Can we talk about relaxing bone straight and why people do this??

[glamazon386]

Please. I'm tyring to understand why someone would relax bone straight. When you relax bone straight, you are removing all natural curl pattern = no body/lifeless/limp hair. Think: People with naturally bone straight hair get a "body wave/perm" to add, well, body = movement.

Also, it breaks the hair bonds down so much, it is hard to recover and takes a LOT of effort, time energy to make the hair healthier.

Look, I'm not saying nobody doesn't have healthy bone straight hair and I'm not bashing. I really am trying to understand and hopefully help somebody!

Of all the hair things we do or can do, this is by far the MOST baffling and quiet honestly the most damaging single process we do (most of us don't bleach or if we do we keep it VERY short).

Thank you in advance

Well, I think some people just don't know any better. And that's what people have been doing for years. Straightening our hair. Some people want it as straight as they can get it. I know the first time I went to my mom's hair dresser for a relaxer my hair was still wavy at the root and I was like SHE DIDN'T EVEN GET IT STRAIGHT. My mother was like the hairdresser said it wasn't good for it to be that straight, for obvious reasons. But I didn't know any better or that it was bad (for my fine hair anyway).

But it depends on people's hair too. My mother's hair is relaxed bone straight but she still has body. And body can be achieved through styling techniques not just the amount of straightness from the relaxer. Even texlaxed my hair didn't have body but my hair is thin by nature whereas hers is very thick.

I also think that it makes it easier for people who choose to wear their hair bone straight all the time (like my mother) so they don't have to do extra steps. When I was relaxed I'd pull my hair back and let it airdry. As long as I combed through it first, it would dry straight. So that would eliminate blowdrying and flat ironing for me. I would just bump it with my large curling iron and call it a day. I think that regardless of how straight the hair is relaxed, if the procedure is done properly (not overdone/over processed which often leads to limp hair) and the hair is well taken care of, it will still be healthy and grow.

 

[LynnieB]

Yeh, it's MUCH easier... I read about all of this detangling from texlaxed heads and I think to myself well they might as well be natural if they have to go through those problems.

I have a relaxer for the ease of it, so why would I add in extra problems if I'm already using chemicals??

former tex'd chica here.........

wash and goes look and behave a bit differently when it's tex'd vrs natural.

with a cfc - you still retain (varying) degrees of control with the final outcome - now if it's the look you thought your were gonna get vrs the look you actually do get - that's a totally different topic all together.

also, shrinkage is a trip. yes tex'd gals get shrinkage but it ain't nothing and i do mean nothing compared to the shrinkage of a full blown natural head of hair. and the only time (hair that's been treated with a straightening chemical) that you will experience some of this extreme shrinkage when that ng starts kicking in.

lastly, when you want to wear your tex'd hair flatironed/rollerset, you still have some control over the final result (less frizz, ability to hold a tighter rollerset for a longer amount of time, etc). natural hair is going to do it's best to revert to eer-uhm..............natural hair. tex'd hair will also do so to a certain extent but like i said about the wash n go's - it's nothing like a full head of natural nappiness.

(typical disclaimer) but, this is just my personal experience and i just thought i'd share it. (/end typical disclaimer)

 

[locabouthair]

i've never herad fo textlaxing b4 the board. i think IRL the norm for black women is to relax bone straight.

I relax bone straight I use mizani regular but it leaves some of my roots texlaxed but my ends are bone straight. I dont have much breakage issues. my hair use to break terribly after a relaxer and now it doesnt at all (since I've started upping my protein treatments b4 and after a relaxer) I have very coarse,wirey 4b hair. I don't know if my hair type has anything to do with it.

ETA: When I was younger and I relaxed bone straight my hair was still very thick. I remember a stylist actually complained about how thick it was.

I am not against textlaxing. If it helps you achieve healthy hair then I say go ahead. But what I don't understand is when people textlax but blowdry, flat iron, and curl every week to get a bone straight look. I just think it's too much heat and too much work. textlaxing and using heat often to get it straight just seems counterproductive to me.

 

[Dee-Licious]

former tex'd chica here.........

wash and goes look and behave a bit differently when it's tex'd vrs natural.

with a cfc - you still retain (varying) degrees of control with the final outcome - now if it's the look you thought your were gonna get vrs the look you actually do get - that's a totally different topic all together.

also, shrinkage is a trip. yes tex'd gals get shrinkage but it ain't nothing and i do mean nothing compared to the shrinkage of a full blown natural head of hair. and the only time (hair that's been treated with a straightening chemical) that you will experience some of this extreme shrinkage when that ng starts kicking in.

lastly, when you want to wear your tex'd hair flatironed/rollerset, you still have some control over the final result (less frizz, ability to hold a tighter rollerset for a longer amount of time, etc). natural hair is going to do it's best to revert to eer-uhm..............natural hair. tex'd hair will also do so to a certain extent but like i said about the wash n go's - it's nothing like a full head of natural nappiness.

(typical disclaimer) but, this is just my personal experience and i just thought i'd share it. (/end typical disclaimer)

wow. A lot of differences. What made you go from texlaxed to natural since it seems more difficult to deal with??

 

[FlawedBeauty]

Please. I'm tyring to understand why someone would relax bone straight. When you relax bone straight, you are removing all natural curl pattern = no body/lifeless/limp hair. Think: People with naturally bone straight hair get a "body wave/perm" to add, well, body = movement.

Also, it breaks the hair bonds down so much, it is hard to recover and takes a LOT of effort, time energy to make the hair healthier.

Look, I'm not saying nobody doesn't have healthy bone straight hair and I'm not bashing. I really am trying to understand and hopefully help somebody!

Of all the hair things we do or can do, this is by far the MOST baffling and quiet honestly the most damaging single process we do (most of us don't bleach or if we do we keep it VERY short).

Thank you in advance

I don't do bone straight for the exact reasons you mention above. Only thing is it does get pretty annoying with texlaxed hair because when it gets hot, or i start to sweat if my hair reverts almost instantly. boooooooooo

 

[LynnieB]

wow. A lot of differences. What made you go from texlaxed to natural since it seems more difficult to deal with??

even though your texlaxing, you're still putting that gawd awful chemical close to your skin...........it was just that simple for me.

with a texlax you can still tell when it's time for a touch up which means trumpling off to the bss to pick up the box (or making that appt with a salon for some), getting home and applying it.

i simply got tired of the riding the relaxer carousel and all it entails.

it's not difficult to deal with at all, my natural hair is a dream to deal with (wish i'd done it sooner but that's another story) but my tex'd hair was too, go figure. never had alot of problem either way.

my thoughts are, that each type of hair requires different types of techniques and sometimes different types of products to bring out the best of it, that's it - oh yea and in the case of fully natural textured black hair, learning how to accept what it wasn't meant to do (like not expecting freshly flatironed natural hair to stay sleek and smooth when it's the middle of July, in North Carolina LOL) and adjust yourself accordingly .

but like i said, that's just me and we all know that one size don't fit all, right?

 

[beana]

speaking as someone who has gone through my fair share of degrees of straightness.. I have concluded the following: i doesn't make any sense FOR ME to relax to a texture less than 80% straight because then my hair will be hell to deal with, tangles, poofiness, breakage, never achieving a sleek look... Plus, i notice that women who texlax/texturize use heat more, heat can damage your hair as well. I'd rather relax straighter and deal with less heat and tangles WHILE taking good care of my hair.

I dont use any form of heat outside of my weekly rollerset, 1 hour under a medium hot hooded dryer.

I never leave the relaxer on more than 20-25 mins and normally use a mild and relax every 12 weeks. My target straightness is 85% for my next touch up.. i guess i would describe this as straight when dry with slight texture when wet.

 

[gymfreak336]

Well, from my experience, I find that straight hair is easier to take care of. I am really going through this now since being underprocessed for awhile. I have 3x a much shedding, it takes twice as long to detangle and rollerset and products don't work the same. I don't know if I would say that I usually relax bone straight, I leave it in for the alotted time. I personally don't do alot to my hair. I just like to wash dc and rollerset and thats it. I think for people that like to do alot to their hair then maybe texlaxing is a better way for them. I think it really depends on the nature of your natural hair.


Whats the difference between bonestraight and straight?

 

[gymfreak336]

speaking as someone who has gone through my fair share of degrees of straightness.. I have concluded the following: i doesn't make any sense FOR ME to relax to a texture less than 80% straight because then my hair will be hell to deal with, tangles, poofiness, breakage, never achieving a sleek look... Plus, i notice that women who texlax/texturize use heat more, heat can damage your hair as well. I'd rather relax straighter and deal with less heat and tangles WHILE taking good care of my hair.
I dont use any form of heat outside of my weekly rollerset, 1 hour under a medium hot hooded dryer.

I never leave the relaxer on more than 20-25 mins and normally use a mild and relax every 12 weeks. My target straightness is 85% for my next touch up.. i guess i would describe this as straight when dry with slight texture when wet.

ITA; I have to use more heat with my underprocessed mess.

 

[foxy kc]

I relax bone straight every 8-12 weeks...sometimes 6 weeks if I have an important event.

I just love the ease of styling bone straight hair....on a normal wash day I just airdry and then put it in a ponytail and its straight........if I sweat I don't have to worry about having to flat iron, because there is no reversion.

I guess I'm lazy but I would prefer to get bone straight hair by relaxing once every 8 weeks, than putting forth all kinds of effort to straighten texturized hair every week.

 

[HoneyDew]

ITA; I have to use more heat with my underprocessed mess.

I agree (although I like mine being underprocessed)

But, I relax my moms hair and she wants it bone straight. I can do hers bone straight but I cannot do mine to save my life!!

Anyway, hers is WONDERFUL bone straight! I blowdried her hair and she really did not need much heat after that. I lightly flatironed it with low heat and she was good to go. She can even work out and if she sweats, after her hair is dry, she can throw some rollers in there and be good to go.

NOT ME! But I do enjoy the fullness of my hair. My hair in my siggie is right after a relaxer. Normally my hair is WAY bigger than that. After the first week is returns to the full slightly frizzy look, which I enjoy.

 

[sareca]

So we've got 5 people that relax bone straight and have long beautiful hair? How many texlax'r do we have w/ long beautiful hair.

 

[HoneyDew]

So we've got 5 people that relax bone straight and have long beautiful hair? How many texlax'r do we have w/ long beautiful hair.

I think there are quite a few actually.

Well, okay I can only think of two

I don't think relaxing bone straight is unhealthy, especially if you have a good relaxer.

I have been relaxed bone straight with bad relaxers before and it WAS NOT pretty.

Actually if I felt comfortable smoothing it more, I would do bone straight with Profective. That stuff is perfect for it. Even with all the bad stuff my mom does to her hair, it is moist and full and shiny - and she is still dealing with some excessive shedding issues (unrelated to relaxing). But, her hair still looks and feels great.

 

[sareca]

I think there are quite a few actually.

Well, okay I can only think of two

I don't think relaxing bone straight is unhealthy, especially if you have a good relaxer.

I have been relaxed bone straight with bad relaxers before and it WAS NOT pretty.

Actually if I felt comfortable smoothing it more, I would do bone straight with Profective. That stuff is perfect for it. Even with all the bad stuff my mom does to her hair, it is moist and full and shiny - and she is still dealing with some excessive shedding issues (unrelated to relaxing). But, her hair still looks and feels great.

I think I'm leaning towards thinking it doesn't matter as long as it is not overprocessed.

Honeydew, while I have you-- snowdriftfarms is having a Christmas in July sale.

 

[HoneyDew]

I think I'm leaning towards thinking it doesn't matter as long as it is not overprocessed.

Honeydew, while I have you-- snowdriftfarms is having a Christmas in July sale.

I just bought a 16 oz bottle of Marine collagen, too.

Also, I agree - as long as its not overprocessed. And i just thought of 3 more texlaxed ladies with long beautiful hair and even more that have beautiful hair even though it's not long YET.

 

[gymfreak336]

I think I'm leaning towards thinking it doesn't matter as long as it is not overprocessed.

Honeydew, while I have you-- snowdriftfarms is having a Christmas in July sale.

I think you are right. Many of our bone straight people don't do much to their hair.

 

[ebonylocs]

This thread is on time, because I have texlaxed hair and was just considering doing it *straighter* next time. I've never liked the limp, lifeless, dried out relaxer look that so many Black women have. So I tended to wear my hair natural, and the times when I did relax, I would soon go back to natural, because I couldn't take the absence of body.

So, when I decided to relax after 3 years natural, and learned about texlaxing on this board, I decided to try it. It worked for me the first time (this January) probably because I went to a really good hairdresser. She used Mizani no-lye, because she said in her experience it was good for not getting hair too straight. That worked. It was smooth and manageable, but still full and thick.

The next time I did my hair (April) I went to the salon round the corner, and they didn't do a good job at all. They didn't understand that I wanted my hair smooth and straightish, but not bone straight. So they just kind of "softened up the roots" on most of my head, while relaxing the front hairline bone straight(!). They used a mild relaxer of some kind.

Now I'm dealing with a lot of shrinkage, frizzy ends, matting, tangling, etc. Detangling is the devil. So I want my hair *straighter*, but I want to retain its body, and I don't want it to look anything like the dried out strands I see on many Black women on the street.

I have 4-b, very dense hair with thin strands. I'm thinking that the reason relaxing very straight in the past didn't work for me is because of said thin strands. I think if you have thick, elastic strands, then your cuticle is thick, and your hair is protected and will smooth out nicely when done really straight.

Those ladies that say relaxing bone straight works for them,(Sylver, Macherie Amour, etc) would you say you have thick strands?

 

[Iansan]

This might be a silly question but how can you tell if you are relaxed bone straight?

 

[sunshinebeautiful]

This might be a silly question but how can you tell if you are relaxed bone straight?

I think there is no curl pattern whatsoever when it's wet.

Also how can you tell if your hair is overprocessed? It seems like a fine line between bone straight and overprocessed.

I cannot relax my hair bone straight because it just breaks off. Last summer I relaxed some of my hair bone straight and there was no curl whatsoever, no life, wouldn't hold a curl or nothing. I started texlaxing and ended up having to cut that mess off.

My texlaxed hair is a lot stronger. I usually wear my hair curly anyhow. And I don't have any problems detangling. Maybe because I was natural for a few years and learned how to deal with the texture, I don't know. My hair is finally retaining length and not breaking off. I would not go back to relaxing bone straight for nothing.

 

[Energist]

Since relaxing again I get bone straight results with the regular no lye relaxer and leaving it for the required amount of time. I'll admit, sometimes when I'm washing the relaxer out with the neutralizer it feels so straight that I feel bald ... like I can't feel my hair, and that scares me! After I rollerset and do what I do afterwards I am relieved, but since coming to this board I know about texlaxing and am seriously considering the transition. The one thing that would bother me is the edges after a workout or sweating. I can't stand non-straight edges

 

[locabouthair]

I think there is no curl pattern whatsoever when it's wet.

Also how can you tell if your hair is overprocessed? It seems like a fine line between bone straight and overprocessed.

I cannot relax my hair bone straight because it just breaks off. Last summer I relaxed some of my hair bone straight and there was no curl whatsoever, no life, wouldn't hold a curl or nothing. I started texlaxing and ended up having to cut that mess off.

My texlaxed hair is a lot stronger. I usually wear my hair curly anyhow. And I don't have any problems detangling. Maybe because I was natural for a few years and learned how to deal with the texture, I don't know. My hair is finally retaining length and not breaking off. I would not go back to relaxing bone straight for nothing.

do you have fine, medium, or thick strands?

 

[audacity.]

Yes.

Plenty of times, I miss it and I am even thinking about going back once I get the length. Who knows.

I am not trying to be mean or "discouraging" but sometimes I see people who relax bonestraight/less than 8 weeks and in their siggy they say they want to be AL (AssLength ) and all I can do is think. At some point you are gonna have to sacrafice for the length you want. I am not saying it is completely impossible, but it is extremely hard to be bonestraight and AL. Check out the features of the month. 90% of the relaxed ones left some texture to their hair to be where they are.

I can't see how people think that relaxing their hair to an inch of it's life every month for years will result in AL hair. Just not very feasible. Not trying to be mean, I am just telling the truth. Someone has to say it. There isn't enough baggies, protein treats, MTG, vitamins in the world to compensate for that level of protein lost on the strands.

It's just something to think about.

(((Locks, I am over here rolling!!! AL!!! )))

From my experience, with MY hair, it makes no difference to me. Whether I am overprocessed, underprocessed or perfectly processed my hair seemed to be fine. I have NEVER had my scalp showing OR excessive breakage. My hair grows easily to APL no matter WHAT I have ever done to it.

I will admit, though, that I've never been a big proponent (sp?)of putting at lot of chemical or heat on my hair. So I only relax(ed) about 2-3 times per year. And it's been that way since I can remember.

It boils down to the person and what works for THEIR hair. Bonestraight/straight (whatever you wanna call it) IS easier to manage. My hair is relaxed straight now, but I am currently either transisioning to natural or underprossing b/c I want to wash and go and have the texture/curls that I can get from it SO that I can use less heat...

And OT but, a relaxer is a realxer is a RELAXER...it doesn't matter if it is left on for 2 seconds or 2 hours you are STILL relaxed. I mean you can call it a texturizer, texlax or whatever - it is still a RELAXER (unless it really IS a texturizer but that is only a mild relaxer, too, right?).

 

[Iansan]

I have no curl pattern when wet, but when it dries I have waves or curls depending on the styling products I use. So I guess I'm textalaxed?

 

[Southernbella.]

(((Locks, I am over here rolling!!! AL!!! )))

From my experience, with MY hair, it makes no difference to me. Whether I am overprocessed, underprocessed or perfectly processed my hair seemed to be fine. I have NEVER had my scalp showing OR excessive breakage. My hair grows easily to APL no matter WHAT I have ever done to it.

I will admit, though, that I've never been a big proponent (sp?)of putting at lot of chemical or heat on my hair. So I only relax(ed) about 2-3 times per year. And it's been that way since I can remember.

It boils down to the person and what works for THEIR hair. Bonestraight/straight (whatever you wanna call it) IS easier to manage. My hair is relaxed straight now, but I am currently either transisioning to natural or underprossing b/c I want to wash and go and have the texture/curls that I can get from it SO that I can use less heat...

And OT but, a relaxer is a realxer is a RELAXER...it doesn't matter if it is left on for 2 seconds or 2 hours you are STILL relaxed. I mean you can call it a texturizer, texlax or whatever - it is still a RELAXER (unless it really IS a texturizer but that is only a mild relaxer, too, right?).

I think texlax is just a term we use hear to descibe the degree of straightness, but everyone knows that this still means relaxed.

Those ladies that say relaxing bone straight works for them,(Sylver, Macherie Amour, etc) would you say you have thick strands?

My strands are extremely thick, and my hair density is thick, but being bone-straight made my hair thin. It's probably more about how you take care of it than anything else, IMO.

 

[mango387]

My avatar picture was taken at the beginning of April. My hair is about two inches longer now on all sides. It is still the same thickness as before. I have been relaxing bone straight for a little over a year now, and I am pleased. No, my hair isn't long as I stated before; it is healthy though.

 

[balisi]

Now that is making sense...well not making sense, but you know what I mean!

I'm glad you mentioned super, because NOBODY needs super. Thats the second baffling thing to me Another marketing lie...

I must disagree with you on this, based on my professional experience. Although MOST do not need super, there are a few who do. I have had a couple of clients on whom I used regular for their first touch up with me. After seeing how their hair laughed at that strength, I used super at their next touchup, with much better results (still not bone straight, although that is not my goal when I relax hair). So yes, there is sometimes a need for super strength relaxer.

 

[B_Phlyy]

I used to relax bone straight, but never really suffered from it. Bone staright or straight means ease of detangling and styling because I never used heat. I think if you use the right relaxer and strength for your hair along with good techniques, you can have healthy hair.

 

[balisi]

Well, I wouldn't say nobody. There are some people who would actually benefit from a super. Some individuals with thicker hair (by thick, I mean thick individual strands) have many more cutcile layers than others. I've read that normal hair can have as few as 6 and as many as 16 overlapping cuticle layers. You've seen folks with strands that are like strong thready, wires. They would need the higher pH to get the same result you'd get with a mild or regular in the same processing time.
Also, some people have hair with very low porosity (usually the same folk above with the thick strands) or have a lower overall body pH. They also need the higher pHs to help breach the cuticle.

But, I do agree that most of us certainly don't need super at all.

Exactly! You nailed it on all points, Sis.

 

[bgsix]

Great topic Pixel,

I have been relaxed bone straight since I can remember. I didn't know there was any other way until coming to this board.

My hair also never grew past my shoulders and has always been thick. It wasn't until last summer that I finally got my act together that my hair started to take off.

I proud to say I have reached the tip of APL and I still relax bone straight. My hair is the healthiest it has ever been.

It is really a matter of preference and I do think I can grow it longer while doing so.

 

[envybeauty]

I'm not sure if someone else mentioned this but..

Is it true that different relaxer brands have different pH levels? So a "Super" Silk Elements relaxer may not be as strong as a "Super" Revlon relaxer? As in ....the Super SE relaxer may have the same strangth of a Regular Revlon relaxer (talking about both as lye relaxers).

If there is a difference, and one person needs a higher pH to penetrate her hair, then that would explain why someone may prefer Super in one brand as compared to Regular strength in another.

ETA: I have mixed feelings about bone straight. My last relaxer was texlaxed (underprocessed) and since then, I have had to deal with the poofy hair. That was not a problem when I was bone straight. I'm also using more heat to get my hair straighter so I may just suck it up and relax bone straight. That's how I want to wear my hair on a daily basis anyway...so I am thinking....