Long hair = Ratty Braids?

I recently made a hair care package for a new natural friend (I stole the shower comb out of it because it was cute...no I don't comb but somehow after ordering it, I wanted it lol). I also thought that I might refer her to my favourite fotkis and websites too.

Yesterday I saw her and she remarked to me that she loved the pictures of the hair. She also said that she doesn't want long hair because 'long haired naturals like ratty braids.' I am currently rocking some super fuzzy braids done two weeks ago and which have been to the swimming pool 4 times so I did give her my best squinting eye. She explained that from the images she saw, the people with the longest curliest hair usually kept their hair in braids or twists for long even if the parts were not visible or the hair was fuzzy/messy.

The poll question today is therefore, how long would you keep braids or twists in? The details
1. The braids/twists should be from your own natural hair not with extensions.
2. If you redo your hairline, this is fine, just state how long you would keep the overall style going.

My story - I used to have a super low tolerance for fuzzy braids. I would religiously redo any where the parting wasn't clean anymore. I could hardly keep them in for a week. Over the years, student life ebbed away and work started kicking my butt. I have a medium tolerance now for fuzzy hair simply because if I didn't I would probably go crazy trying to find the time in the day to redo the hair.

What is your story? Do you do own hair braids or do you prefer extensions? Can you keep them in for a month or is a week your limit?

Comments

  1. I've never been an extension wearer because of an apparent allergic reaction to synthetic hair...makes me itch like crazy. Since going natural, though, I love twisting my own hair. I don't leave them in longer than overnight because my hair is not (in my opinion) twist wearin' length yet. When it reaches a certain length I will wear twists frequently. As far as how long I would leave them in...I don't know if I could wear them past a week simply because I would NEED to take them down to wash my scalp/hair. My head starts to rebel if it's not washed at least once a week...LOL. I have seen some women wear braids/twists for a month or two and because they took really good care of them, they still looked pretty decent.

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  2. My hair can actually go for three weeks without a wash but since I'm swimming I'm getting a wash pretty much every other day. My braids begin to get fuzzy after a week and then after two, they look like I really must do something. I have never got to three yet, I'm sure with my hair it may actually start locking.

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  3. I usually keep my braids for a week....
    I did braids with extensions a few times and after a month, I took them down.

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  4. I'm allergic to synthetic hair, and I don't like to use human hair. I use yarn instead; I've worn yarn braids for a full month, and they still looked fresh (with maintenance of course) by the time I took them down. If a few braids started to look a little funky, I'd take them out and re-braid them.

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  5. I had synthetic braids once and I found out very quickly that I am allergic to the hair (major rash and itching like nobody's business) and something about using an unknown human's hair on my head gives me the willies. So I don't do extensions. I also don't use a comb in my hair (I only use one to switch up my center part), so I wouldn't be caught dead in public wearing twists or braids because my parts look horrendous. Basically I use twists simply to let my curls set and then I take them down. Every night until the next wash day, I retwist into 4 loose twists for bed.

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  6. I keep them in for about a week because I start missing out styles. They're much more fun for me! What's the point of having amazing, fierce hair if I have to hide it all the time!

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  7. I may gross YOU ALL OUT lol. I got extension braids a lot done as a kid, my mom would keep them in for three months at a time. Yes I would look like Bob Marley when it was take down time but my hair was near the middle of my back. I now wash them once a week and do the growafrohairlong.com method with braids in and...I still go 3 months with extensions unless I hate how they were to begin with.
    With my own hair..comb coils 3 weeks only because I thought they would "loc" back then.
    I'm the ultimate lazy natural.

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  8. Fake hair makes me itch, but I think they are easier to have for really long stretches.

    I can only go about four weeks with a re-twist after two weeks. I plait the root and twist the rest. Right now my twists are fuzzy, fuzzy, fuzzy, and my parts are barely visible.

    I keep my head under scarves. If I was going somewhere important, I would wash and re-twist for a fresh look.

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  9. I might be the only black woman who never used extensions or weaves. I have a dense head of hair and I worried the look would be over powering on me. Plus I run 3 to 4 days a weeks and I need to get at my scalp especially in the warmer months. I twist my hair once a week in the summer and once every two weeks in the winter. I am fuzzy after a week which doesn't bother me too much. It sorta like a little halo!
    It's the closest I'll ever get to having one!

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  10. I used to wear extensions from high school to my early twenties on and off. I would wear cornrow (extensions) for up to 1 month, but the kinky twists and micro braids/wet n' wavy braids would keep for about 2-3 months. I washed both, but the corn rows didn't last long simply because the new growth looked worse lifting up a line of hair instead of box braids. With my own natural hair, I would wear two strand twists for 2 weeks before taking them out. Now I have 9 month old locs and I retwist monthly but have broken at two weeks and washed/retwisted earlier a couple times.

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  11. I started wearing braid extensions at 19. It grew my natural hair to APL. it was a combination of a few things i changed in my life. To answer your question, I keep them in for two months. I just use a silk scarf when i sleep. I use three primary products: My mixture of aloe vera juice/aubrey organics protein conditioner, Coconut oil, and Carol's daughter black vanilla leave conditioner.

    My hair looks a hot mess when i wore human hair after a month. 1) because my hair was getting to long to have human hair. 2) too fuzzy and didn't match.
    I had to switch to kanekalon which lasts and convenient for a college student.

    But I do prefer human hair because it is softer, lightweight and i can do more styles with it.

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  12. @lilmssmartypants, can u pls tell me the name brand of any good human hair extensions i can use to braid my hair

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  13. My braids and/or twists are worn to achieve and 'out style. Walking around with braids, etc. doesn't suit me or work with my style of dress. I like sophistication and braids don't do it for me...I feel like I'm 12 all over.

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  14. I can't go longer than 15 days. I just can't take it.

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