These Protective Styles Will Take Hair Off Your To-Do List

When deciding on your next braided style, you have to set your priorities: Do you want a look that you can switch from a topknot to a ponytail to straight-down gorgeousness? Or, do you want a hands-off style that allows you to take off your scarf in the morning and go? If you're partial to the latter, then free-flowing styles like weaves, box braids, and twists might be better saved for another time. But feed-in cornrows are equally cute and require half the work.

"Feed-in braids are any braid or plait that has hair added to it for neatness and length," NYC-based hairstylist Koni Bennett says. The process is simple: a braid is, usually, started on your natural hair. Then, smaller pieces of braiding hair are added to the plait as you go. "Adding hair to your braids makes them fuller, prevents frizz, and adds length, depending on your style," Bennett says. The feed-in technique is used for most braided protective styles, like box braids and Senegalese twists, but we're partial to feed-in cornrows.

Ahead, we rounded up some feed-in braid ideas that will save time without compromising your style.