Any 4b ladies able to band hair for style?

[Pharmgirl247]

I have 4b hair and I can't successfully stretch my hair without it reverting super quickly. I wear my hair unstretched 99.9% of time. I tried to band my hair like a youtuber who stated they were 4b. It was an epic fail cause less than 20min my hair was back to normal. Just curious how others stretch or straighten their hair.

 

[Foxglove]

Braids are the best followed by twists. Braiding even stretches my hair more than blowdrying. Every night I rebraid on dry already stretched out hair my hair is stretched out even more

 

[Chameleonchick]

Braids are the best followed by twists. Braiding even stretches my hair more than blowdrying. Every night I rebraid on dry already stretched out hair my hair is stretched out even more

Really? I have to try this. So you put twists in first and then braids the next day?

 

[BrownEyez22]

I usually put my hair in twists after washing, undo the twists and style. Then twist again the next night and my hair is pretty stretched by that point. Also if I wear a bun the 2nd day it will be very stretched out then as well.

 

[Nonie]

Really? I have to try this. So you put twists in first and then braids the next day?

@Chameleonchick, I think what @Foxglove meant (correct me if I'm wrong Foxglove) is that braids are the best at stretching hair. Second to braids come twists. If that's what she meant, I concur.

If I wash my hair, it shrinks to a TWA:

If I braid when wet, and let it airdry it stays stretched. You do have to avoid using any "water-based" leave-in or your hair will shrink back. In the pic below, my hair is bare:

If I use S Curl, we're back to a shrunken 'fro:

The only banding I've ever done which works like a charm is African threading where the hair is fully wrapped in thread (the banding I see posted on the forum leaves spaces so your hair is showing; threading completely covers hair like a mummy). If worn for a spell, the hair comes out pretty straight and smooth.

 

[nzeee]

isn't braiding/twising everynight a lot of undue manipulation tho? or is it ok because you're not wearing the styles out and would only need to finger comb and finger part?

*sigh... i would love to start bunning but beyond the first day after taking down my cornrows i'm short and stumpy again and don't know how to keep it stretched on the daily (w/out head).

--not to hijack your thread OP

 

[Evolving78]

yep, what Nonie said! i'm not considered 4b, but i have very tight kinky coils that shrinkage 80-95%. i wear twistouts but still have shrinkage due to the fact that i use a water based moisturizer to retwist at night.

 

[Damaged but not out]

banding is so much work.

I can plait or twist my hair dry or wet, pull it back in one and the next day its stretched.

Or plait it maybe up to 6 plaits. And its stretched out the next day, every night i repeat with a little moisturiser and oil. I also don't comb or brush it jsut stretch it out with my hands and plait it up.
I find as long as I don't soak my head it always retains the length. I can get away with mild dampness the night before. I find the daily dirt helps to keep that stretch



The result is instead of a shruken fro,



i will have



By no means straight, but closer to my actual stretched length.

 

[Nonie]

isn't braiding/twising everynight a lot of undue manipulation tho? or is it ok because you're not wearing the styles out and would only need to finger comb and finger part?

*sigh... i would love to start bunning but beyond the first day after taking down my cornrows i'm short and stumpy again and don't know how to keep it stretched on the daily (w/out head).

--not to hijack your thread OP

nzeee To me it isn't. If I were wearing my hair out, there'd be no ifs or buts: my hair would be braided EVERY SINGLE night and COMBED every single morning--I'm partial to afro puffs. (Now if braid-outs grew on me, I guess I could do w/o the actual comb and just finger comb like I do at the moment before braiding every night.) IMO, not doing that means tangles galore sooner or later which would lead to undue manipulation that could have been avoided by following a regimen that ensured that tangles never happen.

When people post how they detangle once a week or how it takes X amount of time to detangle, it's pretty foreign to me, coz I just never allow tangles to exist in the first place. Hence, "detangling" has no place in my life.

 

[danniegirl]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEUSfiFrmBQ

i love the way she stretches her twist out

 

[nzeee]

If I were wearing my hair out, there'd be no ifs or buts: my hair would be braided EVERY SINGLE night and COMBED every single morning....

When people post how they detangle once a week or how it takes X amount of time to detangle, it's pretty foreign to me, coz I just never allow tangles to exist in the first place. Hence, "detangling" has no place in my life.

thanks nonie! when my next set of cornrows come out i'll try that and see what it do

i'll also try banding at night (cuz i'm lazy) to remain stretch and see how that works for a week.

 

[Foxglove]

Really? I have to try this. So you put twists in first and then braids the next day?

@Chameleonchick, I think what @Foxglove meant (correct me if I'm wrong Foxglove) is that braids are the best at stretching hair. Second to braids come twists. If that's what she meant, I concur.

Yup, Nonie's right, sorry I didn't clarify enough. Braids stretch my hair the most. Say I wash/cowash I'll braid the first night and still have some shrinkage. I braid up the dry hair the next night and this stretches out my hair some more. Continue that process of rebraiding nightly and my hair gets more stretched every day.

isn't braiding/twising everynight a lot of undue manipulation tho? or is it ok because you're not wearing the styles out and would only need to finger comb and finger part?

For me I get more tangles from sleeping on loose hair. I put my hair in 8-16 braids nightly and in the morning unbraid, separate with my fingers, lift the roots (gently) with a pic with metal teeth, and put it in a loose puff. I'm super gentle with the pic. I never go all the way to the ends bc my ends coil up together and I feel like that would cause breakage so I save that for my actual detangling sessions.

nzeee To me it isn't. If I were wearing my hair out, there'd be no ifs or buts: my hair would be braided EVERY SINGLE night ... When people post how they detangle once a week or how it takes X amount of time to detangle, it's pretty foreign to me, coz I just never allow tangles to exist in the first place. Hence, "detangling" has no place in my life.

ETA of course Nonie stated it better than I could. I can't go without detangling ever (my shed hairs get caught so I have to get them out sometime) but this overall principle is what I use. Minimizing tangles will minimize breakage and for me some manipulation is necessary for that

 

[Asha's-Hair]

When people post how they detangle once a week or how it takes X amount of time to detangle, it's pretty foreign to me, coz I just never allow tangles to exist in the first place. Hence, "detangling" has no place in my life.

EXACTLY. It takes me about 5-10 mins to "detangle" my hair. I live either in plaits or braid outs. I never even have to deal with tangled hair

 

[sapphire18]

I don't band my 4b natural hair because I feel it puts too much tension on my scalp. A hair bun will stretch the hair almost as well. I moisturize with Cantu leave in and seal with oil before I put my hair in a bun. Is your hair completely dry before you take it down?

 

[pookaloo83]

I braid after my wash in about 10 braids. The next day it's semi stretched. Then that night I will twist or braid again and it's even more stretched as the days go by.

I just washed my hair last night put it in braids and it came out like this.

I put it in twists tonight and my twists were hanging pretty long. It will look like this tomorrow. This is a twistout from a couple months ago, but it always comes out like this.

Then I will do a braidout again the next day. I just flip flop back and forth.

 

[pookaloo83]

^^And my hair shrinks up to a semi-mini fro after my wash.

 

[Pharmgirl247]

Braids are the best followed by twists. Braiding even stretches my hair more than blowdrying. Every night I rebraid on dry already stretched out hair my hair is stretched out even more

Thanks. I may try this method.

 

[Pharmgirl247]

I braid after my wash in about 10 braids. The next day it's semi stretched. Then that night I will twist or braid again and it's even more stretched as the days go by.

I just washed my hair last night put it in braids and it came out like this.

I put it in twists tonight and my twists were hanging pretty long. It will look like this tomorrow. This is a twistout from a couple months ago, but it always comes out like this.

Then I will do a braidout again the next day. I just flip flop back and forth.

Your hair looks fab.

 

[la mosca]

Pook, your hair is gorgeous!

 

[Bublin]

Nonie you mention not putting water based product in your hair whilst braiding it when damp. This is interesting and i think this is where i'm going wrong.

What products do you recommend?

 

[Krystle~Hime]

Nonie you mention not putting water based product in your hair whilst braiding it when damp. This is interesting and i think this is where i'm going wrong.

What products do you recommend?

it was also interesting for me, I thought Nonie was saying: after doing braids on damp wet, don't moisturize it again when its drying or when unraveling them, .... maybe I was wrong.

 

[PrissyPJ]

Your twistout is very pretty. What products do you use?

I braid after my wash in about 10 braids. The next day it's semi stretched. Then that night I will twist or braid again and it's even more stretched as the days go by.

I just washed my hair last night put it in braids and it came out like this.

I put it in twists tonight and my twists were hanging pretty long. It will look like this tomorrow. This is a twistout from a couple months ago, but it always comes out like this.

Then I will do a braidout again the next day. I just flip flop back and forth.

 

[MyAngelEyez~C~U]

My banding method after henna/cowash this morning:

Sent from my iPod Touch using LHCF App

 

[Nonie]

@Nonie you mention not putting water based product in your hair whilst braiding it when damp. This is interesting and i think this is where i'm going wrong.

What products do you recommend?

Bublin, you asking the S Curl snob who knows nothing else?

I dunno what other naturals use that keep their hair soft, but maybe coconut oil? Shea butter + aloe vera (shealoe, or whatever they call it?)

Krystle~Hime, you were sort of right about what I meant--and I agree with what you said--especially since most moisturizers have water in them...so putting water to stretched hair would cause reversion. I do want to mention though that if you use S Curl before you braid, because of the moisture content in it--not to mentione the glycerin that will attract moisture--your hair may still revert when you undo the braids even if you don't reapply. I don't reapply S Curl beyond wash day yet I have a short/shrunken afro when I undo my braids and that remains the case until the next wash day in spite of my nightly braiding. Granted it's not as shrunken as it is when I apply to my wet hair and not braid (this is the shrinkage I get if I do not braid at all and just let S Curled damp hair airdry).

In the image below, I mixed coconut oil with MyHoneyChild Type 4 Conditioner (or whatever it's called) because I mistook it for a leave-in I had not planned to use both, but after applying the condish, my hair got hard after a while. So I applied the oil to soften it a bit and braided it for the night. Next morning, my puff was much bigger:

Perhaps if you use a product that loses its moisture content after a while (a lot of moisturizers do) before you braid, you may not get shrinkage like I do with S Curl. And yes, as Krystle~Hime said, you would have to NOT reapply it after you undo the braids...because moisturizers have water in them and that causes shrinkage.

I know my bare hair holds the stretches the best. I suspect applying a serum to damp hair and plaiting would also leave nicely stretched hair. And I do love serums on my damp hair. My only issue with them is because I baggy (can't help it; it's an addiction!), serums would get on my scalp and make me itch something awful. Otherwise if I were going to wash my hair, I might consider applying them and sporting a stretched fro. If I ever do, I'll be sure to share.

 

[Bublin]

Lol Nonie you are an scurl snob!

 

[Nonie]

@Bublin, just found more props to show the difference between the effect of a wet moisturizer like S Curl and something a bit dry like conditioner. I'll post the images in the order in which they were taken...but it's the first pic (S Curl)--representing hair moisturized with a wet product like S Curl--and the last pic--representing hair moisturized with a dry product that loses "wetness"...that are most relevant. The others just show how hair would dry if it were not stretched--which is why I clutch my pearls when any type 4 folks tell me they don't braid or twist their hair at night. That to me looks like tangles galore!

Hair moisturized with S Curl even after being in twists shrinks:

...just like hair that has been shampooed and conditioned and is still wet:

And if airdried loose, the hair just maintains that shrunken length and you end up with this:

To simulate what I might get with butters, and therefore something you might consider using if butters work for you, I applied Trader Joe's Conditioner to provide slip so I could comb it. (I never comb my hair w/o something slippery in it):

Even though I didn't braid it, you can see the combing as my hair dried (product lost the wetness), did indeed stretch my hair. Had I braided it, it'd have been more stretched:

Side by side--shrunken vs stretched (sorry I didn't do a good job of taking pics exactly the same way for a good comparison. I wasn't taking them for this thread so I didn't know I'd be comparing them...but hopefully the distance of the ends of my hair from my corner of my ear hopefully helps you see the difference:

 

[pookaloo83]

Your twistout is very pretty. What products do you use?

Qhemets AOHC. Only product I own and put on my hair. It;s kinda sad because I don't know what I'd do without it.

 

[pookaloo83]

^^^^^ PrissyPJ