Hairbrained Step-by-Step: Corded Zipper Braid

Warm weather season can wreak havoc on polished strands, but luckily, there’s a cool solution to keeping hair looking perfectly on point: the braid. Though braids were once considered quaint, they’ve been reinvented. This is due, in large part, to a heavy influence from festival-style hair, plus the adaptation of runway-ready looks.

Here, Joseph DiMaggio, Master Session Ambassador at Davines, and Creator of Shuhari Pro, shares his corded zipper braid. With a warrior chic vibe, this look will keep your clients looking and feeling cool, all summer long.

Step 1: Start with freshly washed hair, and spray locks liberally with Davines Blow Dry Primer. As you blow dry through, make sure to direct the roots towards the back of the head. “This will help you to achieve a nice look, that’s both clean and polished,” says DiMaggio.

Step 2: Next, create a top and a bottom section. “Use a Mohawk section from the mid-recessions, and take that back into a point, right below the occipital bone,” instructs DiMaggio. “Brush the sides and bottom of the hair into a low ponytail, positioned at the nape, making sure to keep strands smooth. Secure the ponytail with an elastic cord.  

Step 3: In the top section, implement two sub-sections, starting at the center of the forehead; part from the middle at a 45-degree diagonal. “This creates an overlay effect,” adds DiMaggio.

Step 4: Next, take a pinky nail-sized section at the center of the part (directly behind your subsections), and with a fine-toothed comb, backcomb the root. Here, you’ll create an anchor for your elastic cord. “I would apply a double loop knot, looping through twice to keep the cord secured, and locked into the base of the hair. Make sure that both ends of the cord are balanced and equal,” DiMaggio advises. The cord shouldn’t move or budge.   

Quick-tip: Aim to use a cord that’s four to six times longer than the ponytail.

Step 5: Direct the cord, along with one section of the diagonally parted hair, off to either the left or right side, making sure to tuck the cord under the panel of hair.

Step 6: Moving from underneath the hair, wrap the cord under your first section and around to your second section, implementing a figure-eight style weaving pattern. While the cord is on the second side, pick up a quarter-inch sized section from behind the original sub-section, and add it to your second-side section. “Work with the blow dry primer to keep control,” suggests DiMaggio.

Step 7: Moving underneath the first section, bring the hair from the second side back to the first side. Repeat from side to side until you reach the bottom of your V-shaped section. “At this point,” says DiMaggio, “there’s no more hair to add. But, you’ll want to continue weaving in a figure-eight pattern until you’ve reached the base of your bottom ponytail.” Add the top section to the bottom section, creating one ponytail.  

Step 8: Separate the hair into three sections. Continue using a figure-eight or basket weave technique, and weave the cord as far down the hair as you’d like. To finish the look, secure the cord underneath the hair, using a double knot, with a single knot over the top of that. “Brush or flat iron the ends of the hair as you’d like,” finished DiMaggio.

To get an up-close look at DiMaggio’s unique, corded zipper braid, check out Hairbrained’s Facebook Live #75! Images and video-content are complements of: Joseph DiMaggio, @fashionmeetspassion, @shuharipro and Davines, @DavinesNorthAmerica. Video by: @dredlife             

About: Founded by two like-minded hairdressers: Photographer and hairdresser, Randy Taylor, plus world-renowned educator and platform artist, Gerard Scarpaci. Both share a deep love for the industries professionals and the craft alike. www.hairbrained.me @hairbrained_official