22 Protective Styles To Help Your Natural Hair Grow Longer & Stronger

Justine Skye transitioned into fall with large box braids that take half the time to style — and last just as long.

Rather than having her cornrows braiding the traditional way, going straight back, Ashanti's cornrows were marked by a crescent-like patter than was parted down the middle.

A look that takes minimal effort but appears so intentional, these jumbo Senegalese twists require minimal effort and are easy to retwist in the case that one becomes unraveled.

While this super-sleek look may require a higher skillset, it's perfect for both daytime and nighttime looks.

Zonnique used not one but three blonde shades of braiding hair to create a multi-dimensional highlight look for her braids.

Keke Palmer rocked a super-undone Senegalese twist look that was made to look more rugged with several loose pieces falling randomly.

There's no better time than now to incorporate some color into protective styles. Celebrities like Eva Marcille are doing so by wrapping multi-colored thread around their box braids, and hanging ornaments like mini-dreamcatchers at the bottom.

For a highlighted rather than dyed effect on your braids, the use of both natural toned and lighter braiding hair creates the illusion of custom-colored styles.

A beautiful way to spruce up braid bangs is to put a gold bead at the end of each strand. It adds an elegant twist to the already elevated look.

A protective style that dates back centuries, bantu knots can be decorated anyway you see fit. Celebs like Marcille did so by incorporating gold rings trailing down the middle.

This incredibly sleek style is created by crafting two rows of braids. The bottom row is cornrowed straight back, while the top row, is parted down the middle and braided diagonally in opposite directions.

This incredibly low-maintenance protective style is super simple to recreate. All you need to do is part the hair, separate into two parts, and twist down to the end.

This quick style is created with a top and bottom row of cornrows styled around the perimeter horizontally rather than the traditional vertical style. To create a cornrow, part the hair straight back. Then, braid the hair along the part, collecting the loose hair with every pass to secure the braid to the scalp.

The twist style, which creates more of a rugged appearance over time, is the perfect vacation look which can be adorned with accessories like gold hoops and string. The two-strand twists are created using synthetic, high-shine braiding hair.

Celebrities like Lizzo enjoy protecting their hair with small boho box braids. The look is created with curly kanekalon hair that is only braided halfway down the hair shaft for the undone, curly look.

If you want to incorporate color into your braids without manipulating your own hair, using colored braiding hair is the perfect way to add highlights to your protective style.

The style that looks better over time. Faux locs, created by wrapping synthetic braiding hair around a braid base, creates the appearance of real locs. You can incorporate a few strands of color in your faux locs to frame the face and spice up the look.

Jazz up horizontal cornrows by adding beads at the bottom and sprucing up baby hair.

Rihanna has been loving knotless braids during quarantine. The style takes half the time of smaller knotless braids due to larger sections of hair, yet still is sleek and chic.

The style is super easy to recreate at home. Simply begin the twist at the base of the hair, twisting all the way down. The coarse texture of the Marley hair, which sets it apart from passion twists, will make for a longwear style.

Woods is styling her small knotless box braids in an array of fun styles these days. To copy her updo, simply take two face-framing braids out of your half-up style and let them hang loose.

The undone yet intentional style is marked by several loose strands falling from the braids. This is created by removing strands of hair while braiding down the shaft. It can be done on both small and large box braids.