GEMINI35oz here is some info I copied in 2010 that helped me. The original poster was on kiss. I forget her name. I don't use all the tips but this helped me alot. I used to stretch 10-12 months. These Stretching rules can be applied to transitioning as well. The point is to deal with the two textures successfully. I never had any breakage the entire 5 years I have been doing long stretches. (if the original poster of this is here, thank u! And please take credit for this!)
STRETCHING RULES--
I decided to repost this (originally in my blog and 6 month stretching group) in the "Stretchers Help Discussion" forum because I see a lot of ladies here are still having difficulties stretching. I feel for them because I have been in their shoes. Just wanted to tell what I've learned in hopes of helping at least one person. HHJ!
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The first time I did this 6th month stretch thing I struggled after I hit that 4th month ( note: I'm a 4A hair type) mark so I promised myself I would get to the bottom of my issues once and for all this time around.
My number one problem was itchiness. Yes, my scalp is sensitive to my own natural hair. This does not go away until I have a significant amount of new growth. I knew this was coming so I went before hand and purchased a bottle of peppermint oil.
So rule #1: Calm the itch with oil, not fingernails! Mix ten drops of peppermint oil with a favorite hair oil (mine is coconut) for itches! Best applied after hair has been freshly shampooed. Cools the scalp like nobody's business!!!
My second issue is combing out two different textures of hair after a good shampoo. Or at least the first time around it was too textures. Now that I am transitioning to texlaxed it's 3 textures. You know the deal. Dryness. Breakage from the slightest pull of the comb. Tangling. So here is how I deal with that.
Rule #2: Deep condition on dry hair. That's right. Get a big tub of the thickest, most moisturizing, deep conditioner you can find. Apply to dry hair. Cover with plastic cap (or plastic wrap. I do both), let sit 45 mins. or sit under the dryer for 15 mins.THEN shampoo out. That's right. Shampoo after.
Rule #3: Scrub that scalp, not the hair. On days that I don't deep condition, I put hair in braids, get in the shower and shampoo focusing only on the scalp. Rinse. Unbraid each braid & apply conditioner to the hair, one by one. Then...
Rule #4: Comb hair out UNDER the running water. Then ponytail, & braid UNDER the running water. Can't say this enough because every time I skip this step I'm in a world of trouble. I ALWAYS have to use the force of the water running thru my hair to aide me in combing it out.
Rule #5: Must have a good leave-in conditioner. It's a small rule for me but helps. I apply plain old VO5 conditioner to my braids and let air dry 75%.
Rule #6: Conditioner is your bff! Now this is a new rule! After reaching 4 months post I switch out my VO5 conditioner for a much, MUCH thicker one for my new growth. When my hair is 75% dry apply a thick MOISTURIZING (not protein) conditioner to the new growth and seal with a favorite oil.
THATS RIGHT! I LEAVE CONDITIONER IN MY HAIR! Let me explain. Now I do this 2 ways:
6a) I use a quarter size amount of Motions on each section of hair, working it in good before detangling a second time with a wide tooth comb. I seal with oil, then comb thu with a fine tooth comb (Not too fine. If I feel it tugging on my hair the comb is too fine) to loosen the natural wave pattern.
6b) I mix Shea Butter with a thick deep conditioner (About 4 tbsp. Shea to 8 tbsp. deep conditioner. A tsp of honey for preservative, & a tsp of my favorite oils). Apply that (do my combing method: see 6a) and keep it moving.
*Special 6c note for natural folks, folks going natural, or people with kids that have natural hair*: I have found that applying deep conditioner (not too heavily) after you shampoo, sitting under a dryer (or letting it sit 45 mins.) then styling your hair WITH the conditioner STILL in the hair can be very helpful. Just seal with oil. This helps comb thru courser hair textures with ease.
NOTE: I only apply this thick conditioner to the new growth. See rule number 7 for the rest!
Rule #7: Low manipulation is the key to happiness. I have developed this thing for putting my hair in 2 donut buns and leaving it there until my next wash. I place my hair in two ponytails after doing rules 1-5. I apply VO5 conditioner. Comb thru with a wide tooth combs (starting at the ends and working my way up).
Then I seal with oil. My favorite oil mixture for my ends is 60% Coconut oil, 30% Jojoba oil, 10% Castor oil. I have fine hair strands so this works for me. *Someone with thicker hair I'd recommend reducing the Coconut oil and upping the Jojoba and Castor oil percentage significantly*.
I comb the hair with a finer toothed comb, then twist it round into a donut bun, laying the ends flat against my hair and pinning the bulk of the hair over them. I ALWAYS do this when my hair is damp. If the hair dries too quickly I mist it again. With the slightly damp ( NOT WET) and in a bun the moisture stays locked in for a day or two.
Rule #8: Keep those edges looking tight. If my edges feels a little dry by the time I finish then I mist them again, then apply a satin scarf. I tell you, 20 mins. in a satin scarf is all I need to have a nice sleek look. Of course I scarf overnight too.
Rule #9: Right amount of protein to balance all that moisture! Protein treatment every 4-6 weeks. I can get moisture overload a bit due to my fine hair strands. It also helps strengthen that line of demarcation. I often follow a protein treatment with a moisturizing one.
Rule #10: Have fun with your hair on the weekends but don't force it to do something it doesn't want to do. I have rollerset my hair (often a ponytail set do to new growth), and blew out the roots once in a while for a straight look but keeping a straight look can be drying when you have a lot of new growth. I never have my hair straight more than 4 days. Actually this rule should be called, "Moisture is more important than style." It is more important that my hair maintain the proper moisture balance, than maintain a straight look. This leads me to rule number 11.
Rule #11: Water is my friend, even in the winter time. I wash (or at least rinse with conditioner) my hair every 4 days in winter, and 3 days in summer. Why? This helps me maintain a proper moisture balance in my hair strands, and keeps my scalp happy. When I went from washing my hair every 7 days to every 3-4 days 50% of my issues went away. One very big one I had for years was dry flaky scalp. This went away after just 2 weeks of doing this. And yes I use a VERY moisturizing shampoo. I also rinse (not wash) from time to time with VO5 conditioner before I hit my 4th month post.
Those are my rules for stretching that chemical process. I hope this helps someone out there struggling because I sure wish I knew it last year. Heck, I wish I knew it ten years ago.
HHJ!
) I can see the natural curls then about 2-3inches of straight hair. I say to myself just go on and cut them off, let's just rock short hair for a while and give the ponytails a break, by the time you get tired of the short hair, hopefully my hair will be long enough to put it back in a ponytail...
