For those wanting long hair...

[beautyintheyes]

Hello everyone I'm new to the forum and looking forward to learning more about you and your beautiful hair. Everyone has so many great tips they've shared.

To retain length I...
Detangle gently (always) with my hair moist & conditioner in it.
Detangle once a week to rid of shed hair & minimize tangles.
Moisturize & seal daily.
DC every week.
Trim when necessary.
Minimal heat. (So far I've used it 3 times in 2012, compared to years before when I used heat daily)
Overnight DC/pre-poo once a week.
Undo my twists with a little hair oil on my fingers. (Usually EVOO or coconut oil)

So far this is all working for me. My main style is twistouts and then I braid my hair at night & twist the ends. My hair is getting longer (currently SL) so I want to try protective styles that will keep my hair off my shoulders & minimize tangles. I love wearing my hair out but I think it's tangling more than if it would if I didn't wear it like that every day. Doing more PS's will be a newly added method I use to help retain length.

We have the same regi I love it! Simple and easy yup yup

 

[GWtheVoice]

It took me some time but I finally got used to my hair. The less I do the more my hair (and my scalp!) likes it. beautyintheyes What oils have you tried on your hair?

 

[Shadiyah]

Hello. New to this forum. See the initials: ABL, NL, CBL, what do those all mean?
My hair is natural now, but I wear scarves because not long enough to do braids, buns and other protective styles. Was wearing a very short natural coif for a long time , then went under wigs but honestly did very little to no hair maintenance. Now ready to go full out with natural look and let it grow long. I am a mature woman with grey hair so would love to see pics of ladies like me and how they rock their natural grey. Tks much.

welcome to the forum WheelerB and GWtheVoice I hope we all can help you through your journey. wheelerb when my hair was short like yours I use to wear my hair grey and I have always henna even when I didn't have grey and I wanted to see what I look like with salt and pepper once I had enough grey to really show off. I left it like that for over a yr and then I missed what henna did to my hair not just the color. I really miss my salt and pepper hair but my color is so rich and I hate to see 3 colors in my hair so henna always win.

it is really nice being on this forum and there is a ton of things to learn. as you will see everyone hair grows at different rates and I think because we are older our hair has slowed down even. but don't worry you will pick up fast on what this means and that means, you should have seen me. lol

 

[GWtheVoice]

welcome to the forum WheelerB and GWtheVoice I hope we all can help you through your journey. wheelerb when my hair was short like yours I use to wear my hair grey and I have always henna even when I didn't have grey and I wanted to see what I look like with salt and pepper once I had enough grey to really show off. I left it like that for over a yr and then I missed what henna did to my hair not just the color. I really miss my salt and pepper hair but my color is so rich and I hate to see 3 colors in my hair so henna always win.

it is really nice being on this forum and there is a ton of things to learn. as you will see everyone hair grows at different rates and I think because we are older our hair has slowed down even. but don't worry you will pick up fast on what this means and that means, you should have seen me. lol

Thanks Shadiyah for the welcome! I'm slowly getting used to how the forum works. Not sure how to do a mention erplexed But thank you so much again. I look forward to learning and sharing on the forums!

 

[beautyintheyes]

It took me some time but I finally got used to my hair. The less I do the more my hair (and my scalp!) likes it. beautyintheyes What oils have you tried on your hair?

I use black castor oil but I have tried jojoba oil cocoanut oil and almond oil and olive oil, lavender essential oil pepper mint and tea tree I like them all but together the same wasn't pleasant and wen I started running out I decided to keep it simple and castor oil was the heaviest and since I don't flat iron my hair I keep to using that

 

[greenandchic]

To the ladies that co-wash daily what benefits did you find in this versus washing less frequently? And to those of you who live in areas with cold winters does this method change when it gets cold or do you still co-wash daily? Thanks so much!!

That is a good question. Cowashed daily for years and found I had better moisture retention but I wasn't caring for my hair that well at the same time. I had a lot of unhealthy hair practices and remained at the same length.

With healthy hair care practices I cowash about every 2-4 days depending on the condition on my hair and how much time I can devote to my hair. I find the benefits are far greater than less frequent washing which doesn't work for my hair and scalp anyway.

I'm in the Pacific NW so though it can get cold, its nothing like the Midwest and NE. We have more rain than anything.

 

[Shadiyah]

That is a good question. Cowashed daily for years and found I had better moisture retention but I wasn't caring for my hair that well at the same time. I had a lot of unhealthy hair practices and remained at the same length.

With healthy hair care practices I cowash about every 2-4 days depending on the condition on my hair and how much time I can devote to my hair. I find the benefits are far greater than less frequent washing which doesn't work for my hair and scalp anyway.

I'm in the Pacific NW so though it can get cold, its nothing like the Midwest and NE. We have more rain than anything.

greenandchic how are you feeling these days? my hair seem like it was stuck as well but I am starting to see some movement again. yaa

 

[greenandchic]

greenandchic how are you feeling these days? my hair seem like it was stuck as well but I am starting to see some movement again. yaa

Shadiyah - I am good; I thought my hair was stuck too! LOL. I'm starting to see progress. I should be at MBL (U shape) soon.

 

[Angel of the North]

Hi all, Wow, I finally got through reading the whole thread. I want long hair too I'm relaxed, currently at APL, my short term goal is BSL and my long term goal is WL then I want to transition back to natural again.

I must admit I'm a bit of a PJ but I'm getting better, I'm on a personal use up my stash challenge and I've got a fair bit to still get through, I'm only buying things I really need if I don't have it in my stash. I think my regimen is not too complicated, it's more the amount of products I've incorporated into it, I will eventually make a choice and whittle down the amount of products, especially the co-wash and prepoo conditioners.

There are 4 DCs that I love and will eventually be my staples, AO HSR, AO IN, AO GPB and ORS replenishing conditioners. I have a moisturizing poo, a balancing poo and a clarifying poo, other than the my keracare oil moisturizer (won't be repurchasing), aphogee and ORS, I am using cone/sulphate/paraben/mineral oil ect free products.

There are 5 moisturizers I would like to try from the bee mine and Komaza lines, a bee mine balancing DC, I'm trying to use natural products and still haven't locked down a moisturizer, eventually I want 2, one with protein and one without.I also want to try the complete mizani supreme oil range. I seal with either hot 6/carrot/papaya/evoo and use them for HOTs too. I'm still tweaking my regi to try and simplify and perfect it, this thread has made me rethink my use of heat and re-start stretching my relaxers for longer, I will now be trimming and relaxing 3 x per year, I'm currently 13 wks post and will be touching up on December 1st.


I wash and DC weekly my regimen goes as follows:
pre-poo with protein con/moisture con/HOT (depending on what my hair needs) on dry hair
co-wash 3 x per month
shampoo 1 x per month
clarify 1 x per month
DC with light protein 2 x per month
DC with moisture 3 x per month
Aphogee 2- step week before and after relaxer
blow dry up to 8 wks post and then air dry till touch up
moisturize and seal

Allandra this is such a great thread, thank you for starting it

 

[Shadiyah]

Shadiyah - I am good; I thought my hair was stuck too! LOL. I'm starting to see progress. I should be at MBL (U shape) soon.

greenandchic that is great. I am no where near MBL... I wish I was. I am not going to worry about it anymore. my scalp is sore now because I was doing plaits for some weeks and I was not co washing everyday or every other day.

so I am taking it slow for right now.

 

[janeemat]

Hello. New to this forum. See the initials: ABL, NL, CBL, what do those all mean?
My hair is natural now, but I wear scarves because not long enough to do braids, buns and other protective styles. Was wearing a very short natural coif for a long time , then went under wigs but honestly did very little to no hair maintenance. Now ready to go full out with natural look and let it grow long. I am a mature woman with grey hair so would love to see pics of ladies like me and how they rock their natural grey. Tks much.

Welcome to the forum! You are not going to find too many silver natural foxes around this neck of the woods. There might be a couple. I have been searching high and low on here for your look. I turned 50 in January, and I always said that I would leave my grey alone at that age. I would love to one day be natural, but right now grey new growth is not cute on relaxed hair. I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to slowly embrace my grey hair. Btw, you have lovely skin as well. But stick around if want to grow that lovely twa to midback length over night

 

[BostonMaria]

Welcome to the forum! You are not going to find too many silver natural foxes around this neck of the woods. There might be a couple. I have been searching high and low on here for your look. I turned 50 in January, and I always said that I would leave my grey alone at that age. I would love to one day be natural, but right now grey new growth is not cute on relaxed hair. I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to slowly embrace my grey hair. Btw, you have lovely skin as well. But stick around if want to grow that lovely twa to midback length over night

I fight the Greys every 2 months. Not sure if I'll ever stop dying my hair. I won't go out without a fight LOL

Sent from my iPhone 10 using LHCF

 

[janeemat]

I fight the Greys every 2 months. Not sure if I'll ever stop dying my hair. I won't go out without a fight LOL

Sent from my iPhone 10 using LHCF

LOL! I touched up my greys at 8 wks post relaxer. They really looked horribly around the 4-6 wk mark, but being relaxed I try not to appy color too often. I think I'm fighting a losing battle.

 

[Shadiyah]

all this talk about grey hair... this is why I henna my hair every month and by it being natural you can do it when ever you like because it will not harm your hair. The only thing is it only comes in one color. I love my red color hair.

 

[Aggie]

all this talk about grey hair... this is why I henna my hair every month and by it being natural you can do it when ever you like because it will not harm your hair. The only thing is it only comes in one color. I love my red color hair.

@Shadiyah, body art quality (BAQ) henna is a natural dye and has no ill effects on hair whether natural, texlaxed, permed, relaxed, or color-treated. I am texlaxed and when I was fully relaxed, I used to henna my hair twice a month with no problems.

The only reason I stopped doing it so often is because I have gotten a little lazy over the last year or two, plus I have no time to do it more often. As you know, henna is no ultra easy task plus, it's quite time consuming. I don't have a whole lot of time on my hands for my hair anymore and I would only henna my hair when I do have some extra time to do so.

I like how henna and indigo leave my hair nicely colored but they leave it quite strong and shiny as well. I just wished I had more time to do it more often.

 

[janeemat]

all this talk about grey hair... this is why I henna my hair every month and by it being natural you can do it when ever you like because it will not harm your hair. The only thing is it only comes in one color. I love my red color hair.

I have never tried henna. I doubt that I will because of the mixed reviews on it. I have read bad reviews about henna and the severe dryness it causes. Grey hair is dry enough without me adding to the problem. I just watched a review on yt a couple days ago about how bad henna was for her hair. I can't think of her yt name at the moment.

 

[Aggie]

^^hmmm, that's too bad about that YT lady who had a bad experience with henna janeemat. I am really sorry to hear that but you know, I would have been that lady if I hadn't kept trying to tweak my henna mix to suit me.

I found out with my last henna treatment that instead of washing out the henna with just conditioner alone, that by washing it out with a sulfate-free moisture rich shampoo first, followed by a rich resorative masque, then a rich moisturizing treatment, that I actually had my best henna treatment ever! And I have been using henna since 2008 and finally after 4 years, I finally have the perfect henna treatment for my hair.

I like to think of myself as "not a quitter" so I kept going until it was perfect for me. In fact, I documented on paper how my hair responded to every henna treatment I gave and the follow up treatment and care I gave it. I feel this is the best way to get to know YOUR hair and what it likes or not like. I would have been doing my hair a great injustice IF I was not as persistant as I was while using henna.

Henna is sooooo good for my hair in so many ways than one. I have gray hairs and henna makes my gray hairs very healthy, shiny and 'young-looking' for a lack of a better expression and I would not trade it for all the commercial dyes on the planet. I it, and I it a lot!

Don't deny yourself the great benefits of henna by listening to all the negative reviews, because some people are not using it correctly. Yes it makes the hair feel a little hard.....at first, but I have tried simple semi-permanent hair color rinses and they also left my hair feeling dry and stripped but I had no lasting effects from them.

I'd rather go and stay with the one that gives me the lasting results. Plus this can easily be corrected by using a good and richly moisturizing conditioner. That's just my 5 cents.

 

[venusfly]

^^hmmm, that's too bad about that YT lady who had a bad experience with henna @janeemat. I am really sorry to hear that but you know, I would have been that lady if I hadn't kept trying to tweak my henna mix to suit me.

I found out with my last henna treatment that instead of washing out the henna with just conditioner alone, that by washing it out with a sulfate-free moisture rich shampoo first, followed by a rich resorative masque, then a rich moisturizing treatment, that I actually had my best henna treatment ever! And I have been using henna since 2008 and finally after 4 years, I finally have the perfect henna treatment for my hair.

I like to think of myself as "not a quitter" so I kept going until it was perfect for me. In fact, I documented on paper how my hair responded to every henna treatment I gave and the follow up treatment and care I gave it. I feel this is the best way to get to know YOUR hair and what it likes or not like. I would have been doing my hair a great injustice IF I was not as persistant as I was while using henna.

Henna is sooooo good for my hair in so many ways than one. I have gray hairs and henna makes my gray hairs very healthy, shiny and 'young-looking' for a lack of a better expression and I would not trade it for all the commercial dyes on the planet. I it, and I it a lot!

Don't deny yourself the great benefits of henna by listening to all the negative reviews, because some people are not using it correctly. Yes it makes the hair feel a little hard.....at first, but I have tried simple semi-permanent hair color rinses and they also left my hair feeling dry and stripped but I had no lasting effects from them.

I'd rather go and stay with the one that gives me the lasting results. Plus this can easily be corrected by using a good and richly moisturizing conditioner. That's just my 5 cents.

Very well said. I don't use henna myself, but it sounds like henna (like protein) get a bad rap because people don't condition and moisturize well enough after they do henna or (protein) treatments.

 

[IronButterfly]

I have never tried henna. I doubt that I will because of the mixed reviews on it. I have read bad reviews about henna and the severe dryness it causes. Grey hair is dry enough without me adding to the problem. I just watched a review on yt a couple days ago about how bad henna was for her hair. I can't think of her yt name at the moment.

As someone with a burgeoning crop of gray matter invading my space, I have to chime in on this one and say with great certainty that you can put your fears aside. Henna, when done correctly, does not harm or dry out gray hair. What does done correctly mean? It means, finding the formula that works for you!

I truly believe if one has hair that leans naturally towards dryness, then acidic liquids like lemon juice and ACV should be avoided. Henna can simply be mixed with warm water. This goes a loooooooooooooooooooong way in combating dryness. In fact, I have my henna technique so refined I NEVER suffer from dry hair. In fact, if I wanted to, I could skip the moisturizing dc afterwards if I wanted to.

So, I'm going to re-iterate, don't let someone else's shade deter you from the henna-zone!

i mean, if it's not your thing, cool. It is definitely NOT for errrbody. It's messy. It stinks. It's time consuming. But, dayamit, Janet! It is the BEST thing that ever happened to MY hair, and a whole lot of us henna heads have reaped the benefits. The secret to henna is knowing how to make it work for your hair.

OK...climbing down now...

 

[greenandchic]

Very well said. I don't use henna myself, but it sounds like henna (like protein) get a bad rap because people don't condition and moisturize well enough after they do henna or (protein) treatments.

Especially if folks are using any ole kind of "henna" - the store brought stuff and "henna hair color" with like 10% henna in it. I don't know what kind the YT woman used but that mistake is pretty common.

 

[newgrowth15]

After reading the last few posts, I feel like henna was a best friend that somehow got insulted. I agree with all of those sentiments. Henna is something you have to experiment with to find what works for YOUR hair. I mix 1 cup of moisturizing conditioner into my henna. I don't add any acidic products because that was too drying for my hair. I like what henna does for my hair and how it makes my hair look and feel afterwards. It is definitely one of those things you have to try for yourself.

 

[Shadiyah]

well my hair color came out great as always, I still deep conditioning my hair and still babying my ends. Ive gain some inches but don't know just how may at this time.

 

[janeemat]

As someone with a burgeoning crop of gray matter invading my space, I have to chime in on this one and say with great certainty that you can put your fears aside. Henna, when done correctly, does not harm or dry out gray hair. What does done correctly mean? It means, finding the formula that works for you!

I truly believe if one has hair that leans naturally towards dryness, then acidic liquids like lemon juice and ACV should be avoided. Henna can simply be mixed with warm water. This goes a loooooooooooooooooooong way in combating dryness. In fact, I have my henna technique so refined I NEVER suffer from dry hair. In fact, if I wanted to, I could skip the moisturizing dc afterwards if I wanted to.

So, I'm going to re-iterate, don't let someone else's shade deter you from the henna-zone!

i mean, if it's not your thing, cool. It is definitely NOT for errrbody. It's messy. It stinks. It's time consuming. But, dayamit, Janet! It is the BEST thing that ever happened to MY hair, and a whole lot of us henna heads have reaped the benefits. The secret to henna is knowing how to make it work for your hair.

OK...climbing down now...

Thanks for chiming in! I would say it's really 50/50 when it comes to henna reviews. The messy part really does not bother me because I have experimented with the indian powders. It's just the fear of extreme dryness. I have never used lemon juice of ACV and don't plan to. PM me your henna regi please.

 

[WheelerB]

Thank you ladies for all the comments. I had not been back in the forum since I posted and learning my way around this forum. Actually, now I have plaits that are about 4-5 inches long. I went under wigs about 1.5 to 2 years ago and did bascially nothing to my hair except wash every few months. Believe it or not, that's what I did. Did not want to be bothered. Got tired of the wigs (and the grey edges showing) so decided to rock the scarves for awhile (that's what I do now). Then I discovered this world of natural hair care, this forum and yes......youtube (the natural hair videos). I had no idea that black hair could grow so long, other than the ladies I always called,..."the ones with good hair".... I grew up in the 50s and 60s. I will chronicle my odyssey, will set up a blog soon and maybe, just maybe I'll venture into the youtube thing. I'll post some pictures here soon on where I am now. I'm just beginning to love my hair for the first time in my life and very anxious to see the results of my new care routine. Tweeking it now to see what gives me the best results. Really excited about what lays ahead. On BTW, I'm a Silver Fox and ready to rock that. (Thanks, I like that term). For me, life is about the simple things and I can't be obsessing about white roots every few days. So I'm embracing my greys, (I earned very one of them. Been told, its a sign of wisdom) just want them healthy and, yes, long. I can see myself now with beautiful braids down my back or twisted around my head. Oh yea, gotta rock the hair accessories.

I also wished that I had known about natural hair care when my grand baby was born 5 years ago. But I know now and having fun with her hair too. I know that it would have been much longer had we known how to take care of it. But it's responding quickly and it's so soft now.

Will post pictures soon.

Thanks for all the comments, ladies.

 

[greenandchic]

Thanks for chiming in! I would say it's really 50/50 when it comes to henna reviews. The messy part really does not bother me because I have experimented with the indian powders. It's just the fear of extreme dryness. I have never used lemon juice of ACV and don't plan to. PM me your henna regi please.

For me the henna mess is nothing compared to conventional hair dyes which are mostly liquid. My mixed henna is brownie batter consistency so its less likely to drip and stain unlike regular hair color.

 

[offthechainliz]

Thank you ladies for all the comments. I had not been back in the forum since I posted and learning my way around this forum. Actually, now I have plaits that are about 4-5 inches long. I went under wigs about 1.5 to 2 years ago and did bascially nothing to my hair except wash every few months. Believe it or not, that's what I did. Did not want to be bothered. Got tired of the wigs (and the grey edges showing) so decided to rock the scarves for awhile (that's what I do now). Then I discovered this world of natural hair care, this forum and yes......youtube (the natural hair videos). I had no idea that black hair could grow so long, other than the ladies I always called,..."the ones with good hair".... I grew up in the 50s and 60s. I will chronicle my odyssey, will set up a blog soon and maybe, just maybe I'll venture into the youtube thing. I'll post some pictures here soon on where I am now. I'm just beginning to love my hair for the first time in my life and very anxious to see the results of my new care routine. Tweeking it now to see what gives me the best results. Really excited about what lays ahead. On BTW, I'm a Silver Fox and ready to rock that. (Thanks, I like that term). For me, life is about the simple things and I can't be obsessing about white roots every few days. So I'm embracing my greys, (I earned very one of them. Been told, its a sign of wisdom) just want them healthy and, yes, long. I can see myself now with beautiful braids down my back or twisted around my head. Oh yea, gotta rock the hair accessories.

I also wished that I had known about natural hair care when my grand baby was born 5 years ago. But I know now and having fun with her hair too. I know that it would have been much longer had we known how to take care of it. But it's responding quickly and it's so soft now.

Will post pictures soon.

Thanks for all the comments, ladies.

I know how you feel. I've been mostly sporting wigs and not bothering with my hair for the past few years also. I think actually tracking the progress is the KEY to success which i failed to do the first time around. I wont be making that mistake again! Cant wait to see your blog. happy hair growing!

 

[havilland]

hey chicas, i posted some updates in my fotki. (link is in siggy)

i am still transitioning on my 2-3 year plan. one year down......i am at 18 months post and trimming gradually to get rid of the chemicals.

after reading all these posts on henna, i can see it in my future. off to research....

 

[Babygrowth]

I wish I would've read this a month ago before I dyed my hair (about henna)... thanks Aggie! I think I will incorporate this into my regimen next year... just hope it doesn't turn my dyed hair orange or burgandy

 

[HoneyA]

There is some good advice in this thread! I'll be using aloe vera gel and castor oil on my hair until the end of the year and a light leave in moisturiser as part of my night time regimen. I'd like to see what that does in 6 weeks so I'll know if this is a regimen I can continue on my natural hair. I need as little product build-up as possible and I love that both the aloe vera gel and the leave-in are light and my hair is seeming to love them. I keep my hair protected at all times now that it's SL again.

 

[newgrowth15]

HoneyA, best wishes on your HHJ. I live by the aloe vera gel for my hair. I only use it after I use shampoo to restore my proper pH balance and I love how it makes my hair feel. I have to dilute castor oil with either EVOO or water--it is just too thick for me to apply it directly to the strands.