Naturals who have successfully loosened curls or texture NATURALLY?

CenteredGirl said:
Baking soda has significantly loosened my texture. For me it's the key to retaining length. If hair is too coily, the natural sebum, which IMHO is the ultimate protector and keeps moisture in, can not be adequately spread. Hence, hair doesn't retain moisture very well and tends to get dry and break off easily --

I am 4ab so my coils are naturally tight and naturally dry. If I am to make gains, I need to find a way to loosen and moisturize.
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Very interesting post...what exactly is sebum? I've read that the kinkier the hair texture, the harder it is for natural oils or anything that moisturizes hair to travel down the length of the entire hair shaft....thus kinkier hair is usually way more prone to dryness and breakage. Have you found from experience that loosening your hair has helped with moisture?
 
Sebum is a natural oil/lubricant that your scalp produces. It is true that the kinkier and coilier the hair, the harder it is for the sebum to make it to the ends of each strand. I think this was the science behind that whole "100 strokes a night" thing when it came to brushing your hair. the brushing spread the natural oil throughout the hair, so it cleansed/stimulated the scalp, AND helped your hair condition. Of course if you have kinky/coily hair all that brushing is probably not an option.

I think the consensus was that Jojoba Oil was the closest in consistency/make up to natural sebum.
 
vkb247 said:
I'm not trying to start something.... but doesn't direct heat cause some amount of damage to the hair over time no matter how well you look after the hair. Because it will cause bonds in the hair to break with continued use? Correct me in I'm wrong but I mean damage in the same way that relaxed hair is damaged hair = it has had a permanent change to the bonds that naturally exist.

Please don't shoot me :nono:
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I think too much manipulation and improper usage of a heating appliances causes damage. (i.e. dry, breaking and falling hair)

I also believe with proper education a person can keep all of the hair on their head with a relaxer. I've seen enough folks IRL and on this board doing it.

I recently caused my hair to "permanently" straighten by trying to use a curling iron after 10 years. I did not know what the heck I was doing with it... But after some conditioning and TLC my hair has returned to normal. It did not break or fall out.
 
Honestly anything that naturally loosen your curls is only temporary. Trust me I know. I did the coconut milk and lime overnight, and when I washed it out in the morning my hair was hanging! I loved it. My hair looked like how I wished my hair really was. However, after I added conditioner to my hair to wash out the coconut milk my hair shrunk back up like normal :( If you do the coconut milk and lime overnight just rinse it out, but don't wash your hair with anything afterwards to keep your curls hanging.However, after your hair air dry you might have a tangled mess on your head.

I've used yogurt and lime which didn't really do anything for me except give me lusciously soft hair, which is the only reason I still use it.

I've also tried henna with locust powder, which loosened my curls but it was not permanent. I'm taking my chances with a texturizer, since I now know how to properly care for chemically treated hair.
 
zzirvingj said:
Very interesting post...what exactly is sebum? I've read that the kinkier the hair texture, the harder it is for natural oils or anything that moisturizes hair to travel down the length of the entire hair shaft....thus kinkier hair is usually way more prone to dryness and breakage. Have you found from experience that loosening your hair has helped with moisture?
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Absofreakinglutely! When coils loosen into more of an s-curl pattern, your ability to distribute the sebum increases a million fold. I can now use a brush 2X a week to distribute the natural oil and boy oh boy, there ain't no PRODUCT you can buy that keeps the moisture in like your own sebum. I could not even dream of using a brush a year ago (snap, crackle pop). Now, I have NO problem whatsoever, as a bonus, brushing in small sections STRAIGHTENS my hair naturally!:cheers:
 
adw425 said:
However, the thing I believe that has loosened my curl/wave pattern the most and kept it loose is my use of food grade aloe vera. I started using it the second week in January and use on my hair (and scalp) nightly. When I noticed around March or April that my hair never poufed out anymore and hangs down and that I can now wear my hair down without the use of heat, I started researching again and that is when I learned that aloe vera contains lactic acid.
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Wow! I can always find an answer here.

I was just looking at my hair this morning and wondering why is it just looking wavier/straighter. I've been using my homemade aloe vera gel (w/ Irish Moss concoction) for quite a few months now. And now I also know what's responsible for the buildup - I've just been washing my hair when I think it's too tacky...yikes! What will I do during the winter?
 
CenteredGirl said:
Absofreakinglutely! When coils loosen into more of an s-curl pattern, your ability to distribute the sebum increases a million fold. I can now use a brush 2X a week to distribute the natural oil and boy oh boy, there ain't no PRODUCT you can buy that keeps the moisture in like your own sebum. I could not even dream of using a brush a year ago (snap, crackle pop). Now, I have NO problem whatsoever, as a bonus, brushing in small sections STRAIGHTENS my hair naturally!:cheers:
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Reallllly....??? I learn something new every day on LHCF it seems! :grin:

SUBSCRIBING TO THIS THREAD!.........................
 
CenteredGirl said:
Absofreakinglutely! When coils loosen into more of an s-curl pattern, your ability to distribute the sebum increases a million fold. I can now use a brush 2X a week to distribute the natural oil and boy oh boy, there ain't no PRODUCT you can buy that keeps the moisture in like your own sebum. I could not even dream of using a brush a year ago (snap, crackle pop). Now, I have NO problem whatsoever, as a bonus, brushing in small sections STRAIGHTENS my hair naturally!:cheers:
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Just exactly how do you use the baking soda...I want to go home and try this!!
 
zzirvingj said:
Does anyone have before/after pics that show their natural vs loosened texture?
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I'll see if I can dig some up. As I said earlier, I wasn't trying to do it on purpose, so I'm not sure how clear any of the before vs. after pics will be.

CenteredGirl said:
Absofreakinglutely! When coils loosen into more of an s-curl pattern, your ability to distribute the sebum increases a million fold. I can now use a brush 2X a week to distribute the natural oil and boy oh boy, there ain't no PRODUCT you can buy that keeps the moisture in like your own sebum. I could not even dream of using a brush a year ago (snap, crackle pop). Now, I have NO problem whatsoever, as a bonus, brushing in small sections STRAIGHTENS my hair naturally!:cheers:
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You can brush your hair dry? I'm getting there, slowly but surely, but I'm SO not there yet......... I totally agree with you on the sebum - I soooo want to go water only at some point, but it's gonna be a slow process to get there.....

:yep: Mine too - esp with the Denman! Shooooot.
 
JustKiya said:
I'll see if I can dig some up. As I said earlier, I wasn't trying to do it on purpose, so I'm not sure how clear any of the before vs. after pics will be.



You can brush your hair dry? I'm getting there, slowly but surely, but I'm SO not there yet......... I totally agree with you on the sebum - I soooo want to go water only at some point, but it's gonna be a slow process to get there.....

:yep: Mine too - esp with the Denman! Shooooot.
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Yes Maam and it feels and looks soft and SHINY without breakage. It gets better as time goes on. My theory is that once you get a nice coat of sebum, the game is over for kinky hair. Now that's what I call manageability!!! SCORE!!!:2cool:
 
AtlantaJJ said:
Just exactly how do you use the baking soda...I want to go home and try this!!
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I wash my hair with it weekly:

1TBSP BS to 1 C water

I DC with it:

1 TBSP in DC ( sit under hot dryer for one hour and 30 minutes), I do this once a month.

It's freaking amazing.
 
CenteredGirl said:
Yes Maam and it feels and looks soft and SHINY without breakage. It gets better as time goes on. My theory is that once you get a nice coat of sebum, the game is over for kinky hair. Now that's what I call manageability!!! SCORE!!!:2cool:
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Girl, you just gave me something new to work towards!!!

Do you skip the shampoo, too?
 
CenteredGirl said:
I wash my hair with it weekly:

1TBSP BS to 1 C water

I DC with it:

1 TBSP in DC ( sit under hot dryer for one hour and 30 minutes), I do this once a month.

It's freaking amazing.
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Baking soda can be used to DC? I thought it was to be used for clarifying...:spinning:
 
CenteredGirl said:
Absofreakinglutely! When coils loosen into more of an s-curl pattern, your ability to distribute the sebum increases a million fold. I can now use a brush 2X a week to distribute the natural oil and boy oh boy, there ain't no PRODUCT you can buy that keeps the moisture in like your own sebum. I could not even dream of using a brush a year ago (snap, crackle pop). Now, I have NO problem whatsoever, as a bonus, brushing in small sections STRAIGHTENS my hair naturally!:cheers:
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HAAAA! MY GIRL!:yep:

Thanks for clearing things up on this............. I have not used shampoo - either in months.
 
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Use the caramel treatment: honey, molasses, banana, and jojoba oil. Also when it's dry apply an oil that is not to heavy for your hair.
 
Ok for those who have tried these natural relaxers, what's your hair type?

These things seem to work nicely on anything beyond 4bxxzx, I'd seriously like to hear from more 4bzxzxz ers' who have tried this, and see b/a photos!


ANYONE!!!?!??!

I only want temp result JUST to detangle because my hair is braided 24/7
 
Lebiya said:
Ok for those who have tried these natural relaxers, what's your hair type?

These things seem to work nicely on anything beyond 4bxxzx, I'd seriously like to hear from more 4bzxzxz ers' who have tried this, and see b/a photos!


ANYONE!!!?!??!

I only want temp result JUST to detangle because my hair is braided 24/7
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I've used the coconut/lime/honey/cholesterol conditioner mix. It works well for softening the dry crunchy 4 xyz hair that I have. The more frequently used(2-3x per week) the better the results. But in my experience it has not taken my 4xyz to a 3 b or c. If you want to see my results with the lime, send me a pm and I'll give you the link to my fotki.

Coconut cream/yogurt/oil mix works really nice too.. again at softening the hair, making it a little bit easier to detangle, But again, no 4x to 3c curl transition for me. That has been my personal experience.
 
This is a good thread. I find just drying my hair stretched by either braids, banding, twists or roller sets (under the dryer for roller sets) help to relax my curls a great deal. I always dry my hair stretched in some fashion and that has worked well for me.
 
CenteredGirl said:
Yes Maam and it feels and looks soft and SHINY without breakage. It gets better as time goes on. My theory is that once you get a nice coat of sebum, the game is over for kinky hair. Now that's what I call manageability!!! SCORE!!!:2cool:
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I actually think this would work for me, my only challenge is that I'm addicted to SLS free shampoo because of my working out and sweating and using sulpher growth aids...I have to wash that funk out off my scalp after a week... :nono: LOL

I can smell my "dirt" as soon as the rinse water hits my hair. I have been washing in loose braids and using a squirt bottle to only get my scalp so I'm not shampooing my hair directly, just letting the suds wash down and get the hair. I don't have a bit of dryness now that I do this but I hve to think on this no shampoo method because I know its true....:scratchch
 
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