How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (week 13)

Ladies!!! If you are following me with your relaxer stretch you are now on week 13!!!  You should be so proud of yourself, especially if you are used to only going six weeks.  Thirteen weeks means that you only have a few more weeks to go before it is perfectly safe to relax your hair without being concerned with any damage from overlapping.  You should already be noticing a difference in your hair now.  It should be shedding and breaking less and growing faster.  When you get a relaxer at six weeks, you can not see any noticeable growth in your hair.  But when you relax after sixteen weeks, you will definitely notice the growth!  You are almost there, don't give up.

Can Relaxers Damage Your Hair?

I know I have been talking about relaxers a LOT lately but I just want everyone to be very knowledgable about them, especially when it comes to the health of your hair.  This client came to me as a result of having a lot of damage due to getting relaxers.  So the question comes up about are relaxers damaging or can they damage your hair?  Relaxers can absolutely damage your hair IF you are not using them correctly.  This client was going to a hairstylist that was giving her relaxers every four weeks.  So, basically at every other appointment, she got a touch up!  One day she woke up and took a look at her hair only to realize her edges were completely gone as well as her hair in the top of her head.  She is now on a quest for healthier hair which includes giving up relaxers altogether. 

Unfortunately, I see this way more often than I would like.  I have said before that getting a relaxer before you have two inches of new growth is too soon and can cause damage and breakage to the hair.  Just because you do not see the damage immediately does not mean that it has not been done.  Over time, the hair gets weaker and weaker until it gets to the point where it breaks.  This client had to learn the hard way about this which is why she now wants to transition to natural hair and leave the relaxer alone period.

Tips For Transitioning From Relaxed Hair To Natural Hair

Many of my clients desire to have straight hair but they do not want the relaxer chemicals.  Therefore, they decide to transition into natural hair by growing their hair out.  While it can be hard to transition from relaxed hair to natural hair when you want to wear your hair in its natural state, it is a little bit easier when you still want to wear your hair in a straight style.  Here are a few tips on how to transition smoothly from relaxed hair to natural hair.

First, determine how much relaxed versus natural hair you have.  If you are just starting out in your transition, you will not have much natural hair.  You will only have just the new growth at the roots.  This client has been transitioning for over a year so to determine how much new growth she has I shampooed and conditioned the hair and put foam wrap on the hair.  I then combed it straight down.  The new growth waved up as you see in the picture while the relaxed hair remained straight.  If she wanted to go ahead and cut the remaining relaxed ends off, I would cut right where the hair is straight.

How To Stretch Your Relaxer (Week 12-pt1 & 2)

Forgive me for posting this video so late, I actually forgot I had it in my camera.  Anyway, the following weeks up to week 16 will be a bit more detailed since it is getting harder in the stretch process.  Congrats to everyone making it this far, especially if you are used to only going six weeks.  This week I straightened my hair again since I am a big fan of wrapping.  Remember that average hair growth of healthy hair is half an inch per month.  By week 16 a lot of you will be ready to get your touch ups.  Keep going, your hair will thank you!  Take a look at the video and be sure to subscribe to the YouTube page AND the blog!

Enjoy!

Pt1

Pt2

Don't forget to send any questions to toya@latoyajonesblog.com.  I just may answer it on video!

Silk Press For Kids

This client was a cute little five year old.  She was extremely nervous about getting her hair silk pressed because her mother attempted to have it done before by another stylist and it turned out to be a very bad experience for her.  So bad in fact that her mom did not let the stylist finish because she was hurting the baby so bad.  So now her mother wanted to try again, in hopes of having a great experience this time.  This little one was not sure what to expect so of course she was expecting the worst because of her previous experience.  I always tell mothers that I will do a child's hair provided that they will sit in the chair without kicking and screaming.  I try to be as gentle as I possibly can but if they are extremely tender headed I encourage the mom to wait a little bit longer.  This little one was excellent so I was determined to make her look even more beautiful that she already was!

The Difference Between Beauty Supply Hair & Virgin Hair

So many people have been wondering what is the difference between hair at the beauty supply and virgin hair that comes in the bundles.  Well today I am going to try to answer all of the questions that people ask me.  I do recommend getting premium quality hair whenever you are getting weave because that will make all of the difference in the world.  Two people could have the exact same style, but if one has cheap hair and the other has excellent hair, you can guess which one will say they do not like weave and which one will say they love it.  I will say that high quality hair can be pricey so if you are trying weave for the first time and are not sure if you will like it or not, you can get hair from the beauty supply store just to get your feet wet and try it out.  If you like it, then invest in some better hair the next time.  Although it is pricey, you get multiple uses out of it versus with the hair you buy at the beauty supply store which has to be thrown out after one use.

How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (week 11)

This week is the eleventh week in my relaxer stretch.  This week I have about one and a half inches of new growth which puts my on track.  Only half an inch to go before it is safe for me to get a relaxer without worrying about any overlapping.  I have been having such a great time wearing my weave that I decided to put my removable sew in on again.  This week I wore it bone straight, which is my favorite.  I got a lot of compliments this week as well.  Even one of my clients thought it was my real hair!  A lot of people do not like the idea of wearing weave because they do not want it to look like fake hair, but the whole point is for it to look like you grew it from your own scalp.  Anyone that does not know you should not be able to tell.  The only thing I had to do every morning was take my satin scarf and cap off and comb the hair straight down.  It was very low maintenance.  In fact, I spent more time doing my make up than combing my hair!  Now you see why it is very easy to get addicted to it.

Can A Silk Press Damage Your Hair?

Can A Silk Press Damage Your Hair?

Silk presses have become increasingly popular as more and more women with natural hair want all of the benefits of having relaxed hair without actually having chemicals in their hair.  They want the straight look and to have hair that moves instead of being stuck to the head with grease. A traditional press and curl requires a lot of grease and oil which results in the very straight but stuck to the head look.  It straightens the hair very good but who wants hair that has no body?

A silk press is the anecdote to this (if you have no clue on exactly what a silk press is, click here to find out). A silk press is better than a traditional press and curl not only because it makes the hair flow and have lots of body and movement, but also because it does not require as much heat as the press and curl yet offers better results. One of my clients asked me a very good question while getting her silk press.  She wanted to know can a silk press cause damage to your hair.  The answer to that question is no, when done correctly.

To the naked eye a silk press looks like simply shampooing the hair, blow drying, and flat ironing. However, a silk press needs to be done in a way that allows you to use as less heat as possible while still giving extraordinary results.  When I do silk presses on my clients I blow dry the hair on warm heat and when I flat iron the hair I only flat iron each section of hair one time.  I do not flat iron the same piece of hair over and over until it gets straight.  Doing this is what leads to heat damage and is not good for the hair. That is why I love the Toi flat iron. It is the only one on the market that goes up to 480 degrees, so only one pass is needed to get the hair super straight and silky. Don't worry though, the flat iron has an adjustable heat temperature gauge so you can set the temp to whatever your hair needs. So, when done correctly a silk press will not do any harm to your hair.

Can a silk press damage your hair?

Yes! I have a step by step tutorial on how to do your own silk press at home without getting any damage!

If you would like for me to teach you all of my tips, tricks, and secrets on how to do your own silk press and get professional results, click here to sign up for the class (it's online and allows you to go at your own pace.)

natural hair curl pattern before getting a silk press

This client does not get silk presses done very often. She gets them only when it is time for a trim. The picture above is the before picture and was taken right after I shampooed her hair using by L. Jones hair products.  Her natural curl pattern popped right back up and from the picture you can not tell her hair has ever been straightened.  This is what should happen every time a silk press is performed.  If you have natural hair and you get it straightened you should never experience shampooing your hair and it remains straight.  If this happens it is likely that you have received damage from heat.  A silk press done properly will not loosen up your curl pattern or permanently straighten your hair. If this does happen to you, you will basically have to transition back all over again.

Can a silk press damage your hair?

A combination of finding the right hair stylist, using high quality products,  the perfect flat iron, and using the correct technique (click here to find out how to get the perfect silk press in 7 easy steps at home) will give you the results of a great silk press that will not damage your hair at all.  I used the following by L. Jones products:

Extreme Clean Clarifying Shampoo:  This got all of the residue, oil, and dirt off of the hair.
Extreme Moisture Moisturizing Shampoo: Includes liquid silk and helps soften up the hair by putting the good moisture back in the hair.
Intense Moisturizing Treatment: Has over eight different oils in it so it also packs the moisture back in the hair while keeping the hair light.  After rinsing the conditioner, I then generously applied the
Leave-in conditioner: Excellent in helping to detangle the hair while simultaneously adding a third layer of moisture to the hair. It also serves as a heat protectant spray.
Silky Serum Oil: Apply this before blow drying the hair so that the hair will have shine once it is flat ironed
Miracle Potion no9 (optional): This is a finishing spray that adds even more shine and controls frizz and flyaway hairs. Use this sparingly, a little goes a long way.

Can a silk press damage your hair?

I then blow dried the hair on low heat then flat ironed using a Toi by L. Jones flat iron.  When using the flat iron, I only flat ironed each section of hair one time.  It has plenty of body, is not stuck to the head, and the hair is ultra silky smooth.  This young lady loved her hair and the body and movement that came with it. I am happy that I was able to please her, but I am even more happy that I can provide her with a healthy hair experience. To maintain her hair, she will only have to wrap it every night (click here to see how to wrap your hair) and avoid these three things.  She does not need to put anything on her hair at all.  No oil, no grease, no nothing!  All of that was put in the shampoo and conditioner so extra products are not needed. If she chooses, she can spray a very tiny amount of Miracle Potion no9 on it to keep it shiny and control any frizz.

Would you like a FREE pdf download on everything you need to know to avoid heat damage?

Click here and I will send it right to your inbox.

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How To Stretch Your Relaxer (week 10)

This week I continued to play with weave on my relaxer stretching stint.  I really enjoyed not having to do much to my hair last week.  This is why I absolutely love my weave.  All I did was shampoo and condition the same way I do every week using my Silk Hydration by L. Jones products.  This time however, I was a lot more generous with the leave-in conditioner and loved the results.  It left my hair super, super soft but still light.  This is because the leave-in is in a mist versus being a cream so it does not weigh the hair down.  Take a look at my hair before I shampooed it.  This picture was taken right after I took the braids down from my hair.

This is how thick my hair is and what I have to deal with every week!

Once I got done, this was the after photo.

This hair is from my collection (L. Jones Hair Collection) which can be ordered here.  It came silky straight but I curled it with the curling wand from my sponsor Theorie.  This curling wand was amazing by the way, I absolutely loved it.  Check out the video for week 10!

Can Any Hair Type Get A Silk Press?

The client featured in this post was a new client.  She tickled me because the day before she came in, she called me first wanting to know if any hair type could be pressed into looking like relaxed hair without the actual relaxer.  She said that her hair was very thick and extremely coarse and that she had a tight curl pattern.  I chuckled before telling her that I could handle any hair type.  She hesitated, and then made the appointment.  When she came in she did in fact have the exact same hair that she described on the phone.  Nevertheless I was ready!  I took a before picture and it mysteriously disappeared!  The only pics I could find were the after pictures.