Naturals/Transitioners/Stretchers - Do you have a new definition??

[Whimsy]

I've noticed that my definition of "done" hair or "neat" hair has changed DRAMATICALLY from my days pre 2005 when being natural was never on my radar.

During my transitions I notice I don't care about lil mini frizzies, don't desire a completely 100% smooth/flat hairline... etc.

Have any of your definitions about hair changed with your stretch, transition, or after going natural?

 

[MummysGirl]

Yes, once I started airdrying and stretching my relaxers, my hair didn't have to be smooth to look presentable.

Now that I am transitioning, as long as my hair is not pointing in different directions (lol), I'm good

 

[Gracie]

I care more about my edges now than when I relaxed. When I was relaxed they laid down, now I'm always checking to see if it is sticking up because I have curly hair or is it sticking up because it's breaking and can't reach the ponytail.

 

[Eisani]

My haistyles have changed dramatically so in that way, my definition of done has changed, but I do NOT like frizzy untamed edges on my head! 90% of the time my edges and top of my hair are smoothed. Granted, very wavy, but I'll take waves over fluffy frizz any day. Then again I think I have a complex about it from childhood when my friends used to call me Tigger because of the dirty blonde tufts of frizzy hair that always puffed out along my edges like whiskers

 

[Junebug D]

Not exactly. My hair was hardly ever "neat" when I was relaxed-- I guess my mom was inadvertently "stretching" my relaxers for periods of 1 year+ at times! I always had puffy edges and frizz and a full bushy look. If anything, some of my natural styles look neater than my hair did when I was relaxed. Going natural really wasn't a complete shock to my system, to be honest.

 

[Leeda.the.Paladin]

In a way. I don't care as much about frizziness.

 

[that_1_grrrl]

Kinda. I think as soon as I co-wash for the day, my hair is done. When I was relaxed, it was a day-long process. It gets real annoying when people say things like, "I like it when your hair is done." To me, my hair is "done".

 

[Carrie A]

Yes, day to day I just wet and wear. I just fluff the coils with my fingers. I don't have time to smooth each coil to perfection. That means some days are frizzier than others. I like my hairline to have a little texture although I usually brush it back lightly. A rollerset day, I supposed, could be a classic "done hair day" for me.

 

[RMichelleM]

i've always liked a neat look and i still prefer my hair to be smooth but i found that i am more lenient with frizz now that im natural.

 

[LadyKaypnyc]

Same here OP, I used to be a stickler for extremely smooth edges, now I don't stress it anymore, and in most cases, the little hairs make the style look better and I don't use gel as much as used to....

 

[LadyKaypnyc]

i've always liked a neat look and i still prefer my hair to be smooth but i found that i am more lenient with frizz now that im natural.

I love your fotki girl....all the styles are too cute!

 

[vainღ♥♡jane]

when i was natural i never cared about frizz or my ages being super slick. i embraced all the pros/cons of my natural hair lol. now that i am transitioning, i do keep trying styles that hide my poofy roots, because my hair looks like a wig with all the new growth erplexed

i've always liked a neat look and i still prefer my hair to be smooth but i found that i am more lenient with frizz now that im natural.

your hair is so cute in your siggy! off to stalk your fotki

 

[Whimsy]

BUMPING this because I wanted to ask the question today but realized I already had.

I think the longer I stay natural, and become okay with renegade curls and frizzies, the looser my definition of "done" becomes.

 

[halee_J]

I don't think it changes for me honestly. Right now I'm transitioning for the third time, been natural 2x and I still feel the same way about frizz...Hate it! Now, frizz-free does not equal defined curl pattern, it just means that all the hair is laying in an organized fashion, in the same direction i.e. little to no stray hairs sticking out in odd directions. When my hair is frizzy I feel like my hair is untidy.

 

[Nonie]

I don't think it's a change of definition for me really. Relaxed hair and natural hair are like apples and oranges so I've never really associated one look with another. Like when someone with curly hair makes a ballet bun, I would not be surprised to see waves on the front part where the hair is pulled back. But someone with straight hair, I expect to not see any wave and that ballet bun would not be at it's best if it wasn't smooth.

Similarly, when 4B hair is pulled back, I'd not expect to see waves or smoothness of straight hair, but would expect the front to look like my hair does here:

I suppose it's because I am so familiar with what 4B hair can do that I never had expectations greater than what is normal for it. I do think when beady beads form at the hairline it doesn't look that great but they can be brushed out so that even if they are raised they aren't separated in a way that looks like no one cared.

But I can see for someone who's never known anything else but smooth relaxed hair, how accepting frizz once they become natural can be viewed as changing the definition of "done". "Done" to me has always been relative to the hair pattern/texture in question so there was no change to be made.

 

[MyAngelEyez~C~U]

Occasional frizziness is part of natural territory so I don't stress much about it. I worry more about the shape of my styles... I hate lopsided, mis-shapened hair, lol.


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[NaturalEnigma]

My definition of done has changed. When my hair was relaxed if it didn't have the right body, bounce, curl, or shine, I thought of it as having a bad hair day, now that I'm natural, I let a lot of things slide. Frizzes, undefined curls, you name it. I'm not that obsessed with how my hair looks anymore, I just let it do what it do, and however my hair looks after I attempt to fix it is considered done to me.

 

[carameldimples]

Nonie really??? I have 4b hair and when I gel it back it waves up. Now without it it looks just like your pics but with some gel and condish I get krinkly waves, LOL.

 

[Nonie]

Nonie really??? I have 4b hair and when I gel it back it waves up. Now without it it looks just like your pics but with some gel and condish I get krinkly waves, LOL.

carameldimples I can get waves if I use gel and brush--in other words if I do something extra which is kind of like shingling to create a look. But the point I'm making is, if hair's just smoothed back, without doing all that extra stuff or slathering on products that create a certain look, there's a way it will behave that is characteristic of its pattern/texture. And because I know that, I don't expect anything more or less from the hair in question.

 

[carameldimples]

oh ok Nonie, I know that my texture looks a lot like yours without any product, so we are definitely hair fam(twins/cousins) lol, I am transitioning and I know everyone says wait until you BC but now at 9/10 months post I am pretty certain that I am 4b majority (so are my mom and dad) i have some renegades as someone else put it that like to do the 4a thing but for the most part its 98% 4b!

 

[Carrie A]

BUMPING this because I wanted to ask the question today but realized I already had.

I think the longer I stay natural, and become okay with renegade curls and frizzies, the looser my definition of "done" becomes.

I agree. I recently attended a wedding where my hair was in a braid out. The same type of braid out that I would wear anyday. It looked just fine. In the past I might have done a rollerset for such an occasion. There has been a shift for me.