Monday, December 19, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Santa Hat

This is a hairstyle created from the original hairstyle called Half-Down French Braids.  We've just added some fun accessories to make it a Santa Hat.
These are the supplies that we used but you can find anything that works for you.  There is red ribbon, a plastic yarn needs. some extra large white wire-ribbon, and a white puff ball that we've glued to a hair pin. 
Create your Half-Down French Braid hairstyle first.  The directions can be found here.  Now grab your red ribbon and your yarn needle.  (You will want to make sure the ribbon is long enough to weave on both sides of your braids.)  Feed your ribbon through your top elastic so that the exact middle of the ribbon is folded at the band.  
Start with one side of your ribbon and weave it back and forth through both sets of braids - making sure to alternate your left and right sides.   When you get down to the bottom of the "French" part of your braid, secure that ribbon by tying it around the braid and then knotting it.  Cut off any excess ribbon.  (This part will be hidden later.) 
 Move over to your other side of ribbon and repeat the steps.  Be sure that this new side of ribbon is exactly mirroring your previous side. 
After both ends of ribbon have been tied off and the excess had been cut, you are ready to use your white wired-ribbon.  Wrap it behind both braids at the nape of the neck and then bring it around the front and tie it in a bow.  (Make sure the white ribbon is covering those ends from your red ribbon.)  Shape your bow until it looks the way you like.  (This is the reason for using wired-ribbon.)  Take a bobby pin on each braid and run it through the ribbon to secure it to the hair.  The final step is to insert your puffy white hair pin into the top elastic. 
 Now your princess is festive and ready for Christmas!  :)    

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Wreath

This is one of my favorite Holiday Hairstyles.  It can be formal or casual and it holds all day long.
These are the supplies you will need:  Green ribbon, a plastic yarn needle, flower hair pins, and a Christmas hair clip or two.
The basic hairstyle beneath this wreath is the Angel Halo and I have a instructional video for that here.  The only difference is that instead of ending it by the ear with a bun, I continued twisting the extra hair around the top of the head and pinned it underneath the original French twist on the side that I started.  That way I had a full circle to work with.
Thread your yarn needle with the green ribbon and insert it through your Angel Halo down at the bottom by the neck.  Begin wrapping the ribbon around your twists and follow your entire circle until you end up back at the bottom.  Tie your two ends of ribbon together to secure them and then cut off any excess. 
Now grab your Christmas hair clip and place it right over the ribbon ends.  We have used two here because we didn't have one that was quite big enough.  Now take your flower hair pins and insert them around the wreath wherever you think it looks good. 
 It makes a really festive updo for your princess this season!

Friday, December 16, 2011

Friday's Film: Holiday Hairstyle: Christmas Tree

This is a fun Christmas Tree hairstyle that is easy to complete.
These are the supplies you will need along with some bobby pins and elastics.  These are mini ornaments for small trees but you could also just place some small clips around your finished tree.  Also, make sure you have a "tree topper".  I've just used a wrapping bow glued to an alligator clip here.  You will also want to have your Topsy Tail handy.
You can see why I suggested that you have your Topsy Tail handy!  :)
Here is the finished product.
Make sure when you puff up your braid that you bobby pin it at the top.  The tree topper will hide the pins in the end.
You can see from the side how I tucked it up under.
Here's a view from the other side.
It also looks cute just hanging as a braid with fun little ornaments inserted.
My princess likes this hairstyle best so far but I think it's because of the ornament bling!  :)

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Winter Wonderland

*I apologize in advance for the darker pictures but we did this hairstyle for a Christmas party in the evening so the sun had already gone down.*  We call this one the "Winter Wonderland" and we don't get any snow where we live so it was fun to create a snowy scene in her hair.  :)
Here are the supplies we used and I know that they're not necessarily supplies that you would have readily available but you can be creative and use what you have!  First we have a jumbo twist form and some white faux hair that we got at Sally's.  (You could use a pair of long rolled socks and ribbon as substitutes.)  There are also some little snowflake jewels that we just glued to hair pins but you could also use regular rhinestones.  Finally we have some snowman hair clips and I made these ones out of ribbons and alligator clips but you could make some simple ones with cotton balls and hair pins if you wanted.
Begin with wet hair and comb it all straight back.  Clip your faux hair underneath the other hair by the nape of the neck.  Now grab your twist form and place it at the ends of the hair.  Roll it upwards into the head until you have it nice and tight.  You will want to make sure that you are spreading your faux hair out a bit as you roll as well so it's not all in one clump.  Once your form is tightly against the head, secure it in place using bobby pins.  This is our hill of snow for our Winter Wonderland.
Now go ahead and place your snowman clips on top of the hill of snow in any way that you like.  (You could also make tree clips and use those as well or in place of.) 
Your final step is to make it look like it's snowing by inserting your hair pins in random places above the snowmen.
Now you've created a Winter Wonderland picture through a hairstyle.  It also looks like one of those over-the-top Christmas sweaters that Grandma used to wear.  :) 

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Bandu Snowman

This is our Bandu Snowman hairstyle and it's made with three Bandu (or Odango) Buns.
Here are some of the supplies that you will need.  The snowman hair clips, yarn, & needle are optional.  I demonstrated how you can use the yarn in the video but I didn't personally like the outcome so our pictures are done without it.  There is a bit of yarn for the scarf, brown pipe cleaners for the arms, & a Santa hat clip.  (You can use anything you have for the hat or just leave it off.)
I'm pretty sure I called the snowman a "scarecrow" in this video and my arm was in the way for a bit of it.  Not my finest filming experience but hopefully you get the idea!  :)
It turned out pretty cute didn't it!
This shows how it looks from the side.
You can see where I divided out the three sections to start with.
It would also be fun to add some cute buttons or some type of carrot nose!
It's a pretty fast hairstyle and it holds tightly throughout the whole day.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Candy Cane

It's "Candy Cane Day" at my princess's school and we did this hairstyle in honor of that.
Begin by making a curved part starting over behind the left ear.  Have it curve up about two inches from the bang line and then come down to a straight part in the center.  (I wish that my curve would have been a bit more defined so make sure it is exactly how you want it before continuing on.)
 Comb all of the hair below and to the left of the part down to the nape of the neck where you will create a Regular 3-Strand Braid out of it.  
Now move back up to that hair by the left ear and start creating a Half-French Braid by only gathering hair into the outside strands of your braid so that it lies directly on top of the part you have created. 
 Continue adding in hair as you plate around the curve and once you get to your straight part you can start adding in hair to both sides of your braid to create a regular French Braid the rest of the way down.  Once you've added all of the hair in you can finish it off with a Regular 3-Strand Braid. 
Now grab some red and white ribbon and a plastic yarn needle.  Start with one of your colors and tuck the end in over by the left ear - I used a bobby pin to hold it in place. 
Now thread the ribbon through your yarn needle and start weaving it around your French Braid.  Finish it all the way to the end of the braid on the right side of the head and then go back up to the top and repeat the same steps with your other color of ribbon.  Secure your ends at the bottom of your braid with another elastic. 
Now you've got a cute little Candy Cane!  

Monday, December 12, 2011

Holiday Hairstyles: Frosty

This is the final hairstyle on our video from Friday and we call it Frosty. 
 In the video I just showed you how to assemble the original bun but these pictures will show you the finished product as it should be.
These are the supplies you will need.  I found these knee-high stockings at our local dollar store but you can use an old pair of tights, old socks, or just some ribbon if you like.  I used some Sharpie markers to draw on the face and the buttons.  Remember that you do not have to purchase the bun molds because you can used rolled socks for the form if you would rather.  The bun molds are just nice because they allow you to stick hairpins and bobby pins into them a bit easier.  There is a short bit of yarn for the scarf, some brown pipe cleaner for the arms, and a small Santa hair clip.  (A hat is optional.)
Start by dividing the hair into two halves along the back of the head so that you have a top half and a bottom half.  You are going to secure each half into an elastic. 
 Make sure that your top half ponytail is a bit lower so that it is close to the part and your bottom half should be higher so that it is close to the part as well. 
Pull a mold over each ponytail and create a bun as shown in the video.  Grab your stockings and pull those over the bun as well and secure them by placing a final elastic over them.  (You can stretch and pull the stockings at this point to get the face exactly how you want it.)  Tie your yarn around the end of a bobby pin and pop that in the middle of the two buns for your scarf. 
Your last step is to insert the two pipe cleaner arms and clip the hat on top.  My princess wore this to a Christmas show and it was a huge crowd pleaser.