Braid hair extensions 

For years braid extensions have been the unofficial Carnival hairstyle. Let’s face it, whether sun, wind or rain, your braided hair would never show signs of distress on the road. 

The downside? The hours you’d spend getting the braids put in. Some styles can take as much as nine hours.

If you’re going in - Ask about styles that won’t require you to spend all day at the salon like the Senagalese twist (where strands are twisted from the root to the end), tree or pick ‘n drop braids (where hair is attached to cornrows) and the  fishtail  or herring braid (a huge plait that is a distant cousin to the French braid of the 80s). Feel free to add colour to your braid extensions to match the colours of your costume.

Hair extensions  

As mentioned in this space two weeks ago, adding hair extensions is an easy way to get glamorous, big Carnival hair. You can also play around with coloured hairpieces, without adding colour to your own, through a weave or through clip-ins pieces.

The downside? – None really. Adding hair extensions is quite straightforward and far from time consuming. Clip-ins can take about half an hour and you can do it yourself in the comfort of your home. 

If you’re going in – Ensure that you buy only 100 percent human hair as synthetic hair pieces, while cheaper, don't hold up as well following a full day exposure to the sun – or rain! Those of you afraid to commit to hair extensions could integrate small clip-ins into your own hair. They also come in varying colours. 

Wear your own hair – Embrace what you have and make it work for you.

The downside? – The exposure to the sun and wind could do a number on your hair.