I’ve been told multiple times that my hair is very unique. I’ve been asked even more times what material do I use to do my hair. Well, to answer that I must say yarn. Yes, yarn. I use it as a hairstyle and according to the many people who’ve complimented it, it doesn’t look horrible as some may assume. In fact, yarn as hair is extremely similar to Marley Braiding hair, Kanekalon hair and dreads. Or in other words, hair used to braid hair. People also ask how are braids possible and how long does it take; well here are those answers.

First, buy the yarn. You can use any type of yarn and yarn from anywhere, for example, yarn from Walmart. Second, choose the yarn color you prefer. The color I’ve used was teal and fuschia purple. Yarn comes in many sizes however; it is cheaper than buying actual hair so go crazy! Buy as much as you feel would suffice and whatever is left over can be used for a nice scarf. Because yarn is so cheap, I always encourage people to buy more than what they think they need. There’s nothing worse than running out of yarn and being tempted by the scarf your grandma knitted for you.

Your grandma’s face after she sees that you used the scarf she gave you for your hair..

Third, figure out how long you want the yarn to be such as shoulder length or to your back. Once that is done, you can cut the yarn using that estimated length. This is a very tedious task BUT it’s worth it. The best method is to get the length of the yarn and keep folding that length over and over. It’ll look like a huge “O” but once you cut it in half, life will now make sense.

The Yarn should look like this. Cut in half for braiding; also cut to avoid tangling.

Fourth, once you’re done cutting the yarn, separate the yarn into pieces divisible by three. If you want small braids, have three pieces of yarn separated. And if you want it bigger, have six pieces or nine pieces. You can have as many pieces as you want but again, make sure they are divisible by three. I separated my yarn pieces using nine pieces each. The reason why it has to be divisible by three is because braids require three pieces being crossed over each other until it becomes the braids we are familiar with. Once you’ve separated the yarn, you can finally begin the insertion.

This is what the yarn plat should look like; the size may vary.

Separate your hair and part it into a section of where you want the yarn to be braided in. Once that is done, you can braid the yarn in as if were Kanekalon hair. You continue this process all over your head until you have a head full of yarn. Tie a knot at the end of each plat to avoid the braid untangling.

This is what the knot should look like; cut the excess at the ends for a clean plat.

This process can take hours depending on how fast or slow the person is doing it takes. Yarn hair can last up to last for about a month or two, maybe even three; it all depends on your new growth. It can be styled as if were actual hair or plats, with minor difficulties. It could even be washed but does take longer to dry. Just a warning, if you wash your yarn hair, be prepared for the hours of blow drying it. I let mine air dry and took days, yes days! However; not only is it healthy for your hair and provides a protected style, it also makes you unique in your own way. So let’s see you shake those yarn braids and hear people tell you “I can’t believe it’s not a weave!”

Here is my finished product! Below is another yarn hairstyle with a teal color instead!

Which yarn color do you prefer? Leave a comment below!

If you feel like you need more information or visuals, check out this 7 part tutorial for in depth details. The link is below!