Question for self relaxers on smoothing process and timing

[almond eyes]

I will be doing a self-relaxer this weekend. I have not done one in years and now I feel that I am armed with the right information to do a good job. My current hair dresser does great blow outs but he never listens when I tell him not to leave the relaxer in my hair for a long time especially at the sink and the other hairdressers get upset with him for spending so much time over my hair especially during the neutralising process because it requires me having so much 'sink time' even when I go during non-peak hours.

I will be getting someone to assist me to do the back of my hair.

Anyhow, I have two questions about smoothing and timing.

1. I don't want tex lax hair but I don't want bone straight over processed either and my hair tends to be very relaxer resistant. So is it necessary to do the smoothing process after the relaxer is applied to the new growth?

2. How long typically should the relaxer remain in the hair before washing and going to the sink? I know relaxer instructions say typically 19-25 minutes but I know some women who go between 30-40 minutes to prevent under processing.

Many thanks in advance ladies.

Best,
Almond Eyes

 

[Mande30]

I will be doing a self-relaxer this weekend. I have not done one in years and now I feel that I am armed with the right information to do a good job. My current hair dresser does great blow outs but he never listens when I tell him not to leave the relaxer in my hair for a long time especially at the sink and the other hairdressers get upset with him for spending so much time over my hair especially during the neutralising process because it requires me having so much 'sink time' even when I go during non-peak hours.

I will be getting someone to assist me to do the back of my hair.

Anyhow, I have two questions about smoothing and timing.

1. I don't want tex lax hair but I don't want bone straight over processed either and my hair tends to be very relaxer resistant. So is it necessary to do the smoothing process after the relaxer is applied to the new growth?

2. How long typically should the relaxer remain in the hair before washing and going to the sink? I know relaxer instructions say typically 19-25 minutes but I know some women who go between 30-40 minutes to prevent under processing.

Many thanks in advance ladies.

Best,
Almond Eyes

@almond eyes

1. I have learned that if you want your hair straightened beyond texlaxing you have to smooth. To my understanding, the relaxer will break the protein bonds. But it is the smoothing process that actually streches them into their new form. My mom recently did not first semi-self relaxer. We did not have enough time for a thorough smoothing job. The parts that were smoothed well were as straight as I want them, the hard to relax part that was not adequately smoothed was somewhat texlaxed. (Next time I will do the front and she will do the back)

2. From my recent experience, I believe that a proper relaxing job can be done in the alloted time (not exceeding 20 minutes) if you are quick enough in applying, use enough relaxer on your hair and have a good smoothing technique. I am just too scared to go beyond this point.

 

[almond eyes]

Thanks.

Best,
Almond Eyes

 

[koolkittychick]

One suggestion I have for you that may help you is to do a "practice run" before you relax, to get your technique down.

Simply practice your application/smoothing technique using a thick deep conditioner/custard (like Cholesterol -- cheapest most common brand I can think of) instead of the relaxer, so you can get an idea of how long it actually takes you to get through your entire head.

It'll give you a chance to work on your timing and be more aware of any areas you will need to focus on before the application, plus you will get a nice conditioning treatment in before you actually relax.

I plan on trying this next week before I try to self-relax again Easter weekend. Hope this helps, and good luck -- and don't forget to post pictures!

 

[crazytrish75]

I agree with the practicing with conditioner first. I have been a self-relaxer for years, but I didn't do it right until I joined LHCF. Just slapped it on all over and smoothed the heck out of it

Are you just touching up NG or a virgin relaxer? If you are touching up, one
tip that will help immensely, is to pre-section your hair before u apply the relaxer. It takes a lot longer, but it is so worth it to do it right!!! I pre-section into 4 sections, then create smaller sections within the 4 sections of twists. I twist right up to the line of demarcation and apply Vaseline to previously relaxed hair to protect and also keeps twists from unraveling. They come down on their on during the neutralizing process. Also, if you don't smooth at all, you may end up too texlaxed. I smooth gently to get straight, but not too straight results. Though I consider myself bone-laxed, it always has some texture afterward. HTH!

 

[sunnieb]

almond eyes I agree with pre-sectioning. I process for about 20 minutes which allows for plenty of smoothing time since I can apply the relaxer so quickly.

Check out my self-relaxing album here.

 

[naija24]

I agree with the practicing with conditioner first. I have been a self-relaxer for years, but I didn't do it right until I joined LHCF. Just slapped it on all over and smoothed the heck out of it

Are you just touching up NG or a virgin relaxer? If you are touching up, one
tip that will help immensely, is to pre-section your hair before u apply the relaxer. It takes a lot longer, but it is so worth it to do it right!!! I pre-section into 4 sections, then create smaller sections within the 4 sections of twists. I twist right up to the line of demarcation and apply Vaseline to previously relaxed hair to protect and also keeps twists from unraveling. They come down on their on during the neutralizing process. Also, if you don't smooth at all, you may end up too texlaxed. I smooth gently to get straight, but not too straight results. Though I consider myself bone-laxed, it always has some texture afterward. HTH!

This is really helpful, but qusetion crazytrish75, how does one part the hair in multiple sections if you have under NL hair??

 

[crazytrish75]

naija24

When I started my HHJ, I was mostly shoulder length, but my nape was chewed up almost to neck length, and my crown was barely 1-2 inches long. Now, I do the traditional big 4-section part, (side to side,front to back), using regular small claw clips to hold in place. Then, I would go to each section and separate hair into small 1"-2" sections using those small black rubber bands that you can buy for about $1. Using a mirror and my hands to feel/see my NG, I would apply vaseline right at the point of demarcation, then apply the rubber band up to the demarcation line (do not loop more than twice)and apply vaseline again on top of the rubber band. Then, when I am ready to relax, I apply conditioner to my previously relaxed length (do this right before) and proceed. I can then, lift each section up and apply relaxer freely up to the point of the rubber band. Surprisingly, the bands will hold into to place while you are working. I leave them in until I start to neutralize. As I rinse, they just slide right off of my hair into the sink, as long as you don't loop them too tight (no more than twice).

Sometimes, I will pre-section the night before I relax while sitting in front of the tv or computer and sleep on it. It has held up through that. It takes me longer to do this than the whole relaxer process, but has been soooo worth it. My NG is so thick and kinky that by the time I am ready to relax, it takes me FOREVER to presection. I will say though, that one of the reasons my hair was in such sad shape when I joined was the years of overprocessing. Taking the time to do the pre-sections GREATLY reduced my overlapping and my hair took off at that point. Now that my hair has improved 100%, it has grown long enough that I don't have to use rubber bands anymore, I can just twist (it is now hovering between APl and BSL). But the rubber bands were a solution I struck upon when my hair was short.

Also, If you pre-section, it cuts down the time it takes to do the relaxer itself. I can apply and smooth the whole head in 12-13 minutes . HTH!

 

[NaiyaAi]

1.) Smoothing is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. The first few times I tried to self-relax, I just applied and didn't smooth, thinking it was enough. It wasn't. My texture did not change at all.

2.) You have to really know your hair in order to really be able to answer that. No one can tell you how long your own hair should process for. How long does your stylist let it process when you get it done in a salon? I let my relaxer process for 30-40 minutes, but I am relatively slow at applying and my hair just does not like normal strength relaxers but I am scared to use super. If you don't already know what processing time your hair will respond well to, go by the instructions on the box. If that's not enough, you'll be underprocessed, but I think most of us would much rather prefer that to accidentally leaving it on too long.

 

[NaiyaAi]

For those of you who pre-section, how large are your sections? I want to try this but I've always wondered how the hair in the middle of the sections gets processed as well as the hair on the outside of the section.

 

[crazytrish75]

For those of you who pre-section, how large are your sections? I want to try this but I've always wondered how the hair in the middle of the sections gets processed as well as the hair on the outside of the section.

My sections are usually 1-2". I use a rubber color-applicator spatula that is about 1" wide and I lift each section and I stretch it taut first, apply relaxer, then put a little slack on it which kind of spreads it out, and the spatula pushes the relaxer into the section (hope I explained that clearly).