PROs & CONs of Natural hair & Relaxed hair...(pics welcomed)

[jennboo]

I'm type 4 natural.

What are the pros/cons
Pros:
- Healthier hair
- Stronger hair
- Better-looking hair
- Easier to manage/handle
- Ability to do my favorite styles (which cant be done with straight hair)
- Big fluffy, lush, sexy hair
- Comfort and pride with the way your hair grows out of your own head
- You are wearing your own hair
- No more toxic chemicals on your head
Cons:
-None

How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
-I have no idea, i suspect i retain nearly all my length being that i dont have breakage

How long does it take to normally style your hair?
-Takes me 3 minutes to do my hair each morning.

What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
- If i had the desire to conform and look like everyone else i guess i'd relax, lol

 

[bride91501]

More pics of my natural hair

Another pro of being natural is versatility.

Danell- your hair is beautiful!

 

[preciouslove0x]

Honestly.... after reading this post..... I would cut my hair off TODAY if I wasnt already natural Nonie you MUST be a salesperson IRL.....

I'm natural.

♥.What are the pros/cons

Pros of being natural:

• Versatility--I can pull off just about any hairstyle I want and have long hair one day and short the next. LOVE IT!!!!!
• Independence--I do not need to depend on outside eyes for the caring and maintenance of my hair.
• I believe my hair is a lot healthier in its natural state.

Cons of being natural:

• I personally don't have any but I'd say for a newbie who's never had natural hair, 4B hair can be quite a handful, especially if one isn't listening to her hair but is trying to copy styles from others who don't have the same type of hair. I'm sorta spoiled in that I have had and lived among 4B natural hair for about 30 years. So I know how to avoid tangles and knots by keeping my hair stretched and detangled at all times.
• If you hate shrinkage (which I LOVE) then that's another burden you have to deal with.
• If you like WNGs (I don't care for them) then you may find tangles and knots are commonplace.

Pros of being relaxed:

• I guess styling hair can be done in a jiffy.
• If you are one of those who NEEDS to know how long your hair is often, then straight hair affords you that.

Cons of being relaxed:

• Dependence on a stylist to be your eyes and ensure minimum overlap during touch ups--a risk I'm not willing to take.
• The constant headache of having two textures to deal with and needing to make sure you match the old hair when you touch up.
• Risk of overprocessing and underprocessing and getting burned.
• Maybe I would feel differently now but back when I was relaxed, it seemed I was always "treating" my hair to keep it from breaking--as if I'd caught some incurable disease. The slight weakening from chemical processing seemed to require more work from me to keep the hair on my head.

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?

With trimming 1/4 every 6-8 weeks religiously, I can retain about 4.5 inches a year. When I don't keep this up, I retain less. And now that I'm past SL, I retain even less because I am too lazy to PS and yes, I'm not as focused on trimming as I used to be.

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?

Less than ten minutes. I just undo my night-time braids and comb to get a puff:

If my hair is straightened, about 5 minutes to put it into a style like this one:

​

About an hour to put it into twists like these:

And then CWing within a minute each morning and walking out with them dripping wet so they'd hang down.

Or if I spend 3 minutes putting them up as shown below, then in the morning it takes under a minute to put on the puff and since I don't do anything but take the puff off and baggy at night, every day I wear that style it takes me under a minute just to put on the puff:

Or if I take 3-5 mins in the evening to put my hair up like the pic below then Saran wrap, then it takes me seconds to take the plastic off each morning and sport the same do every morning:

​

Between 8 and 10 hours to put it in braids like these:

And then depending on how hard I feel like working, I could spend zero to an hour styling my hair each morning.

Zero time if I just wear it as it looks when I put the braids in.

Under 5 minutes to cornrow it while damp like this:

....so I can sport a braidout when my hair is dry--takes a minute to undo the cornrows for this:

​

About an hour to put in Curlformers:

....and then when my hair is dry about ten minutes to take them out and sport this:

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

Just the ease of combing and whipping the hair into a different style daily. But I get that when I straighten so to be honest, for me, I'd not RATHER be relaxed for that. I'd rather be natural with all the things I can do including pulling off what relaxed hair can do WHEN I want to.

 

[preciouslove0x]

I'm type 4 natural.

What are the pros/cons
Pros:
- Healthier hair
- Stronger hair
- Better-looking hair
- Easier to manage/handle
- Ability to do my favorite styles (which cant be done with straight hair)
- Big fluffy, lush, sexy hair
- Comfort and pride with the way your hair grows out of your own head
- You are wearing your own hair
- No more toxic chemicals on your head
Cons:
-None

How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
-I have no idea, i suspect i retain nearly all my length being that i dont have breakage

How long does it take to normally style your hair?
-Takes me 3 minutes to do my hair each morning.

What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
- If i had the desire to conform and look like everyone else i guess i'd relax, lol

not saying i disagree or anything but DANNNGGGGGGGGGG

 

[NaturalPath]

Relaxed Hair

Pros

Bone straight hair with minimal risk to humidity poofiness
Detangling was easier


Cons

*You have to maintain proper moisture-protein balance more
*Relaxer smell
*relaxer burn
*relaxer scabs
*risk of over/under processing
*weaker hair strands
*lack versatility
*risk of thinning hair
*For me it was harder to moisturize, straight hair is exposed to the environment more than natural hair.

**I only relaxed my hair 2x a year so I didnt have to worry about going to get my newgrowth relaxed every month



Natural Hair

Pro's

*More Versatility
*Thicker hair
*you dont have to go to a salon every month
*You can back down on protein treatments
*I can co-wash my hair almost every day
*Easier maintenance (wash n go)

Cons

*Single Stranded Knots
*Detangling
*When you flat iron the humidity destroys it

I wouldnt want relaxed hair ever AGAIN...its too boring and lacks versatility...sue me
Im not going into corporate world so I dont have to worry about looking European to fit in.

Styling takes me a quick 5 minutes. After I wash my hair I put some leave-in and curly custard in it, comb it through and im out the door...I airdry

 

[charmtreese]

♥.What are the pros/cons
Im relaxed

Pros for ME are:

My hair does not tangle as bad
I do not have to use heat to keep my hair straight
My hair holds moisture better
I do not have as many SSK's

Cons for ME are:

Having more then one texture on one strand of hair
Having an even weaker hair strand

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
Now I retain pretty much everything I grow, I dust my ends 3 to 4 times a year. I never really measured my hair growth, but by looking at my progress pics I say I retain about 5 to 6 inches a year give or take.

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
5 to 10 minutes

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
Ummm, I really have no desire to be natural. I can't think of anything! Sorry!!!

 

[Lovelylocs]

ok ok... so im learning that it is easier to keep healthy hair if you are natural ...however if you want to showcase your length more frequently then relaxed may be a better choice. hmm...Also that with Natural hair you have a lot more ssks and tangling...so if im an impatient person natural may not be the thing for me. thanks ladies! keep it coming!!!

I don't agree with this. To have healthy hair, whether relaxed or natural, you must know how to properly take care of it.

 

[Nonie]

Originally Posted by osbornes0307
ok ok... so im learning that it is easier to keep healthy hair if you are natural ...however if you want to showcase your length more frequently then relaxed may be a better choice. hmm...Also that with Natural hair you have a lot more ssks and tangling...so if im an impatient person natural may not be the thing for me. thanks ladies! keep it coming!!!

I don't agree with this. To have healthy hair, whether relaxed or natural, you must know how to properly take care of it.

I think it's different for each person. OP deduced that naturals have an easier time keeping hair healthy from the posts she'd read thus far. I think if more people who are relaxed posted, she may get a different picture, but judging from the posts already up, it's easy to come to the conclusion she made.

 

[Lovelylocs]

Pros:
I can "wash and go" if I need to.
Less time consuming.
Easy to detangle.
Zero frizz.
shiny and silky when straight.

Cons:
I don't know how to put a relaxer in my own hair so I have to depend on a stylist.

How much length on an average can your hair state retain?

I can retain as much as grows.

How long does it take to normally style your hair?

It depends. My hair is "bra strap length" so I can just put it into a bun or ponytail. I like to dry my hair in rollers because rollerset hair is stonger and I can wear my hair down.

♥.What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state?

I really have no desire to be natural. I think it is a style preference. The only plus for natural hair is that I wouldn't have to pay for retouches. Of course, if I learned how to do my own retouches well, I wouldn't have to either.

I get a lot of compliments on my hair, and many women of all races ask me for hair advice.

OP, if you are mostly concerned about retaining length and hair health, that can be accomplished by either choice. To me, whether to be relaxed or natural is a matter of personal style.

 

[Lovelylocs]

Hey, Nonie!

How have you been? I haven't been on here in a while, but it's nice to see a familiar name!

I was just trying to share my view, but in actuality, I am not sure the conclusion OP came to was even warranted based on the responses she had received at the time. When OP made the post that I was referring to, only 6 people had responded. Only one or two of those people made it seem as though being natural made it easier to maintain hair health. One natural said that it seemed like the people with relaxed hair were retaining more length. And another natural said that when she was relaxed, she did not know how to properly take care of her hair. But, perhaps I've missed something. What from any of the six posts warrants the conclusion that natural hair is easier to keep healthy?

Don't get me wrong. I wasn't offended by what OP said or anything. I just thought I would offer another view since she is planning on using this information to help choose whether to stay relaxed or go natural.

Respectfully,

Lovelylocs

 

[Junebug D]

♥.What are the pros/cons
Im relaxed

Pros for ME are:


My hair holds moisture better

I forgot to add this as well. I still have issues with dryness being relaxed, but it's not as bad. My natural hair has low porosity and water would just bounce right off it. The relaxer made my hair more porous, for better & for worse. But it has been easier for me to correct the dryness that ensues from "not enough!" than it was to correct the dryness that ensued from "can't get in!"

 

[Nonie]

Hi Lovelylocs,

Three naturals had posted and from what they said, I believe OP got the impression their hair was healthier. I highlight the points that would have led me to think the same.

Hmmm. I'll Bite, lol.
I'd say one of the major pros to being natural is not having to limbo between that "how far can I get without relaxing before I see breakage"...stage.[meaning when hair is natural, there isn't this dread]
or having to wait before I color so I don't over process....[which would not be a healthy move]
..or if i can scratch my head because I'm getting a relaxer soon......lol. Ahhhh my relaxed days.


The grass always seems so much greener on the other side.

A few pros for relaxed is its easier to show length, no (or less) ssks.... easier to detangle.....rollersetting can be easier...etc.

As for my hair...it takes about two minutes to style. lol, keep in mind that all im doing is cowashing, hopping out the shower and bunning though...so I might not count. When i was flat ironing, *tear*...... it was a nice 2 hour process, with shampooing, deep conditioning, blowdrying n flat ironing. HTH, Love.

Anywho...these questions are for my natural & relaxed ladies...
♥.What are the pros/cons
I'm natural and the major pro for me is that my scalp issues are not as serious as when I was relaxed. The con w/ natural to me is that straight styles are seasonal to me and I'm not very good at styling my natural hair.
[/COLOR] ♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain? Since putting the scissors down I have retained all the growth since late April which was 1.5 inches.
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
When wearing my half-wig about 2-3 mins but for tomorrow since I'm doing a twist out maybe 5 mins.
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
Having less tangles, using less heat to have straight hair, less frizziness and not get dumb stares from strangers when they see my natural hair.

I think I answered everything.

Pros: Natural
No Perm Schedule
No Perm Smell
No Perm Scabs

Cons: Natural
Other People's Attitudes
Finding New Staples
Length - if you BC

I never got to shoulder length as a relaxed head - I relaxed for 11 years - as a natural head I am well on my way to shoulder length after 2 years. Then again, I wasn't focused on the health of my hair during my relaxed time.

As a relaxed head, I hot curled my hair every day - usually in spirals. I loved that look - I still kind of miss it - lol. As a natural, I wear lots of braidouts/twistouts. Twistouts are my favorite, it gives me soft waves like the aforementioned relaxed style.

It takes me less than 15 minutes to do my hair - in relaxed or natural state. One reason I would go back to relaxed is to showcase my actual length. That's about it (lol).

Even if some did admit they didn't know much about haircare when they were relaxed, there's still a kind of generalization that hair is healthier. OP might also have the inkling that chemical process break bonds...and so a kind of weakening occurs so that when she reads a few comments that seem to echo her subconscious thoughts, they stand out to her.

I'm not saying she's right; just explaining how I think she drew her conclusion, coz I might've done the same.

Now if Supergirl, JCoily, SparklingFlame, had chimed in (especially the last two since they've been natural longer than they've been relaxed), a different point of view might've been achieved.

 

[Newtogrow]

♥.What are the pros/cons
I am mildly texlaxed which behaves like a natural. The pros are having hair with texture!!! The cons are my curly hair is prone to breakage and it takes forever if I want to straighten.
♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
My curly hair is prone to breakage so I'm still working on length and retaining with moisture/protein balance.
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
If I wear a puff it's a wash and go. If I do twists it takes some hours but they last weeks.
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
I would relax to loosen my curl a bit more. I would do it gradually because I've been bone straight don't want to go that drastic, I would miss my twists.

 

[Imani]

I am transitioning 11 months post; my hair is short, so I have more natural hair than relaxed hair at this point. The back is pretty much completely natural. Altho, I'm not fully natural, I think I can give decent responses to most of your questions.

♥.What are the pros/cons (Natural)

Pros
-No burning scalp from relaxers- I have a sensitive scalp and almost always burned no matter what and dreaded relaxer day
-No matted to the scalp thin helmet hair look on relaxer day and having to wait 2 weeks before my hair thickened up enough to not look anorexic (I have thin strands)
-I don't really have to use protein much and worry about protein/moisture balance. When I was relaxed my hair would get weak without protein, but then when I did add protein it would dry out, no matter what I did, it was like I could never get that balance right
-Easier to recover from minor setbacks. When i was relaxed, any little thing could cause a set back, leaving little room for error. My natural hair seems not as fragile and able to bounce back better.
-My straightened hair looks much fuller
-I have a spot in my scalp that was always irritated and the hair would always weaken and thin out. This spot seems to be going away now that I no longer relax

Cons

-I don't really have any. I guess it would be easier to maintain straight styles with relaxed hair

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
- I can't really say yet since I'm still transitioning

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
-Daily, about 5 minutes. If I am wearing it out straight, just untie it, run a comb thru it. If I am wearing my halfwig, just throw on the wig and style.
To get it flat ironed, maybe about 3 hrs.

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

I really can't think of a reason I'd rather be relaxed, but if I had to name one it would be maybe being able to do a roller set.

 

[BomBShell♥]

Once again...THANK YOU LADIES!!! You all are truly helping me understand the good and bad of both sides.

Nonie, thank you especially.....you seem to really understand where I was coming from and deriving my thought process from ...& you were so right...

 

[Majestye]

Thanks for this timely thread! I've been transitioning for about 17 weeks and it's starting to get to me. At first it was ok, then I hennaed to cover gray and hoped it would loosen some of the curl.. It didn't! It got thicker and now I have detangling problems where I didn't before. So, looking at all of the responses and pictures, I've confirmed a truth for me. I need to be texlaxed. I was hoping to find a good way to naturally loosen my curls, but doubt I will get the results I am looking for. I have 4a/b hair in the sides and back and it's reminding me of when I was young!

I probably wouldn't wear my hair in many of the natural styles and would straighten it 90% of the time anyway (except in the summer to see my waves).

Thanks again to everyone that responded, Naturals and Texlaxed!

 

[kittikat24]

Nothing to add (I'm still transitioning) But I'm enjoying the thread!!!

 

[iri9109]

i'm natural.

♥.What are the pros/cons
Relaxed Pros:
-i guess straight hair if thats what you want...but the same thing you do to get relaxed hair straight (blow dry/flat iron) is the same thing you do to get natural hair straight...whats the point of undergoing a chemical process to get straight hair when you still have to do all that extra stuff?

Relaxed Cons:
-caustic chemicals applied to your scalp
-possible chemical burns
-not being able to scratch scalp
-risking over/underprocessing
-double processing with color
-not being able to get it wet
-breakage/shedding
-hair all over clothes
-still have to use alot of heat to keep the straight look or curls
-not as much volume
-flat fresh perm hair
-having to get retouches
-depending on a stylist
-money
-same hairstyle as everyone else

Natural Pros:
-versatility
-uniqueness
-no retouches
-can color if you want
-big hair ( i love it)
-if you mess up a style you can hop in the shower and just do a WNG or start over...with relaxed hair you have to re-wash, condition, blow-dry, flat-iron/style/set etc...
-no need for umbrellas

Natural Cons:
-shrinkage (although shrinkage is a sign of healthy moisturized hair)
-SSKs? (idk i dont get them)
-detangling for some (its no more difficult than w/ relaxed hair for me)
-reversion of straight styles in the summer
-not showing full length i guess...but i think its better because if your relaxed ppl are gonna see your length all the time, but when your natural and you do decide to straighten or show off your length ppl are like "WOW".
-have to learn to work with your hair, not against it
-if you BC, depending on how long you transitioned, styles can be limited early on

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
relaxed: my hair rarely grew past my shoulders

natural: i've only been natural for about 5 months, but i get and retain a little over a 1/2 inch a month...before i ever got a perm my hair was down my back

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
less than 5 minutes (WnG)

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

been there, done that...i wouldn't want to be relaxed...if i want straight hair i can do a blowout/flat-iron/rollerset/silk wrap/press/bkt/wig/weave...

 

[naturalgyrl5199]

Anywho...these questions are for my natural & relaxed ladies...
♥.What are the pros/cons
Being Natural has boosted my confidence a bit about the versatility of my God-Given Texture...I wish I'd done this sooner. I love going between straight and natural, and the compliments I get are sweet! I think that the cons are dealing with some problems I didn't have to worry about as a relaxed head such as SSK and tangles...But a good regimen has relieved that....I think its overall changed my state of mind as an adult because I don't have those same HAIR Hang-ups I used to have, and the #1 best thing about being Natural is the positive influence I've had on friends and how I have changed some mind sets about Natural Hair is and its LACK OF limits...

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
As a Natural I can say it varies...However I believe it retains more in colder months...When I was really paying attention I retained about 1/2 or more in the Winter/Early Spring...I retain more when its braided or something...I have to do this in the summer because my hair grows more, but it sheds more and breaks off more (I retained about 2 inches in 8 weeks of braids, but I got minor shedding {I was prepared and did BTR 3 times} and some splits).......But I have always been a decent grower relaxed or natural...Retaining hair is a HAIR CARE issue...not necessarily texture....I retained the same when i was relaxed when I took care of it....
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
I wear twists and braids so I do that once or twice a week. Now that its past SL unstretched, it takes almost 2+ hours to finish depending on size...I style them often in updos and use hair accessories often so I try not to take more than 10-15 minutes on styling...For twist-outs I take 10-15 minutes to style....Planning ahead helps...and daily maintenence after work (moisturizing, baggying) keeps me from having to do that all the time every morning....15 minutes is the MOST I do mornings before work.
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
As Natural for only 2 years, I'd love to be able to wear my hair DOWN for that smooth look like I could when I was relaxed, but I can get that with a weave, while protecting my hair at the same time....ummmm....I really can't think of anything else....I love being natural...mom has BSL dreads and my sister just transitioned from SL+ natural to dreads so I have lots of encouragement and support and can't imagine ever going back...if I did, it will be to wear my hair in cute short pixie cut styles for a while...only to transition back to natural.....

 

[FebeeSigns]

♥.What are the pros/cons
The cons of having natural hair include;
More SSKs
Splits
Tangles
Not enough moisture since our hair strand zig zags, making it more difficult for sebaum to travel down the hair strand.
Less shine because of the above reason. light reflect well off of straight hair.The Pros of having natural hair include;
Taking the time ( a lot more time) to do your hair, thus you learn more about it.
A lot of volume.
Different textures! Woooo. You can have curls in an s shape, corkscrew, none at all, tight coils. There is a large variety compared to straight hair.
Less damage overall and over time. Using heat to get the hair straight as well as chemicals will do more damage than just letting your hair naturally be. SSks and splits can be fixed more easily than heat and chemical damage. ♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
I have yet to measure this.
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
Depends on how I'm styling it and how big the hairstyle is. Small twists take me an hour, big twists probably 20-30 minutes. I spend a good one hour on average, per day styling my hair.
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? I wouldn't. I'm not fond of hair that looks straight. Everyone and their momma seems to have it and it looks bland and not fun.

I'd just like to warn you my responses are just MY opinions and preferences, and not intended to offend anyone.

 

[ZkittyKurls]

i'm natural.

♥.What are the pros/cons
Relaxed Pros:
-i guess straight hair if thats what you want...but the same thing you do to get relaxed hair straight (blow dry/flat iron) is the same thing you do to get natural hair straight...whats the point of undergoing a chemical process to get straight hair when you still have to do all that extra stuff?

Relaxed Cons:
-caustic chemicals applied to your scalp
-possible chemical burns
-not being able to scratch scalp
-risking over/underprocessing
-double processing with color
-not being able to get it wet
-breakage/shedding
-hair all over clothes
-still have to use alot of heat to keep the straight look or curls
-not as much volume
-flat fresh perm hair
-having to get retouches
-depending on a stylist
-money
-same hairstyle as everyone else

Natural Pros:
-versatility
-uniqueness
-no retouches
-can color if you want
-big hair ( i love it)
-if you mess up a style you can hop in the shower and just do a WNG or start over...with relaxed hair you have to re-wash, condition, blow-dry, flat-iron/style/set etc...
-no need for umbrellas

Natural Cons:
-shrinkage (although shrinkage is a sign of healthy moisturized hair)
-SSKs? (idk i dont get them)
-detangling for some (its no more difficult than w/ relaxed hair for me)
-reversion of straight styles in the summer
-not showing full length i guess...but i think its better because if your relaxed ppl are gonna see your length all the time, but when your natural and you do decide to straighten or show off your length ppl are like "WOW".
-have to learn to work with your hair, not against it
-if you BC, depending on how long you transitioned, styles can be limited early on

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
relaxed: my hair rarely grew past my shoulders

natural: i've only been natural for about 5 months, but i get and retain a little over a 1/2 inch a month...before i ever got a perm my hair was down my back

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
less than 5 minutes (WnG)

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

been there, done that...i wouldn't want to be relaxed...if i want straight hair i can do a blowout/flat-iron/rollerset/silk wrap/press/bkt/wig/weave...

i had a question on the shrinkage part...i didnt know that shrinkage was a sign of healthy moisturized hair? can you explain that in a little detail plz? i never even looked at it that way, very cool!

 

[melodies815]

♥.What are the pros/cons

I am natural. The pros are that I feel healthier and my hair is also healthier. For me, it's all pros. I may be in the minority.
♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
I cannot tell that I have lost length. I think I grow about 6-7 inches a year, and from all I can see, I have retained it all. SSKs are no fun, but I avoid them by keeping my hair in twists almost 100% of the time.

I trim in twists too...about twice a year. I take off maybe a quarter of an inch ONLY IF I FIND SSKs. I don't trim unless there are SSKs. I do find that trimming helps me jump-start growth, which is sooooo odd, because I know that most naturals here are trimmers only if they NEED to trim. For me, I have strangely found that random trimming jump starts growth. Does anyone else find that??? So weird...
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
It depends on what style I am doing. A puff (rare) is really quick - 5-10 minutes to make sure it's behaving.

• Twists. Fat twists take me about 30 minutes and last for the week. Medium twists take about 2-3 hours and last for up to 2 weeks because I will wash in twists. Tiny ones (rare) take me 6-8 hours and they stay in until I decide to take them out. I wash these in twists too.
• Twistouts. I wear them rarely, but they only take 5 minutes or so to style.

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

I really like my hair. I don't want anything different.

 

[SlantedEyezMiss2003]

Heyyy Ladiessss.....lol. Ok, I already know what most of you guys are saying...."why doesnt she just go research it through the threads already created" ....just to let you know....I HAVE! & im still wondering what to do...actually there are a lot of us still wondering.

Anywho...these questions are for my natural & relaxed ladies...
♥.What are the pros/cons
♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...

Thank you ladies so much in advance for participating in this thread....I promise this would be so much help for lost souls like mine...

I'm relaxed, the good-easily can put my hair in a ponytail or bun, another pro for me is I still have texture and thickness to my hair, can easily wrap it at night and unwrap in morning and start my day, I like the way the bantu knots and braid outs look afterwards, and sometimes after I relax I can wear my hair down and don't worry about anything. And of course I don't have to flat iron much.

Con-retaining moisture(but my fault because I haven't moisturize my hair in a while), shine(need to find a serum or something), I use no lye cuz I have sens scalp, so sometimes I get mineral build-up from the box kit relaxers, but I use a chelating shampoo after I relax.

I retain a lot of length because I stop trimming my hair, if I try I will trim once a year, and dust when I need to, right now I'm hiding my ends because I dyed them and I had to cut a lot off, so I'm trying to hide them until I get a good moisturizer.

It doesn't take me long to style, I like ponytails and buns. so about 10 mins.

I'm relaxed so why would I want to be natural? Well, probably to take a break from chemicals and enjoy my curls, but right now, relaxing is what I prefer.

 

[silenttullip]

natural cons - single strand knots and sectioning when washing not many styling options unless you have hair skills or are loaded with dollars
pros - not running from water or heat
relaxed pros - easy simple hair styling and products
relaxed cons - scalp burns

How much length on an average can your hair state retain? relaxed: as long as it wants Natural - apl

How long does it take to normally style your hair? natural 30 mins relaxed 5 mins

I'd rather have my relaxed because I had much less breakage, my hair was thicker, and I barely had to do anything to it besides moisturize and wash.
When I was relaxed I rathered natural because I hated running when it rained out or being afraid of messing up my perm by getting heated with SO or running. The main reason was I had a sensitive scalp and regardless what type of relaxer it made my scalp issues worse

I put answers for both because I've been natural 5 years and SERIOUSLY thinking about relaxing again. I promised myself 5 years and now that I've kept it I gotta see what's next so this is a great thread tp help me think

 

[lilsparkle825]

3c/4a, one year transition, two years natural.

♥.What are the pros/cons
PROS:
*i feel like textured hair suits me better (i have a fivehead )
*i love the versatility of being able to have curly hair one day, straight hair the next, and something in between the day after that
*my hair is much healthier, and my fine strands retain length better
*i have LOTS of fun experimenting with styles
*i get lots of compliments since natural hair is seen as "unique/different"
*my future daughters will be able to learn from me to appreciate their hair

CONS:
*none really....wish i could keep straight hair longer than a day in the summer, maybe....but i only straighten once in june for length checks.

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
*about the average 1/2" a month. i get trims infrequently, but recently realized i should get them more often OR take better care of my ends.

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
depends on the style...most days i wet bun or WNG, which takes *about as much time as cowashing and adding a ponytail holder. crochet braids take 3-4 hours, kinky twists, senegalese twists take 6-8 hours, but then i do nothing for weeks on end except moisturize. flat ironing process takes a few hours, but then i do nothing but moisturize for a few days.

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
*i don't see myself re-relaxing for a long, long time, if ever.

 

[chrisanddonniesmommy]

3c/4a fine transitioning.


♥.What are the pros/cons

Natural Pros:

1. Seeing my natural texture in action
2. Versatility
3. Not having to worry about the weather, sweat, etc.
4. Less costly (money and time-wise)
5. Allows to me do a lot of DIY styling
6. Giving my future daughter (after two boys, I can still hope, right?) the confidence in loving her natural hair.

Cons:
1. More time to do hair
2. Detangling (not much of a problem now though)

Relaxed
Pros:
1. Less time to do hair
2. Easier combing

Cons
1. Scalp burns
2. Flat, limp hair
3. Thinning hair
4. Time and financial cost
5. Not as versatile
6. Chemical damage
7. That weird feeling after a relaxer application

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
about 1/2 to 1 inch a month

♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
Depends on what I'm doing with it. It can be as less than 15 minutes to about an hour, so far.

♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
Well, I've been there and done relaxing. I'm totally over it. Twenty-one years was enough. I came into the world with natural hair and I'm leaving it the same way.

 

[Honey Bee]

I'm transitioning to texlaxed. I'm a year in, so it's about 3/4 texlaxed and 1/4 relaxed at this point. I'm a mostly fine 4 a/b.

♥.What are the pros/cons
Relaxed
+ I didn't have to use heat to style my hair. I just washed and wet wrapped. When I had NG, if I cared, I would flat-iron the roots.
+ Cheaper salon visits. $15 for a wash and set is way easier on the pockets than most of the natural salons, especially in NY.
+ It looked longer. I went natural in hs. When I relaxed again, it was, maybe, NL natural, but after the relaxer, it was maybe 1"-2" below shoulder length.

- Lack of comprehensive knowledge led to set-backs. It looked thin and lifeless, mainly because I was relaxing bone straight. I didn't even know about texlaxing. However, I did know enough to avoid heat if I could, to use decent products (mostly Nexxus), and to get regular trims, but I wasn't dc'ing or doing HOT's enough for the climate I was in, so it broke off a lot. Even still, I stayed around SL or longer.
- I wore it in the same basic style every day. Booooring.

Texlaxed
+ My hair is thicker, so my braid-outs look a lot better. Since I still have some relaxed hair, I don't really do twist-outs, but when I try them on the texlaxed hair, it looks pretty.
+ I can do both sleek and shiny styles, and bigger, more natural looking styles (meaning casual, 'it's ok if it gets messed up', not "natural") with a minimum amount of effort. Doing my hair takes almost no time on a daily basis. I think the longest hair related thing I do is air-drying. Otherwise, it's moisturize, seal, braid-up, which I takes me about 10 min once a day. For straight styles, like I said, I rollerset and then lightly flat iron, which I do at my leisure and with plenty of breaks.
+Increased retention. Texlaxing has given me the healthiest hair I've ever had, because it's not so relaxed that it just lays there, but it's just relaxed enough that the sebum can flow where it needs to, lol, so it stays moisturized longer.
+ Ability to stretch. When I was relaxed, it never occurred to me, tbh. The difference was so stark that I preferred to just go 'head and get the touch-up, as opposed to flat-ironing to death. Now, because it blends better, stretching has become an option.

-In order to straighten, I have to use a little heat after I rollerset, but I only do it on, like, heat level 2, so it's not that much.
- SSK's

♥. How much length on an average can your hair state retain?
I'm not sure. Since I joined, I've been cutting off maybe .5"-1" every month, trying to get my ends right, and I never really paid attention before that. Also, like everybody else, my hair grows at different speeds depending on the season, section of my head, etc.
♥. How long does it take to normally style your hair?
See above.
♥. What is one reason why you would rather have the opposite of your hair state? ex: if you are natural what is the one reason why you rather be relaxed...and vice versa...
I'll answer for natural and relaxed. I guess, if it were natural, it would be stronger, and if it were (totally) relaxed, I wouldn't have to do it myself. I could get a salon touch-up, which I'm scared to do now, for fear that they'll mess it up. (I never got burns, so that's not an issue for me.)