2 Strand Twists on Natural Hair

[Armyqt]

Ok natural ladies, I'd like to get some of tips and techniques for doing 2 strand twists on natural 4a/b hair. I wanna try these on my daughter to give her a different look. What products will I need? How long do they last? How do the ends keep from unraveling. Oh and I'd like to do this this evening. TIA

 

[missykeyana]

Twists are great! I do mine on damp or dry hair

When I do them on damp hair, I wash, condition, and wrap in a towel for a few minutes. Then I grab and twist, starting from the back. I make sure to moisturize. My fave right now is BB Oil Moisturizer.

There is no need for a product for hold as they will hold themselves! Type 4 hair has enough kink and curl to hold the twists without products. However, when I want extra hold for my twistout, I use aloe vera gel (lighter) or ORS Lock and Twist Gel (heavier).

When I do them dry, I start from a shake-n-go and just grab and twist as before, but this time I don't use product because I already have product from styling the shake-n-go. I do, however, spray water or some sort of watery leave-in on there to ease out tangles and prevent knotting.

In the front, be sure to twist how you want them to lay when finished. I put a short part in the front so it will have some shape.

For pics of twists, look in my album. I know that my April album specifically has dry twists.

http://public.fotki.com/Azure
Password is blue

Oh yeah, twists can last pretty much as long as you want them to. However, I would try for a week if trying them for the first time, and then work from there. I've heard of ladies who leave them in for two weeks or more, but they twist their hair a lot and know when it's at the point where it's about to loc!

Hope this lenghty post helped!

 

[HonEB]

when i had my hair professionally doen for the first time (last week) my hair dresser uesd pro-style gel. It looked great. there was no fizzy hair sticking out and the twist was well defined.My hair dresser then sprayed a little oil to give my hair some shine and to keep the gel from drying too haird. After the gel dried it felt a little hard but about 3 days later my hair was a bit softer form me spraying them each day with water and/or Sta-sof-fro spray (the twists were still secure and looked as good as the day i got them).
I am considering doing a 2 month twist out and I wanted to know if there was a gel i can use that who secure the twist without drying hard

 

[Armyqt]

Thanks Misskeyana, I really enjoyed your album. Your album reminded me of something else I've been needing to do. I'm gonna wash and neutral henna her tonight and THEN do the twists. Thanks so much for the instructions. BTW, I only need them to last for a week at a time. I somehow don't think they'll last that long becuase her hair always gets fuzzy. That's why I don't braid it anymore. Too much work and 2 days later it needs to be taken down.

I think with th twists, when they get like that, I can probably throw it up in 1 or 2 opnytails and it'll still look cute. I'll come back to this thread and post of link to her hair when I'm done. Thanks for your help.

 

[CurlyCrly]

When I did two-strand twists on my natural or texturized hair, I did it on damp or wet hair. I applied a little oil and twisted. The ends twisted around each other and secured the twists. I'd wear them like that for 2-3 weeks. From time to time, one or two would start to unravel from sleeping, but I'd just retwist them and they were fine.

 

[Nina_S]

I also use a gel (Fantasia IC) on damp hair and as for the ends, her hair is natural so once you have twisted it kind of wrap the end around your finger. It will curl and stay secure unlike relaxed hair.

 

[GodMadeMePretty]

[ QUOTE ]
Armyqt said:

I think with the twists, when they get like that, I can probably throw it up in 1 or 2 opnytails and it'll still look cute. I'll come back to this thread and post of link to her hair when I'm done. Thanks for your help.

[/ QUOTE ]

And then when the twists are still too fuzzy, just take out the twists and let her have a ponytail twistout. That will add another couple of days to it. I gave my daughter twists in a ponytail at the top and bottom. I would remove the ponytail holder in the morning and smooth down the ponytail. It lasted about 4 days. After that, I took the twists out and had a twistout. That would have lasted through today BUT she got sand in her hair and I had to wash it last night. Dang it!

BTW, where do you get your neutral henna. Is is real henna or hennalucent (which I haven't been able to find locally)?

 

[Armyqt]

Thanks Curlycrly adn Nina S. I'm taking notes here

GMMP, thanks for the tip. That sounds like another good option. I'd love to be able to do her hair on a weekend and not have to toally redo it 2 more times thought the week.

BTW, I was talking about the hennalucent. I gave her two treatments last spring and liked the results. I've decided to do it again this year, only being a lil more consistent.

[ QUOTE ]
GodMadeMePretty said:
[ QUOTE ]
Armyqt said:

I think with the twists, when they get like that, I can probably throw it up in 1 or 2 opnytails and it'll still look cute. I'll come back to this thread and post of link to her hair when I'm done. Thanks for your help.

[/ QUOTE ]

And then when the twists are still too fuzzy, just take out the twists and let her have a ponytail twistout. That will add another couple of days to it. I gave my daughter twists in a ponytail at the top and bottom. I would remove the ponytail holder in the morning and smooth down the ponytail. It lasted about 4 days. After that, I took the twists out and had a twistout. That would have lasted through today BUT she got sand in her hair and I had to wash it last night. Dang it!

BTW, where do you get your neutral henna. Is is real henna or hennalucent (which I haven't been able to find locally)?

[/ QUOTE ]

 

[LittleMissScientist]

Great tips from MissKeyana- especially on not needing much product at all. I usually just run a small amount of Hot Six Oil over the ends to kind of seal them.

How large/small are you going to make the twists?

I'm sure they will look cute!

Also, in terms of keeping them neat throughout the week, I have found that misting with a light conditioner/oil/water mix (i.e., Hot Six Oil and St. Ives) at night and then braiding the twists into about four individual plaits leaves the twists with a cute, moisturized, crimped look when you take the plaits out the next morning. This also smoothes frizzies. It takes less than five minutes, and you will probably only have to do it once or twice during the week.

 

[NapturalGlory]

i think you should be able to get them to last longer if you do them on hair that has been stretched from a simple style. like several chunky braids all over left in until the hair dries. then the hair will be looser and more defined when you twist them so they will last longer and the out will be longer and more defined.

 

[babyblue]

nothing special needs to be done. Just wash and condition detangle as you normally do, section the hair and start twisting with your favorite product. Anything can be used oil, gel, grease hair butters or nothing at all whatever your preference.

to keep ends from unraveling try to make a coil with your fingers. that way the end stays curled. but if your daughters hair is kinky textured i dont think unraveling will be a problem. it should last a week or more if she wears a scarf at night.

 

[Armyqt]

Thanx for all the tips ladies!! I can't wait to do them and post her pics!!

 

[Armyqt]

Okay ladies, I finally did the twists tonight and got them uploaded. Thanks for the tips and advice. They're not pefect yet, but I like the concept. I'll be doing more experimentation with different styles too. And a BIG shout out to all the beautiful naturals on this forum. Thanks for sharing your routines, techiques and pics

. The link is in my siggy.

 

[karezone]

armyqt, they turned out wonderfully, I might try this on my little sister's hair.

 

[syoulee1]

[ QUOTE ]
NapturalGlory said:
i think you should be able to get them to last longer if you do them on hair that has been stretched from a simple style. like several chunky braids all over left in until the hair dries. then the hair will be looser and more defined when you twist them so they will last longer and the out will be longer and more defined.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is EXACTLY the method I use to do my twists.

 

[Irresistible]

her twists are adorable and so is she!!!!!

 

[missykeyana]

Very nice! Glad they turned out so well.

 

[pookeylou]

Her hair looks like lushious ropes. Absolutely beautiful.

 

[TinyT]

I think her hair is just beautiful!!

 

[Armyqt]

Thanks ladies. I'm really LOVING this style on her. I was erally getting tired of the same ole ponytails and this did the trick for me. She looked so cute for school this morning. I can't wait to try other variations to the twists.

Thanks to all the naturals for inspiring me and helping with instructions.

 

[UmSumayyah]

I love twists. I wear them myself even though I'm relaxed...in fact I just finished twisting my hair 1/2 hour ago. The ORS lock and twist gel is a keeper.

 

[ThickHair]

You do not have to use any product and the ends should twist amoung themselves if all her hair is natural. Twist will puff and frizz no matter what you do to them it is just a personal tolerance. They can last from 1 week to 3 weeks it is a choice on what you want to do with them. I personally like twist a bit on the fizzy side it is a soft natural look. Others like them manicured and always looking fresh.

 

[sassygirl125]

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tracyannette said:
I think her hair is just beautiful!!

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Ditto!

You did a great job, Armyqt!

 

[Armyqt]

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sassygirl125 said:
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tracyannette said:
I think her hair is just beautiful!!

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Ditto!

You did a great job, Armyqt!

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks Sassygirl!!

 

[SherryLove]

Hey Armyqt....Your daughter's hair looks adorable in those twists and does she....so precious....

 

[KinksnCurlz]

I dont know how i missed this but they look great!! Another tip (for next time) is to braid a tiny bit of her hair - right before you twist it. It keeps the twists longer IMO.

 

[deeplyrooted]

You have a precious, gorgeous little girl.

Go 'head with them twists, she's too cute for words.

 

[Armyqt]

OOh thanks again ladies. Y'all got me all geeked up

. I'm gonna add some more photos I took of her hair when I straightened it once before. Y'all are making my day!!

 

[nekee]

Yeh what CaramelHonee said , the trick is to plait the root area before twisting so that the root would not get puffy quickly

 

[Armyqt]

[ QUOTE ]
CaramelHonee said:
I dont know how i missed this but they look great!! Another tip (for next time) is to braid a tiny bit of her hair - right before you twist it. It keeps the twists longer IMO.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sorry I missed this somehow! But that sounds like a really great idea. Becuase Today is Wednesday and the roots are all puffed up. Not to mention the frizz. I'll try that next time!