I have literally been looking forward to this style since months (years) before I met Violet. It's one of those traditional African fascinations for me - spunky, beautiful, proud, playful and sophisticated. I believe the country of origin is West Africa, but the style can be seen all over the continent.
I took Violet's braids out after a week and was surprised at the not-so-hot braid out... instead of leaving the braid out as I had originally planned, I just kept the part lines and re-moisturized each section, banding it into a bantu knot. It was quick work and really (really) fun.
I love her long graceful neck, and this perpetual "up do" only emphasizes her beautiful lines. It just suits her somehow... the fiesty, playful, fierce little girl I get to call daughter.
The knots themselves are very simple to make. I twisted the section of hair over and over until it started "twisting over itself" at the base. Then each coil I added went UNDERNEATH the rest of the stack, forcing the existing coils upwards. The ends are tucked in and many knots stayed in place without bands. To make sure we lasted the week though, I added loose rubber bands at the base of each knot.
She slept easily in them (they move easily, laying on their side with the slightest pressure). In fact, my biggest irritation with this style was that each morning the knots were pointing in every possible direction. At first I attempted to fix this, then realized that it looked just as cute that way. As usual, me "chilling out" is the key to us enjoying a style. I'm learning, I'm learning.
She loves her knots. This is absolutely a style we'll be doing again in the future! And next time, I'm thinking triangle parts.
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