Any tips for newbies that are transitioning to become natural?
When you transition to go natural, I say that you should stop using heat all together. The goal is to make your relaxed hair mimic your new growth, not the other way around. The reason for this is that using heat on your natural hair can cause damage to your natural hair pattern, causing it to be altered, or permanently straightened.
Instead,
you can do roller sets, braid outs, and twist outs, as well as braids with your own hair.
When your hair starts to grow out and you have 2 different hair textures, it is best to comb through your hair while it is damp, with conditioner on it. The conditioner helps to give your hair some slip so that it is easier to guide the comb through the two different textures.
Something else to keep in mind is that the line of demarcation, the point on your hair strand where your natural hair and relaxed hair meet, is very weak. So you need to be extra gentle with your hair while you are combing it and handling it. Use the widest comb possible, do not rip through your hair, and before you even think about using a comb, go through your hair with your fingers first to remove all of the major tangles.
And something else to consider: this is from my experience, working with two textures of hair is HARD! Do not be discourage and think that it will be this difficult when you are natural. Natural hair is a lot easier to work with and plus, if you don't like it, guess what? It's hair, it will grow back. How will you know you don't like your natural hair, your natural hair is hard to work with, or any other negative thoughts about your hair, until you have really dealt with it? Give it a try, hit me up, I will try to answer any question you have.
 |
| Set of twists done in Summer, 2008 |
Can you wash twists/Do you wash your twists?
When I washed my hair in twist I just make sure not to rub them too much or manipulate them too much while they are wet. I don't wash my twists more than 2 times because more than that for me = matting. You have to find out what your own limit is. Some people can rinse everyday with no problem. If I did I would have a bird's nest.
Now, since my hair is short right now, I don't really wash my twists because more than likely they will unravel. So I just wash my hair every 2 to 3 weeks
 |
| Old fuzzy twists that look like starter locs. Take down was a *itch! |
How do you prevent your twists from tangling?
Try parting your hair into several mini sections, maybe 20 or so, and section them off. Only work with one section at a time. For each section, you should use your finger, a comb or some other instrument to part out each small section of loose hair that you will twist. When you make your part, make sure that it is a clean part, free of stray hairs from other sections being mixed in the twist. Doing this helped me out a whole lot to reduce tangling.
Also I think the fact that our hair sheds 100 strands a day and twists do not hold the shed hair in place the same way braids would, helps to cause tangles. Braids are usually done slightly tight, with little give in them. Twists are not as tight as braids, and because of that the loose shed hairs in twists have a better opportunity to latch onto other strands of hair contributing to tangling...
So you can actually get the best of both worlds by braiding your roots and twisting the rest. The downfall in doing this is that it takes a lot longer to take this style down.
 |
| Twists With Braided Roots |
You just have to figure out how long your hair can tolerate twists and go from there.
 |
| One week old twists |
How do you maintain your twists/braids?
I don't use a satin bonnet, nor do I regularly wear scarves because they end up smooshing my hair down and causing it to get fuzzy quicker. I tend to sleep on my stomach, which helps to preserve it longer by default. When I moisturize my twists, I try not to manipulate it that much while it is wet or damp with product. Manipulating the hair while it is wet is what helps to aid in frizzing.
