A couple of months ago, I received an email from a reader
(Alisha) requesting a tutorial on this amazing braid from an
awesome Instagram account called "@Arwelin" (which I believe is
Russian.) I decided to take on this challenge, and after some trial and
error, I think I have the braid decoded (but still not 100% sure this
is the same technique used in the original photo.) Over the past couple
of weeks, I have noticed this same braid popping up all over hairstyling
pages on
Instagram,
Facebook, and
Pinterest. It is becoming quite popular and I am certainly not the first to figure this out!
At first glance, this braid looks quite similar to the
5 strand checkerboard braid we did a couple of years ago. But I'm pretty sure this particular braid is actually made using an "inside out" or
dutch fishtail braid
technique and is quite different. For simplicity sake, I chose
to show this braid in a ponytail (which should be fairly easy
to learn.) With a little more practice and difficulty, this same braid
can also be turned into a French (or Dutch) braid by incorporating hair
from the sides into the braid.
A few tips I learned while practicing this braid:
1. The width and texture of the ribbon makes a big difference in how
this braid turns out. I would recommend ribbon that is more on the stiff
side rather than flimsy. Also, if you choose ribbon that is super thin
or super thick, the braid is going to look completely different. You
can experiment and find the width you like best.
2. If you are into the braid looking "perfect" you will want to be
careful to grab the same amount of hair with each stitch all the way
down the braid. As you can see from our pics, I did not do the greatest
job at that this time. ;)
3. You can use more than 2 strands of ribbon in the middle for an even more intricate braid if you want!
In our video tutorial below, we show 2 hairstyles that can be made using
this braid. A ponytail, and an updo. Of course, the possibilities are
endless in the designs and hairstyles that can be created after you
master this braid!
