FYI photoed above is a day 2 bun after my scarf fell off the night before…

Youtube video after Youtube video… All the ladies are laying their edges down into the slickest of ponytails, and sleekest of buns. They moisturize, seal, slap on their gel of choice, and don a scarf. 15 minutes later, BAM, a slick ass ‘do. So naturally the next day, I’ve got somewhere to go, and I’m going to bun it.

I decided to follow that Youtube video to the tee: Spritz water, moisturize, seal, EcoStyler Gel, scarf. I go on to put on a bit of make-up, and complete whatever other tiddley winks I need to get done. 15-20 minutes later, I take off my scarf and my bun is super cute! My edges are more than sleek enough for me, (most days I’m not even going for the sleekest do, I just want my edges to be laying flat) and I’m ret ta go! However, 5-10 minutes after that, I look in the mirror, and WTH is this?

My edges have curled up like a spider hit with bug spray. While these curls and waves are cute (don’t get me wrong), that was NOT the look I was going for. I was trying to get my sleek on fleek, not make my curls do the twirl. After trying different gels, scarves, wet hair, dry hair… I’ve perfected sleek ponytails and buns on my type 4 naturally kinky-curly hair. But NEWSFLASH, the secret is that: it isn’t achieved in 15 minutes.

Tip #1- Moisturize Your Edges

Don’t, I repeat, DON’T slap any gel on dry, brittle, crunchy edges sis. You’re doing yourself a disservice. Like with all of our most beautiful, and elegant natural hairstyles; well moisturized hair is always step 1. This is no exception for our ponytails and bun styles. Through my bun trial and errors, I realized that gel on dry a** edges doesn’t work just like shea butter on crispy a** strands will not result in a bomb twist out. A little spritz of water makes all the difference, trust me.

Tip #2- Let the Hair Dry

Yes, you can have a sleek ponytail in 15 minutes IF the gel has dried in that time. I realized that the reason my edges were not slicked down and sleek was because my gel had not yet dried. It all made sense; If I use EcoStyler Gel to define my curls for wash-n-go’s, then if I don’t allow the gel to dry, and my edges to set, they will just curl and frizz up!

Because I spritz with water, moisturize with a cream leave in (whose 1st ingredient is typically water), and use a gel that contains water, this drying process honestly takes about 2-3 hours, not no HOT-HAM 15 minutes!

Tip #3- Flip Your Scarf

This goes hand-in-hand with tip number 2. Flipping my scarf over simply aids in the drying process. About halfway through my drying process, I like to take off my scarf and flip it to the dry side. This dryer side of the scarf helps my natural hair dry faster since it’s harder for hair to dry with a wet cloth on top of it.

Tip #4- Detangle Your Hair

I cannot tell you how many times I’ve tried to put my natural hair in a cute bun on tangled hair, and I’ve been completely frustrated and disappointed throughout the styling process, and disappointed with the end result. It seems counter productive sometimes to style my freshly washed, conditioned, and detangled natural hair into a bun, but that is honestly when I get the sleekest results.

If a bun is what I need for day 4 or 5 hair, then I always make sure to at least lightly finger detangle my hair. It’s difficult to slick down natural hair that is coiled and curled, so starting with a detangled base is the best way to achieve the sleekest results.

Have you tried any of these tips? How do you achieve your sleek styles?