Braids, Twists or Sew In

[ilong]

I am ready to hide this hair. Last year and first part of this year I wore wigs. Last couple of months I've been "slappin'" on a little twist out hair piece or curly pony (didn't use the comb attachments).
I don't want to do wigs again so I'm trying to decide between braids, twists or a sew in.
I'd like to protect my hair but primarily I'm hoping to get some growth out of the style.

What do you ladies think would be the best option for maximum growth potential?

 

[felic1]

I think the protective style benefits vary from person to person. Last year I was in wigs with the twice a week deep conditioning, adding oil to my conditioner, air drying and limiting direct heat. I do not think that I benefited from that process. Next year I am returning to cornrows. I have a stack of conditioner and I am going to use it when possible. Twists tend to break my ends and sengelese twists rip the hair out by the roots. I have never had a successful sew in. Anything is possible.

 

[ilong]

felic1 - thank you replying. My "wig wearing experience" was the same as yours. I blieve I've had braids more recently than a sew in. The style of twists I like to wear seem a little heavy for my hair. Perhaps I will research an aliexpress hair purchase.

 

[almond eyes]

I used to be an avid extension braid wearer and now I no longer wear them. The synthetic hair actually creates holes in your cuticles and compromise your strands, even the human hair is not the best either as it also creates friction to your strands. And on top of that if you have high porosity or fine hair, you are causing more damage with the tension and the pulling.

Now your hair may grow but your cuticles will end up very raised and frayed. So it will end up very porous and it will be very hard to get moisture into your hair even if you wash your hair everyday and deep condition. Once your hair is compromised you either have to cut your hair little by little and work on the new growth or your hair will always look a bit dry and not 'lie' down properly or respond to products very well even if you use protein to fill in those holes.

I can always tell when women with high porosity hair that use braids as their main protective style back to back and for many weeks because their hair looks very dry almost like brillo because that is what my hair used to look like and then I would over compensate by piling on the products and my hair would just be dry and greasy.

If you have to wear extension braids, I would only do so for a holiday or a special occasion and only wear it for two weeks but not as a protective style.

I guess if I had to wear a protective style it would be with my own hair only but my second choice would be a sew in.

Best,
Almond Eyes

 

[CrinkumCrankum]

I used to be an avid extension braid wearer and now I no longer wear them. The synthetic hair actually creates holes in your cuticles and compromise your strands, even the human hair is not the best either as it also creates friction to your strands. And on top of that if you have high porosity or fine hair, you are causing more damage with the tension and the pulling.

Now your hair may grow but your cuticles will end up very raised and frayed. So it will end up very porous and it will be very hard to get moisture into your hair even if you wash your hair everyday and deep condition. Once your hair is compromised you either have to cut your hair little by little and work on the new growth or your hair will always look a bit dry and not 'lie' down properly or respond to products very well even if you use protein to fill in those holes.

I can always tell when women with high porosity hair that use braids as their main protective style back to back and for many weeks because their hair looks very dry almost like brillo because that is what my hair used to look like and then I would over compensate by piling on the products and my hair would just be dry and greasy.

If you have to wear extension braids, I would only do so for a holiday or a special occasion and only wear it for two weeks but not as a protective style.

I guess if I had to wear a protective style it would be with my own hair only but my second choice would be a sew in.

Best,
Almond Eyes

almond eyes. Thank you so much for this information. I have been looking for this information on braids for quite awhile now. I had a feeling that they weren't so great for the hair cuticle, even though they are great for cutting down on manipulation.

I put some single braids in the other day (with Expressions extension hair) just to give myself a break from dealing with my short, relaxed hair. I planned on keeping them in for 6-9 weeks before redoing them or getting a touch-up. It looks like I won't be putting them back in .

Is the sew-in a better choice because of its short duration as a style?
I'm just trying to figure out what to do when I don't want to deal with my hair all the time.

 

[almond eyes]

almond eyes. Thank you so much for this information. I have been looking for this information on braids for quite awhile now. I had a feeling that they weren't so great for the hair cuticle, even though they are great for cutting down on manipulation.

I put some single braids in the other day (with Expressions extension hair) just to give myself a break from dealing with my short, relaxed hair. I planned on keeping them in for 6-9 weeks before redoing them or getting a touch-up. It looks like I won't be putting them back in .

Is the sew-in a better choice because of its short duration as a style?
I'm just trying to figure out what to do when I don't want to deal with my hair all the time.

But I think that relaxed hair can better withstand synthetic hair (extension braids) because the friction is less because your existing hair is straight. Just make sure you do a good protein treatment before you put your braids in and to make sure when you take them out do another one but always follow with a moisturising conditioner. I would not keep the braids in for longer than 6 weeks and you should be fine but don't do braid extensions back to back.

For women who are natural, if you really love your extension braids always make sure to lightly blow out or stretch your hair before you place your extensions in.

Best,
Almond Eyes

 

[CrinkumCrankum]

But I think that relaxed hair can better withstand synthetic hair (extension braids) because the friction is less because your existing hair is straight. Just make sure you do a good protein treatment before you put your braids in and to make sure when you take them out do another one but always follow with a moisturising conditioner. I would not keep the braids in for longer than 6 weeks and you should be fine but don't do braid extensions back to back.

For women who are natural, if you really love your extension braids always make sure to lightly blow out or stretch your hair before you place your extensions in.

Best,
Almond Eyes

OK. Thank you so much for the help almond eyes!

 

[ilong]

@almond eyes - thank you for the great information. Your post is the kind of feedback I was hoping to see.
I was an avid braid wearer and as I recall my hair didn't look very healthy after taking the braids out.
As I think about a sew-in I'm considering the stress on my alopecia area(s).
Perhaps wigs are my best option at this time. Although, with the wigs I experienced little short hairs - which may have been due to the wig caps

 

[tru4reele]

I didn't get any breakage from wearing box braids. I'm getting more on Tuesday. I don't wear them for a long time.

 

[sgold04]

I know it wasn't one of the options, but I've become a fan of crochet braids. Instead of wearing the synthetic hair loose, I get it twisted in Havana twists. I made it to MBL because of it. I'm wearing my hair straight for the holidays, but in January, I'm back in crochet braids for another 5 months (multiple installs of course).

 

[nlamr2013]

Which ever one you'll most take care of and keep. No sense getting braids but pulling them all over the place or snatching them out after a week

 

[felic1]

I know it wasn't one of the options, but I've become a fan of crochet braids. Instead of wearing the synthetic hair loose, I get it twisted in Havana twists. I made it to MBL because of it. I'm wearing my hair straight for the holidays, but in January, I'm back in crochet braids for another 5 months (multiple installs of course).

sgold04 Hello! I am understanding you to say that you use a crochet base and place havana twists ino them. Is this correct? It sounds noteworthy

 

[sgold04]

sgold04 Hello! I am understanding you to say that you use a crochet base and place havana twists ino them. Is this correct? It sounds noteworthy

Lol, yes. I'm not a DIYer when it comes to this. My stylist cornrows my hair and then adds the loose finger comber hair, then twists it. The finger comber hair is more full than Marley hair, so she only uses about 3.5 packs, and I can reuse the same hair multiple times.



Here is a pic of how it looks. I don't have to worry about knots in the hair since it's twisted, and I just have to make sure my cornrows are moisturized.

 

[almond eyes]

@almond eyes - thank you for the great information. Your post is the kind of feedback I was hoping to see.
I was an avid braid wearer and as I recall my hair didn't look very healthy after taking the braids out.
As I think about a sew-in I'm considering the stress on my alopecia area(s).
Perhaps wigs are my best option at this time. Although, with the wigs I experienced little short hairs - which may have been due to the wig caps

I no longer wear braid extensions but I can still see a few areas in my frontline temples that have been affected by traction alopecia, thank God not so obvious but I am hoping that the area does grow back. And I didn't get breakage from box braids except in my shorter temple front line areas but my using extension box braids as my go to protective style compromised my hair strands especially the synthetic hair.

I also did a wig thing for one year over my natural hair which was braided, but the nylon cap sucked out all of my moisture out and left my hair feeling very dry and my colleague who wore wigs for years was practically bald.

I think a sew in is best but not braiding your temple and front line areas tightly. Or not doing the cornrows to the back but rather braiding them to the sides and attaching the weft to that.

These crochet braids seem to not be that bad either as a sew in style they appear to keep the integrity of the hair.

I am freelancing at the moment, so I am not in any stressful work situations that I have to panic about my hair. I really just leave my hair alone and make sure I wet it everyday with warm water under the shower, put on a head scarf (not tightly) and put on my beret knit cap and go. Wetting everyday keeps my hair hydrated. I was co washing daily but I think that causes build up, but if my hair feels a bit off, I may do a co wash to soften my hair in the week. But I still shampoo and protein conditioner followed up by a moisture one every week though. In that way, I am not stressing my hair and the head scarf protects it from the cold air.

Best,
Almond Eyes