WAG Need advice from experienced hair masters!

[Dr Maleficent]

I took the advice in this thread and decided to change the braid to a Dutch braid instead. I'm just waiting for the backlash.

You are a brave man. But he who dares....

 

[AgingHippie]

Oh gosh, I remember trying this do on myself when that video came out. Probably the trickiest thing about it is getting the hair to fall up instead of down, because it's rather unnatural. So if I was doing this on someone else, I'd have them lie down at the end of the coach or bed and let their head hang off the end before starting the braiding process. (Makes it a little easier to braid, but eh, blood will be rushing into their head anyway. Not very comfortable. That's also why I've never done it again, lol.)

Agree with the suggestions of having a tutorial-type session with the parents beforehand if you decide on this style. It's definitely one that's a little tricky, especially for newbie braiders!

This does not sound like something I would want to do before a meet. My dd would be so stressed out it would affect her performance. She is very picky and I am not the best at ANY braids.

 

[strawberries]

Just suggest silk sleep caps or shower caps as pre-season gifts, so the parents can do the braids the night before, pop on the cap, and wake up to a stress-free meet-morning perfect hair.

 

[duyetanh]

Just suggest silk sleep caps or shower caps as pre-season gifts, so the parents can do the braids the night before, pop on the cap, and wake up to a stress-free meet-morning perfect hair.

Sadly this would never work with my child...she is a thrasher. No offense to Aero, but I thank God I don't have to deal with a hair requirement, as that is the hardest part of her gymnastics for me. Ugh!

 

[Sari]

Oh Aero, no risk no fun, right?

I can already hear them speaking in my head. "But... Change, but... but we just got used to the French braid" *cue dramatic wails*
Honestly though, I think youll be fine. You've come across as so dedicated on here, I bet the girls' parents love you, haha.

 

[profmom]

See, I think it's pure genius. All over the country, at gyms large and small, parents are fretting and fussing over what levels their DDs will be for the coming season and pestering the coaches about the decision, what will go into it, and whether their DDs should get 50 privates in the next two weeks to try to make it over the bar. At Aero's gym, ALL the talk is about "what the heck is a Dutch braid??" and "OMG, I don't know if I can do it!" and "Oh, you have to see this one Youtube tutorial I found!" and the entire group is fighting among themselves over whether they love it or hate it.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

See, I think it's pure genius. All over the country, at gyms large and small, parents are fretting and fussing over what levels their DDs will be for the coming season and pestering the coaches about the decision, what will go into it, and whether their DDs should get 50 privates in the next two weeks to try to make it over the bar. At Aero's gym, ALL the talk is about "what the heck is a Dutch braid??" and "OMG, I don't know if I can do it!" and "Oh, you have to see this one Youtube tutorial I found!" and the entire group is fighting among themselves over whether they love it or hate it.

Yes quite brilliant

 

[seoulmama]

So I have to resurrect this thread. It's relevant...

I just sent out an email to all the parents about tuition costs for the year, meets, training hours and schedule, etc. At the very end of the email, I off-handedly mentioned ( ) that I wanted to change the team hairstyle. I am going to keep the same hairstyle from last year (upside-down French braid into a bun), but I took the advice in this thread and decided to change the braid to a Dutch braid instead. I'm just waiting for the backlash.

I'll keep all of you updated.

That's just evil!

 

[twinmomma]

So I have to resurrect this thread. It's relevant...

I just sent out an email to all the parents about tuition costs for the year, meets, training hours and schedule, etc. At the very end of the email, I off-handedly mentioned ( ) that I wanted to change the team hairstyle. I am going to keep the same hairstyle from last year (upside-down French braid into a bun), but I took the advice in this thread and decided to change the braid to a Dutch braid instead. I'm just waiting for the backlash.

I'll keep all of you updated.

I guess my question is....why? Honestly, I would be one of those parents who would be irritated by this. First of all, French braids are hard enough, but dutch ones are even harder, and IMO neither one holds better than the other. Not to mention, unless they are performing as a group, there is ZERO need for their hair to be identical. And all you're doing is creating pre-meet stress unnecessarily. I used to coach colorguard, and all their hair had to be the same. And guess what? More often than not, I was the one who ended up doing their hair, because their parents couldn't French braid and if I did it I knew it wouldn't fall out. Just seems to me "off the face, no wispies, and secure should be enough. French or dutch braid shouldn't matter. If you want braided into a bun, say that, but leave it up to the parents to decide what will work best for their skills and their daughter's hair.

 

[OrangeKangaroo]

So I have to resurrect this thread. It's relevant...

I just sent out an email to all the parents about tuition costs for the year, meets, training hours and schedule, etc. At the very end of the email, I off-handedly mentioned ( ) that I wanted to change the team hairstyle. I am going to keep the same hairstyle from last year (upside-down French braid into a bun), but I took the advice in this thread and decided to change the braid to a Dutch braid instead. I'm just waiting for the backlash.

I'll keep all of you updated.

I think team hair styles may be the third rail of gymnastics- good luck

 

[mom2newgymnast]

I guess my question is....why? Honestly, I would be one of those parents who would be irritated by this. First of all, French braids are hard enough, but dutch ones are even harder, and IMO neither one holds better than the other. Not to mention, unless they are performing as a group, there is ZERO need for their hair to be identical. And all you're doing is creating pre-meet stress unnecessarily. I used to coach colorguard, and all their hair had to be the same. And guess what? More often than not, I was the one who ended up doing their hair, because their parents couldn't French braid and if I did it I knew it wouldn't fall out. Just seems to me "off the face, no wispies, and secure should be enough. French or dutch braid shouldn't matter. If you want braided into a bun, say that, but leave it up to the parents to decide what will work best for their skills and their daughter's hair.

I'm with you. My dd's gym has a strict hair style requirement and it is a major pain in the butt. They sent out an email outlining the steps recently and it is literally a 10 step process. The hair has to be pulled back in a tight, high pony tail, individually curled with a specific gel and curlers, sprayed with hair spray, left overnight, etc. My dd's hair took about 45 minutes to curl (over 40 curlers in a ponytail and she is only 7 so doesn't have that much hair). Then it takes another 20 minutes to unroll the hair in the morning. And then there is the stress of curls that fall or don't stay tight enough. Parents strongly dislike the whole process. Ugh.