Ready for the transition

[wofford16]

Hello Everyone,

I am the mother of a biracial daughter and I have been using the Curly Q product on her hair for about six months now and she absolutely loves being able to wear her hair down and enjoy her natural curls.

After seeing how beautiful her hair has become, I have been going back and forth about going natural. I have done a dramatic cut before many, many years ago but only with a texturizer so if I make the transition I will opt for the dramatic cut since I don't have the time, patience or resources for weaves and twists and I am quite interested to see how I look with short hair again (Midlife Crisis I think).

My question is when I do get my hair cut how do I start the transition process? I noticed there is a transitioning kit but it is sold out at the moment so what products should I start using to help with my transition? Will these products give me a textured look or straight look. By doing the dramatic cut how long will it normally take for the transition? Summer time is approaching should I wait until the fall to make the transition due to the humidity? (I live in D.C.)

I guess basically I am scared to death of making such a dramatic change yet I know in my heart its what I really want to do because I am tired of retouching my hair every 6 weeks and I am an active person (Salsa, Belly Dance, Yoga, Soccer Coach) and going natural would help eliminate the extra upkeep of my hair.

Any suggestions and advice is greatly appreciated.

Nicole

[soblessed]

Hello Nicole!

First, I want to say that I am glad that you are looking into wearing your hair in its natural state. As, it will allow your hair to become much healthier. Also, I am glad that you mentioned about transitioning, as your choice towards doing so is very important.

Now, you have the option of transitioning over time, by getting mini-chops done on your relaxed hair over time until all of your relaxed ends have been cut off. Or, you can do what is called a BC ("Big Chop". Now, if you do decide to have the BC immediately done, then your your hair would need to be cut really short, in order to remove all of your relaxed hair. The only thing that wouldn't be chopped off is the new growth. Now, if you are interested in transitioning over time, it would allow you to retain more length, in between mini-chops. However, if you want to go natural immediately, then you must be prepared to get 96% of your hair chopped off. And, after you would get the BC done, then your hair would be 100 percent natural and you would have skipped over the whole transitioning phase completely and quickly accomplished your goal of wearing your hair natural.

Importantly, the Curls products will help to add more moisture to your hair as well as bring out your natural curl definition better. So, there is no need to worry about how your would maintain your new look, as the Curls products will allow you to do so in both a natural and effective way.

When I decided to stop relaxing my hair, I chose to do a long transition instead of getting the BC done. As, my hair was already slightly below shoulder length, and I didn't want to lose the length that I already had. So, I ultimately transitioned over a year's period by doing mini-chops on my hair every 3 or 4 months. My reason for not getting the BC done was because I personaly would not have been able to handle such a drastic change myself. Now, there is certainly nothing wrong with getting the BC done, as alot of natural women have opted to have this done to their hair versus a long transition. I am a patient person so I could handle a long transition. But, if you don't have the patience and don't care to go trough the different stages of dealing with two textures on your head can bring, then doing a BC would probaly be best for you.

If you do choose to transition, then getting the "Transitioning Diva" Kit would be great. It's currently "Out of Stock", due to high demand. So, for now you could order the "Active Woman on The Go Kit". And, then you could buy the Quenched Curls Moisturizer separate. As, the Curls Curliscious Cleansing Cream is a gentle non-sulfate cleanser that has moisturizing properties to it. The Quenched Moisturizer would be used as your leave-in conditioner/moisturizer & styling prep product. And, the Curls Milkshake would be your cream styler.

Good luck!

[wofford16]

SoBlessed,

Thank you for the advice and words of encouragement. I have to make a confession... I don't think I can do the big chop either :-) It took me years to grow my hair to shoulder length and I don't think I have the heart to just get it chopped off so with that being said what would be the best way for me to transition without chopping off my hair all at once.

Once I get the Transition Diva Kit or the products that you suggested while I wait for the Kit to get back in stock what kind of effect will they have on my hair? Will I still wash, dry, and style my hair as I normally do with my relaxer or will the products over time make my hair more curly?

How often did you get your hair cut during your transition and how much did you allow them to cut each time?

What styles worked for you during your transition. I guess one of my concerns is that I live a very hectic lifestyle and really require minimum fuss when it comes to my hair thats why relaxers were such a big part of my life. I think I have worn the same hair style for ever because its easy and fits into my daily routine.

Again thank you so much for all your helpful advice. It's hard to get the support that a woman needs when she is making such a drastic change and expert advice and support always make any transition easier.

[soblessed]

Originally Posted by wofford16

SoBlessed,

Thank you for the advice and words of encouragement. I have to make a confession... I don't think I can do the big chop either :-) It took me years to grow my hair to shoulder length and I don't think I have the heart to just get it chopped off so with that being said what would be the best way for me to transition without chopping off my hair all at once.

Once I get the Transition Diva Kit or the products that you suggested while I wait for the Kit to get back in stock what kind of effect will they have on my hair? Will I still wash, dry, and style my hair as I normally do with my relaxer or will the products over time make my hair more curly?

How often did you get your hair cut during your transition and how much did you allow them to cut each time?

What styles worked for you during your transition. I guess one of my concerns is that I live a very hectic lifestyle and really require minimum fuss when it comes to my hair thats why relaxers were such a big part of my life. I think I have worn the same hair style for ever because its easy and fits into my daily routine.

Again thank you so much for all your helpful advice. It's hard to get the support that a woman needs when she is making such a drastic change and expert advice and support always make any transition easier.

Hey!

Well, after you do get the products in, then I can tell you this about each of the products:

Curliscious Cleansing Cream-Non-drying cleansing cream that offers moisturizing benefits to your hair.

Curls Asian Hair Tea Conditioner-Deep conditioner that offers excellent hydration, detangling, and smoothing benefits to the hair.

Curls Quenched Moisturizer-Perfect liquid leave-in moisturizer & detangler. It can be used as a quick refresher for your curls or as a great liquid prep product to be used before any of the Curls stylers.

Curls Milkshake-Lightweight cream styler that helps make the hair look smoother, moisturized, and more manageable.

Whenever it comes to using new products on the hair, always start with freshly cleansed and conditioned hair. Next, you would section your hair off (while it is still fairly soaking wet). After doing that, you would take down a section and then spray it with Curls Quenched from root to tip. Once you have sprayed this first section, you would then detangle it using a brush. I personally prefer using a Denman brush to do so. However, if you alread have a favorite brush of yours that you like to use, then that is okay as well. Now, to detangle, you would start from the bottom working your way to the top.

After you finish detangling that first section, then you would apply Curls Milkshake to it and make sure to thoroughly smooth it through. Once you have finished doing this, then you would just move on to the next section and repeat the same process all over again. And, lastly you would just let your hair airdry.

At night, aslways make sure that you have your hair covered with a satin bonnet. If you don't want to wear a satin bonnet to bed, then buying a satin pillowcase and sleeping on that (in order to protect your hair while it sleeps) is a must.

Now, I sleep with a satin pillowcase on my pillow as well as wearing a satin bonnet on my head. So, I make sure that my hair is well protected.

Also, after you exercise you can certainly re-wash your hair with the Curls Cleansing Cream. As, it can actualy be used n a daily basis with no problems. As, it will never strip the hair. I use it once a week on my hair, but you can certainly adjust your wash routine to fit yor own individual needs, if need be.

Now, even though you relax your hair, you can rock a curly style, just by applying the products to your hair and letting it hang down curly. The products will over time help in better defining your natural curl pattern. So, yes the more you use the products while you are transitioning away from relaxers, the better defined your natural curl pattern will actually become. However, I must note that how curly your har actualy ends up becoming while transitioning is more dependent upon your genetics than the products.

I never went to a hairstytlist to gradually get my relaxed ends cut off. Instead, I bevame my own hairstylist and took this part of transitioning (along with other things) into my own hands. I didn't measure how much I actually did cut off each time, but if I had to pinpoint a number I would have to say it was around a 1/2 inch to an 1 inch. And, when I did take te scisors to my hair, it was aproximately every 3 to 3-1/2 months. So, I pretty much tried to stay consistent the whole way through.

When I first began transitioning, I would rock buns and curly pontails alot. I hardly ever wore my hair down actually. I live in a very humid state (Louisiana), so I would be very so worried about my hair frizzing up. And, yes alot of the products that I had tried before Curls had realy done nothing to free frizz at bay with my hair. So, when I came upon the Curls products (i.e. Curls Whipped, Souffle, Asian Hair Tea Conditioner) they really gave me true confidence to be able to wear my hair down and not worry about it looking like a frizzball a couple hours later.

I truly do understand your concerns about transitioning. As, this is a very important journey for a person's hair to undertake. And, it is certainly a journey that is filled with a lot of questions. So, whenever you have any more questions or concerns to ask about transitioning then certainy feel free to share them anytime.

[wofford16]

SoBlessed,

You are giving me chills just thinking about this huge step in my life. Again thank you for all of the wonderful advice. I don't have a stylist either I do my own hair and knowing I can get through this transition without any additional fuss is great to know. I will order my products today and once they arrive I will start my journey.... Wish Me Luck :-)

[soblessed]

Originally Posted by wofford16

SoBlessed,

You are giving me chills just thinking about this huge step in my life. Again thank you for all of the wonderful advice. I don't have a stylist either I do my own hair and knowing I can get through this transition without any additional fuss is great to know. I will order my products today and once they arrive I will start my journey.... Wish Me Luck :-)

Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!

[wofford16]

SoBlessed,

First of all thank you so much for your advice and encouragement. I am one month into my transition and I must tell you it has been an adventure. I love how soft the Curls Products makes my hair my hardest issue these days is my daily styling options. I tried the wash and air dry method you suggested and my hair was too poofy and frizzy so I crossed that styling option off the list.

Lately I have been able to sport the bun which looks great because my new growth already is forming waves but I have discovered that the hair pins give me a great migraine by the end of the day so two business days tops for that style.

I tried wearing the pony tail but my relaxed ends do not curl at all and a friend suggested that I buy a Ponytail add on which basically you place your hair in a ponytail and this add on covers your hair and gives you either ringlets of curls, straight hair, or waves. I also tried the method that I use with my daughter of washing and braiding my hair at night and that usually gives me the curly/wave ends for my ponytail days.

On top of my styling trial and error I have a new issue. I have to color my hair. My hair prematurely grays (family trait) so I have been coloring my hair every 8-10 weeks if not my hair will be streaked with gray (root to tip). I was wondering will this hamper my transition? Is there any extra products I need to add to my regime to protect my hair? Also if you have any other styling options for me I am all ears. Again thank you so much for all of your wonderful help and advice.

Nicole (Transitioning Diva in Training)

[soblessed]

Nicole, I wish you nothing but good luck while your on your journey to becoming natural! If the Curls Milkshake is not giving the desired type of definition and moisturization to your hair, then you can try either the Curls Souffle or Whipped Cream on your hair. And, and for a good finishing pomade, I suggest you try the Curls Euphoria Elixir. As, it helps with frizz as well add extra sheen to the hair two.

No, dyeing your hair will not hamper your transition. As, transitioning is dependent upon your not using lye and no-lye based relaxers in your hair again. So, it is absolutely okay for you to dye your hair.

I think that once you and your hair become more familiar with the products, then the more of a change you will begin to see on how quickly you can style your hair with them, as well as, how well they can work for your hair. Right now, yuor hair is probably 90 percent relaxed, and you probably have about 10 percent of new growth. So, right now your hair probably is more wavy than it is curly.

I have a "Hair Videos" Thread at the top of this page that offers a number of styling videos that may be of some help to you. As, you don't need to worry about your hair having alot of curliness to it at this time. Because, the longer that you transition, the more your hair's natural curliness will start to emerge.

While transitioning you can rock any style: buns, pressed, blowouts, flatironed styles, rollersets/rodsets, weaves, wigs, phony ponies, wash and gos, curly puff(s)/ponytails, braids/braidouts, twists/twistouts, and combcoils. So, definitely don't be afraid to experiment. However, if you do use any type of direct heat on your hair, try not to do so no more than 2-3 times a month only. As, the more that you use heat on your hair, the more you leave your hair open to the possibility of damage.

Curls does have a "Natural Sista" Kit that has both Curls Whipped Cream and Euphoria Elixir. Curls Whipped Cream is very versatile. It can be used for creating such natural hairstyles as: wash and gos, curly puffs/ponytails, braids, twists, locs, combcoils, etc. And, it works as a gel substitute two.

Also, the Curls Euphoria Elixir is very versatile product as well. As, it can be used as a heat protectant, hot oil treatment, shine enhancer, frizz reducer, and hair smoother. Both the Curls Whipped Cream and Euphoria Elixir are concentrated products. So, being heavy handed with either product would be a no-no. And, with Curls Euphoria Elixir, it can be used alone or layered over any Curls product, by the way.

Also, here's a good site that offers instructions on how to create various styles whether you are transitioning or you wear your hair natural - MotownGirl.com - MotownGirl.com :: Do It Yourself Natural Haircare