How to make a 5 Strand Braid

5-strand braids always get noticed.  Whether I'm wearing a French 5-strand or a simple 5-strand half-up, I always get at least one positive comment.  For me, learning how to do a 5 strand braid seemed as unattainable as finding the Holy Grail.  Yet, with dedication and practice, I did manage to learn it.  It took me at least a week.

As with the 4-strand box braid, I learned it originally in a half-up.  Once I had successfully done it in a halfup, I was able to make a French 5-strand braided half-up and finally, a full French 5-strand braid.


Here are some rudimentary instructions that will teach you how to make a 5 strand braid.  I read many various confusing instructions, and I was never able to really learn it from photos or video. It was when I finally figured out the pattern that I was able to start practicing my braid.  I'll give 2 sets of instructions.  One of them may be easier for you to grasp.


1. Separate hair into 5 strands as equal in size as possible.
2. From left to right, name the strands as follows: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
3. Cross strand 1 under strand 2 and over strand 3.
4. Cross strand 5 under strand 4 and over strand what is now strand 3 or the middle strand.
5. Rename strands from left to right: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
6. Repeat steps 3., 4, and 5, until braid is finished.
7. Tie off braid ends.


Here are the same instructions, but with different wording.


1. Separate hair into 5 strands as equal in size as possible.
2. Take far left strand, cross it under the next strand and over the next.
3. Take the far right strand, cross it under the strand beside it and over the next.
4. Take the new far left strand, cross it under the strand beside it and over the next.
5. Take the new far right strand, cross it under the strand beside it and over the next.
6. Repeat Steps 4 and 5 until braid is finished.  Tie off ends.

Here is a closeup of what the braid will look like.


Here are some tips.


If you practice the braid and don't get it right after 3 or 4 tries, stop before you get frustrated and try the next day.


Keep trying every day.  Eventually your fingers will learn the technique, and muscle memory will kick in.


Don't give up.  Learning any new braid takes patience.


Remember that it doesn't have to be absolutely perfect.  The only time you need to expect a perfect braid is if you have a professional braider braid your hair.  Imperfections actually make some braids look prettier and softer.


I hope you give this a try. If you do, let me know.


Talk to you tomorrow, my friends! 

Coconut Milk Soak

Now that the weather is getting humid, even I, with my usually flat hair find that my hair poufs out a bit, and my new growth surrounds my head like a halo.


For me, this is the perfect time for a coconut milk soak. There are few deep treatments any easier than this one, but it does do a lot for my hair. It’s moisturizing, oil replenishing, and leaves me with very smooth and shiny hair.

This is a treatment that I learned from Stephanie, at The Long Hair Community.

I buy regular full-fat coconut milk from the grocery store. Some people use half-fat, but my hair can take full-fat at this point, especially as I still have chemical damage on the ends. Full-fat really gives the most benefit.

I don’t like getting too much on my scalp. I like to focus on the length of my hair. I would suggest that for people with a dry scalp, you may want to use a full head treatment.

After opening the can of coconut milk, I find that the fat has separated from the milk, so I pour it all in a bowl and whisk it all together.  Then I put the bowl in a sink and dip the length of my hair in the coconut milk.  I gently work the coconut milk into my hair until it is saturated. 

Usually at that point, I gently bun my hair and cover it with a plastic bag, and then cover that with an old towel.

I like to leave it on for an hour or so.  It can be a bit drippy, so I like to have another old towel to put over my shoulders, just in case.

If I am in the mood for a long bath, I will pour any remaining coconut milk in the bath, which makes a very nice moisturizing body soak and naturally, the dripping doesn’t matter.

After I’ve had my hour’s soak, I wash my hair with my usual conditioner only method. Of course if you are a shampoo and conditioner person, by all means, shampoo your hair first. Make sure to use a lot of conditioner though, because conditioner removes the excess oil better than shampoo does.

It’s one of those treatments that is especially good during the change of seasons, when in winter the heat goes on in your home or at work, or in summer when the air conditioning is starting up everywhere, but it’s hot and humid or even hot and dry outdoors.  It always seems for me at least that there is an adjustment period for my hair during these times.

This treatment is so simple, but it really is a treat for the hair. If you give it a try, let me know how you like it.

Love to all!

Off Topic Tuesday: A Little Bit on Getting Older

Well, one of the missing hair accessories turned up, hurray!  However, it was the most easily replaceable of the lot of missing hairtoys.  It is really the two pairs of Mei Fa Hairstyx that was getting to me, but finding the hair fork gave me renewed hope that the hair sticks will eventually be found.  It may take months or years, but one of these days they’ll turn up.

I still wonder what it is that makes things like that drive me so crazy at times.  Other times, I would shrug it off.  This time, I was like a madwoman.  Thankfully, I’ve gotten over the obsession and I’m just going to forget about the missing objects and concentrate on the things I do have in my life.

I suspect that sometimes those obsessive moments have something to do with the fact that I’m past perimenopause and I’m now pre-menopausal. There’s no question in my mind that the changes in hormones have a great deal to do with moods and emotions.

As I approach my fifties, I think often about who I wanted to be at this age.  I had hoped that by the time I hit my late forties, that I would be more mellow, and take things in stride a  bit more.

While it’s true that some things are of little importance to me anymore, I still do sweat the small stuff at times, and I really want to learn to let those things go, so that I can concentrate on what’s really important.

There really are a lot of things I like about being older.  I no longer feel compelled to follow the latest trends in clothing, hair or makeup. I wear what I like, and I’m good with that. 

I notice that I am far more understanding of what I perceive as people’s failings than I was as a young woman. I’ve grown to realize that when I meet a stranger who is in a bad mood, there may well be a very good reason why that person is unhappy.  It’s finally sunk in to me that everyone carries burdens, and naturally, sometimes it affects their behaviour.  It doesn’t make them a nasty person; it could be someone who has just had some really bad news, or perhaps someone mourning a loved one.

I guess I’ve learned to give people the benefit of the doubt more.

What I do not so much enjoy about getting older is starting to notice some changes in my body such as my face beginning to sag. I was just talking to a friend about this today.

Once in a while I catch a glimpse of myself with a neutral expression.  Sometimes it will be an accidental photo taken when I forget to set the timer. It’s been quite a shock to see that what used to be a blank expression now looks like an angry expression, as my mouth turns down at the corners a bit now.  Gravity, I guess.

I see the beginnings of jowls, and I don’t care for that much either.  However, smiling takes care of all of that, so there’s a good reason to smile more.

I do notice that I’ve had to change my makeup application a great deal in the past few years. It’s really interesting how makeup that looked good at 38 just looks wrong at 48. Yet it’s not too hard to adapt. I just had to use common sense and reassess my cosmetic application.

All in all, it seems as though the things that I find somewhat unpleasant about ageing are merely the superficial things.

I hope that with more age, I continue to gain some wisdom.  There really does have to be an upside to this aging thing.  Wisdom, I’ll happily take.

Video Hairstyle How-To: French Twist

Today I'm posting my first hairstyle tutorial video.  I decided to do a French Twist, because my hair has just about grown out of it, so it was now or never.

As you'll see, it's a very quick and easy updo, and it is suitable for hair that is shoulder length hair to about where my length is now.  There is a different technique that I use when my hair is longer.

The French Twist is an excellent protective updo, and is a good everyday style, or it can be dressed up for evening. In this video I'm using a France Luxe French Twist Comb in black.

I hope that I can improve my video technique in the future, but I think this was okay for a first effort.

The Mystery of the Missing Hair Accessories

Over the past four years, I have amassed a fair sized collection of hair jewelry and hair accessories.

From time to time they tend to wander.  I do have a special spot for each and every hair stick, barrette, hair clip and hair fork, but from time to time I get lazy when I undo my hair and I put my hair accessories in a “safe place”.  Apparently the place is so safe that even I can’t find it.

I am in that world of lost hair accessories today.  I was looking for a lovely pair of Mei Fa hairstyx that I really wanted to wear, and they are not with my hair stick collection.  What’s worse, is that the other pair that I got at the same time is missing as well.  Clearly, I put them somewhere for safe keeping, and I played a joke on myself and forgot where that somewhere is. 

I decided to look through my collections, and I realize that I am also missing a much loved barrette and hair fork.

The Mei Fas are irreplaceable, as they are no longer to be found in that size and style.  Aside from that, I can’t afford to replace them.

The barrette and fork are replaceable, but again, I am not shelling out good money for something that I am quite sure is somewhere in this house.  But where?

I looked in all of the likely places and even some very unlikely places.  All to no avail.

Now, I have to admit that I do have many other lovely hair sticks, barrettes and forks, but these missing items are eating away at me.  What’s worse is that I now realize that they must have been missing for quite a long time before I noticed that they aren’t where I thought they were. 

This makes it even more problematic, because who knows what I may have surrounded them with after putting them somewhere for safe keeping.  I may have a year’s worth of items camouflaging them more than they already were.

So okay.  Lesson learned.  No matter how tired I am at night, or no matter how much of a hurry I may be in, I must remember to put any and all hair accessories in one place and one place only, if I can’t put them in their proper home.

I don’t know why I’m so upset about this today, but it’s driving me mad.  I think hormones may be at play here, but it really doesn’t matter.  I don’t need this aggravation that I clearly caused myself.

Well, I’m going to do some activities to distract myself from this obsession I’ve had today about these missing items.  And I have to remember that one day, when I least expect it, they’ll turn up.

Tomorrow I hope to have a new tutorial for you.  It’s an easy but elegant protective style.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.  I don’t want to have to come here tomorrow as I did on Friday and say that I can’t make a style work yet again.

Now, I’m just going to breathe deeply, relax and perhaps another movie is in order.  It really did the trick the other day.

Love to all!