September 22, 2016

Marching Band Hairstyles For Stylin’ Band Girls

Martie Hair, Makeup and Beauty hairstyles for marching band, magnetic bobby pin bracelets, marching band hair, marching band hairstyles, marching band mom, marching band shakos 4 Comments

Marching Band Hairstyles for Stylin’ Band Girls

I’m a proud marching band Mom, y’all! I’m sharing my secrets today for cute marching band hairstyles that look great with shakos, or without! Having cute hair while wearing a boxy hat is not easy, but I think I’ve nailed a few looks that you’ll love. 

*This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you purchase using the links I provided. All opinions are my own. 

Marching band shakos are the cute little pillbox hats that marchers wear, usually with a plume of feathers on top. The shako has to be worn correctly, which means there aren’t a ton of options for cute marching band hair. The band program my daughter is in requires the crew to look neat, tidy and professional, even when they aren’t wearing their full uniforms. I’ve come up with some cute hairstyles for marching band season that work well with or without a shako….because lookin’ good is important, right?

Pooh’s Marching Band ‘Do’s

Pooh is well into her second marching season, and it’s going great so far. Tomorrow night is homecoming at her high school, and the band is wearing their uniforms for the first time this season. I’ve already started thinking about how to style her hair to fit under her shako, and I decided to look back over some of our ideas from last year.

The high school is blessed with an amazing English teacher, Amy Roberts, who moonlights as a photographer (she’ll say she’s not a professional, but her pictures are like gold to us parents…thank you, Amy!). My favorite Saturday morning activity is poring over her pictures and seeing all the action from field-level. 

That’s Pooh, with her cute little low-slung side bun. This is one of our go-to marching band hairstyles. It’s perfect whether she has her shako on or not, because it’s nice and cool and out of her face.

Low Side Bun

The positioning of the bun makes it possible to wear her shako and still have cute hair! It’s easy to do…I used the same technique to start that I used in this post, Messy Bun For Thick Heavy Hair, where I explain the method in more detail. I did neaten the messy bun up a bit and add some bobby pins to secure the bun well, and make it look more professional.

I can’t stress the importance of good bobby pins enough. As I mentioned on Tuesday, If you are buying the clunky ones on the card from the big box store, you’ll be amazed with the difference once you try some good bobby pins, like these(<<—click to buy). Buying them in the one pound box means they’ll last a lot longer, and the grip that these pins have is amazing. It’s what the pros use!

Without the shako, it looks really adorable with a headband in your school colors, like this pic. I found this one (<<–click to buy!) on Amazon for a great price, and the glittery texture makes the headband hold really well in Pooh’s hair.

Braided Side Bun

Another cute marching band hairstyle is this braided side bun, which is really the same positioning as the aforementioned style, but just a little more interesting to look at. It’s perfect to wear under the marching band shako because this style will pretty much stay intact enough to look cute, even after the hat comes off.

I divided Pooh’s hair into two sections with a side part that angled down to the nape. For the heavy side of the part, and the side the bun was going on, I just braided it in a three-strand braid. I french-braided the other side, braiding her hair on an angle down to the nape, and wrapped the braid into a bun, pinning securely. I then finished it by wrapping my smaller braid around the bun and pinning it all in place. 

Pull Through Braid

This awesome pull-through braid is not really a braid, but more of a method that ends up looking like a braid, and is one of my favorite marching band hairstyles. It’s not difficult to do, and the ‘braid’ comes out so full and bubbly. I absolutely love this technique, and have used it for more than just marching band hair! Creating your pull through braid low and to the side means the shako will be easy to put on.

Pull all of the hair over to one side and separate it into two equal sections. Tie off the front section with a clear elastic band at about chin level. You really should make sure to get good clear elastics, the ones that don’t break the hair, like these.  Next, poke your finger through that section just above the elastic band, creating a hole, then pull the second section through the hole and tighten up the band by pulling the first section gently apart. You’ll then tie off the section you pulled through, and repeat, repeat, repeat, until you get to the very end. Secure the whole of it together with one last elastic band.

If this doesn’t make sense, you can visit my Facebook page A Hair In My Biscuit, where I shared a video by Three Bird Nest earlier this week on how to do this technique. (Go ahead and like my page while you’re there, won’t you?) Once you watch it, you’ll see just how simple the pull through braid really is!

A Few Last Tips

For one more super-cute idea, check out my post Hair at Home.  It’s a sweet little french braid idea that is done on the horizontal, low on the head, and would also be a perfect hairstyle for marching band. Pooh is pretty little in that post, and had not yet realized her passion for marching! Aw!

Just a reminder…my magnetic bobby pin bracelets are a super-handy tool to have if you’re doing a lot of hair styling with bobby pins! It’s a simple cuff bracelet that closes with velcro and holds your pins for you while you work. I use mine ALL THE TIME and don’t know what I’d do without it! You can find these in my Etsy shop, AHairInMyBiscuit (<—click that link, or go to my page “Etsy Shop”, or see the Etsy mini in the sidebar!) These magnetic bobby pin bracelets are probably my biggest seller on Etsy, and they also make a great gift for your hairstylist, or anyone who styles her hair up a lot.

I don’t typically use a lot of product in Pooh’s hair when she’s marching. She doesn’t like hairspray, and it’s not a good combination with a shako anyway. When I do braided hairstyles, I love this braid cream (<<—click to buy), because it keeps all the pieces in place and holds down on fly-aways. This cream also helps hold the waves that braiding can create, but trust me…Pooh hits the showers after every game and never has she been able to take advantage of those waves. Marchers work hard!

I hope these marching band hair ideas help you get ready for game time…in no time! I love being a band Mom! The rush I get when I watch my child perform with her bandmates is amazing, and the smile it puts on my daughter’s face is absolutely priceless. I’m finally getting to the point where I don’t cry every time she takes the field!

March on, band geeks….just do it with cute hair! 😉

X,O,X,O,    Martie