment prior to getting your braids

 

[Nonie]

Most women who get micros leave them in for more than a month since it is a very time consuming process to install them. If you plan on going for longer than a month human hair would be best. It stays intact longer, or so I think. Synthetic tangled in my hair.

I like human hair too DrC but it definitely doesn't hold better than synthetic. It unravels easily because it's soft and slippery. Even the dull kind doesn't freeze into a shape that holds as well as fake hair does.

I've never seen anyone with hair your length get micro braids. I bet twisting your own hair would be very pretty.

I don't know much about micro braids, but I've read horror stories about them on this forum.

Allandra, I was thinking the same thing as you, but maybe OP wants them to be longer than her hair.

LoveLiLi, I am partial to human hair coz it's light and it's versatile, but I have never done twists with it--which would be my preference if I had your length--so don't know how well they'll hold. I do think though to use a long length, you don't want too much weight on your head. When I do extensions, I fold the additional hair in half so I need the hair to extend at least 2-4 inches longer than my own hair when it's folded in half. It's not necessary to fold hair in half so I suppose as long as you can get hair that is several inches longer than your own, you can do just a small fold up top. Only thing with not folding hair fully in half is the base of the twist where the doubling is occurring will be thicker than the rest where it's not. It's not really noticeable with micros though.

But if getting micros, whether twists or braids, make sure you attach less extension hair per section of your own. Not a chunk of extension hair to two strands of your own. That's what will determine whether micros make (your hair grow) or break your hair.