Kinda Scared....Naturals pls read

[tinkat]

I have been on here for a while but have not posted in the hair section for a lonnng time...

I decided to go natural about 2 years ago and I have been officially natural for about a year now...I used weaves as my transitioning tool and now it is hard for me not to wear it! It is so convinient...but I am ready to wear my own hair out now and money is kind of tight to get my weave done.

The person who does my weave is luckily a natural herself so she use to wash my hair and everything before she did my weave...But I need to do it myself now. I am busy with school and work, but this hair needs to be taken out and washed...I have an idea on how to do the basics with washing my watching my hairstylist wash my hair.... but I want to know some basic impt tips when washing hair, moisturizing, and the right comb to use bc although I have been natural for a while...I have no idea how to take care of it!!!

 

[Evolving78]

I'm bumping this for you so you can getsome more responses, but once you take the weave out, make sure that you detangle your hair before you wash it. Use some type of thick conditioner or moisturize (water based) to help you to avoid breakage. Detangle in sections and be very gentle. It should take you a few minutes.
Next, you should get some clips, or bands (ouchless) or even braid your hair into sections. You may want to use a clarifying shampoo first to get rid of all of the buildup in your hair. Wash each section concentrating on your scalp more then your hair. Rinse each section and then repeat with a moisturizing shampoo.
Slather on a creamy moisturizing conditioner(Nothing with silcones in them, do a search to find out the names of them) and use your favorite oil, like olive, castor etc... Sit with a plastic cap for with a towel 30 minutes to an hour or so (make sure your still keep your hair in sections)

*you can detangle your hair before or after you rinse the conditioner out. make sure you use a wide tooth comb.*
Rinse the conditioner and use a moisturizing leave in conditioner and seal in moisture with an oil.

You should style your hair while it is still damp to make the styling process easier and to avoid breakage.

I hope some more people with give you some more ideas. Hope this helps!

 

[LynnieB]

how much hair are you working with? describe your hair; kinky/curly, thick/thin, dry, porous, etc. what will you be using to poo/cowash/deep condition with?

the easiest style i can think of are simple 2-strand twists (for an "in" style)- any one can do these with no problem. anyone can do a twist-out too so you have 2 quick and easy options right there. if you know how to braid, you can do box braids or cornrows and wear an "out" style from those too!

for an "out" style, definitely a wash n go is an easy style to do for some (not all lol). After my bc, the wash n go was fine but it's grown out more and i'm not feeling the wng anymore because it seems to cause too many tangling problems.

what was your hair doing (sorry) under the weave? braided, cornrowed? and for how long?

the longer the hair was weaved up, the more patient you'll have to be with detangling and removing the shed hair.

so happy to hear you're wanting to take control of your own hair!!!

Plenty of ladies around here to help you out!!!

 

[LynnieB]

I'm bumping this for you so you can getsome more responses

I hope some more people with give you some more ideas. Hope this helps!

get outta my head shortydub LOL. it took me about 10 minutes to type something cause i felt her pain and didn't see any responses lol - when i hit "post", there you were .

 

[zzirvingj]

Well, congrats to you for deciding to wear your hair out more! Have fun with it as you learn new ways to take care of, and appreciate your hair.

I mention how I wash and detangle in my regimen here:

http://public.fotki.com/shortiedowop/hair_album/my-regimen/hair.html

How long is your hair and what styles are you thinking of wearing it in? Like the other posters said, you need to use a wide-toothed comb to detangle your hair. Make sure that you detangle it one section at a time. (I like to twist my hair, soak it down with conditioner, and detangle each twist with a wide-toothed comb, one twist at a time. I do this all in the shower underneath running water. For me, I find having the hair soaked with conditioner and underneath running water when you detangle it makes it soooo much easier to detangle.)

I'm sure some others will chime in with more help...

 

[tinkat]

Thanx alot for the responses! I really appreciate it...

My hair is thick, kinky, 4a/4b...I honestly don't know the length of my hair..but when I last stretched it it was to my around my collar bone, its enough to wear a nice fro if I wanted to...

I usually try to get my weave done 4-8 weeks but its time to take a break for good...My actual hair is cornrolled with a hair net

I just want to start wearing it out gradually and do something simple like twist outs, very low matinence styling.

I have been looking a what I have as far as hair products bc it has been a while since I have brought products...

I have cream of nature detangling condtioning shampoo, LeKair cholesterol plus (been using that since I was little), Elasta QP Rovery Oil moisturizer, and Nizoral shampoo ( my hairstylist kept telling me to get that and I always forgot to)

I am going to pick a few more things later on today...thanx again!

 

[Guapa1]

Okay, when you take your hair out of the cornrows, part your hair into sections and braid into about 6 big sections... Can you braid? If not use some bands to keep your hair in sections. Wash your hair in these section, it will be a lot easier than trying to do it loose. Keep your hair in those sections for your LeKair treatment.

You have to decide when you want to detangle, I detangle before a wash, some detangle while they are under the shower head. Which ever you decide, make sure you have something that gives your hair some slip.

When you wash that off while your hair is still damp use your moisturiser. I'd say get some castor oil for your ends. It really is a wonder oil, search it on here.

From here you need to decide how you want to style your hair.

 

[DarkVictory]

Don't be scared! You'll get the hang of taking care of your hair. There's no one way that works for everybody.

Here are two threads on detangling.
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showthread.php?t=158139
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/archive/index.php/t-46865.html

Some things that work for me:
Don't mush hair around in a big pile of shampoo suds. Use gentle finger action and the water pressure from the shower to detangle as you rinse.

Detangle from the ends up, not from scalp to ends.

Start with a simple regimen and add on as you learn what works.

My hair routine:
conditioner wash once or twice a week
detangle in the shower (I use a brush)
towel dry (again, no mushing the hair around into tangles)
Apply jojoba or olive oil
braid/twist and let air dry or apply light alcohol-free gel and pull back into a puff.
Deep conditioner about once a month, shampoo occasionally.

There are some things I don't do that work well for others on this board, like baggying, oil rinses, vinegar rinses, and leave-ins. Try searching for those threads.

Some guaranteed ways to drive yourself crazy with natural hair:
trying to remove every knot, every day, 100% of the time
piling on more and more products just to be trying something
continuing to do things that don't work

Good luck, and keep us posted on your progress!

Dark Victory

http://public.fotki.com/DarkVictory/
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