Protective Style: Inspired by CH/VC

The Inspiration

Our new style was inspired by the beautiful Boo of Chocolate Hair/Vanilla Care. If you've never visited this blog, you are missing out!! 

The Style

Anisa's Nubian Princess style used beads and we all know that beads and rubberbands are not good ends. Especially ends that have recently been trimmed. 

I removed the beads prior to removing the style in order to give her ends some extra special TLC. Once the style was removed, I washed her hair using our regular routine and I put her hair in large twists for a few days to let her scalp rest. I knew that I wanted our next style to be protective but I wasn't sure about which style to do. I received inspiration from my blogger buddy, Mainly Braids. She recently put her own spin on the same style from Chocolate Hair/Vanilla Care. You can check out her amazing style here. 

The Links

Be sure to check out both of these wonderful blogs for more information about this style! 

Chocolate Hair/Vanilla Care: All-Around Cornrows with Bangs

Mainly Braids: Braids with a Bang

The Pictures

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Inspired by... Variations

We've been really busy since the start of school, so whenever I can stretch a style, I will!! Anisa is still wearing the style originally showcased in our Inspired by... post. I first changed the style by adding curlformers. This style was shown in our Inspired by... Update post. Her braids/cornrows are still holding up pretty well so I decided not to take them out just yet. Instead, I chose to change things up a bit. 

The third variation was a simple half up, half down style. The front section remained the same while I made a ponytail in the back section and left the remainder of her hair down. 

The fourth variation was a braided updo design. I began by sectioning her box braids in a diagonal fashion. Next, I added cornrows in an upward motion and secured each braid with an ouchless band. The front section was changed a little bit. I decided to let one of the front braids that was originally in the front ponytail hang down. 

And last but certainly not least, we have our fifth variation brought to you by our Facebook friend Lanaye. Can you say beautiful???!!!! Wow!! Look at all of that hair!!! I hope to share more of her styles in the future!! 

If you have been Inspired by... any of my styles, I would love to see them!! Please feel free to share your pictures on our Facebook page or via email at braidwithme@gmail.com. 

Inspired by... Update

In my Inspired by... post I let everyone know that I would be posting an update soon. Well here it is! I decided to give her braids a curly look by using Curlformers. I used Bee Mine Bee Hold Curly Butter on her braids prior to the placement of each Curlformer. The Curlformers that I have are too short for her hair now so I will have to purchase the Extra Long and Wide packs soon. 

I placed a satin hair wrap around her braided headband to protect it during bedtime. I did not place anything over the Curlformers. Here are the results: 

We stopped by Target in the later part of this day so I could pick up an ink cartridge. I must admit that I've been doing a pretty good job of staying out of there!! I love Target but each time I go in, I end up with a cart FULL of stuff that I really don't need! So when we got in the store, we made our usual stop in the dollar section. Anisa found a couple of things and we continued on our way to get the ink. I did not walk past the girl's clothing section because I did not want to be tempted to buy yet another item that was not needed. I decided to walk past the women's clothing section instead. No temptation there because I'm not in the market for new clothes right now. So we approach this section and what do I see!? Girl's clothing!!! But not the girl's clothing that I usually see!! These items are different with bold colors and designs! I guess I've been living under a rock because I did not know anything about the Missoni line! 

According to the Target website, "Since 1953, the legendary Missoni fashion house has been known worldwide for its eclectic mix-and-match patterns, colors and textures. Now Missoni brings its iconic Italian lifestyle to you with the exclusive Missoni for Target collection." 

Most of the items are completely sold out online so I'm happy that I was able to get a few things. In all, I purchased the dress, leggings, and ballet flats for one complete outfit and a poncho and a pair of rain boots for her second outfit. 

If you are interested in any of the items from this line, check online to see if your store has any of the items in stock. 

What type of items have you purchased for the fall? Where do you prefer to shop for your kids?

Also, be sure to check out the other wonderful posts from the September Hair Carnival. The links have been provided below: 

Inspired by...

 Let me start by saying that I apologize for our absence. Education is very important to us and that has been our main focus. I hope that you can understand.

Now back to this style!!! For the September Hair Carnival, I was paired with the very talented onceuponacurl.blogspot.com. According to her blog, "Once Upon a Curl strives to provide affordable and Quality hair care products to children and parents of all colors. Our main goal is to reach those who otherwise have no access to products they like and need to take care of and maintain curly types of hair." In addition to offering products, she loves to style natural hair! Please visit her blog and Facebook fan page for more info on this wonderful blogger.

For this style, I decided to combine her love for freestyle cornrows and my love for protective styles such as box braids. I also decided to copy fellow blogger charlottesavenue.blogspot.com love for braided headbands.  If you haven't checked out her blog, you are missing out!! She covers natural hair, parenting and everything in between!

I started with clean, detangled, moisturized hair that had been banded for a couple of days.

Next, I began adding medium box braids starting at the nape area and working my way up. I was unable to finish the style on this particular day, so I added two twisted ponytails in the front section and secured them with ouchless bands.

The following day, I began adding freestyle cornrows in the front section in preparation for the braided headband. Although it is not visible in this photo due to the bow, the two overlapping cornrows lead into three cornrows.

The Results!!!

Do you find inspiration from others? Please share your thoughts!!

Stayed tuned for the update!!