French-Braided Bun

Though I have really long hair and I absolutely love wearing my hair loose and wavy, realistically, I end up wearing my hair pulled up most of the time. I adore this bun because it puts a cute twist on the usual and effortless messy bun, and it’s relatively easy to do.

For this look, all you’ll need are a couple hair elastics and a few bobby pins to keep the bun in place.

This tutorial will be a lot easier to follow if you already know how to French-braid. Though I’ll try, it’s not something that I feel I can clearly explain without visuals, and there are a ton of great French-braiding tutorials on YouTube that are easier to follow if you’re someone who needs to watch the technique in order to learn.

It’s easier to achieve this braid if you do it while sitting in a chair or on the edge of your bed, only because to get the braid along the nape of your neck, you have to keep your head flipped over.

1. Flip your head over and gather a section of hair along the nap of your neck.
2. Divide the chunk of hair you’ve gathered into three sections and start by braiding them normally once.
3. For the next part of the braid, gather a chunk of loose hair and add it to the section you’re about to braid. Keep adding sections as you continue to braid to form the French braid.
4. Once you’ve reached about the crown of your head, stop braiding and gather the remaining loose strands into a high ponytail.
5. Wind the ponytail around the base of the elastic until you have a bun that you’re satisfied with, then secure the messy bun with another elastic and bobby pins if necessary.
6. Mist with hairspray, and you’re done!