Create Lorde's 'Team' Braids For Yourself!
Lorde and her cornrows in the 'Team' music video.
Photos: Universal Music
When we think of Lorde, one thing (other than the lyrics to "Royals") pops into mind: that hair. Sure, she pulls off goth-inspired style and dark lipstick insanely well, but that curly mane is kinda her thing. Even though we've seen it matted down and pinned back on the cover of Clash magazine, we were still taken aback when we peeped her video for "Team" and her signature curls were M.I.A.
From what we can see in the few (and dark) shots of Lorde in the video (wearing a Zana Bayne leather harness, BTW), she seems to have braided her hair into cornrows and tied it into a ponytail at the nape of her neck. When we chatted with Lorde a few weeks ago, she revealed the secret to her hair was not washing it frequently which, TBH, we can get behind. Good news for Lorde (and us, as Lorde worshippers): Cornrows don't need to be washed that frequently either! A new style to add to our encyclopedia that doesn't require maintenance? Sign us up!
The easiest way to cop Lorde's style is:
1. Split your hair into three or four sections, depending on how much hair you have/how thick you want each braid to be.
2. After getting all your other hair out of the way, divide a small portion of one section into three strands.
3. Begin braiding by passing the strand on the right over the middle. After a few stitches of a regular braid, begin French braiding. If you don't know how to French braid, watch approximately eight-10 hours of YouTube tutorials. It's the only way you'll become an expert.
4. After you finish one braid, tie the end with a small rubber elastic.
5. Take a break, because your arms are probably really tired. Get some water. Gatorade will replenish the electrolytes you've lost.
6. Begin again and keep going till you've braided all three remaining sections.
7. Collect the dangling braids into a ponytail at the back of your neck. It's probably not going to be as thick as Lorde's, but that's OK. She'll never be a royal, and you'll never have her hair.
8. Admire your work in the mirror. Don't shower for a few days 'cause you don't need to. YOLO.
Good luck! It gets easier with practice, but if you just don't have the arm strength, you can always rock Lorde's #1 hairstyle: long, mussed, and unwashed.
