How to Braid Wet Hair for Natural Waves

Today's blog will serve as your ultimate guide to effortlessly braiding wet hair, unveiling the secret to achieving stunning waves with minimal effort. This technique proves invaluable for those seeking to revamp their hairstyle without the risk of heat damage, making it particularly advantageous during the summer months when minimizing heat exposure is paramount. Whether working with natural hair or Cliphair's range of hair extensions, including clip-in, tape-in, double drawn, and permanent options, this method guarantees the allure of flawless waves without subjecting your strands to unnecessary stress. Dive into our tutorial and discover how to achieve picture-perfect waves while preserving the health and vitality of your hair, courtesy of Cliphair's premium hair care solutions.

Benefits of Braiding Wet Hair for Waves

Braiding wet hair can be a real game-changer for your tresses, helping you to achieve all the beauty of naturally-textured hair without using wavers, hair straighteners, and/or curling irons. You can use this method on your clip in hair extensions, or even on your natural hair with permanent hair extensions in. Perfect for those willing to achieve some volume and dimension in your tresses with low-effort!

How to Braid Wet Hair: Step-by-Step Tutorial

Let’s get down to business: how do you plait wet hair? Like for shampooing, even creating a simple braid on your wet hair has a specific procedure to follow in order to get the best results. Here’s how to do it!

Step 1: Wash Your Hair

If you’re using this hairstyle as your go-to look after washing day, make sure you use the right products to restore moisture and improve elasticity in your tresses. The Quench The Thirst: Deep Moisture shampoo for hair extensions is the perfect tool to nourish your tresses and gently cleanse the scalp with its 100% sulphate-free and paraben-free formula.

Step 2: Condition Your Hair

Now, it’s time to condition your tresses to make sure that they are fully nourished and revitalised, replenishing the hydration in your hair fibres. Use the Quench The Thirst: Deep Moisture conditioner for hair extensions for best results! Focus on the ends and mid-lengths as you gently detangle your tresses using this powerful softening conditioner.

Step 3: Towel-Dry Your Hair

Get rid of any excess water by patting your hair with a microfibre towel until your hair feels damp, but not soaking wet.

Step 4: Brush

Using a detangling brush, gently get rid of any knots and tangles in your hair and hair extensions, creating a sleek canvas for you to start plaiting.

Step 5: Section

Use a pintail comb to divide your hair into two neat sections. If your hair is particularly thick, you may want to double up and go up to four sections! The more hair in a section, the looser the waves.

Step 6: Start Braiding

Start plaiting each section, and then secure it with a scrunchie or a hair band at the end.

Can You Braid Wet Hair Extensions?

If you’re wearing hair extensions and have been wondering how to braid wet hair to make it wavy, you may have asked yourself: can you braid wet hair extensions? The answer is yes, you can! Providing that you’re not doing it overnight – in fact, sleeping with wet hair extensions is a huge no-no, as it could lead to tangling, matting, and roughening up the hair cuticles, ruining the quality and shine of your Remy hair extensions.

Sleeping with clip in hair extensions in general is forbidden, but you can leave your braided clip ins on a hair extensions hanger overnight so that they are ready for you to wear in your wavy hair in the morning.

Maintaining and Enhancing Wet Hair Waves

Use styling products that are specific for air-drying, and don’t forget to spritz your tresses with a dose of Moisturising Silky Hair Spray to enhance the natural sheen of your hair extensions. This spray, enriched with blackcurrant extracts, Argan oil, and olive oil, can not only help you ensure long-lasting softness and manageability in your hair, but it will also help your tresses stay sleek and moisturised.

Styling Tips for Different Occasions

Want to achieve different types of waves and curls with wet hair? Different plaiting styles can guarantee different results, opening the door to so many options for different occasions. 

Smaller braids all around your hair will give you a more crimped finish, perfect to mimic the look of beach waves, whilst a French plait will focus on curling mid-lengths and ends. Bigger sections will guarantee a gently tousled finish with looser waves, perfect for a more low-key result. Feel free to experiment and try new hairstyles to get your heatless waves! Try a rope braid on wet hair for bouncy strands, or use accessories such as a curling headband or a pair of socks (yes, sock!) to achieve more defined ringlets and curls instead. So many possibilities!.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Surprisingly, there are quite a few mistakes that one could accidentally make when braiding wet hair. Let’ see them together!

Braiding Too Tightly

Creating super-tight plaits could potentially lead to dryness, giving your hair an undesired frizzy finish. Try to find your balance when braiding your hair! If you're wearing professional hair extensions, braiding too tightly could also damage your extensions bonds. Be careful!

Brushing

Never use a brush that isn’t designed to be used on wet hair. And if you’re wearing permanent hair extensions, you should always use a specific wet brush that is crafted with hair extensions in mind!

Using Heated Tools On Wet Hair

Some people believe that using a flat iron on a wet plait will speed up the crimping and drying process. NEVER do this, as it can cause irreparable damage to your hair!

Braiding With Soggy Hair

Soaking-wet hair is very fragile, and styling it without towel-drying first will only lead to breakage and snapping. Plaiting hair when wet means on damp hair only!

Sleeping With Wet Hair Extensions

Sleeping with wet hair extensions isn’t recommended. Not only is it damaging to your hair, but it can also cause some serious matting and tangling. In some cases, especially if you’re wearing a weave for example, this process can also cause mould in your hair! Wet hair and hair extensions are fertile territory for fungal infections too. Moral of the story: never go to sleep with wet hair extensions.

Conclusion:

Now equipped with the dos and don'ts of braiding wet hair and extensions, it's time to turn your hair dreams into reality. If you haven't already invested in a stunning set of Remy hair extensions, why not explore Cliphair's incredible selection and discover your hair's new best friend? Whether you prefer the convenience of clip-in extensions or seek a long-lasting transformation with professional-grade options, we have the perfect product for you. Embrace the art of braiding with confidence and style, knowing that Cliphair extensions will enhance your look and elevate your braided hairstyles to new heights. Happy braiding!