How to Get the Best Looking Mini Twists with Clean Parting

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Last updated on October 2nd, 2024 at 05:41 pm

When doing mini twists, the lazy way is to grab and twist. You know that it will take hours to twist your hair so you figure, you’ll just grab hair, making sure the sections are at least the same size, and twist.

Parting mini twists just takes too much time right?

Yet, if you don’t part your mini twists, several issues can arise.

Pros and Cons of Parting Hair for Twists

By now, you probably realize where I’m going with this. I’m obviously in favor of taking the time to part your hair to twist.

For many years, I’d just grab and twist my hair in sections. This is actually a good technique if your hair isn’t very dense. You don’t want so much scalp being seen so, by not parting your twists look a little fuller. That’s the PRO. Plus, you save some time.

Now, those twists don’t look too shabby. Do they? Yet, there were definitely issues.

The cons:

• As the days went by, my hair would tangle as the sections began to web at the root
• When styling, because of the crooked sections, the twists looked a little odd
• The mini twists didn’t look as neat as I would have liked for very long

So, while I’d love to save a bit of time twisting my hair, I realized that twisting is way more beneficial. When parting your mini twists they:

• Look neater
• Can last longer than three weeks (I never add hair)
• Don’t tangle nearly as much as the style is aging.

Yes, you can see some scalp but these twists are neater, last longer, and more importantly don’t get all tangled up on themselves!

Twisting Natural Hair: Factors for Success

Twisting natural hair is a bit of an art form. Twist too tight and the twists don’t fall as nicely. Twist too loose and the twists won’t stay in (that is unless you’re going for the loose twists look).

There’s much more that goes into twisting natural hair (especially mini twists) than you may think. You have to check off all the boxes so your mini twists look beautiful and last. This includes:

• Twisting products
• Section sizes
• Technique
• End sealing
• Styling (Check out these cute ways to style mini twists)

Twisting Technique with Clean Parts

It doesn’t take a full-on mini-twist tutorial to help you do your best mini-twists.
The technique is simple:

• Use a rat tail comb (preferably a metal tip (like this one) and part your hair in 4 sections:
  Two in the front parted in the middle; Two in the back – parted from behind one ear over to the other.
  
• Clip all the sections you aren’t working on out of the way until you’re ready to twist the sections.
  
• Starting from the nape of the neck, use the rat tail comb to part your twists cleanly and make sure each parted section is about the same size.
  Check out this video of how I express refresh twists demonstrating my parting technique (It’s not as neat as a new install but you’ll get the premise):

• Start each twist with a braid at the root, about a 1/2 inch before you finish it with a twist.
  
• Twist in a rope-like fashion, also known as rope twists or Senegalese twisting.
  Here’s a good representation. Yes, it will look slightly different on your natural hair than if you use braiding hair but, the longevity of this twisting technique is unmatched.
  
• Don’t apply too much tension.
  
• Use a slight amount of tension pulling downward as you twist
  
• Leave about 1/4 inch of hair untwisted and the ends and seal those ends with a heavy butter
  followed by some flaxseed gel. (Alternatively, Camille Rose Naturals CurlMaker works well)

That’s it. Follow these steps when twisting and your twists will look beautiful, last longer, and not tangle.

Now, let’s talk about products…

Best Products for Mini Twists

I’ve tried many different hair products to do my mini twists and there are three that I’ve settled on:

Aunt Jackie’s Hold Tight! Braid and Twist Gel

How you start your twist matters so much because it determines the longevity of the twists.

I love Aunt Jackie’s Hold Tight! Braid and Twist Gel. It’s infused with Biotin and Honey. That explains the nice level of moisture and why the twists are strong at the roots. No breakage there.

It also keeps the roots of the twists so smooth and if you tie your hair down at night, it lasts.

One caveat… it’s not really a gel. It’s not wet. It’s more of pomade but that’s even better. It can double as an edge control.

Grab a jar here.

Deanna’s Breakthrough Formula Sealant Butter

How you end your twists is just as important as how you start them.

Deanna’s Breakthrough Formula Sealant Butter is my go-to product for preventing single-strand knots and tangles at the ends of my twists. I smooth it on the ends of my twists every 3 days. This seems to be the sweet spot for preventing tangling.

This product was created by a fellow YouTuber. She did good! Check it out here.

Flaxseed Gel

Lastly (and this is optional), flaxseed gel is like the cherry on top of an ice cream sundae!

You don’t have to use it (especially if you see Deanna’s sealant butter), but it really does keep the ends “fused” together for an extra day or two before you need to re-seal them.

While the brand of flaxseed gel you use (or if you make your own) doesn’t matter, Natural’s Choice on Etsy is the brand I use because I don’t have time to be making flaxseed gel!

The Finale

While I know this article was meant to be mostly about me sharing why you should do clean parting for mini twists, I’d be remiss in not sharing the techniques and products used to twist.

Next up…

Want more tips for twisting natural hair? (especially fine natural hair), check out these articles:

How to Prevent Two-Strand Twists from Unraveling

Twist Out Tips for Fine Natural Hair

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