I’ve been wearing weaves for about 6 years, and recently decided to wear my real hair. I cut my hair Rihanna length and used a lot of harsh chemicals so when I got pregnant this year I decided to cut my hair to about 2  inches, and wear weaves for the rest of the year to grow out my hair as much as possible. The result is shoulder length hair that is very thick and healthy. Here’s the problem. I don’t have ANY experience with managing my real hair and have no clue where to even begin. I’ve used a mild relaxer on my hair which has
made it more managable, but the only way I know to straighten it is with a flat iron or if my grandmother hot conbs it. I’ve done that for about a week, and I know how damaging that is to ethnic hair. I tried the roller set and blow out techniques on the 1st and FAILED HORRIBLY.

My question is, do you have any tips on perfecting the roller set and blow out technique. And if so, how often do you recommend doing the process a month?

First, congrats on growing out your hair! Regardless to the texture, length, thickness of your hair, waiting for it to grow, is like watching a blade of grass grow. It’s a process that seems to be well beyond slooooow. So, job well done.

I’m not going to beat you up, but if you’ve ever read any of my posts, you’d know that I do NOT like flat-irons, curling irons, or anything else that puts “fire” right on your hair. I’m a stickler for avoiding that kind of heat, because it’s just so much easier to cause damage to your hair.

Now, you may be asking, what’s the difference between using a hooded dryer, a blower and using a flat-iron or curling iron? The difference is that with a hooded dryer and a blower, the heat is not coming directly in contact with your hair and you do not necessarily have to sit under hot dryer in order to dry your hair. With a flat-iron and a curling iron you are putting your hair right in harm’s way. The hot utensils are touching your hair and it seems to me that there is very little chance of NOT burning your hair…that’s just my opinion.

So, if you are using a mild relaxer and getting good results, stick with it. There’s no point in putting harsher chemicals on your hair if you do not really need to. However, you may want to consult with your stylist to ensure that you are using the right strength.

As for your roller set, there is only one bit of advice that I can offer. Practice. When I first started doing my own rolos, I was terrible at it! It actually took me over a year to get to the point where I was competent and comfortable enough to know that I was capable of handling my own tresses.

Keep in mind that it does not matter what your roller set looks like. What IS important is that your hair be completely dry, from roots to tips. If your hair is very thick, then you may need to make your sections a little smaller, and you may want to put more rollers in your hair, but it’s not in the least bit important what direction you roll your hair, or how it looks.

As for blowing out your hair do not forget this point. KEEP THAT BLOWER MOVING! You do not want to stop the blower in any one spot and leave it there. The point of using the blower is to straighten out your curls/kinks, so that means that blower is HOT, right? Where there is heat, there is the potential to cause damage to your hair, so you really want to focus on moving your blower constantly; this too takes a lot of practice.

I do not usually do my hair more than twice a month, even if it has frizzed up, curled up or dried up. Too much of anything can be bad. I do have friends and relatives that will go every week to the salon, but I have also noticed that some of them are experiencing thinning, or dried out hair.

In the meantime, while you are learning to take care of your hair, condition, condition, condition! Moisturize frequently and keep your ends trimmed; get your trims done professionally.

Do NOT give up and if need be, alternate between doing your hair and visiting your stylist. Be as patient as your were during the growing out process. You won’t regret it

Suerte,

LaNegra