Super Short Up-Doable

Here's one I have had sitting in my 'hair folder' for a while....

This is by no means original. Everybody does what they call "puffy braids". And I'm sure this particular style has been done a gazillion times before, but here it is anyway. I tend to stick to the tried and true, more traditional styles. And things that will stay in ALL day. My kids play hard and I don't like them to walk in the door and look like I never did a thing to their hair before school. I don't even know what I call this. But this is something I can do on her super short hair that makes it look like she has longer hair than she does. She wasn't thrilled at first, as you can tell.

Start with damp hair. Part it down the middle (I part down one side on top, and down the middle on the back since she has no bangs.) Use butterfly clips to hold one side out of the way- that's the tricky part. Using a rat tail comb, section a little piece at the bottom and secure it with an elastic. Part another section above that (keep the hair above it out of the way with more butterfly clips.) and secure that. I did four sections on both sides (but it really works better with more, smaller sections since her hair is so short.) End each side with a flipped piggy/ messy bun on top. Put some bows in, and you're done! Super cute, even if unoriginal! ;)

Zig Zag Piggies

One of my favorite things to do on my younger two is to only use the top section of hair for piggy tails and leave the sides down. I don't know why, but I love it so much more than making regular piggies. Maybe I like how it frames their face better than pulling it all up. Maybe that's the same reason I don't ever do half pony tails. I dunno....

To make each side have the same amount of hair, try a zig zag part....

You could also do a smaller zig and zag for a different look. Add some bows and you are so done in like two minutes. Great for when you are in a hurry (Yah, yah, I know we should just wake up earlier, but what can I say....that's the reason for the crooked bows.) The curls are definitely optional but cute!

Drumroll, Please....

THE WINNERS OF THE BOWS ARE.......

Set #1:

Courtney said...
Are you kidding? My sisters and I race to call and inform the others as to where the music is on first. I beat them this year - November 1st on the cable music channels. Two this year - how exciting!!! Tradition - we're all married with children now, but when we were kids, my sisters and I would sleep all together on watch for Santa. We never caught him, but did hear sleigh bells one year. Now my three girls do the same thing. I love that! :-) #1 is my first choice.
November 16, 2008 7:06 PM

Set #2:

Ruth said...
I love all three sets, but #2 and #3 are my favorites. I love Christmas and would listen to Christmas music year-round if my family didn't protest! My favorite Christmas song right now is John Denver and the Muppets singing The 12 Days of Christmas, because it makes my kids laugh so hard.
November 17, 2008 8:50 AM

Set #3:

The Mom said...
I hope you don't quit either. You've got some fun stuff -- my fav being the rick rack braid (which I did on 2 of my girls yesterday.) I'd go for any of the cute bows and I/m with your first commenter about having Christmas on Christmas Eve -- it's all about the European way growing up in my family too! And I love the song O Holy Night.
November 14, 2008 5:59 PM

Please let me know your e-mail addresses so I can contact you and get hose babies in the mail before we miss any celebrating!

I've Got a Problem

Some of you are probably wondering what in the world happened to the post in which I talked about going private. I removed it after some of the 'hair blog drama' died down. I am still toying with the idea, so we'll see. If I do, I'll give all my loyal readers an invitation, so don't worry.

For those of you that are clueless- you're lucky. It got pretty ugly to say the least. I tried to stay out of it, but my daughter's picture ended up on a blog that was slamming a lot of us 'newbies'. Not cool. So anyway, we'll see what goes on in the next little while, and that will determine whether I go private or not. Quitting is NOT and never will be an option for me. That is until I am fresh out of ideas- but that will be more of a retirement, I suppose.

Hair is my obsession. Seriously- I think I need help. I have hair OCD. My poor kids. I have been known to whack an infant's hair because of a bald spot. My middle daughter got her head shaved at nine months cuz it was growing out uneven. So yeah. I've got a problem. I cut my own hair at 3 or so because I wanted it feathered like my sister's. From that point on, I never let my mom touch my hair (much to my dismay, now- looking back on the pictures. Oy.) The rest is history.

The reason I started this blog was for my friends and family. I get asked quite often to teach them how I do my daughter's hair and this was an easy way to do it since I have been taking pictures of their hair all along. And I do it for me and my girls. Believe it or not, I forget some of the styles I do. And someday, I'll print them and my daughters will have them. So I never claim to have anything original, but that was never the point of my blog. I am sorry if something I do resembles something somebody else did and I don't give them credit. I always give credit where I know credit is due...meaning, if there is a new style I see on another blog and I post it on my blog, I'll tell ya where I saw it first. Otherwise, consider it coincidence that we do the same style.

And since our Christmas lights are up (and turned on nightly) and I have been playing Christmas music for several weeks now, I am officially in the Holiday Spirit. I think that calls for a giveaway. Here is how to play:

1. You can only enter if you didn't roll your eyes when you read that my lights are up and I am listening to Christmas music. ;)

2. Leave a comment telling me your favorite Christmas tradition or song.

3. Please indicate which set or sets you would like to enter for.

Here's what the three lucky winners will get:

#1: Holiday Itty Bitty Clippies for those pretty Christmas dresses.

#2: 'Ho Ho Ho' Bows. So cute.

#3: Holiday Dot Bows. Not just for Christmas.

Braids to Messy Bun

This one is really straight forward. Two inside-out french braids into a messy bun. I didn't part the hair all the way down the back. Just a part up top, on the side, kind of diagonally. When you take hair form only the bottom to turn the braid inside-out, it is easy to do it without a center part down the back.

Yes, this messy bun is slightly different than the one in the video. Some mornings her hair won't cooperate and I improvise. This particular morning, I skipped the part where you tuck it back though the ponytail holder. I ended up using clippies to hold some of the hair. But after a game of kickball or hopscotch, it doesn't look this good. :)

Messy Bun Video

I've had a few requests for a messy bun tutorial.....Here is my version of a messy bun:

There are dozens of ways to do a messy bun- the trick is finding which way works for your hair type. This way happens to work the best on mine, and my daughter's hair. I have tried several different variations over the years, but have finally settled on this...for now, anyway! It stands up to a long day on the playground or soccer field- which is HUGE when your daughter plays as hard as mine. She hates bobby pins and clippies, so this worls great for us. In the video, you'll notice I use blue elastics so you can see them easier. Normally I like to use elastics that match her hair better. Good luck, and let me know if you have any questions!

Four French Braids to Messy Buns

When I started, I had no idea what I was going to do (that's usually how it is...) but I love how this turned out. I parted off four rectangles on the top of her head and french braided them alternating direction. Then, I simply pulled them back into two messy buns.

Not the best pictures (it's hard to photgraph a moving target leaving for school,) but I love how it looked like the braid zig-zagged because they touched....

Topsy Tails

I have done topsy tails on my girls since they had enough hair to pull back, I have used them many times to hold back bangs that we were growing out. But I alwyas took little squares up front and did a row up front because the hair was so short. My talented friend, Mindy does hers like this- with more of a rectangle. I love how it makes them look like twists- but they stay in for days! Great for camping and boating!

"Rick Rack" it is!

I loved everyone's suggestions for the name. It was hard to narrow it down. The one I chose was:

Robert and Hannah said...
This is way cool and looks easy to do. A great change on a regular braid! I would call it "the rick rack" because it looks like rick rack lace.
October 17, 2008 6:30 AM

She was the first to come up with 'rick rack' and I love that. It is easy to say and type for future posts. Hannah can choose whatever accessory she wants. But for the others that voted for the winning name, I have a prize for you, too! Just e-mail me your addresses, and I'll get those out to you!!!

P.S. I must clarify that I did not make this up. A lady showed it to me once. She came up with it by accident. I thought it was way too cool to keep to myself, and it needed a name for blogging purposes. I hope she doesn't mind! ;) Plus, I was looking for another excuse to give away something cute!

Cool Braid Thingy

Here is a video how to do a cool braid. I really didn't know what to call it, it looks more like a weave, but it's actually just a braid. I am having a contest to give it a name. Post your ideas in the comments below and I'll chose my favorite name. The winner receives a free hair accessory of their choice.

Here is the finished product. I have tried doing it on wet hair, but it doesn't work. I don't know if it is just because my dd's hair is so coarse, but it works better when it's dry. Also, the longer the hair, the better. If her hair was just a little longer, it would be weaved all the way to the ponytail, or I could just secure the two together in the back and leave the rest of the hair down. I don't love to just leave this hangin' by itself. But you could certainly do lots of them all over like a twist or a braid and tie them back into a messy bun. That would be super cute. I'd love to see what people do with this!

I'd Like to Thank....

I am so honored! I haven't been at this very long, but I received an award! Can you believe it? Babes in Hairland was so thoughtful and nominated me for it! I must say, I love her styles. Nothing too far out there- just absolutely adorable.

Here the rules for the award: Nominate at least 3 more blogs (It used to be 10, but come on, lets save some for the others...and notice I said AT LEAST 3...feel free to do more!) of any kind that you love to read. Write a post about the blogs you picked, linking back to me and to them. Once you’ve posted, return here to let me know your post is done and be sure to let them know, too!! So here are my picks for the award - in no particular order:

Craft-A-Lot. This girl has got it going on! Let me tell ya! If there is ANYTHING you want o learn how to do- she's your gal!.....Scrapbook, bead jewelry, make bows, sew, quilt, knit, or crochet, make cards, cook gourmet, hang a light, install wood floors, change a faucet, rig new door knobs, or just be an awesome mom and friend! (Plus, she loves give-aways!)

Hairstyles for Girls. Yeah, I know she just started her blog but, just take a look! Her girls have gorgeous hair (a little envious, here!) And she has fantastic ideas. I can't wait to see what else she comes up with.

A Feathered Nest. She's like a professional blogger- does that count? But she threw together a wedding in A DAY AND A HALF! Sounds like my kinda gal!

Front French Braid

A truly simple staple at our house. This one is way fast I love it, so I do it A LOT! The best part is- the next day, you can just leave it in and put in some cute piggy tails, messy buns, or a ponytail!



I didn't even take the time to section off the hair (GASP!) I know, it is not in my nature. But the rest of the hair covers it up. I just did my best as I braided to keep somewhat of a line there. Start on the top of the head, right on her part. End the french braid about where a part would be onthe other side. Regular braid most of the way down and curl the ends.




Her hair is naturally wavy in some parts, and I can't just leave it down. So I curled it- this time with my flat iron (again- when the silly video on my camera starts working- I can do a clip.) Notice how the curl looks different than a curling iron curl.

Side by Side Inside-Out Braids

Here is the inside-out french braid on my middle daughter. I just parted her hair diagonally and sectioned off the top part of her hair. I use clips to hold the hair separated and braid it, only taking hair from the bottom. Add some curly bows, and there ya have it!

Flipped French Braid

With my middle daughter's hair being so thin, I like to keep it pretty short. As a result, I have to think of different hairstyles for mainly the top of her head. This one was a fun variation:

I parted off the top of her head and french braided it. I stopped the braid a little early and flipped it over and tied it back to the base of the braid.

I curled the ends back toward me and stuck a curly bow in. That helped to hold the hair kind of up and back.

Heidi Goes Tropical!

My 10 year thought of this all on her own and I think it is darling! It is a combo between the palm trees and the Heidi braids.

Start by making two piggy tails and braiding them into four. The middle two braids should be braided as far down as you can, but leave some hair loose on the bottom of the outside two.

Then take the outside two braids and loop into the ponytail holders.

Take the left inside braid and wrap it over the ponytail holder on the right.

Secure it under the elastic and use a claw clip if needed. If your daughter's hair is longer, you could wrap it all the way around the whole braid and back to the other. Just go as far as you can. You can use claw clips to attach it anywhere on the other braid to hold it. That is what we would do when we did the Heidi braids and her hair was longer.

Curl the ends of the palm trees or you can use some wax or pomade to make them spiky!