Over the past month or so, I’ve been trying to challenge myself to come up with some different hairstyles other than curled and straight. Because, I’ll be honest, I’m very uncreative when it comes to hairstyles! So I’ve tried to get a bit more creative by sharing this half up braided topsy tail tutorial!

So far, I’ve posted two other tutorials for my Bubble Ponytail hairstyle and my Half Up Simple Braid hairstyle. Both take under 10 minutes, so be sure to check those out if you’re struggling for ideas like me!

Today I’m sharing another half-up style that incorporates my obvious favorite – braids! I wore this hairstyle around Italy for a day of sightseeing and it was perfect! Still pretty and feminine because my hair was down (that’s when I feel prettiest), but still out of my face enough so that it wasn’t driving me crazy!

I’ve broken it down into super simple steps so that you can easily recreate it!

|| Half Up Braided Topsy Tail Tutorial ||

To get started, begin with whatever hairstyle you have goin’ on. I always say that 2nd or 3rd day hair is the best because you get the most texture and volume that way (when using some good dry shampoo!). I’m starting with my leftover curls from the previous day. You could always touch up your curls to create more volume if you wanted!

STEP 1 || Section off your hair for the two braids. I went about 3 inches back (away from my forehead) and 2 inches down (towards my ears). I like to leave enough hair above my ears to cover them, otherwise they stick out and that’s a pet peeve of mine.

Pin those two sections to the side so they’re out of the way.

STEP 2 || Tease the back section of your hair to create volume.

STEP 3 || Do a simple 3-strand braid on the right side…

… and use a clear elastic to secure it at the end.

Pro tip: Pull apart the braid to make it wider and to give it more personality. As you pull, remember to keep one hand on the elastic so that it stays in place, otherwise it’ll start to scrunch up and mess up your braid.

STEP 4 || Braid the other section…

…and secure it with an elastic at the end.

Repeat the previous pro tip of pulling apart that braid,  keeping one hand on the elastic.

STEP 5 || Now you have two braided sections!

So get another clear elastic and tie them together in the back.

It’ll look like this where they’re tied together with one elastic still on each end of the braids.

STEP 6 || Remove the clear elastics from the braids so that there’s just the one elastic holding the two braids together.

Now it’ll look like this:

STEP 7 || This is the topsy tail part! Do you remember the topsy tail? If you grew up in the 90s like I did, then you probably rocked those hard! Simply use your left hand to grab the end of the braided sections and put your right hand up underneath the braids. Grab the ends with your right hand and pull them through.

Now it’ll look like this, where the braids are twisted slightly. But it still looks a little sad, doesn’t it?

STEP 8 || To make it less sad and droopy looking, grab the elastic and raise it up so that it’s basically at the very center of your head (not toward the bottom of your head like the picture above).

Use a bobby pin to pin it in place. You only need to grab about half of the hair to pin down. As long as you pin down the half of your hair that’s closest to your head, then the bobby pin will be hidden!

Pro tip: Remember the teasing from earlier? It’s probably gone a little flat, so use your fingers to lightly tease the hair so it has some personality above the braid!

You should always hairspray your hairstyle in place…

…and voila! A simple but different-than-the-ordinary hairstyle!

|| Save For Later – PIN IT! ||

Thanks for checking out this half up braided topsy tail tutorial! I’d love if you pinned the image above to Pinterest if you enjoyed the tutorial.

Also, let me know in the comments if there are any other types of tutorials you’d like to see because I’d love some extra inspiration!