Good morning from sunny Micronesia!
Last night I tried making a 5-strand braid, which built up my confidence enough to try a 6-strand braid. I liked how it turned out so much that this morning I made a hairband braid with 6-strands. I just gathered the lower section of my hair, banded it together with an elastic, then made the 6-strand braid. When I had reached about as far as I could comfortably go, I tied the end of my braid off with another elastic. I put the rest of my hair into a ponytail and wrapped my 6-strand braid around it like a hairband. My bun is two sections loosely twisted together like a rope braid, held in place with bobby pins. I would twist a little bit, stop and pin that section in place, then twist some more, etc...until the bun was finished. I covered the two elastics with a butterfly clip, and was ready to head out the door!
A secret to making a 6-strand braid: Think over, under, over, under, over. Also, it helps if you start off with your hair in a ponytail. This makes it easier to keep the strands separate.