Naturals: Please give me tips for straightening cus reversion is beating me!

[alanaj]

Ladies,o I could stre
I am a new natural. I HAVE NOT been able to get my hair to stay straight for more than 10 mins!
So far I have tried rollersetting then flat ironing ( I will include pics of this in a min, just need to figure out how to work it). I've also tried air-drying in braids so I could stretch the hair out before flat ironing. I tried using the maxi-glide so I have steam and a ceramic so there is none. I used a leave-in and then I tried without etc etc.
So the like 6 times I've tried I just give up because it's not working.
This time I rollerset and my hair was straight! But only for 20 mins because by the time I flat ironed a small piece it already started reverting.
Pic 1= The only way I could get it to stay straight was to pincurl it as I went along
Pic 2= Took down the pin curls and it went from straight to this in half hour. Hair after it has been rollerset and flat-ironed then left open for only a half hour. NO WATER TOUCHED MY HAIR!

How do I get a good press that last more than 2 mins?

 

[alanaj]

Here is a pic of my hair about 15 mins after I left it down. While it was reverting...
Btw I just wanted to let you all know, I am an international LHCF member so Sabino is not an option for me.erplexed So any other suggestions would be appreciated

 

[MissJ]

Have you tried blowdrying with a Denman brush to straighten initially and then going over it with a flat iron?

 

[alanaj]

Yes blowdrying last an even shorter time than rollersetting did.

 

[alanaj]

bump for more responses

 

[ladylibra]

Try Sabino Moisture Block. Works great for a lot of us

 

[Nonie]

I'm telling you try my method. Took me longer than most coz I didn't want to use heat to stretch my hair so used Curlformers instead, and since wet-to-dry has always been my tried and true method to get silky straight hair, I decided to do it more safely this time and wet-to-dry not hair damp with water, but hair damp with a heat protectant. Then instead of Sabino Block (you can use Sabino), I used John Frieda Thermal Protection Serum. I had a press that I cannot stop smiling about. I think the extra precaution I took this time protecting my hair made the biggest difference for me. I didn't have a single whiff of burning protein/hair that I always remember smelling when I pressed my hair in the past. Not even when I wet my hair to wash it. I can't stop when I replay the entire experience.

Below was my process but you really don't have to do all I did. Just DC with a protein and moisturizing product. I think conditioning with a heat protecting conditioner is good too coating your hair really well. Do a wet-to-dry press with a heat protectant. Do a final press with a heat protectant serum. The bold products I think are the main reason I think my press went so well. Also work on very small sections at a time.

I had been in tiny twists. So I undid twists a few at a time, detangling with fingers and then applied GPB to dry hair and Giovanni Magnetic Restructuring Conditioner to provide slip so I could comb with my fine-tooth "bone comb" from Korea. Then I would combine several twists, already detangled and combed, into one big plait to get them out of the way while I worked on another set.

That took FOREVER and I ended up going to bed with a cap w/ the conditioners in my hair coz I was too tired to rinse my hair.

Next day, washed hair with Organics Italian Red Grape Shampoo (LOVE the smell!) and Garnier Fructis (I washed with Garnier too because I just figured the "strength" it promises to give hair might just be something I could use in preparation for the press--but I don't think you need to be this extra in washing your hair). I would undo each plait to clean, comb, then rebraid it.

Finally going through the undo/rebraid process again for the rinse cycle, one plait at a time. Next I applied CHI Infra Treatment to each braid section, undoing it and parting into small sections to ensure each strand was covered, then combing through. (I applied the CHI the way you would relaxer making sure I coated every strand really well.) I did not rebraid this time.

After waiting a few minutes, I rinsed thoroughly and then finger-parted the hair to braid sections which I combed well with a wide-tooth "bone comb" (really resin) before plaiting. Hair was dripping wet. (This plaiting was really to keep my hair from shrinking into a compact mass that would be hard to work with.)

Next I undid each dripping wet section and finger parted and installed a Curlformer. Plan was to stretch hair w/o heat first. The link shows how my hair looked after it had dried in Curlformers.

Then since I like wet-to-dry presses, instead of using just water as before, I decided to use John Frieda Frizz-Ease Heat Defeat Protective Styling Spray to wet my hair and provide protection. I did this on the post CF hair, section by section. I ran the flat iron once to get a blow-dried effect on each section.

Then I applied John Frieda Frizz-Ease Hair Serum, Thermal Protection Formula and went over it again for a smooth finish.

My hair was still silky straight 3 days later when I got ready to wash it as the long weekend I had planned to braid my hair was knocking at the door. And when I washed it, reversion was complete and (I repeat) my hair didn't have the slightest smell of burned hair. All I smelled was my shampoo and conditioner.

 

[alanaj]

I am going to try your suggestion. I never thought of adding more product after the first pass. I also only get a blow dried effect after the first pass so I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed!
THANK U NONIE!

 

[otegwu]

Some may not agree

but i find that natural hair that hasn't been pressed esp 4a/b in a while wont press very straight until its done the next time.
so your next press may be better. I find that my presses are ham if ive not pressed in a long time.

But others may say its all in the technique!

 

[Nonie]

I am going to try your suggestion. I never thought of adding more product after the first pass. I also only get a blow dried effect after the first pass so I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed!
THANK U NONIE!

You're welcome, but I don't think it's just adding product. I think the secret is in the wet-to-dry press first (or if you don't want to do that a wet-to-dry rollerset might work. In the past I just did this with water only but this time I was determined to take all the precautiona I could so used a protectant instead of water. Prior to discovering wet-to-dry presses, I could never get a really good press. I used to get the results you got. I think working on narrow sections also makes a difference.)

Here's a peek at a previous wet-to-press hair--only no heat protectants here.

No product wet-to-dry (I would not advise you to do this):

Final press results with Lustrasilk Smooth Ends Leave-In and L'Oreal Vive Smooth Intense Anti-Frizz Serum:

Otegwu, I really do think technique has a lot to do with it than how often you press. Of course if you get heat damage, your hair will appear to press better, the next time you press. My hair had not been pressed since 2006 when I pressed it in April 2009. Actually, most of the hair from 2006 was chopped off in Feb 2007 so I was left with only about 3 inches stretched. So most of the hair I pressed in April was virgin hair that had never been pressed.

 

[music-bnatural-smile]

I have been natural my whole life and this has always worked for me...
oh btw, your hair MUST be all the way straight before you use flat irons or else it will poof up, and roller sets might not work for you lady, your hair looks a bit like mine...

1. 
   [*]use a leave in conditioner and something ultra moisturizing like KC oil moisturizer...
   [*]blow dry
   [*]let it chill... walk around poofy for a day
   [*]next day... hot comb (electric ones are safer for burn control)
   [*]flat iron on a medium high setting (use a spray on heat protectant instead of pressin creme, the cremes have too much moisture to keep it straight)...
   [*]wrap it for 24 hrs

if you like the look of roller wraps, I would blow dry or hot comb and then do the roller set. natural hair needs so much more training and heat to achieve a lasting straight look...
u can also blow dry and then do braidouts and twistouts for a more stretched look...
hope this works!

 

[princessnad]

Steam your hair before hand