Protective Styles

Twists, braids, weaves and wigs, are all considered protective styles.  A protective style is a style you wear that has minimum to no manipulation to your hair.  Sometimes you need a break from doing your natural hair or, sometimes you just want less manipulation done on your hair so that it  can grow at an optimum level.

 

BRAIDS

One of the most popular go to protective hairstyle that naturals love to wear are braids.  There are box braids, crochet and corn rows to name a few. The box braids generally consist of a square or triangle parting and some sort of synthetic hair added to give the braids fullness and length.  Corn row are braided directly on the scalp. This protective style can be very intricate and detailed. Crochet braids is a combination of corn rows and synthetic hair. When getting crochet hair in you would first have your hair in cornrows.  Once that’s done your would simply take the hair and insert the loop which is attached to the hair onto the hook. The hook goes in between your braid and comes out where you can latch it on into a knot. The knot will secure the hair on your cornrow.

TWISTS

Another great protective style is twists.  Twists can come in a flat style, Senegalese or Havana to name a few.  The flat style twist is similar to cornrows. Flat twist can be plaited to your head, in some instances as an up-do.  There are so many variations of the flat twists. Many are showcased on PInterest. Senegalese and Havana twist are similar to box braids in the sense that they are twisted individually per section of hair.  However, they can come pre-twisted in synthetic hair.

 

WEAVES / WIGS

Weaves, wigs and hair extensions are a convenient protective style for any naturalista.  The beauty of weaves, wigs and hair extensions is that they are low maintenance. Your hair is typically cornrowed underneath. You can sew in hair, use pre-bonded (glue) hair or clip in hair.  The hair can be natural or synthetic. Subsequently, wearing this protective style is FUN! You can experiment with color and different textures, knowing all the while your hair is able to grow protected.  Wigs by far have also gained in popularity with the lace front to the partially sew in wigs.  Many naturals are creating wigs for themselves and have created D.I.Y. (do it yourself) videos to show the process.

 

STYLES

Many people of color add synthetic hair to give their hair depth and also to play in color.  People with natural hair can also choose from Box braids, Havana Twists, Faux Locs, wigs and many others styles. Braids can be done in corn rows or individuals styles. Twists have become more popular as people are being more creative with this protective style.  The Faux Locs have also become very popular and naturalistas are experimenting with color and length. Naturalistas today can choose from many different types of protective styles.