Since you were a youngling, you most likely have seen at least one girl, or even a boy, fashioning the exotic wonder of the braided hairstyle. Now, you may have simply walked past and not cared, or you may have been one of the special cases who wonder, “What type of braid is that?” Here is a short list of the most popular braided hairstyles, because we all secretly want to learn a little bit more about the versatile beauty of this age old fashion statement.

• English Braid
  • The English Braid is the most common braid found and is made by taking your hair and dividing it into three equal sections. You then cross the outside stands over the middle strand until it’s at the desired length and secure it with a hair tie. You can see this style on all ages from small children, to the elderly.

• Classic/Schoolgirl Braid
  • The Classic Braid is a form of the English Braid. Classic braids are achieved by dividingthe hair into two equal parts, then braiding each side identically.
    Typically this braid is found on young girls, but can be seen on adults as well, but would not be recommend because it can appear weird.

• French Braid
  • The French braid is basically the same as the English braid only instead of dividing all the hair into three parts, you start with a smaller section and leave the rest of the hair hanging. Then you add in bits of hair from each side as you cross the outside parts over the middle piece. The French Braid is very popular because there are many different variations of it.

• Dutch Braid
  • The Dutch Braid is pretty much an inverted French Braid. Instead of placing the outside pieces of hair over the middle strand, you weave them under the middle strand to create a braid, which stands out from the head. If you’ve learned how to braid by yourself, you often do a Dutch Braid instead of a French Braid your first few times.

• Herringbone Braid (Fishtail)
  • The Herringbone Braid, most commonly referred to as the Fishtail Braid, is a simple looking but still complex braid. Herringbones are time-consuming to braid and unbraid, but stay neat for a long time and do not need to be secured at the bottom. They have recently become popular due to celebrities and buzz from person to person.