Waterfall Braid

The waterfall braid is the half-French braid where one strand is dropped at each crossover, creating a row of strands that cascades down through the rest of the hair like — yes — a waterfall. The technique starts at one temple, weaves across the front of the head horizontally, and drops loose strands at each step. The result is a soft, romantic, partly-up styling.

It flatters oval and heart faces — the horizontal element at the top of the head balances heart-shaped foreheads and the cascading strands add framing around the face. Wavy and straight hair show the cascading effect cleanest; curly hair can wear an adapted version but the cascade is less visible under the curl pattern. Hair must be long for the dropped strands to fall properly.

Medium styling maintenance, no cut needed — wear over whatever long-hair base you have. Start a French braid at one temple, drop the bottom strand at each crossover instead of including it, continue across the front of the head, secure on the other side. The technique takes 15-20 minutes with practice. The waterfall braid became prominent on Pinterest and beauty blogs in the early 2010s and has stayed in rotation as a soft formal-occasion styling. Needs long hair — at least mid-back length — for the dropped strands to fall properly through the rest of the hair.