For those who did your own BC...

[lovely_locks]

I just moved to the middle of nowhere Texas (Husban is military) and I have not found a black hair salon, and the closest one that I know of is 2 hours away, and that is too far to drive to find a salon I am comfortable with....anyways, my question is: How did you BC your own hair? Did you do it while it was wet? How did you get the back of your head? Did you have help?

 

[ScarletPhoenix]

I BC'd my hair in 2007 and used my cheapie conditioner to do it. I lathered my hair in that and then I could easily tell what was permed and what was natural. And I took some cutting shears and cut it. I used a mirror for the back. It didn't have to be 100% perfect to me because it was going to be a TWA anyway and I was wearing it curly. I did this myself because my husband would have stopped me lol

 

[DrC]

I have BC'd 4 times in my life. the first one was done in cosmetology school and then I did the rest. I position a big mirror parallel to my bathroom mirror and start chopping.

 

[lovely_locks]

Just thinking about it is making me nervous! Thanks for the advice ladies!

 

[EccentricRed]

I also BC'ed myself with a cheapie conditioner. I could tell the difference between the natural and relaxed hair. For the back I parted it and went row by row. (Honestly, I kinda winged it) My hair was APL straight before I cut it. I haven't really straightened my hair since February, and I don't plan on it until September, so if it's uneven it won't kill me...

 

[Avaya]

My hair was dry when I BC'ed which is probably why I took too much off in the front. I just cut off whatever looked or felt straight. I had to go the barber though to help even things out.

 

[silenttullip]

my sis did her's herself and mine she did hers out of the blue on dry hair she did the back with someone holding a mirror probably my bro in law. She did mine on dry hair too out of the blue just started clipping til there was no more permed ends. My other sis did her own she did it on dry hair but she did a boy cut so help wasn't necessary. I think if you just wanna chop all the perm off you could do it on dry hair and just have your hubby hold the mirror for the back

 

[MOTHEROF3NATURALLY]

I BC'ED MYSELF WHEN I WAS YOUNGER ALL THE TIME. FROM AGE 20-24, I ALWAYS DONE IT DRY. I ALSO DID IT WHEN I GREW MY LOCS, AND MY BC 3 MONTHS AGO. AFTER I DO IT, I JUST WASH MY HAIR WITH A 2 IN ONE SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER AND GO!

 

[lovely_locks]

YIKES! You guys make it sound so easy! I've been trying so hard to hold of cutting for 6 months but my relxed hair is getting knotted, dry, brittle, thin, and compared to my natural hair just.....blah.....

 

[hopeful]

I washed my hair, put it in about six scrunchies and got to cutting. Then I deep conditioned. I have a few straight pieces and I just snip them here and there. I know I will get them all eventually. I am afraid to let someone else do it because I just know they will cut too much! This is my third bc. I did all on wet hair.

 

[BEAUTYU2U]

I cut the majority of it off in a dry state with shears. When I got closer to the new growth I got barber clippers and finished it off.

I did cut a little too close by one ear and had my brother fix it for me ...

 

[LovelyNaps26]

I BC'd my hair dry. Because I had a few inches of new growth I could clearly see or feel the difference. I was slightly paranoid so when I cut the relaxed hair off in a given section I would cut about .5 inch above where I though the point of demarcation was just in case. I really wanted to save ever inch of natural hair I had Now, I realize that it wasn't necessary. For the back of my head I did it by feel. This is easier when you have a good 4 inches of new growth like I had because you can stretch the hair then cut it.

In retrospect I think doing it on wet hair is wiser, although I had pretty good results doing it on dry hair.

 

[EccentricRed]

YIKES! You guys make it sound so easy! I've been trying so hard to hold of cutting for 6 months but my relxed hair is getting knotted, dry, brittle, thin, and compared to my natural hair just.....blah.....

Just to show you how hard it is at times, I didn't plan on BC'ing until September. I had went to the club with my hair straight and I wanted to wash it the next day. As soon as I wet my hair, I stared at the mirror for about 10 minutes, got some scissors and got to work. I was so tired of those relaxed ends. My goal was to transistion two years, but I made about 16 months. It is easy, though! I didn't cut my hair until I was ready!

 

[Grand Prix]

I just cowashed and started snipping.
I rinsed the conditioner out though, a few BCers made the mistake of cutting too much because conditioner made the ends of their natural hair straight.

I was 19 months post though, so I saw everything pretty well in the mirror, even the back.

 

[doll-baby]

I cut off my relaxed end during a commercial break while watching the Oscars. I wet my hair and put conditioner on it and started cutting off the straight ends. I transitioned for 5 months so it was fairly easy to find the line of demarcation.

 

[LoveCraze]

I also cut my hair on dc hair. I was able to see the line of demarcation better and for the back I just stretched it to see where to cut the relaxed ends. I left a few straight ends but I was able to go back and get those off. You never seem to get all the relaxed ends off the first time around. If you do it, I highly recommend you do so on wet hair or hair that has conditioner on it. You may also want to see some BC vids on youtube for inspiration. HTH

 

[glamazon386]

I put some conditioner on it and cut off all the straight pieces.

 

[Creatividual]

I also used conditioner so I could see the blatant difference in textures and cut off the straight parts. It was a little harder in the back and some still had straight pieces once my BC was done. I just gradually cut them out as my twa grew and could get to them with more ease. Once I finished cutting, I washed my hair, put on some conditioner and aloe vera gel and I was good to go. It's not hard. You can do it.

 

[~~HoneyComb~~]

I did my own big chop. My hair was already short (Halle Berry cut), and after 2 months of no relaxer, I took the scissors and cut my hair down to 1/4"-1/2" all over.

It took several days to get the look I wanted, snipping off relaxed hair and shaping it up.

I did it on completely dry hair.

I've also did a BC on a few of my friends.

 

[ParagonTresses]

I cut my hair while it was wet. I went by feel in the back. It turned out very well, except I cut the front of my hair too short. I only had about 2-3 inches of new growth and I knew I would wear it in it's natural state all the time so precise accuracy didn't matter much to me. If you are going to wear your hair straight soon after your BC I would suggest you getting some assistance. Good luck and enjoy your journey!

 

[*Knotty_By_Nature*]

My sister did my BC for me. I washed it and then coated it pretty well with cholesterol conditioner. I was only 2 1/2 months post relaxer so it was a bitter harder to see. The conditioner really helped.

 

[DigitalRain]

I chopped off my wet hair and the next day I went to the barber so they could clean it up.

 

[ShiShiPooPoo]

Looks like conditioner is the way to go.

 

[lovely_locks]

It looks like Ill be cutting it when it's wet with loads of conditioner. I think I am going to give my hair another month or two of growth, just so I can really see the difference between my relaxed and new growth. Thanks ladies!

 

[MissBCurly]

I did my BC in 08, I did it while my hair was wet saturated with condish, I used hair shears and i was in a "room of mirrors" i was literally surrounded by them I started form the back i left a lil of the strand ends on because I was not sure of my texture and did not want to cut too much.

 

[Platinum]

I BC'd after cowashing my hair. I slathered Queen Helene Cholesterol on my hair and chopped the relaxed ends with cutting shears. As for the back, I just went by the feel of my strands.

Even though I have countless salons and barber shops in my area, I felt liberated by doing it myself.

 

[lovely_locks]

Did you guys find that your hair grew in faster once you went natural?

 

[song_of_serenity]

^ It seems that was the case, faster growth but I'm retaining a lot more!

When I did my b.c, I took my hair freshly out of braids, slathered with Trader Joes condish, and cut where my hair curled. I had a few straight ends which I cut as time went on.