Labor Day Sale · Aug 28 - Sep 7 · Up to 50% off wigs, bundles & braids · See the flyer

Back-to-School Hair and Supplies

The last two weeks of August are the busiest of the year for braiders across Metro Detroit, and appointments book out. Whatever style you have in mind, the booking is the part to sort first, and the supplies are worth buying at the same time rather than the night before.

Choose low tension for children

A child's hairline is finer and more fragile than an adult's, and traction damage from styles worn too tight at six can still be visible at sixteen. Larger sections, a looser perimeter, and no small braids at the temples. If your child says a style hurts, that is information, not complaining, and it should be loosened the same day. Styles that last four weeks at a comfortable tension serve better than styles that last eight because they were installed hard.

Styles that hold up to a school term

Cornrows with beads, medium box braids, two-strand twists and simple ponytail styles all survive gym class, hats and pillows. Avoid anything that needs daily restyling on a school morning. If the style involves beads, they need to be secured properly, since a bead lost in a classroom is a bead lost. Six to eight weeks is the ceiling for braids at any age, and less for a child who is rough on their hair.

Buy accessories in bulk

Beads, barrettes, snap clips, ponytail holders and rubber bands go missing constantly, and buying a large pack at the start of the year costs less per piece than replacing them in ones and twos through the fall. The same applies to satin bonnets and pillowcases, which are the cheapest thing you can buy to protect a style overnight and the thing most likely to be left at a sleepover.

What to have at home

A rat-tail comb, a wide-tooth comb, a spray bottle, a light leave-in, an edge control, and a satin bonnet or scarf per child. That covers refreshing a style, laying edges for picture day, and protecting it at night. A bead threader is worth the small cost if you do beads yourself.

Timing it

Book the appointment three to four weeks before school starts if you can, and do the wash, deep condition and trim a day or two before the install rather than the morning of. Coming in with clean, stretched, detangled hair also shortens the appointment, which matters when a braider is fitting in a full August calendar.