trip to NYC made me wanna give up..

[isnatural4me]

Good Morning Ladies:

So, this weekend I took a trip back home to good ol' NYC for a party. Decided I wanted to straighten my hair (transitioning since Dec 1, 2007)and went to the Dominican Salon. The looks on their faces and the words, whcih I could not understand seemed to all say "YOU NEED A DAMN RELAXER". One of the ladies said "you should just relax your hair (as she shook her head), it will look a lot better. After my hair was done--they all seemed shocked at the turnout, which was pretty nice I must say .
But, the point is...this experience has temporarily derailed my plans to transition for 18-24months. Now I'm wondering if i should texlax or texturize. I definitely like to straighten my hair atleast once every 6 weeks or so and that lasts about 2 weeks and then i'm over it and wear my braidouts, knots, and co-wash buns. I'm kind of feeling guilty because if i could so easily be swayed back to the crack...am i really ready to go natural????

Sorry for the drawn out story....

 

[FemmeCreole]

do whatever feel right for YOU ........ not to please others

 

[lurkersincejan]

Please dont let them deter you, my friend is hispanic and black and she has very thick and long. When she walked in they started talking in spanish about her hair. It pissed her off because they didnt know she was hispanic. Long story short the dominican salons dont like a good challenge I think. They would prefer to do simple hair with simple styles because that it what they are known for. Whatever you decide it should be YOUR decision

 

[ladylibra]

^^^that is the case with most stylists, Dominican or not. they are lazy IMO, want to do the least amount of work possible. you add in that whole good hair/bad hair mentality and "straighter is better" and you get scenarios like this when someone with natural hair walks into the shop.

take the time to evaluate WHY you are going natural... and understand no matter what you do, not everybody is gonna like your decision.

 

[Ms Lala]

Don't let this deter you. Stick w/salons or stylists that specialize in natural hair.

 

[Country gal]

Don't let the dominicans discourage you. They acted the same way when I went to their salon, after my hair was done they were so surprised how straight it came out. I sometimes wonder if they are dealing with a full deck.

 

[Southernbella.]

Don't let the dominicans discourage you. They acted the same way when I went to their salon, after my hair was done they were so surprised how straight it came out. I sometimes wonder if they are dealing with a full deck.

When I was transitioning, I got my hair pressed for my friend's wedding, and her stylist was amazing. She was very gentle with my hair, took her time, told me what she was doing, etc. She had lots of experience with natural hair, even though it wasn't her specialty. She even talked to me about BCing.

That's the key, IMO. When you find a supportive stylist, everything falls into place. The Dominicans are not going to be supportive of natural Afro textured hair.

Try to find a good stylist in your area.

 

[Riverwalk]

^^^that is the case with most stylists, Dominican or not. they are lazy IMO, want to do the least amount of work possible. you add in that whole good hair/bad hair mentality and "straighter is better" and you get scenarios like this when someone with natural hair walks into the shop.

take the time to evaluate WHY you are going natural... and understand no matter what you do, not everybody is gonna like your decision.

[email protected] is why I started getting relaxers (as a teen) in the first place

That's the key, IMO. When you find a supportive stylist, everything falls into place.

This is VERY VERY true.

 

[PuffyBrown]

Aw boo Im sorry you got discouraged.
Try not to soak in what other people think. When your hair keeps growing and growing and you wear it down, natural you'll make them drool.
I love to see long hair on dark skinned women. People whose hair grows straight have the misconception that people with curly hair need or want straight hair. They always tend to put our natural hair in a negative category, when it comes to my hair. I think you shoud go with you gut instinct and do what YOU want to do. Forget them. People are always going to find something to say.

 

[streets]

Some cultures equate "nappy" or "natural" hair as being sub-standard. There is implied racisim in having kinky hair which is why many are quick to push a perm or blow out. Love who you are hair and all and don't let one bad expereince deter you from what's comfortable for you.

 

[cclark1]

It not the fact that it was a Dominican salon or an AA salon. You just happened to go into a salon that didn't specialize in natural hair. In most salons you'd get that reaction. That's why when I started transitioning, I stuck with a stylist that could flat iron with the best of them but she specialized in natural hair (shoutout to Balisi. I've had Dominican stylists tell me up and down I needed a relaxer (before I even transitioned) and others that were like girl please I can still get your hair straight, naps or no naps!

Good Morning Ladies:

So, this weekend I took a trip back home to good ol' NYC for a party. Decided I wanted to straighten my hair (transitioning since Dec 1, 2007)and went to the Dominican Salon. The looks on their faces and the words, whcih I could not understand seemed to all say "YOU NEED A DAMN RELAXER". One of the ladies said "you should just relax your hair (as she shook her head), it will look a lot better. After my hair was done--they all seemed shocked at the turnout, which was pretty nice I must say .
But, the point is...this experience has temporarily derailed my plans to transition for 18-24months. Now I'm wondering if i should texlax or texturize. I definitely like to straighten my hair atleast once every 6 weeks or so and that lasts about 2 weeks and then i'm over it and wear my braidouts, knots, and co-wash buns. I'm kind of feeling guilty because if i could so easily be swayed back to the crack...am i really ready to go natural????

Sorry for the drawn out story....

 

[SimpleBrooklyn]

LOL. Not at you but at the situation. There is a Domincan Stylist that my family goes to (others attend other Domincan Hair Salons) and so she has seen my hair for like ten years. Anywhoo, I went natural before for 2.5/ 3 years and she ended up relaxing me ( i let family members talk me into it) but now I'm transitioning again and for the last time

So when I went to her in December I got "You need perm", I said "No, I'm growing it out". They contiued to talk about me. Shoot I would too. YOu should have seen how I walked into that salon. Hair straight jacked up under a hat (I like to make them work for their tip lol).
So she did it and it came out fine.

I went back in March and she saw I was serious and didn't tell me "You need perm". She commented on my growth and she did my hair and she also let the other girls know in spanish about my situation. My hair came out fine.

Anywhoo, what i'm saying is...

1. They wanted that perm money from you and
2. They prob didn't know how serious you were about going natural so they tested you so they could get...
(see number 1)

 

[lilsparkle825]

my dominican stylist is actually who encouraged me to go natural in the first place. when i was 6 months in and thought about BCing, she told me that i should keep transitioning and just cut off a bit every month or two. i didnt go that route, probably because i stopped going to them

but i never heard them say anything to anyone like "you NEED a perm"...they just asked the relaxed heads if they were gonna get a touchup. they loooove taking before and after pics of naturals armed with nothing but rollers and a blowdryer.

 

[naturalmanenyc]

Do not be discouraged. I was at a Domincan salon last week and made to feel like I had some 4zz hair that needed a relaxer - and this was without touching my hair at all which was pinned up and smoothed at the front with aloe vera gel. That happened to me in April too when I went to a different Dominican salon for a blowout.

Last week I wanted a w&s plus flat iron (scared of blowouts now). The stylist told me that she does not flat iron, only blows roots and she looked at me cockeyed when I asked her about working with natural hair. She said that she only works with relaxers and she did not even seem willing to do a blowout for me. She seemed shocked when I told her that I rollerset my hair and have gotten blowouts recently that came out pin straight.

There will be MANY people who say that you need a relaxer but that is it's because that is what they know. Only relax if that is what YOU want to do.

 

[locabouthair]

Do not be discouraged. I was at a Domincan salon last week and made to feel like I had some 4zz hair that needed a relaxer - and this was without touching my hair at all which was pinned up and smoothed at the front with aloe vera gel. That happened to me in April too when I went to a different Dominican salon for a blowout.

Last week I wanted a w&s plus flat iron (scared of blowouts now). The stylist told me that she does not flat iron, only blows roots and she looked at me cockeyed when I asked her about working with natural hair. She said that she only works with relaxers and she did not even seem willing to do a blowout for me. She seemed shocked when I told her that I rollerset my hair and have gotten blowouts recently that came out pin straight.

There will be MANY people who say that you need a relaxer but that is it's because that is what they know. Only relax if that is what YOU want to do.

I agree. From my experience the dominicans are quick to tell you to relax.

 

[Nola Darling]

I also had a terrible experience from a Dominican Salon. Everyone was talking bad at me and they were pushing a relexer, HARD. Plus it came out horribly. Just don't go to them again..and keep doing you!