How to do a fishtail braid

The gorgeous fishtail braid can be worn for almost any occasion, from the gym, to a work meeting, or on a night out.

The fishtail braid can be incorporated into a variety of up-dos and loose styles. Once you’ve mastered the classic fishtail braid, you’ll find a whole host of different ways to style your fishtail, like our absolute favorite, the half fishtail braid ponytail (be sure to check out the tutorial video below).

Ready to get started? Practice makes perfect, so we recommend getting up close and personal with the classic fishtail before exploring more eclectic variations. So let’s do this!

The classic fishtail braid starts at the nape of your neck and trails down your back in a single braid. It’s most suited to long hair, and works best on non-layered styles.

1. Brush your hair and part into two even sections down the middle, as though you were making pigtails. Use loose clips to keep the two sides separate.
2. Take a portion of hair, about half an inch thick, from the left section, starting from the outside. Pull this strand across the left section and add it into the right section of hair.
3. Gently pull on the two sections to tighten them. At this stage, it’s best to keep your braid-in-progress as tight as possible. We’ll loosen it up later.
4. Repeat step 2 with a half-inch portion from the right side, pulling it into the left section of hair. Pull tight again, ensuring the newly-added portion from the right is integrated into the left section.
5. Keep repeating steps 2, 3, and 4, alternating left and right sides, until you reach the end of your hair.
6. As you get further down the braid, use thinner portions of hair, which will help the braid look more even.
7. Leave about an inch or two at the end and tie it off with a thin hair tie.
8. Gently tug at each side of the finished braid to loosen and tousle it

Once you’re happy with your fishtail braid, spritz with TRESemmé TRES TWO Ultra Fine Mist Non-Aerosol Hair Spray, holding the nozzle about 10 inches away from your hair for a strong hold, without crispiness, that lasts all day.

We absolutely love this look, which combines the ethereal fishtail braid with a luscious loose ponytail. It’s also easier to do on medium length hair and styles with layers.

Here’s a step-by-step:

1. Take a section from the heavier side of your parting to braid
2. Tie back the rest of your hair away from the braiding section
3. Take a small section of hair from one side, cross it over, and add to the other side
4. Repeat for the opposite side
5. Continue braiding until you’re halfway down the section
6. Bring in the rest of your hair and tie it together with the braid, in a loose, low side ponytail
7. Gently loosen the braid above the hair tie
8. Take about a quarter of the width of the ponytail and continue braiding to the end
9. Secure the braid with a hair tie at the bottom, and gently loosen it
10. Don’t forget to secure your style with TRESemmé TRES TWO Ultra Fine Mist Non-Aerosol Hair Spray to finish.

Fishtail braid pigtails

The half fishtail braid ponytail can also be adapted to create a grown-up twist on the classic pigtail.

Rather than pulling all the hair into a side ponytail, you can divide your hair in two down the center and create a fishtail braid on each side that merges into a low ponytail on each side. You can either continue the braid through to the ends of each ponytail, or secure it at the base of your neck so that the braid ends at the hair tie where the ponytail begins.

Easy fishtail braid up-do

Following the method we used to create fishtail braid pigtails above, you can take your style up a level by turning the fishtail style into an elegant up-do.

1. Once you’ve made two fishtail braids on each side, secure together with a single hair tie at the nape of your neck
2. Make a small ‘hole’ with your finger in the hair just above the tie
3. Take the ponytail created by securing the hair together and loop it up and through the ‘hole’ (sometimes known as a ‘topsy-turvy pony’ or ‘inverted pony’)
4. Take small sections from the ponytail, winding and tucking them in around the loop, securing with bobby pins as you go

The finished up-do is supposed to look a bit loose and messy, so don’t worry about getting everything perfectly smoothed down.

When you’re happy with how it looks, secure your style with TRESemmé TRES TWO Ultra Fine Mist Non-Aerosol Hair Spray.