More on African "hairitage"!

I’m back to share more of my hair-raising adventures (lol, I kill myself!)

My favourite standby, when I can’t make up my mind about what to do next with my hair, is braids. I love the versatility. From cornrows to tree braids, from micro braids to flat twists, there are so many different ways to braid your hair that I don’t know if you ever need to have the same style twice.

I’m blessed to live somewhere where there’s a braider on every other corner and they’re relatively cheap and I feel the pain of all you ladies who don’t have access to the same.

Actually why don’t we share? Send in the name of your favourite braid stylist and their location and I can put it in some blogs.....it’s great (free) exposure for them and you’ll really be helping out your sistas who might not be so well connected!

What’s great about braids is how you can choose the braid that bests suit your lifestyle. I’m pretty active so I like something I can put up in a ponytail. Pick what works best for you.

Please, please, please (yes, I’m begging) keep those braids clean and well maintained. If you don’t wash them regularly, they can smell really nasty – especially if you’re a smoker or hang around smokers! Plus, I’ve found when I wash mine regularly there’s less tangling and breakage when I eventually undo them. That’s another thing that I love about braids.....they stay for a good couple of months. Personally, I’ve never had them longer than two months but that’s more because I get bored than the fact that they’re falling out. If you are going to keep them for any length of time though, regular maintenance especially around the hairline is a must...it’ll keep them looking fresh.

There are downsides to braiding though – the main one for me being the length of time it takes to get them done and undone. But since I figure it saves me hours of salon time for the period I have them in, then it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make!

I once had braids done that took 18 straight hours........and that was with two people doing the braiding! What’s the longest you’ve ever taken to get your hair “did”?