This messy side braid is a bit more involved than your standard plait, thanks to its French braided top section. But if you're looking to slightly expand your skills, this is one of the essential braid styles to start with.
How to:
1. Start with unwashed hair. Create a side part. Divide off the front bang section.
2. Separate the bang section into three equal parts, and start to French braid them down, keeping the braid as close to the front of your head as possible.
3. Continue your French braid downwards, adding small sections of hair until you reach your neck.
4. There, divide the remaining hair into three equal sections, and create a standard braid until the end. Secure with an elastic.
5. Loosen up the braid by carefully pulling sections of hair outwards, all the way up and down the braid. This will create a more tousled look.
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Best Braid Style No. 3: Hipster Royalty
Gorgeous? Yes. Time-consuming? Nope. This is one of those genius braid styles that tricks everyone into thinking you spent a ton of time on your hair, when really all you did was create two regular braids and pin them to the back of your head.
How to:
1. Create a middle part, then gather a large section of hair on one side. (Feel free to leave a few pieces loose in front for a more tousled look.)
2. Braid this large section, and secure with an elastic.
3. Repeat on the other side of your head.
4. Bring the first braid behind your head, swooping it down to the nape of your neck. Pin in place, making sure to tuck in the tail.
5. Repeat on the other side, and mist with a medium-hold hairspray.
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Best Braid Style No. 2: Queen of Romance
Put your French braiding chops to good use with this French crown braid — a braid style so ridiculously lovely you could rock it on your wedding day. Julianne Hough nailed the look by pairing it with a velvety red lip.
How to:
1. Start with clean, straightened hair.
2. Take a section of hair at the back of the crown of your head. Start French braiding it toward your right ear. Stop and pin it just above your ear.
3. Take another section beneath that braid, near the nape of your neck. Start French braiding that up toward your right ear. (Pro tip: Braid away from your scalp — as opposed to tightly against your scalp — for a loose, more voluminous look.)
4. Join the second braid with the first and continue French braiding across your hairline in front (like a headband), then down around the back of your head.
5. Tuck the end of the braid in and pin to conceal it. Set with hairspray.
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Best Braid Style No. 1: Chasing Waterfalls
This waterfall twist has you working with only two strands of hair at a time — good news for the uncoordinated. Personally, this is one of my favorite braid styles simply for the pretty factor and low skill level.
How to:
1. Take a small section from one side of your head, about an inch back from the hairline, and divide it in two.
2. Twist the bottom section of the top section, then drop the top piece, letting it fall with the rest of your hair, and pick up a new piece in its place.
3. Repeat the process by twisting the new piece over the top piece and letting the top piece fall, over and over until you reach the middle of the back of your head. Pin the tail in place there.
4. Repeat the entire process on the opposite side of your head, and pin the tail of that twist in back to meet the other one. Combine both tails with a small elastic to keep it extra secure.
Braid envy — it's a thing. If you find yourself gazing longingly at the intricately beautiful braid styles on Instagram and Pinterest, you've got a major case of it. There's nothing like an afternoon spent flipping through online photos of stunning braid styles, imaging yourself wearing them all from work to brunch to your wedding.
There is one little hiccup to this whole braid fever phenomenon: If you're not a naturally gifted hair wiz, attempting complicated braid styles can be downright daunting. Luckily, it doesn't have to be.
To help give even the most clumsy among us a leg up in the braid styles department, we grilled some of the industry's most celebrated stylists and bloggers for the precise, step-by-step braiding instructions you need to pull off braiding all by yourself.
Thanks to celebrity stylist Marcus Francis, Nine Zero One Salon stylists Florido Basallo and Amber Maynard, plus a few other independent braid geniuses, we have the goods on how to recreate 15 amazing braids. From the fan-favorite waterfall braid to the classic braided chignon, you'll see that these modern and sophisticated braid styles can take you anywhere.
Still afraid you don't have the skills? Put aside any doubts you have, and remember, you're not landing a Mars rover. You're just braiding your hair. With these simple braiding instructions (and a little practice), you can master Pinterest-worthy braid styles in no time.
