Transitioning

[Enchantmt]

Hello Everyone!

Currently I have relaxed/texturized hair but I would like to go natural and am interested in transitioning my hair. Are there any books/websites that discuss transitioning in particular? I plan on doing a thorough search of all the threads here but would love to have a book that has information on how best maintain length and reduce breakage. I purchased the book by Cathy Howse a year or so ago but I dont remember transistioning being addressed.

Years ago, when I was younger, I cut off all my relaxed hair and just started over. A year or so later my older sister came home from out of town and wanted to treat me to a set and the stylist really couldnt work with hair that wasnt relaxed and eventually I let them talk me into a relaxer.

I've regretted it ever since,

as I only really need one to control the thickness and make it easier to comb. This time instead of starting from ground zero I think I would like to try to transistion it. I had been thinking about going natural for some time but I didnt want to go through losing all my length again. Now that I know I don't have to you guys have given me the inspiration to try this again.

I dont know my hair type and I actually think I have 3. The front and sides are have thick,consistent growth. I dont know how you would classify the texture. It has kind of a small wave pattern to it. The crown is coarser and a lil dryer/more wirey. Its prone to more breakage if I'm not careful. The back of my hair is finer and softer and seems to straighten easier than the rest. If its wet as long as I put some kind of product in it to coat it it will keep the wavy pattern when it dries. When it's natural I can flat iron or roller set and get results as good looking as a relaxed style but for some reason other folx can't work with it. I dont have a recent picture for length. The pic on my AOL homepage is old. http://hometown.aol.com/enchantmt/ Its probably a little below my chin now and about 2-3 inches below my neck in the back. I plan on getting it trimmed next week. I normally do my own relaxers because going to the salon I always end up over processed and with lifeless hair. Normally my hair has pretty good strength and if I keep it moisturized I don't have to worry about breakage. The growth will increase when I start my low carb again this month but I may add some of the supplements I've seen listed on this board to see if that helps as well.

I am a product junkie with no apologies

so I would love to hear about any products that are working well for you. I would love to have my natural hair again. Any advice would be appreciated. I have also seen different threads on flat irons such as the FHI. What makes these different/better than a regular flat iron? I currently have a gold n hot one with temperature control and this lil jilbere ceramic one but wouldnt mind a reason to upgrade.

Sorry this is soooo long. TIA.

 

[inthepink]

Hello there,

I've been transitioning for a year and three months. What has helped me most is learning to wash/detangle my hair and keeping it moisturized.

My basic routine is as follows:
Condition wash hair with St Ives Extra Shine
Comb through after hair is saturated
Comb through as I rinse
I wash/condition my hair in two sections
I apply a dallop of Suave Awapuhi to both sides as a leave-in
Then I spray diluted Biolage Leave-In Tonic
Apply an oil-based moisturizer like Hair Milk
Section off my hair and apply more moisturizer - currently I'm using a butter type moisturizer like Healthy Hair Butter.
I then airdry and put my hair in braids with perm rods overnight.
The next day, I comb my hair into a curly ponytail using gel to smooth.

The conditioning steps are the last thing I figured out (the last month or so!). Just the combination of products and technique works so well for me that tangles are a thing of the past!


That's my basic routine!
I'll be back to add more if I can think of anything.

 

[Enchantmt]

Thanx for the info. I plan on relying on a pony tail to get me through this unless someone has a better suggestion. I'm ordering the silk and satin scrunchies I saw on tenderheaded.com. I do tech support so my job is very casual and I can roller set it if I need something for a special occasions. I also received a couple of PM's recommending nappturality.com as they have a section specifically for this. I'm going to check there as well to see if they have any books they recommend. Any more recommendations?

 

[SilkyandSmooth]

Yes,thanks for the info Hairlove. I'm currently 6 weeks post-relaxer and I want to transition without having to cut or put braids in my hair. I've been wetting, gelling, and putting my hair in a ponytail for the past few weeks. I have quite a bit of new growth, and I'm loving it.

 

[jade998]

try nappturality.com

This is my website as it deals solely on natural hair, it also has a transitionig section.

good luck, I have been transitioning for 5 months

 

[nurseN98]

I completely agree with Hairlove. The most valuable thing I've learned while transitioning is the benefit of detangling while wet and conditioned as well as while standing under the stream of water. Recently, I started using a wide tooth comb before I used my Denman brush and boy what a difference!

 

[inthepink]

[ QUOTE ]
jade998 said:
try nappturality.com

This is my website as it deals solely on natural hair, it also has a transitionig section.

good luck, I have been transitioning for 5 months

[/ QUOTE ]

Actually, there's quite a lot of information on LHCF about transitioning!