One of my hair staples for more than a year has been Janet Stephens' knotted Valkyrie ponytail, a historical style inspired by Scandinavian depictions of Valkyries:
This length-shortening updo/half-updo is pretty easy
and fast to do, and very comfortable to wear. I've been wearing the
standard Valkyrie ponytail and my braided variation (either three-strand
or rope-braid) as a weekly staple for more than a year now 😃. A recorded tutorial of my own version of Janet Stephens' video will be coming soon, but in the meantime here are some written
instructions as usual, as well as the (ample) pic gallery 😃 xD
For this style I used:
-Comb and/or brush as needed.
-A metal-free elastic for the initial ponytail
-Hairstick
-Open pins for final touches
Steps:
-With the help of some aloe vera gel as a light fixator to control flyaways and static, I comb the hair into a high ponytail, using a metal-free elastic. Mid-height is my preference, but you can do a higher or lower ponytail according to your personal taste.
You can also do this knotted ponytail without any elastic, as shown in Janet Stephens' video above, but I often use elastics for more than one updo because my hair is very fine-textured and slippery, and that combination generally means absolutely no hold on its own 😅, so I need to have an elastic as a base for the whole updo to stay put in a secure way. Because there's no way my hair wants to hold a knot on its own without the knot slipping down the hair in two seconds, no matter how long the length is xD
-Now comes the knot - Which I do similarly to Janet Stephens' video, but also differently, given that I use an elastic as a base and am also left-handed: What I do is twist the hair counter-clockwise around the base of the ponytail, as if I were doing a cinnamon bun. The knot comes from sliding the hair through the loop and tightening it by pulling against the base of the ponytail, similarly to the self-dressing part of Stephens' tutorial.
-As exemplified in Janet Stephens' video, the knot can be enough to hold the hair, depending on your hairtype and length. In my case my hair is very long, similarly to the first model in the video, but while hers is thicker and of less fine texture, mine is extremely slippery, so the knot slips out of shape immediately even with the elastic base. To remedy this, I further secure the knot using a hairstick (Janet Stephens's tutorial uses a bodkin/hairstick for her shorter-haired model). This also
looks nice in a decorative way, and it's additionally functional apart from securing the knot, as it also ensures that the hanging braid stays out of the way in a
comfortable way.
-I also tend to use a couple of open bun pics to polish some flyaways at the nape.
-Finally, I add some more aloe vera gel (or the fixator of your choice) to set the style and smooth flyaways, and it's done!
Final rec on this style: My very fine-textured, straight hair needs both the elastic base and the hairstick for this style to work all day long. Every head of hair is different, so, depending on length, texture (curlier hairtypes would generally hold the knot better on their own), density, fineness/coarseness of the hair strands, and hairtype in general, your hair will be able to hold the knot on its own or not, and you may need either the elastic base or the hairstick, or both or neither. Just experiment to see which option works best 😃!
Picture gallery (2018-, updated from time to time) (for larger size, click on pics or open in new tab):
-With side braids:
-As a cosplay style:
SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es
Please ask before using my work, or at least give credit to me and my blog when sharing.
During the May 2019 EstelCon, the annual convention of the Spanish Tolkien Society, I wore one of my hair staples for more than a year, Janet Stephens' knotted Valkyrie ponytail, with a casual ranger look (aka Merida's kirtle and cloak xD):
Janet Stephens' video of this style:
SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es
If you copy-and-paste this post and/or alter it without any
permission, credit or link, you're stealing my content. In that case,
please stop. Please ask before using my work, or at least share it
properly, giving credit to me and my blog.
I've been wearing more French braids recently, and I had missed how comfy they are :)! So here's a paranda French braid with a flexi 8 from an August outing:
SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es
If you copy-and-paste this post and/or alter it without any
permission, credit or link, you're stealing my content. In that case,
please stop. Please ask before using my work, or at least share it
properly, giving credit to me and my blog.
Today's hairstyle tutorial is a braided variation of the knotted 'Valkyrie Ponytail', which I learnt thanks to Janet Stephens' video:
This length-shortening updo/half-up is pretty easy and fast to do and very comfortable to wear. It's great for when you don't want to wear all your hair up, but also want to keep it a bit contained. Also, the knot tends to keep the dangling braid hanging a bit further away from the neck and shoulder area, and thus prevents it from getting stuck in stuff more easily. I've been wearing both the standard Valkyrie ponytail and my braided variation (either three-strand or rope-braid) as a weekly staple for nearly a year now :D. Recorded tutorials will be coming soon, but in the meantime here are some written instructions as usual :)
These pics are from an August outing and feature my red and green paranda . This ensemble always kinda reminds me of a Roman
priestess for some reason 😃 xD
For this style I used:
-Comb and/or brush as needed.
-A metal-free elastic for the initial ponytail -Paranda for the braid
-Hairstick
-Open pins for final touches
Steps:
-Pull the hair into a high ponytail - mid-height is my preference.
-Braid the ponytail, with a paranda for added volume (tutorial here). It can be a three-strand braid, or a rope-braid, for ex.
-Now comes the knot - Same as described in the video above, but with the braid. The knot is enough to hold the hair in many cases, but I prefer to further secure the style using a hairstick. This also looks nice, and ensures that the hanging braid stays out of the way in a comfortable way.
-I use a couple of open bun pics to polish some flyaways at the nape.
-Add aloe vera gel or hairspray to set the style and potential flyaways (if you want), and it's done!
✨Pic gallery of this style:
Tolkien ranger OC cosplay (2018):
SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es
If you copy-and-paste this post and/or alter it without any
permission, credit or link, you're stealing my content. In that case,
please stop. Please ask before using my work, or at least share it
properly, giving credit to me and my blog.
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