For years, I wondered how every woman on Pinterest and Instagram had braids that rivaled that of Queen Elsa of Arendelle . . . and she created hers using magic. Every time I'd try styling my fine hair, I would get a thin, totally boring braid. Call me naive, but it took me several years of pulling at my braids and pouring in dry shampoo [1] to figure out that the people online had a secret weapon: hair extensions.
Luckily, I got my hands on the Beyond Hair Select Extensions [2] ($349), a 10-piece set of real Remy clip-in extensions. While the method of putting them in took some trial and error, I've worn them multiple times and no one can tell. In fact, it just looks like I'm having a really good hair day. After getting used to them, I started to experiment with different-size wefts (pieces of hair) to bulk up my braid and was super happy with the results.
Check out how I did it ahead.
Section Your Hair Horizontally
To start, use a rat-tail comb to create a part on the side of your head, like pictured here, and secure the top layer out of the way with a clip. Then grab the weft you want to use and attach it to a horizontal layer of hair from below the part. While other extensions may require you tease your hair at the root to ensure the weft stays in, my Beyond ones stay in without teasing. Use the middle clip first to snap it onto the hair, then snap the other sides close.
Get to Braiding
To create this style, I used one three-clip weft on the side of my head without the braid (toward the back of my head) and another on the side of my head with the braid, toward my face.
Attaching the hair extensions gave me a lot more hair to work with, making my braid thicker in just minutes. I only used two wefts, but if you wanted an even thicker braid, you'd just add more pieces to another horizontal section of hair, leaving some layers of hair between them.
I wear braids often when my hair is dirty or I don't feel like heat styling it, but I never feel like my hair looks that good when I do. Since adding this extra step, however, I've received a ton of compliments. Plus, it didn't even take magic to do it. Take that, Elsa!
Beyond Extensions
Beyond Extensions 18 Inch Medium Golden Brown Select Collection Hair Extensions [3] ($349)