Little Girl's Hairstyles -Christmas Puffy Braids 5-7 min

OK, there's really nothing Christmasy about these puffy braids. But Christmas is right around the corner, we had to do some hair, and I was lucky enough to get a whole slew of Christmas bows this year from some really talented bow makers. SO, to show them off properly, here's some puffy braids to go with one of them. This little cutie is from FlowerzInHerHair. Amy, the talented one, has a great variety of hair accessories, so go and check her out, and I'll be putting up some more of her darling stuff in the coming weeks. Now onto the hair!

For these ultra simple and pretty darn quick puffy braids, I parted off the hair up front into four sections, starting off from a middle part. I go about halfway to her ears on the first four, then the rest of the way to the ears with the 3 sections behind. So basically, you are making 4 sections in the front, and then dividing them into 3 sections behind.

You can continue this pattern farther down her head, making the three go into two sections, etc. I will be posting another puffy braid that goes farther down the head soon to give you an idea. This is a fast, before school hairdo, that you can finish off with a ponytail, like I did here. You can also split the back into two ponys and braid them, or do a stuffed bun. It's a great way to get the front hair back and out of the way, and works great on just about any length of hair, and works especially well if you are growing out bangs.

Have a most wonderful Christmas my friends! I am grateful to be able to share my fun hobby with all of you, and appreciate your comments and support. I hope we can all reach out to those around us and make them all feel the love of our Heavenly Father, for that is truly the reason we are here. If you have any special Christmas stories you'd like to share, I would be happy to post them on here.Scroll down and see the fun Santa activities, and have a wonderful week!

Recommend hair bows for girls on Amazon.com

Little Girl's Hairstyles -Growing out bangs part two 7-10 min

Here is another quick option using the same two starter ponys I used in the previous 'bangs' post. Just add one more on each side in the front. You could leave it as is and go, when you need to get out the door quickly. This works great when those bangs are just too long to leave down, but haven't been trained to stay out of her face yet.

Or, you can dress it up a bit, like we decided to do here, and curl the rest of her hair. I used my trusty 1/2 inch curling iron, since her hair is very straight, and short, and we wanted maximum curl. I sprayed each section with hairspray first, and pulled her hair out straight, as pictured. When I got as close to the ends as I could, I just rolled the iron up, tucking the ends in as I rolled. See the label 'how to use a curling iron' for more instruction.

Always let the curls cool, and comb out with fingers. Tie some cute skinny ribbon around each pony if you need a little more flair.

And she's got gorgeous shiny waves!

Little Girl's Hairstyles -Growing out bangs?? Double french braid 10-15 min

The other day, I got an email from my neighbor who said, "What do I do with bangs we are trying to grow out!?" I called her and said, "Come on over!". I fiddled with a few ideas, and we thought this style turned out pretty cute. She also has shorter hair, so here's a workable style for shoulder length hair, and short bangs that you want pulled back.

This is the length of her hair and bangs.

I parted her hair down the center, after soaking it well. Then, I parted in about an inch, and down, sectioning it off about an inch above her ears, to take in her bangs.

I put this section in a pony, and did the same on the other side.

I then sprayed the back of her hair with water, and parted down the center.

Then I incorporated the little ponys into the french braid. This was my initial sectioning for the braid.

My 3 sections

These next few pics are to TRY to illustrate how to do the inside out braid.  It is the same as the french braid, but you layer the pieces under, instead of over.  The hand positioning for me is easier on the inside out braid. This is a section after I have pulled it under, before adding a new piece.

See how my hands are placed as I'm braiding, with my pinkies closest to the head? This is the same piece after I've added more hair to it.

New piece layed over without hair added in yet.

How I hold the hair in one hand (left) while scooping up new hair to add in. Luckily my neighbor could take pictures, so you can actually see two hands in the pictures that are both mine.

When I get to this point on the head, I switch my hand hold, putting my index finger closest to the head. The main thing to remember with hair this length, is to keep a good tight hold on the hair, and keep it close to the head. I had to take my time, and go back a few times to pick up hairs that had wriggled themselves out. Be patient and it can be done!

Do both sides.

You can leave the two sides down like this. I didn't pull the ends out all the way from the elastic, which made them look like little buns.

Or you can pull the hair out all the way, and then pull the ponys together like so. I used a clear elastic to pull them together.

I used a flower hair clip, sticking the alligator clip down through the elastic so it would hold.

The two ponys in the front can be pulled into several different styles, if you are in the same boat. Growing bangs out can be a major pain, but there are options. I'll post the second hair style we tried on her next. She was happy!! (and hopefully so was mom!)