Struggling with your natural hair? Come in here.....

[faithVA]

Hello Ladies, I was looking for some help. I am natural and my daughter is natural I am a 3C/4A and my daughter is 4C. She is 19 and has been wearing braid for about 5yrs on and off.(mainly braided) Now she is ready to show her hair and the texture different then mine I can't do the same things. Let me correct that i can do the same things but the results are different. I was just looking for some tips & some methods that work well with 4C (i do DC and i do bantu knots) i have the patience but she is away at college and gets fed up and wants to put it back in braids. I feel it needs to breathe a little. Any help would be great.

Thanks Ladies

Is she braiding with her hair or extensions? How long is her hair?

If she is braiding with her natural hair, I think her hair is fine. And while she is in school that may be the best style due to time constraints.

It's almost summer. I would wait until she is out of school for the summer to start switching styles. Then during the summer she can play around with it.

But with 4C hair she can do whatever she wants: mini braids, twists, mini-twists, bantu-knots, puffs, roller sets, twist outs, braids outs.

I probably need more details before I can help more.

 

[faithVA]

Time for me to join you guys in this thread as a new natural! I just cut the rest of my relaxed ends off after 14 months transitioning and couldnt be happier with my hair! My hair is mostly 4b I think...maybe a little 4a around the perimeter. Its cottony and soft when moisturized. Im guessing medium density and fine to medium strands.

My problem is when I try to twist or braid the ends puff out. I try to twirl it around my finger on the ends but the bottom inch or so just puffs and comes undone. Any tips on how to remedy this? I wanted to do braidouts/twistouts on dry, stretched hair that I just lightly mist and apply product to overnight, but they wont hold and come unraveled. When I was transitioning I put perm rods on the ends, but Id like to avoid that if possible. Id also like to do some twists and wear them for a week or two as a style, but Im not sure they will stay. Its weird bc I did them transitioning but for some odd reason it seems those thin ends were easier to make stay sealed than my thicker natural ends.

Gonna go back and read through this thread and "study" lol.

Are you trying to do really large twists? If you do them smaller do you still have the same problem?

 

[DarkJoy]

@Leslie_C, my fine hair does this too. I twist on mostly dry hair. I do a very light mist first and add oil to each piece before I twist. The very light mist helps the twist hold. Then do a heavier mist once the twists are installed.

DarlingDiva is correct that you have to add extra product on the ends before you twirl it to make them stay. You can also twist with gel, which also gives a great hold and definition.

 

[Sunshinelove32]

darlingdiva- it is almost SL, that is a great idea. I will send her some products to two strain twist her hair an see how that works. ( I am sure to do it when she comes home so she wont have to worry about it so much)

 

[Sunshinelove32]

faithVA - she normally gets it braided with extra hair, but this last time she got it braided without and did a mohawk style. Now she does the bantu knots while at school but it comes out more like an afro and she doesn't want that look she wants more curls. Her hair is almost to her shoulder. She told me last night she did a roller set and it came out o.k.
thanks for all your help.

 

[DarkJoy]

Holding my space, here.

I tried Aphogee 2 min yesterday. Did that knowing damn well there's amodimenthicone or however you spell it halfway down the list.

I've noticed with former 'cone mishaps it takes a cpl days for my hair to respond... if it doesn't then good! Mixing errthang myself for this over-sensitive head is NOT the business.

 

[bhndbrwneyes]

Is it true that if you are transitioning, your relaxed hair doesn't hold/use products in the same way that your natural hair does? When I got my hair straightened at the salon about 2 months ago my stylist was natural and told me that products will work better once my hair is all one texture, especially detangling products. I have noticed that when I am detangling with loads of condish in my hair that my finger or comb always gets stuck at the line of demarcation. Also after I DC even if I apply my DC to my entire head, all of my relaxed hair still looks dry but my NG feels and looks amazing. Is it because my relaxed hair is so damaged? What's going on?

 

[Arian]

Is KeraCare a good line for natural hair?

 

[Sunshinelove32]

Is KeraCare a good line for natural hair?

I have use that a lot in my hair and my hair loves it.

 

[Leslie_C]

Thanks so much for the suggestions, guys! I did a few twists as a trial last night per your instructions and the result was much smoother ends. you're tips gave me a light bulb moment and I realized I need to dampen the ends more to get them smooth and to curl.

 

[Harina]

Does anyone else here use Suave Naturals Almond and Shea Butter Conditioner as a leave in. I co-wash with it, rinse it out, put a little bit back in, then seal with almond or olive oil. It leaves my hair rather soft.

 

[DarkJoy]

bhndbrwneyes dealing with that line of demarcation is not the business!

What you are experiencing is normal and your stylist is correct. The relaxed ends could just be fried/overprocessed. Products that work for your relaxed ends might not for the ng and vice versa. Lots of folks get frustrated and just BC. It takes a lot of patience and research to do a long transition.

 

[yuhlovevybz]

Crap... I figured it out. The longer my hair gets, the more the curl falls out. My longer strands at the top are wavy while my shorter locks at the back form springs. I like the springs and want longer springs, I don't like my waves. My waves like to throw frizz parties while the curls stay defined.



*sits in a corner and pouts*

 

[HanaKuroi]

^^^^

When the back gets longer it will elongate too. At least that is what they say.

My hair is doing the same thing! Springy and bouncy curls in the back.


Nice progress.

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[DarkJoy]

Girl, your curls are cute!

 

[hnntrr]

Checking in:
been in these particular twists for about a week. I miss washing my head...but I have been spritzing daily with a mixture of (Mostly) water, argan oil, tea tree, jojoba, a tiny bit like a tiny. bit of SM leave in to keep my moisture up. Its been itching a lot but my head always itches I duno why.

Twists are doing fine, if they start slipping out I just re braid them which is fine so far. Kanekalon hair is so much less itchy than marly hair and I like the look better...although hip length extensions are soooo hot, like all this hair just makes me so hot I almost wanna rip them out, especially since its like 80 degree's now...all the sudden. Anyway. I doin good. Its nice to forget about my hair for awhile.

The plan is to keep these in for another 2-3 weeks, take a break for 4-7 days, cowash, do a really good protein and DC and a tea rinse.... then reinstall new twists for another 3-4 weeks. So we will see what happens......

 

[ronie]

Tell me why did I just order 2 products with aloe Vera when I KNOW that this ingredient has given me hard dry breaking hair in the past. I guess now that my hair is kinda cruising smoothly, I feel like I can revisit some stuff with caution. So I am saving my spot in case I need to correct any damage, lol. Lord help me.
The 2 products are qhemet aohc, and oyin handmade juices berries (not sure i got that right but you all know what I mean). I might just return them or just give them away, cause I would hate to cause my own setback.
Question: how do you proceed when revisiting a product that failed you in the past? TIA.

 

[faithVA]

Tell me why did I just order 2 products with aloe Vera when I KNOW that this ingredient has given me hard dry breaking hair in the past. I guess now that my hair is kinda cruising smoothly, I feel like I can revisit some stuff with caution. So I am saving my spot in case I need to correct any damage, lol. Lord help me.
The 2 products are qhemet aohc, and oyin handmade juices berries (not sure i got that right but you all know what I mean). I might just return them or just give them away, cause I would hate to cause my own setback.
Question: how do you proceed when revisiting a product that failed you in the past? TIA.

Both of those products are good. And even if your hair doesn't love them, I don't think it will hate them either. I think the more "hand-made" brands tend to cause less of a setback than those that you buy off the shelf.

When I am retrying something, I may try it on only a section or I will just try it with products my hair likes and use it once and wait before I use it again. Then I just pay attention to how it goes.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[virtuenow]

Tell me why did I just order 2 products with aloe Vera when I KNOW that this ingredient has given me hard dry breaking hair in the past. I guess now that my hair is kinda cruising smoothly, I feel like I can revisit some stuff with caution. So I am saving my spot in case I need to correct any damage, lol. Lord help me.
The 2 products are qhemet aohc, and oyin handmade juices berries (not sure i got that right but you all know what I mean). I might just return them or just give them away, cause I would hate to cause my own setback.
Question: how do you proceed when revisiting a product that failed you in the past? TIA.

My hair also hates the Qhemets AOHC; and I immediately knew it would hate the Juices and Berries. Any product with glycerin high on the list is completely rejected by my hair-- no matter how I've tried to use it. Are you sure it's the aloe vera in these products-- they both have as much or more glycerin than anything I think.

 

[yuhlovevybz]

Hair is still breaking. It's not breaking in the shower any more but it's allll over my bathroom floor. I never saw it before but I washed my rugs and haven't put them back down so now I see my hair fall. I still can't tell if its breaking or shedding but it looks like a combination. I've been very low manipulation so what the heck?

I cowash in the morning and again after I run after work. At night I put it into two French braids.

 

[HanaKuroi]

Hair is still breaking. It's not breaking in the shower any more but it's allll over my bathroom floor. I never saw it before but I washed my rugs and haven't put them back down so now I see my hair fall. I still can't tell if its breaking or shedding but it looks like a combination. I've been very low manipulation so what the heck?

I cowash in the morning and again after I run after work. At night I put it into two French braids.

Hmmm. Can you list the products you are using?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[yuhlovevybz]

Hmmm. Can you list the products you are using?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

I've been cowashing with just suave naturals (coconut, strawberry, wild cherry blossom, etc.), and using giovanni direct as a leave in. Then I use curls passionfruit pomade just on my edges to push them down. I recently added terresentials mudwash into the mix yesterday, but I still noticed the hairfall when I braided my hair last night.

I also wash occasionally with shea moisture (the one with the orange label) but only if I use an oil, they seem to coat my hair so I've been staying away from them lately.

My hair feels great but the hair on the floor is telling me otherwise.

 

[DarkJoy]

I've been cowashing with just suave naturals (coconut, strawberry, wild cherry blossom, etc.), and using giovanni direct as a leave in. Then I use curls passionfruit pomade just on my edges to push them down. I recently added terresentials mudwash into the mix yesterday, but I still noticed the hairfall when I braided my hair last night.

I also wash occasionally with shea moisture (the one with the orange label) but only if I use an oil, they seem to coat my hair so I've been staying away from them lately.

My hair feels great but the hair on the floor is telling me otherwise.

That's a ton of moisture. Sounds like moisture overload which i am aldo prone to. Time for a protein treatment.

____________
*.~.*Sent from a distant Galaxy in the Unicorn-verse*.~.*

 

[yuhlovevybz]

That's a ton of moisture. Sounds like moisture overload which i am aldo prone to. Time for a protein treatment.

____________
*.~.*Sent from a distant Galaxy in the Unicorn-verse*.~.*

Makes sense. I did a henna treatment just last Friday, though. Does that count as a protein treatment?

 

[DarkJoy]

Nope. It's not hard enough. Last week I henna and followed immediately with aphogee 2min. no problems. No hay like hair and no tiny broke off pieces finally! Also DCd after that for 1.5 hrs.

Somehow henna got the rep of being like hard protein. We all fell into it and paid the price... :/

____________
*.~.*Sent from a distant Galaxy in the Unicorn-verse*.~.*

 

[HanaKuroi]

I've been cowashing with just suave naturals (coconut, strawberry, wild cherry blossom, etc.), and using giovanni direct as a leave in. Then I use curls passionfruit pomade just on my edges to push them down. I recently added terresentials mudwash into the mix yesterday, but I still noticed the hairfall when I braided my hair last night.

I also wash occasionally with shea moisture (the one with the orange label) but only if I use an oil, they seem to coat my hair so I've been staying away from them lately.

My hair feels great but the hair on the floor is telling me otherwise.

I have to look at those ingredients.

You don't use a creamy moisturizer or oil to seal?

Are you using the CJ method?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[HanaKuroi]

Nope. It's not hard enough. Last week I henna and followed immediately with aphogee 2min. no problems. No hay like hair and no tiny broke off pieces finally! Also DCd after that for 1.5 hrs.

Somehow henna got the rep of being like hard protein. We all fell into it and paid the price... :/

____________
*.~.*Sent from a distant Galaxy in the Unicorn-verse*.~.*

I did henna this week and also followed with giovannis nutrafix/millcreek keratin mix.

What did you dc with?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[yuhlovevybz]

I have to look at those ingredients.

You don't use a creamy moisturizer or oil to seal?

Are you using the CJ method?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

I'm going for a kind of modified curly girl method but without using gel. I used to use oil to seal but that had my hair a MESS. I would use coconut oil after leaving in some conditioner and it made my hair sticky and the next cowash that film would not wash off so I would have the use a shampoo. It also had my hair feeling very crispy.

I consider the giovanni direct as a bit creamy, still haven't been able to find anything thicker that has no cones or castor oil (my hair hates that too).

 

[HanaKuroi]

I'm going for a kind of modified curly girl method but without using gel. I used to use oil to seal but that had my hair a MESS. I would use coconut oil after leaving in some conditioner and it made my hair sticky and the next cowash that film would not wash off so I would have the use a shampoo. It also had my hair feeling very crispy.

I consider the giovanni direct as a bit creamy, still haven't been able to find anything thicker that has no cones or castor oil (my hair hates that too).

Graoeseed oil?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[yuhlovevybz]

Nope. It's not hard enough. Last week I henna and followed immediately with aphogee 2min. no problems. No hay like hair and no tiny broke off pieces finally! Also DCd after that for 1.5 hrs.

Somehow henna got the rep of being like hard protein. We all fell into it and paid the price... :/

____________
*.~.*Sent from a distant Galaxy in the Unicorn-verse*.~.*

Oh wow. erplexed Well that would definitely explain it. I've been steering away from protein because I remember my hair hating it but if I DC afterwards forever it should be alright. Would hair mayo be considered a hard protein? I know I have some of that in the back of my closet.