Hair loopies


 * For the hairstyle used by male members of the Water Tribe, see Warrior's Wolf Tail.

Hair loopies are a type of hairstyle in the Northern and Southern Water Tribes. This may not be the actual name of the hairstyle, but Sokka used the term when he asked Katara how she would feel if she lost something meaningful to her, such as "her hair loopies". The style may be a family tradition as Katara, her mother, and her grandmother all wear them. In the Northern Water Tribe, Yue was seen wearing a similar style consisting of elaborate braids instead of regular loops.

History
Katara considered hair loopies an important part of her identity, having sported this hairstyle since she was a little girl. Even so, there were times when Katara was seen without her trademark hairstyle. When she fought Pakku for her right to learn Waterbending, her hair fell out of place. Later in the crystal catacombs, when Katara and Aang battled with Azula and Zuko, Katara's hair once again came out of place during the struggle. While her hair loopies returned for a short time after that fight, Katara altered her appearance traveling in the Fire Nation in order to blend in with locals. She removed her hair loopies and wore her hair down in addition to wearing Fire Nation clothing. Although she still tied two strands of hair behind her ear even when she wore her hair down, the loops no longer framed her face.



During the Day of Black Sun invasion, Katara began incorporating her Water Tribe hairstyle once again. It was reminiscent of her Fire Nation style, with her hair unbraided in back, but her hair loopies were back, albeit thicker than before. She wore this style for the rest of the series.

Kanna, Katara's Gran Gran, also wore hair loopies. In a hallucination, Katara remembered Kya, her mother with them, but in a flashback of the attacks on the Southern Water Tribe, she wasn't.