Hoping to upgrade my hairstyle repertoire, I googled tutorials and YouTube videos for braids and buns of all kinds. French braids were nice. Fishtail braids were manageable. Dutch braids still make no sense. All of these braids took me some time to do, and I wanted a quick, easy way to put my hair up. I had a chemistry lab and forgot to bring a hairtie– could my pencil work?
Luckily, WikiHow has surprisingly intuitive tutorials that actually work. The best option is to buy a hairstick, which is thin and tapered on the end for easy use. Impromptu household materials like pencils and chopsticks also work. Traditional pencils work better than plastic or metal mechanical pencils.
Here are two basic hairstyles I learned:
The Pencil Bun:
1. Twist all of your hair into a coil.
2. Wrap the coil around the back of your head like you’re making a bun
3. Use one hand to keep the bun in place. Grab a pencil with the other.
4. Weave the pencil between the bun and hair on your scalp for maximum security.
The Faux French Twist:
1. Gather your hair into a ponytail and hold the pencil above the ponytail. The pointy end should be pointing to the left.
2. Coil your hair around the pencil.
3. Turn the pencil with the hair coiled around it until the pointy end is pointing up
4. Invert the pencil and push it down until the end of the pencil is pointing down. The hair should be secured in a nice twist.
Don’t worry if it takes a while to get the hang of these styles. It seems tricky at first when your hair is slipping around, but the friction between your hair and the pencil will ultimately hold it together. Sometimes it takes experimenting with different buns to find the sweet spot. They can hold up for many hours if you don’t move around much! Once you master these simple hairstyles, you can explore a plethora of more advanced ones on YouTube.
Hairstyles have been secured with sticks for millennia in many civilizations. Remember, you are welcome to try hairstyles from different cultures as long as you are respectful. You can stand out and tap into traditions by trying out these styles.
