Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

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Phoenix
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Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Phoenix » Thu Sep 25, 2008 6:23 pm

I haven't got a braid sealer and I've already tried to seal them using a hair straightener which didn't work

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by twistedhurt » Tue Oct 14, 2008 7:54 am

Maybe a lighter? I don't know if that would work I'm going to try it myself if your still wondering...lol noone has answered you so I though maybe a lighter could do it? if your still wondering I could post and let you know if it worked.....
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by IKickShins » Tue Oct 14, 2008 7:41 pm

You can do it with a lighter, but it's a little more tricky than using a braid sealer
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by davendor » Thu Oct 16, 2008 4:04 pm

Another thing with using a lighter is you have to prepared to possibly burn your finger a bit and to have the hair melt into your hand. If you have a strong hair dryer then you can fuse the ends with that - sometimes it looks quite messy though depending on the hair.

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Funkyrapunzels » Sat Nov 15, 2008 12:22 pm

Another down side to using a lighter is that the end stend to snag your clothes if sealed with a lighter. I have countless bobbled tops now GRR!

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Fushigi-lox » Sat Jan 03, 2009 10:38 pm

Try using a straighters at a low heat? dip the dread in water and as you twist, compress the straighters on to the dread to seal
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Autumn Asylum » Sat Feb 14, 2009 9:43 pm

Perhaps heating the tip of a pair of pliers and then putting the ends of the braids/twists in them might work.

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Phoenix
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Phoenix » Sun Feb 15, 2009 2:01 pm

I've tried both straighteners and pliers and was unsuccessful with both of them.

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by MissAnthropik » Sun Feb 15, 2009 2:26 pm

I always use a lighter

Just if it melts black it will be hot, very hot, so be careful with your fingers!
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Hollie » Tue Mar 03, 2009 4:57 pm

Im going to braid my hair for the first time and i have no idea how to seal the ends! Help me?! haha
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by kaned_ferret » Mon Apr 27, 2009 8:38 pm

I always use a lighter to seal braids

A good tip: braid further than you want, then hold the end taught between your fingers and start to melt the braid where you want it to end.. don't let it burn it all the way through though, just long enough to melt the hair. Then lick for fingers (saves the burns!) and quickly roll the melted bit. It will quickly cool and start forming a narrow solid tubey shape. Repeat the melting until the unwanted end of the hair melts off this time, and then roll the end quickly into a neat point before it seals

Hope that helps

PS your fingers will eventually get used to the burns.. or lose all sensation at any rate ;)

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by luvplacebo » Mon Apr 27, 2009 9:02 pm

I used to use a lighter but now I heat my hair straighters to heat 3 (dunno the temp but 4 is really hot) and then put the end of the dread between them and twist the dread slightly. Looks the same and really easy and you don't risk burning the dreads
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Phoenix » Mon Apr 27, 2009 9:05 pm

But straighteners don't work with braids or twists, I've tried and all it does is melt the hair on the outside, which falls apart as soon as I remove the rubber band from the end. I used my GHDs on it too and got the same result.

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by luvplacebo » Fri May 01, 2009 4:35 pm

Rubber band? I assume its for open ended braids and twists? Or am I just being dim :S I can't think of anything else than a lighter then, unless you dunk the end in boiling water, that might work.
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by Phoenix » Fri May 01, 2009 4:53 pm

Well I didn't really want open ended braids cause I always feel the little 'lions tails' look weird against dreads when used in falls. I'll eventually have to splash out on a braid sealer I guess..

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by luvplacebo » Fri May 01, 2009 5:13 pm

with the braids have you tried making them slightly longer and then putting part of the braid in the straighteners? that should keep the ends sealed without breaking. Also the heat on your straighteners could possibly be too high, with mine the hair that melts off stays molten for a few seconds before going solid, i'm assuming your does too but maybe not. Trying to think why the seal would just break off
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by extralengths4u » Wed May 06, 2009 9:25 am

Another interesting way to seal your braids will be to deep the ends in very Hot! Hot! water.

But please remember you must be very careful not to burn yourselve with the hot water. you can put a thick towel arround your neck to prevent burns. when buying your hair extensions always ask for one that will seal in hot water.
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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by OrangeMicol » Wed May 13, 2009 9:45 pm

i always heat up a pair of pliers on my gas hob and make sure that the hair im about to seal is wet, to stop the hot metal burning through right away. then i twist the end real tight and clamp down. if you do it right it evaporates the water off (sizzling sounds) and then melts the kk. then you can trim off the wispy hair left under the seal. voila! :i2:

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by SugarAddict » Sun May 17, 2009 8:07 pm

If you decide to use a lighter I can recommend a silicone rolling pad. It protects your fingers and gives you a smooth surface of the seal. Most websites that sell hair have the pads too.

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Re: Sealing braids and twists without a braid sealer?

Post by FORLOXSAKE » Mon Apr 26, 2010 6:34 pm

hellooooooo,,
it depends wot kind of fiber u use,,the old school nylon jumbo melts fine with a lighter,,thats how we always back in the day,,i still havent regained full feeling in my thumb & index finger,,lololol,,as mentioned allready,the snag factor with burned ends gets pretty bad,,its almost like velcro,,it ruins ur clothing,,KK fiber dosent really melt very well with a lighter & it goes black,,it is possible to burn the ends if the hair is dark but not ideal,,it becomes brittle & the ends will more often than not break apart,,also the smoke that comes off KK hair is pretty toxic,,u could try putting some rubber bands tightly around the ends b4 dunking em them in hot water,,not individually but reasonably small sections,,this will make a tight crimp & prevent the ends from unravelling,,cut them at the very begining or top of the crimp,,i would also as recomend u braid them a bit longer just so u got a extra to work with,,then u can cut most of the crimped part off,,when i use TK hair that comes with the big wave on the end that is left unbraided i put a teeny weeny drop of nail glue to hold em together,,

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