SPS: Marley Twist

For some naturals with HIH (Hand in Hair) syndrome, protective styling can be hard.

HIH- Hand in Hair. Its a disease that causes you to always be manipulating your tresses.
Definition from CurlyNikki.com

Though it keeps you hair in one style for a loner period of time, it can be very beneficial for your hair.  When your hair is having little to no multiplication, it will undergo less wear and tear. Allowing it to retain more length, gain and maintain strength, and stay in a healthy state. As long as you take care of it properly, of course.

So the first style I did for my SPS: Summer of Protective Styling is Marley Twist.

Alex from The Good Hair Blog

I am in love with this look! Long twist in a big bun, how can you go wrong with that?
Twist and braids are so flexible, this makes them a great choice for protective styling. So when I came across these Marley Twist, I couldn't wait for the chance to get them in my hair. And since I decided to do this Summer of Protective Styling, I knew this had to be my first style.


This was my first time installing any style like this. I have had braids and long twist before but I have never done them myself. But I, being a YouTube junkie, have seen so many videos of woman who are novice like me and it coming out looking decent. So why not me!

This is what I used...

The hair is marley hair. It is a kinky, synthetic hair and it comes in locs or twisted-like sections.
For my product, I just used water, my current leave-in conditioner (Beautiful Textures Leave-In & Naturally Silk Elements Leave-In), and a gel (Eco-Styler Olive Oil) to help seal in moisture and blend my hair in the twist.

My hair wasn't freshly washed, it was 3-day old hair. But definitely still clean for my standards.

Now when I started...I had a tough time. Most YouTube tutorials for the style start with a twisted-interlocking method which allows your twist to look more natural. However, I could not get the twist to stay on the back of my hair, the shortest part. The front was do-able because it was longer, I could hold and twist my hair easier. But my back was just not holding.

After an hour and a half of no success, 4 twist finished (which slipped out later on), and a frustrated naturalista, I gave up on that method.

Then I began to start each twist as a braid, to lock my hair in and then twist.  This method worked much better for me. The whole style began to flow! In another 2 hours, I was done!
It took me 4 hours total and although next time I will be doing them a bit smaller, I do love the look.

And it serves the purpose! I will be able let my hair rest. I won't be styling it every other day, retwisting at night, applying too much product, etc.
I can just apply a bit of gel on the edges, wrap it at night, wake up in the morning, bun it, and go!
Literally 5 minutes this morning, AMAZING!

Look at those edges lie!

I originally wanted to keep these in for 3-4 weeks, but I think I am going to end up taking them out in 2 weeks. My hair is already peeking out a little bit and they some are not twisted as tightly as I like.
Then I am going to redo them...now that I have a bit of expertise under my belt, lol.

Nicole Charnel

Used color 4 in the front & 33 in the back.
(Dark brown & Auburn)