User post: Tips for Relaxing Your Hair at Home

We all know the recession is hitting us pretty hard and that does not exclude us ladies who are used to hitting up the salon to get our relaxers and touch ups every 4 to 6 weeks. Nowadays, those trips to get our “hair did” can add up so if have been considering going the DIY route, here are some tips to get you through!

Before I get into the tips, let me just give a little hair info about myself. I have been relaxing my own hair at home for about 3 to 4 years now. I had a bad experience at a salon and just decided that if I wanted it done right, I would at least try to do myself!

So, without further a-due, here we go!

Read! – please, please, please, read all the instructions that come with the relaxer kit you purchased.

Get Greased Up! – make sure that scalp is protected by greasing it first ( I like Bergamont or Blue Magic). This will help protect it through the harsh relaxing process. It will also give you practice parting your hair and finding your scalp even when you can’t see it.

Four! – part your hair in fours and apply the relaxing cream section by section. I also suggest smoothing once you have applied relaxer in that section, just in case you don’t have time to go back and smooth your hair out later.

Rinse! Rinse! Rinse! – when its time to get that relaxer out, rinse really, really well! I usually rinse for about 4 to 5 minutes. The more I get out initially, the less shampooing I have to do later.

Check your hands! – while shampooing, (especially if you’re using a color indicating neutralizing shampoo) I check out the suds on my hands to see if they are still white. If it’s not, rinse, lather, and try again!

Relax with a friend! – If you are not that confident to go at this alone, recruit a friend or a family member to be your extra set of eyes and/or hands if need be!

If there are any other DIY relaxer ladies out there with more tips, please share!

Be beautiful ladies!

Photos courtesy of www.sallybeauty.com

From the Community…

Posted by M.J - Fierce Beauty and Fashion Sun Jul 12, 2009 12:33pm PDT

The comments from you guys has led me to take this conversation to the next level! Check out my new blog post where I pose the question: relaxed vs natural. I think its a conversation worth having where we can learn a lot from each other!
Once again, thanks for checking out my blog and leaving such great comments!

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Posted by Aj Mon Jul 13, 2009 10:56am PDT

Hey thanks for telling us about this! Although I am natural, I dont think its bad to have their hair relaxed. Its ok to relax or wear the hair in its natural form as long as you CONDITION, CONDITION!! Thats one of the most important keys to growing strong long hair!

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Posted by V.H Mon Jul 13, 2009 1:34pm PDT

I am in the same boat as the 'America' gal. White gal with super kinky, super thick dark red hair. What do chemical relaxers do to other types of hair?

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Posted by Christina Tue Jul 14, 2009 8:36am PDT

My sister and I are biracial. Our momma is puerto rican/black and my father is white, but all three of us ended up with very different hair. My bro has shiny black, kinky, coarse african-american hair with tan skin. My sister has amazingly thick, reddish-lighter brown curly hair that is just a jungle and I, got stuck with pale white skin, monotone brown hair, but luckily, i had wonderfully soft, only semi coarse corkscrew curls. In my mostly white school in the rurals, I hated my stand out hair and tried a relaxer. Needless to say, my hair will never be the softness it used to be. Now, I wear my hair in its natural, volumous, sexy curly state. A little mouse and some fluffing, and an hour of airdrying later, and I have a head that turns heads! My boyfriends says he is dating the most gorgeous girl in the world, and my friends say I have runway model hair! I will never touch my hair with chemicals again...If i'm dying for a change, I take the time to flat-iron, of course liberally applying heat protectants first.

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Posted by Shon Sat Aug 15, 2009 11:54pm PDT

Try to go to these websites www.hairlista.com, www.k-i-s-s.biz.com, or www.longhaircareforum.com. A lot of African American women are growing there hair long and healthy by using tips from these websites. Make sure you moisturize your hair as well as use protein. Only use natural products and look at lablels. Look for coco nut oil, shea butter, aloe vera, avocada oil, castor oil, almond oil, rosemary, grapeseed oil, olive oil, and honey. Try organic shampoos and conditioners. Pre poo- add essential oils or conditioner before washing. Co-wash - condition wash hair in between normal shampoo days. Try to stretch your relaxers to 8 to 10 weeks and use less heat air dry your hair and if you must use blow dryers and curling irons only use ceramic tools. Don't forget to take your vitamins Biontin, Hair Skin and Nails, and MSM. I must worn you though when you start this hair journey you will probably spend a lot of money on products when you find your routine stick to it no matter what.

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