Knot-Weave Up-Style
Here we present an up-style design that is both interesting and fun. Created using a simple French twist base, this style is jazzed up by weaving and knotting small segments of the hair along the front hairline to create a "net" over the top of the head.
The style is lovely on its own, and can be made dressier by using jeweled hairpins at the knots or where two strands of hair intersect.
It is a style that is easily created and adaptable by changing the pattern of woven strands as desired. What follows are the basic instructions for creating this type of style (and the steps used in our demonstration).
• Assorted large and small bobby pins
• Snag-safe elastic bands
• Tail combs or styling combs
• Small clips (to control hair not immediately being worked with)
How to Achieve the Style:
First, as is customary, we start creating the style on clean, unwashed hair. It's important that the hair isn't freshly washed because shampooing and conditioning the hair properly leaves it silky, and silky hair is very difficult to work into an up-style. However, if it becomes necessary to work with freshly washed hair, there are steps you can take.
In our demonstration, the manikin needed to be washed after many uses in creating different styles. To prepare the manikin for this demonstration, we applied styling gel to the manikin's wet hair and dried it with a blow dryer. Once dry, we lightly misted the hair with hairspray, parting it into thin sections to ensure all of the hair was covered. The hairspray was allowed to dry as well and then brushed out. Finally, we used a flat iron to straighten the hair, and we were ready to proceed with the styling.
To create the style, we separated small, square sections approximately 1 inch by 1 inch (2.5 cm) all along the front hairline, from ear to ear. Each of these was secured with its own snag-safe elastic band, and the whole group was collected together and clipped forward to keep them out of the way while we worked on the base of the style.
The next step in the style was parting off a large circular section using the initial partings from the first square sections as the front edge, and finishing out the circle, leaving approximately 2 to 2-1/2 inches along the nape of the neck. This large section is gathered into a snag-proof elastic band to hold it in place while the remaining hair at the nape is clipped to keep it out of the way while we work.
We build the base of the hairstyle by taking the large central section and dividing it vertically. We then back-comb (tease) the hair slightly, using about 10-12 short strokes at the root on the side of the vertical division of each half. The two halves are then rejoined, and the outer surface of the section is smoothed out. The section is then wound into a French twist style, with a small loop of hair at the top, and secured into place using large bobby pins. The bobby pins are crossed at the base of the twist, and the back-combing gives the twist more stability. Any hair ends that are left sticking out should be carefully tucked under the twist using the end of a tail comb and secured with a bobby pin.
The next step is securing the hair at the nape area of the neck into the desired style.
In our demonstration, we simply divided this portion of the head into three panels and swept them up around the twist. The ends of the panels were either tucked into the loop of the twist (as with the leftmost panel and middle panel) or carefully tucked under itself (in the case of the rightmost panel). The panels were carefully smoothed and lightly sprayed with hairspray.
There is an option here to vary the look of the finished style. Instead of sweeping the nape area portion of the hair up into the twist, you could perhaps divide it into two rows and create a fall of spiral curls using a curling iron. Another option would be to continue the theme of knotting and weaving and divide the nape area portion into small square sections, which would then be finished in the same manner as we would finish the top.
However you choose to finish the nape area portion, it's time to talk about the knotting and weaving technique. This technique is actually quite simple, but you'll need to think through your design. You want to take two strands of hair (the small square sections you've secured at the front hairline) and cross them into a "half-knot" by bringing one strand around and under the other, then pull to form the "loose knot". The knot should be secured in place using a small bobby pin, and the two loose ends can be clamped with a small hair clip to keep them together yet separate from the others.
Continue creating knots by selecting the hair strands two at a time. The exact configuration is entirely up to you, based on how you want the final weave to look. Once you've created the first set of knots, alternate the strands and continue backward until you've reached the crown where the French twist is located. The ends of the hair strands can then be tucked away carefully in the loop of the twist or under the "seam" so that they are out of the way.
Once you've completed the knotting and weaving and have secured the ends of the hair strands, you can remove any of the visible bobby pins along the knots, as they are no longer strictly needed.
The finished style is playful yet elegant and would be ideal as a prom hairstyle or for a young woman attending a formal dance. It's probably not a style that would suit any woman over the age of 30, but elements of the style could certainly be used in creating one that would.