Hair Tutorial - the 4 Strand Braid

I've only ever done one hair tutorial before, and I thought it might be fun to do another one!

I found this idea on the internet and changed it up a bit, so it's really my own. It's a fun braid, really cute, perfect for sports, church, round the house... any occasion really!

Ladies and gentlemen... let me present to you...

The four strand braid with ribbon accent!

Skills required
This isn't actually too hugely difficult. If you can do an ordinary three strand braid, you'll be fine. :) If you can't, you might struggle, so I suggest you learn. This isn't the same as a three strand braid but it's sort of similar.

Materials required
See photo above: One hairbrush, two hairbands (one large and one small, preferrably) and one longggg ribbon of any colour. You can actually do this without the ribbon, but I like it better with.

Begin by brushing the hair so that it's all smooth and tangle-free.

Using the larger hairband, place hair into a ponytail.

Tie the ribbon around the hairband into a bow. Let the two long ends drape down. 

Section off the hair. I have three hair sections and one ribbon section. 3 + 1 = 4, which is why this is called a four strand braid. Clever, isn't it. :) Position your ribbon section so it's the second section on the left. Notice I have two ribbon ends left after I tied the bow, I just hold them together and treat them as one.

Now this is the tricky/fun bit. Starting with the far right section (this is a hair section), braid it OVER the second-to-right section, and under the third-to-right section (ribbon). It's basically just over, then under. It's not actually that complicated.

Another view of it. See how the far right section has gone over the second-to-right section, then under the ribbon?

Now work with the far left section. The far left section goes UNDER the second-to-left section, then OVER the third-to-left section. Now go back to the far right section and go over, and under. Now do the left section. Under, over.

It's actually not confusing. If you are working with the right section, always go over, then under. If you are working with the left section, always go under first, then over.

I always find the tricky part is having enough fingers to hold everything together!! Of course, that problem is magnified when you have to take photos of each step in the process.

The ribbon ends up threading itself through the braid.

Keep working with the right and left sections, one at a time, going over, under; then under, over.

Now when you get to the end of the hair, tie the braid off with your second, smaller hairband. (The ribbon ends are dangling down with the rest of the hair, you just can't see them in the photo.)

Okey dokey, this next step is optional. I always go through after this and 'pancake' (tug on the outside edges of the hair loops to make them bigger and poofier) the hair. I like doing this because I like the look better than the firmer, more solid look you get if you don't do it. But it's up to you.

Now take the ends of ribbon and tie them into a bow.

And you are done!! Here's a side view of the finished product.

And a back view.

Whereabouts on the head you make the ponytail right at the beginning of the process is where the braid is eventually going to start from. 

Want to change it up a bit? Some ideas:

- Omit the first hairband and experiment with places for the braid to sit (e.g. a side braid)

- Do the process described in photos above, but at the end pull it up and bobby pin it into a bun

- Omit the ribbon and use four sections of hair instead 

- Or start with four sections, but individually braid one section so that you have three hair sections and a fourth braid. Then you'll get the look above, but with a micro braid running through the middle, not a ribbon. 

Special thanks to Lydia for being my model. :)

What do you think? Will you try it?