Boho braids are the epitome of effortlessly cool, carefree styling. The loose, free-flowing plaits evoke a chic bohemian vibe perfect for warm weather lounging. However, while you sleep at night, all that tossing, turning and rubbing against pillows can cause these braids to tangle into a ratty, matted mess by morning. If you want to keep your boho braids looking fabulous from the time your wake up to the moment you go to bed, implementing a solid nighttime routine is absolutely key.
With the right preparations, products and techniques before sleeping, you can effectively minimize knotting and preserve the beautiful, smooth texture of your tangleless boho braids overnight. Follow the comprehensive tips in this guide, and you'll be able to wake up with gorgeous, intact boho braids that look as perfect as the day you had them installed.
The Main Causes of Overnight Boho Braid Tangling
Before diving into solutions, let's closely examine the reasons why boho braids tend to tangle and mat so easily while you sleep:
Constant Friction Against Bedding
One of the biggest culprits of overnight boho braid tangling is the constant rubbing of the braids against pillowcases, sheets and blankets. The repetitive friction through hours of sleep causes knots to form, especially at the back of the head and sides where contact occurs most. As you shift positions, the textured bedding grabs onto and disturbs the braids, bit by bit tangling the ends.
Excess Tossing, Turning and Movement
In addition to friction with bedding, all the tossing, turning and movement during a full night's sleep causes the loose, free-flowing boho braids to wrap around each other, leading to tangled ends by morning. As you change positions again and again, the uncontrolled braids get repeatedly disturbed and intertwined.
Highly Textured Natural Hair Types
Those with tightly coiled 4C hair textures are predisposed to extreme shrinking and tangling of the natural hair strands overnight, even when braided. The coils want to curl up on themselves, causing bohemian braids installed on highly textured hair to shrink significantly overnight as the natural kinks surface. This leads to accelerated tangling and matting.
Lack of Moisture Before Bedtime
Dryness is a huge factor that makes boho braids prone to breakage and tangling while you sleep. Lack of moisture allows the hair cuticles to lift, making strands rough and damaged. Hydration is key to keeping the braids smooth and reducing friction that leads to knots.
Uncomfortable Neck Positioning on Pillow
An additional cause of kinks and tangles is if your neck is positioned awkwardly on your pillow during sleep. If your neck is bent too far forward or to the side, it can bend some of the boho braids in the wrong direction. Sleeping in a strained position promotes kinks to form in the morning.
Now that you understand exactly why boho braids tangle overnight, let's get into the best practices, products and techniques to keep tangling to a minimum for smooth, fabulous braids all night long.
Step-by-Step Nighttime Routine to Reduce Boho Braid Tangles
Follow this comprehensive tips before bedtime to keep your boho braids as sleek, neat and disturbance-free as possible overnight:
Fully Wrap All Strands in Scarves
It's not enough to just wrap the roots. For total protection, wrap the ends as well. First, wrap the roots with a silk or satin scarf, which is soft and reduces friction. Then, take a second, specially designed scarf for braided styles and gently stuff the ends into it, fully covering the length of the boho knotless braids.
Crossing the braids while wrapping minimizes creases on the ends. This full coverage protects the vulnerable braid ends from friction all night.
Secure Braids in a Loose Top Bun
As another protective style before sleeping, tie boho braids up into a very loose, high bun atop your head secured with bobby pins, then wrap with a large silk bonnet completely enclosing your hair. This lifts the braids up in a protective position and prevents them from rubbing against bedding.
Use Scarves and Pillowcases Made of Smooth Fabrics
Whether you choose to wrap with scarves or simply cover hair with a bonnet, opt for headwraps and pillowcases made of silk, satin or other slippery fabrics. The smooth texture minimizes friction that causes tangles, unlike cotton's rough fibers.
Deeply Hydrate Braids with Leave-In Conditioner
Before bedtime, thoroughly coat boho braids with a deeply moisturizing leave-in conditioner, focusing heavily on the ends where dryness leads to tangling. Let the leave-in fully soak in to provide lasting hydration and seal in moisture overnight, preventing breakage.
Massage Nourishing Oils on Ends
Distribute natural hair oils like grapeseed, jojoba, argan, almond and coconut oil onto the ends of your boho braids right before bed. Massage the oil in to penetrate strands, nourishing braids and sealing in moisture to reduce dryness and friction overnight.
Sleep on Your Back Instead of Sides
Sleeping on your back minimizes contact between your boho braids, neck and bedding compared to sleeping on your sides. It takes pressure off the braids so they can lay flat and undisturbed as you sleep. Reduce friction and avoid bending braids in awkward directions.
Gently Stretch and Smooth Braids
Before getting into bed, give boho braids a gentle, full-length stretch downward, then lightly smooth along their length. This resetting helps remove any existing knots or kinks from the day's wear to set your braids up as sleekly as possible before sleeping.
Lightly Mist with Water to Retain Moisture
Right before lying down, mist boho braids very lightly with water from a spray bottle. The added moisture boost reduces friction and the tendency for highly textured hair to shrink up overnight. Just don't oversaturate braids before bed.
Avoid Too-Tight Wrapping Methods
When putting braids up before bed, be very careful not to wrap them too tightly or into too restrictive of a hairstyle. Any excessive tension can imprint dents, waves and crimps into the boho box braids styles that are hard to smooth out the next morning.
How To Gently Detangle Boho Braids After Waking Up
If some tangling does occur overnight, don't panic. You can gently detangle the boho braids in the morning by:
Starting detangling by lightly wetting braids with water or a specialized detangling spray to provide ample slip
Working in small sections no bigger than 1 inch wide to minimize stress and pulling
Using your fingers to very patiently loosen knots before introducing combs
Slowly and gently combing through braids starting at the ends and working up towards roots
Avoiding excessive pulling or ripping through knots to prevent breakage
Repeat your nighttime routine diligently to continually minimize knots and tangles overnight. But some minor detangling after waking up may be required to fully restore boho braids back to perfect, daytime beauty. Just be gentle and don't rush the process.
Recognizing When It's Time to Remove Boho Braids
To prevent boho braids from progressing into severe matting and locking into knotted dreadlocks, it's vital to take them down once tangling reaches extreme levels:
Plan Removal Around 6 to 8 Weeks Max
Most stylists recommend removing boho braids after 6 to 8 weeks of wear max. Beyond this timeframe, sleep-related matting and tangling tends to escalate as the braids age.
Look for Excess Frizz, Shrinkage and Fuzziness
Signs it’s definitely time for removal include braids appearing overly fuzzy with the texture distorted and shrunken from new growth. Frizzy flyaways also indicate excessive new growth.
Difficulty Detangling and Lots of Breakage
Extreme difficulty detangling knots or seeing significant broken hairs when you detangle are major red flags. This level of damage means boho braids must come out asap.
Severe Tight Matting
Tightly coiled matting, especially at the nape of the neck, is the final warning sign. Remove braids immediately if you notice this severe tangling.
You may get lucky and be able to stretch well-maintained boho braids to 10 weeks safely. But absolutely no longer than 2 to 3 months maximum to avoid excessive matting.
Seamlessly Transition Boho Braids to Protective Braided Wigs
Once your boho braids need to come out due to tangling, you can transition to braided wigs to continue protecting your natural hair underneath:
Faux Locs - Flowing goddess locs styled as a ready-to-wear wig
Jumbo Braids - Chunky, waist-length braided wig with texture
Half-Up Half-Down Braids - Half in a top bun, half in a braid
These wigs allow you to give your natural hair a break while still rocking gorgeous bohemian braided looks for maximum styling versatility.
Conclusion
With concerted effort, you can fully enjoy fabulously chic, smooth boho braids 24 hours a day. Don’t let bedtime disturbances wreck your gorgeous braids. Use these comprehensive tips religiously, and you’ll be able to wake up daily with shiny, intact, knot-free boho braids.
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