Braids and chignon

My younger brother is registering his marriage next month and my future sister-in-law has asked my little sis to help her with the makeup and hairstyling. Being the usual midnight owl and having mid-length hair, I was naturally my sister's preferred subject to practise hairstyling on.

My little sis does not have formal training in bridal hairstyling and she learnt all those skills simply from watching YouTube videos or reading up instructions on the Internet. Last week she tried doing a chignon with braids and the photos are as follow:

My little sister trying the same hairstyle for the second time. It was quite messy the first time but she got better at it.

The back view of the hair after she was finished with it.

From the side

Adding a simple tiara is a nice touch, and I like how nicely the tiara sits on the hair.

I cut a section of the beaded lace I bought at Spotlight ($14.99/m), and used it as a hairpiece, instead of the tiara:

If vintage is more your style, place a lace hairpiece on the side. Having some pearls sewn to the lace will give it a more elegant touch. I was feeling lazy, so I just used a really thin plastic hairband and tucked both ends of the lace under the hairband.

Top view of the lace hair piece.

We had a lot of fun exploring the different looks. There were also a few learning points while we were trying out the chignon/braid hairstyle. As much as braids add very nice details to an otherwise plain hairstyle, it can be rather tricky. I ended up with a lot of "bald spots" because the hair were not properly parted and my sister tied the braids too tightly:

Look at that bald patch! I certainly hope that I am not balding! If my sister had taken bits of hair and add it on to the braid as she worked on it instead of just randomly grabbing a bunch of hair and start braiding away, that bald patch would be at least minimised. Loose braids would help too.

I used the same piece of lace and placed it near my collarbone. It will work very well as a choker too. This is one of the DIY projects I have on my list. I ordered some faux pearls and coral beads online and they arrived just before I left for Jo'burg. I will be working on the lace chocker once I find time.