My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/pres

[Chioniso]

My little one is one of the only brown faces in her class and wants hair like her friends. I have explained that her natural hair is special, beautiful etc but she still wants it done.

I do not have much experience of straightening or pressing hair. She has lovely long THICK natural 4b/4c hair. When I was little my mum would heat up a heavy metal comb on an open fire and use that with vaseline but I think we have moved on from those days, lol.

Any suggestions. I do not want to spend too much. Some of my white friends swear by ghd but obviously theirs is completely different hair. I am in the UK so I don't know what difference there is in brands etc but I could do with some suggestions.

 

[Austro-Afrikana]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

I don't think you should give in IMO, especially if there is such a reason behind it; to be like her white friends. You should keep on reassuring here and create new and unique hairstyles for her friends to fawn over. Get her hair canerowed in elaborate styles, create cute braid out puffs...etc.

I think straightening or worse, relaxing her hair to be like her friends will only be damaging to her self esteem in the long run.

 

[tru4reele]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

How old is she? If she is old enough u could do some individual box braids. Something that will not disturb her curl pattern but give her some length that she can put up n other styles. Or some long cornrows braided with weave for length. These will last longer than a press and will not damage her hair. I don't think she is trying to be like her white friends, she just wants something different. If she is too young for weave then do some individual twists all over which will give u styling options. If u must straighten I love the Sedu flat iron and Kera Care pressing creme.

 

[HauteHippie]

If she is old enough, you could flat iron it using a good heat protectant like FHI Hot Sauce or Hana Shine Shield.

The Croc (classic, I think with the rounded edge) is a good and inexpensive flat iron. Especially if this is something she wont have done to her hair often. She can do flat twist or something when it starts to puff up and maybe that will be something different for her, too.

Also, are you sure she wants to do it b/c of her friends? Sometimes people just want a change. Whenever my brother or I wanted to do something different, my older family members would say it had to do with our "little white friends." Please! Those kids were fulling US around. If we'd walked off the moon, they'd be the first ones strapping on moon shoes.

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[ChristmasCarol]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

@Chioniso

I straightened all 3 of my daughter's hair whenever they wanted. I don't see it as harmful - as long as the hair can withstand it without damage. All three have very long hair and they love to change it up!

I leave in a little condish, add heat protectant and then air-dry in plaits overnight. I add more heat protectant as I flatiron the next day. (I avoid blow-drying to minimize heat use)

I use the Maxiglide or the Corioliss Titanium Flatirons set on 320 degrees F. I don't really like a bone-straight look on little girls, so I give it one pass and leave it slightly textured.

Here's a pic of my youngest DD's (she's 7) flatironed hair from last month:

PLEASE DO NOT RELAX YOUR DAUGHTER'S HAIR!!! 9 times out of 10, the hair will start to break and will lose both length and thickness.

BTW, I haven't noticed any correlation between straightening/not straightening hair and self-esteem in my own DD's or any of the girls in my family. Personally, I wouldn't worry about it, unless the child is obsessed or fixated regarding straight hair.

I emphasize that our hair can do E-VER-Y-THING - silky straight, curly, kinky, etc. No other hair is as versatile as kinky/curly hair!

 

[SuchaLady]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

The Izunami is a good one. FHI gives amazing results too. I suggest looking at Amazon or Ebay. I see nothing wrong with periodic straightening either. No body wants the same style all the time and children are not exempt. I think I may take the thermal route with my future girls every now and then if we dont take the relaxer route (by then Im sure it will be some new invention hopefully a more healthy one)

 

[lesedi]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

If you do decide to straighten, use the comb chase method and from the research i've been doing, I'd do with a set of GHDs

look on youtube for loads of tutorials

good luck xx

 

[Chioniso]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

If she is old enough, you could flat iron it using a good heat protectant like FHI Hot Sauce or Hana Shine Shield.

The Croc (classic, I think with the rounded edge) is a good and inexpensive flat iron. Especially if this is something she wont have done to her hair often. She can do flat twist or something when it starts to puff up and maybe that will be something different for her, too.

Also, are you sure she wants to do it b/c of her friends? Sometimes people just want a change. Whenever my brother or I wanted to do something different, my older family members would say it had to do with our "little white friends." Please! Those kids were fulling US around. If we'd walked off the moon, they'd be the first ones strapping on moon shoes.

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Thanks for the suggestions

EtherealEnigma I have looked on ebay.co.uk and amazon.co.uk and don't see anything 'Croc' in the hair & beauty or electrical, only those ugly shoes - does it have another name?

I do agree people of all ages like a change sometimes, but she is always going on about straight hair and hair that moves like Jessica etc.

 

[Chioniso]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

sipp100 No worries - I do not plan to relax her hair. I relaxed mine at 16 and that's when it went from long, thick & healthy to all sorts of problems. Your youngest is the same age as mine and has beautiful hair - you've done yourself proud.

I have the book hair story on my shelf and have read a bit of it, but even without reading it I know that straightening afro hair is a loaded topic and can be linked to self esteem but not always. Thanks everyone for the advice.

 

[texasqt]

!!!!!!!!! Please watch this!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffjZQQIGelg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

From our own westNDNbeauty!

I use this technique all the time with one of my Sedus.


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[cheryl26]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

I think anyone can use a GHD? That's what I use. Maybe instead of flat ironing it you can rollerset it. I think a lot of women on here do that instead of ironing. I found this lady had a nice result http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSOgCr9Frrs

 

[HauteHippie]

Thanks for the suggestions

EtherealEnigma I have looked on ebay.co.uk and amazon.co.uk and don't see anything 'Croc' in the hair & beauty or electrical, only those ugly shoes - does it have another name?

I do agree people of all ages like a change sometimes, but she is always going on about straight hair and hair that moves like Jessica etc.

Well, I hope things work out. Here is a link to the flat iron I meant: http://www.misikko.com/turbo-ion-croc.html But in the Sephora store it was like 79 or 89. Maybe it was on sale. I tried to look up whether or not they ship internationally, but can't find it using my phone. You've probably already heard this, but I'd advised against any iron with the word "hot" in the title, that is marketed specifically for us. They're like the BB green hair grease of the flat iron world.

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[Chioniso]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

Well, I hope things work out. Here is a link to the flat iron I meant: http://www.misikko.com/turbo-ion-croc.html But in the Sephora store it was like 79 or 89. Maybe it was on sale. I tried to look up whether or not they ship internationally, but can't find it using my phone. You've probably already heard this, but I'd advised against any iron with the word "hot" in the title, that is marketed specifically for us. They're like the BB green hair grease of the flat iron world.

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Thanks for the link. btw I've never heard the 'hot' thing before - tell me more.

 

[Chioniso]

Re: My dd wants her hair straight - best non-relaxer method? what brand of flat iron/

I think anyone can use a GHD? That's what I use. Maybe instead of flat ironing it you can rollerset it. I think a lot of women on here do that instead of ironing. I found this lady had a nice result http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSOgCr9Frrs

Whenever I used to rollerset I would look like I had been dragged through a hedge. I will practice on my dd if she will sit still long enough and by the time mine is long enough for rollers I will be an expert.

 

[HauteHippie]

Thanks for the link. btw I've never heard the 'hot' thing before - tell me more.

Brands like Hot Tools, Gold-n-Hot. They're marketed as Black hair tools (like, they're even hot enough to get your Black hair straight), but I think they fry your hair causing bubbles and splits. I tried the Hot Tools flat iron about 2 years ago and had to cut it all off.

Also, if your daughter will sit for a pony tail rollerset, you could try that then flat iron on a lower temperature.

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