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Naturals who retain length well;how often is your hair in a stretched state?

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Now that you mention it, my hair is in a stretched state 100% of the time, either its pressed or its twisted or its a braid out or SOMETHING that stretches my coils so I dont get tangles or SSK's, even when I rock a fro, its been stretched over-night.

ladybeesrch said:
How do you wear your hair mostly?
Click to expand...
Press and Flat Iron 75% of the time, then when its spring and summer in NYC and its easier to air-dry I do a myriad of natural styes.....in the new year I'm going to try to spend most of the year in senegalese twists I think this style will really help me get to WSL:yep:

What can your length retention be attributed to?
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Going natural. Once my thick/coarse strands were no longer being weakened by harsh chemicals suddenly I had resilient, strong, low maintenance hair. Overall my hair is pretty darn easy to deal with I simply do the fundamentals like washing/conditioning in 8 braided sections using heat protectants maybe moisturizing my ends sporadically with some coconut oil tie with my satin scarf and call it a day. I DC maybe once a month on average and I'm still retaining length.

I'm really thinking that i'm going to have to get my hair braided soon.
I don't know how i feel about this,as my ends are responding very well to the attention that i have been paying to them.However,in order for me to keep doing this,i am having to retwist my hair almost every night.My hair shrinks back in on itself throughout the day(i think this would be a lesser problem if my hair was longer),and i have to detangle every time i re-twist.
I am worried that this will soon be too much on my hair.
Your insight is appreciated:yep:
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Yea I think braids or twists would be a great way to resolve this issue and help you retain a little more length at this time:yep:
 
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I like to wear my twists for a week or more then wear a twistout until wash day. Some wear their twists for 2wks and cowash in them then wear a twist-out for a week. I didnt like the way my twists look after washing so i prefer to wash my hair regular.

In the summer I moisturize with water based leave-ins and humectants (sp?)and seal with light oils. I also like to baggy with JBCO when my hair is really dry from lots of WNGs. Now I don't use humectants and I usually use heavy oils and butters.
 
Ronnieaj said:
I'm one of those naturals who just wet twists her hair. It shrinks up when twisted, but that keeps the hair off my collars, wraps, etc. I wash weekly, DC with steam, acv rinse and then twist. I use a water based spray conditioner and seal with oil daily. I cut 3 inches in June and its all grown back, with fairly minimal SSKs.
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I havent been natural very long but I also wear my hair 98% of the time since in wet twist. I think I have had my hair down a total of three days the longest since I cut it in June. I just find that keeping twist in works with my lifestyle and I like that I am able to retain my hair instead of fighting with it. I think when I get longer to pull back I will not wear twist as much but since I work out a lot and like to keep a clean scalp twist work great for me.

ladybeesrch said:
Sorry for quoting every single post,but i don't want to mess up this natural hair:nono:
I have tons of questions about this:look:

I'm gonna be like you guys' annoying little sister right now:lachen:.I want to know EVERYTHING!!!!:grin:

So for the braid/twist wearers,how long are you guys keeping them up before taking a break?Are you taking a break?
What exactly are you moisturizing with?I used to have this down when i was relaxed,but my natural hair ain't going for that lightweight stuff anymore:nono:

I wear two-strand twist up to 4-5wks at a time depending on how they look. Like I mentioned earlier Ive only taken 3days tops off from twisting since I chopped in June. I just like the ease of twist and my hair is growing nicely IMO!!!
I moisturize with coconut oil, shea butter, Qhemets heaving cream and lots of conditioner. I use Oyin handmade, HE hello hydration, devacare one and jessi's weekly deep conditioner. Deep conditioner with twist in once a week with pantene prov or lutrasilk deep conditoner....HTH
Click to expand...
 
The less I have to fuss with my hair the better off I am. My hair is flat ironed right now and my scalp is sore from the combing, brushing and bunning. But when it's cold, I do two strand twists and call it a day. I break out the heavy duty moisture, qhemet biologics and I don't really need to do anything else when using that. Although I love using vatika oil or my moe grow oil in the winter on my scalp but that's about it.
 
Nonie said:
My hair did OK with this. I only got tired of dealing with it daily and so put in extensions so I could go for days without bothering with it.

Yes, I baggied nightly without fail. While everyone else uses silk/satin scarves or pillows to protect their hair when they sleep, I'm a baggy chick. I use plastic cap, plastic shopping bags, Saran wrap. I even use these under headwraps and hats. When my hair is braided, I don't use any products on it besides shampoo, conditioner and ACV during the wash. So baggying nightly is how I keep my hair from drying out.
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Wow! I'm scared to try!lol! I would probably baggy after moisturizing still though.Do your braids frizz up easily from baggying?
 
empressri said:
The less I have to fuss with my hair the better off I am. My hair is flat ironed right now and my scalp is sore from the combing, brushing and bunning. But when it's cold, I do two strand twists and call it a day. I break out the heavy duty moisture, qhemet biologics and I don't really need to do anything else when using that. Although I love using vatika oil or my moe grow oil in the winter on my scalp but that's about it.
Click to expand...
Are you doing two strands twists on heat stretched hair?
 
BlackMasterPiece said:
Now that you mention it, my hair is in a stretched state 100% of the time, either its pressed or its twisted or its a braid out or SOMETHING that stretches my coils so I dont get tangles or SSK's, even when I rock a fro, its been stretched over-night.
How are you stretching your hair overnight?[/COLOR]

Press and Flat Iron 75% of the time, then when its spring and summer in NYC and its easier to air-dry I do a myriad of natural styes.....in the new year I'm going to try to spend most of the year in senegalese twists I think this style will really help me get to WSL:yep:
Do you moisturize your hair in it's flat ironed or pressed state?
If so,what are you using?

Going natural, and the thick/coarse strands that were revealed which were now resilient and super low maintenance...overall my hair is pretty darn easy to deal with I simply do the fundamentals like washing/conditioning in 8 braided sections using heat protectants maybe moisturizing my ends sporadically with some coconut oil tie with my satin scarf and call it a day. I DC maybe once a month on average and I'm still retaining length.
:blush:
I can only wish:lachen:



Yea I think braids or twists would be a great way to resolve this issue and help you retain a little more length at this time:yep:
Click to expand...

Me too!I'm going to go ahead and braid it up this week before my b-day this weekend.
 
If I want a well defined curly fro then I'll do small flat twists like this to get hair that looks like this or Bantu knots for a curly fro like this. If I want a kinky fro but I want it as big as I can get it, I do jumbo flat twists and get a fro that looks like this.

When I press my hair if my ends feel dry I moisturize using a little EVCO I got from GNC:
pGNC1-2331712nm.jpg


Yea I'm really grateful to my thick coarse strands and for my decision to go natural:yep: made my life 1000% easier.
 
I mostly wear my hair in buns or ponytails. And I baby my ends, by putting extra moisturizer on them and sealing the moisture in with oil (I've mostly been using the extra virgin coconut oil from GNC--like BlackMasterPiece showed).

Also, it's not for everyone, but I also forgo trims. You can only tell when I wear my hair straight that I could maybe use one. But I mostly wear my hair curly. So for me, it's not a big deal. I haven't trimmed/cut my hair in years.
 
ladybeesrch said:
How do you wear your hair mostly?
Click to expand...

I mostly wear my hair in braidouts, twistouts, braids, wraps, or twists.

What can your length retention be attributed to?
Click to expand...

I've been retaining length by wearing my hair in braidouts and twistouts. I don't do wash n gos because they create too many knots. I search and destroy about once per month, and this helps me to not have to trim.

Check out RusticBeauty on youtube; she has great advice and beautiful long hair:

http://www.youtube.com/user/rusticbeauty?blend=1&ob=4

HTH
 
I truly believe that for those tight curlies like me. You need to have the hair strectched to retain a lot. This year I only retained 3in, I had lots of split that needed frequent triming, I believe the culprit was wash and go, I used this as my main style from may till November 2009.

I love this style, but the shrinkage and knots it gives is really bad. This coming year I will make sure my hair is well stretched either braids, twists, twist outs, flat iron etc, I will rarely do wash and gos and will see how much I retain by the end of the year.
 
How do you wear your hair mostly?

Protective styles of various style. weave braids buns twist out buns.... i like variety in my style. I just find a way to keep my ends tucke away

I sprinkle in an occasional twist out or flat iron in there too

What can your length retention be attributed to?

Better Detangling practices and hiding my ends

I find that I wear my hair streched in some way shape or form 90% of the time. It helps me detangle and cuts down on breakage.

I wash and decondition in braids so usualy I air dry or but on my bonnet and go from there to style. i attribute this to my retention over the years
 
my hair has been pressed since October and Ive gotten this done every three weeks. I think this is better for my hair than its natural state IMO. the ends look and feel better.
 
BlackMasterPiece said:
If I want a well defined curly fro then I'll do small flat twists like this to get hair that looks like this or Bantu knots for a curly fro like this. If I want a kinky fro but I want it as big as I can get it, I do jumbo flat twists and get a fro that looks like this.

When I press my hair if my ends feel dry I moisturize using a little EVCO I got from GNC:
pGNC1-2331712nm.jpg


Yea I'm really grateful to my thick coarse strands and for my decision to go natural:yep: made my life 1000% easier.
Click to expand...
You're an inspiration. You and SouthernBella are the reasons why I want to go natural. Im almost 6 months post, I will be cutting at 18 months.
 
ladybeesrch said:
You're using just aloe juice to moisturize and hair gel:blush:
Your hair is beautiful!!!!!Whoa!
Aloe juice in a spray bottle?So that's the same as some of us using spray concoctions,right?
How are your ends doing?How often are you washing?
Thank you!
Click to expand...


Aww Thanks... I know it sounds strange...

When I have more time I like to mix sprays to use and generally like to use all natural products. But I've been keeping things extremely simple lately and my hair has been thriving. I cowash once weekly with nature's gate jojoba revitalizing conditioner mixed with a teaspoon of sea salt (kiya fizzle). It's the best detangler I've ever used hands down.

I follow up with aubrey organics white camelia deep conditioner ( sometimes I also use this as a leave in). I DC for as much time as I have at least an hour or frequently over night.

I apply smooth-n- shine activator gel to my hair concentrating on my ends and throughout the week I spray on aloe juice and seal with the activator gel every night or every other night. I do use a light hold gel on my edges as well (I have some short hairs from too tight braids that refuse to lay down otherwise)

I find that the activator gel helps to seal my ends and protects them against splitting and dryness better than oils... in general water based products make my hair feel better than oil based ones.

HTH

Note(The gels I use are non drying and do not contain alcohol)
 
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How do you wear your hair mostly? In a braid set/out or flat twist set/out with bantu knotted ends. I usually wear it pinned into an updo because im wearing alot of scarfs and coats lately.
What can your length retention be attributed to? Well i cut over a half an inch of my hair a month ago, after not trimming for 7 months and i feel my hair has grown back in so well! I believe less is more. I only use my shea butter mixture on dry hair when i re-set(every other day). Not wetting my hair so much has worked for me. Also light detangling a few times a week with a cushion paddle brush has saved me so much time and hair.:yep:
 
I mostly wear my hair in braids. Lately I have been doing a lot of puffs since my hair is long enough FINALLY. BUT I am noticing how much more moisturizing I hav to do and checking my ends since it is so cold out. With that being said I am going back to braids as we speak.

My length retention is due to low manipulation and making sure my hair doesn't get tangled.
 
How do you wear your hair mostly?
For the past 10 months
- 94% in a puff 2% in a bun 2% flat ironed

 What can your length retention be attributed to?
- Not actually doing much to it, just cowashing and smoothing the front for tidiness... I have some ssk's but I think that's just a natural trait....

I haven't mastered twist outs or bantu knot outs yet... I don't think they suit my face shape and I have no idea what to do at night to keep the style without redoing it.. I'm to lazy for that its quicker to just cowash and puff for me
 
My hair is always in a "stretched" state. I've only wash-n-go'd about 3-4 times since I've been natural. It creates too many tangles for my taste. My hair is usually in twists, twist/braidouts, or a bun. I attribute my length retention to religiously moisturizing my hair and low manipulation styles.
 
How do you wear your hair mostly?

Protective styling:

Braids with extensions
Weaves
'Pixie' braids and twists without extensions
Cornrows


What can your length retention be attributed to?


  • Being pretty much 99.99% in protective styles (as per above). For the majority of the year I've been wearing my twists, 'pixie' braids or cornrows under a wig and that helps me retain moisture too.

  • Not combing I think helped me to minimize breakage.
 
How do you wear your hair mostly?
I used to wear wash and gos and buns mostly. Now I wash my hair once a week then rollerset. I wear it like that for a week. I will soon try wearing it for two weeks but my scalp doesn't like that
What can your length retention be attributed to?
I've always had a very simple regimen. Even though I've had some setbacks due to single strands knots, they did not prevent me grom retaining length.
 
My hair is almost always in a stretched state - I rarely wear twist-outs, and I almost never wear a fro. Allowing my hair to shrink into itself is a bad idea. :nono:
 
lollyoo said:
I truly believe that for those tight curlies like me. You need to have the hair strectched to retain a lot. This year I only retained 3in, I had lots of split that needed frequent triming, I believe the culprit was wash and go, I used this as my main style from may till November 2009.

I love this style, but the shrinkage and knots it gives is really bad. This coming year I will make sure my hair is well stretched either braids, twists, twist outs, flat iron etc, I will rarely do wash and gos and will see how much I retain by the end of the year.
Click to expand...


1/10/10 I will be 36 months relaxer free! :drunk: I did the exact same thing as the bolded. I'm not unhappy with my rentention, but it seems I had much more retention in '08 because my hair was only out to be detangled and retwisted.

I twist on wet hair using Cantu Sheabutter LI and Raw SheaButter/Castor Oil. I moisturized when needed and I may retwist(the top) if they get frizzy between wash days.

OP protect those little curlies, and as nonie suggested you may want to start to baggy that may help with keeping the moisture level up.
 
ladybeesrch said:
Thank you!
That's exactly what i was asking:yep:
I have been moisturizing the ish out of my ends,since they have been available everyday,so how do i keep them moisturized the same way in braids?
I had no problem with this as a relaxed head,but my natural hair needs soooooo much more moisture!!
Your hair is gorgeous,by the way:yep:
Click to expand...

Thank you :drunk:
 
ladybeesrch said:
I'm def not long enough to rollerset,lol,but that is looking like a very popular option from what i've been reading:yep:.I suck at it:sad:.
I'm thinking that when i get long enough,i'm going to alternate btwn straight and curly as well.Very reassuring for me:yep:
And i am extremely anal about my edges not being braided tight!I make sure they are pretty loose,and then i just touch them up when they start to frizz too much.
Thanks for your input!
Click to expand...

Looking at your Avi, yes, you are. Just get smaller rollers
 
ladybeesrch said:
So for the braid/twist wearers,how long are you guys keeping them up before taking a break?Are you taking a break?
What exactly are you moisturizing with?I used to have this down when i was relaxed,but my natural hair ain't going for that lightweight stuff anymore:nono:

:yep:
Click to expand...

I dont keep extensions in longer than 4-5 weeks. I have a very short attention span on styles. IN fact, I just removed micros after 2 weeks for something new.

I take a week break at least. During that time, I do a serious cleansing, ACV rinse, condition, and deep condition. I give the hair a good comb and brush through, and then I keep it up, like in a bun, or I roller set it to stretch it and then wear updos. Every once in a while, I'll wear it out in a puff or afro. I only straighten once a year with heat.

I moisturize with one of the following (I like to alternate so my hair doesnt develop product immunity):

Carol's Daughter "Some of Marguerite's Magic"
Qhemet Biologics burdock (sp?) root creme
Hollywood Beauty Castor oil with mink oil
 
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