(???) Any other Naturals have this problem.... (???)

[Poohbear]

My hair measures the same length all around surprisingly ranging from 8-9 inches.... however, when I style my hair in twists, the front and sides look considerably shorter than my twists that hang in the back. And there's also this section right in front of my ears that looks longer than any other area along the side of my face.

After I've worn the twists for awhile, the twists on the sides start to not 'look right' anymore, meaning it makes me look like I have uneven hair, a mullet shape, or a bad hair cut or something. And it also makes my face look squared like a box instead of oval-shaped, especially when I have a part down the middle of my head. (I have attached a couple of pictures to show what I'm talking about).

I think this is because I have a tall head or something. I've seen so many other naturals who style their hair in twists and the twists on the sides COVER THEIR CHEEKS! Maybe I need more length or something too, but some of the ladies I've seen whose twists cover their face have about the same length as me!!! I've also noticed my hair isn't as dense/thick on the sides as it is everywhere else on my head.

Any other naturals have this problem?

If so, how do you style the sides of your hair to make it look cute/more feminine?

How do you part your twists in the front?
Should I get my hair cut into a certain shape so the twists on the sides would look more uniform with the twists in the back?

Thanks in advance.

 

[VeeJai]

have you tried parting your hair so the twists fall a certain way?

 

[mkstar826]

my hair is pretty even all around but the sides and nape have a higher percentage of shrinkage so it looks shorter than my crown when it's not. I'm sure head shape also plays it's part too. i wouldn't cut it to make it look even because i tried that and it still grew back exactly the same because the different levels of shrinkage was the culprit.

i don't really do anything about it. it is what it is for me...maybe someone else will chime in. i think your twists look great though

 

[Ayeshia]

hmm well for your twists to appear even the front/sides of your hair would have to be longer than the back. 8 inches directly on the crown or front of your hair will not fall the same as 8 inches of hair on the nape...because of that I rarely wear single strand twist styles unless I pin them all up into some type of updo.

 

[tkj25]

i think your twists look cute. if the long part in front of your ears bother you, i'd just swoop it behind your ears. i wouldn't cut it. that's what i do when my hair is that long.

you can get 8-9 inches of hair to hang to your chin if you stretch your hair first ( blow dry with comb atachment, dry in big braids, or banding) and then twist, or try dry twists -- they hang better than wet. also braiding your twists up at night (10-12 braids) will help them maintain a stretched look. hth

 

[Ayeshia]

i think your twists look cute. if the long part in front of your ears bother you, i'd just swoop it behind your ears. i wouldn't cut it. that's what i do when my hair is that long.

you can get 8-9 inches of hair to hang to your chin if you stretch your hair first ( blow dry with comb atachment, dry in big braids, or banding) and then twist, or try dry twists -- they hang better than wet. also braiding your twist up at night (10-12 braids) will help them maintain a stretched look. hth

yeah this helps as well

 

[mkstar826]

oh yeah i meant to ask too if you were twisting on dry or wet hair. like tkj25 said, twisting on dry hair will give you a more even appearance. that's why if i wear twists it's always done on dry, stretched hair. once i wet it, they shrink to different lengths.

 

[jengrady]

Also with naturals it's harder to make your hair grow down...my hair will grow out before it grows down. You may want to do your twist anyway to train your hair to go downward...other than that you have to wait until the front grows out longer to get the even look and then cut the back to even out with the front at that point.

 

[bLackButtaFly]

Also with naturals it's harder to make your hair grow down...my hair will grow out before it grows down. You may want to do your twist anyway to train your hair to go downward...other than that you have to wait until the front grows out longer to get the even look and then cut the back to even out with the front at that point.

Yes. ITA. Also( and this is just a theory) but you're head curves up, so wouldn't you need to have longer hair in the front in order for it to look even in twists? Like how when you cut your hair very short the front has to be much longer then the back to create a bob. Does that make sense? I have that problem too, the front of my hair always look shorter, and that's why I don't really wear my own hair in twists except if their pulled up, but when i wear it out I only twist the front to lengthen it, and leave the back alone, and it evens things out.

 

[cheetarah1980]

From your pictures it appears as though your hairline on the sides starts a little further back so the twists there fall closer to your ear then your cheek. In order for the twists on top of your head to fall to the same length as the twists near your ears then the top needs to be longer. I wouldn't cut it to make it look even in twists because then your hair will be really uneven when you wear a fro. I think your twists look really cute as is and not masculine at all. You can also experiment with how you part your hair (diagonal, side part, zigzag) or even try flat twists in the front so it won't matter where the hair on that part of your head falls to.

 

[Poohbear]

oh yeah i meant to ask too if you were twisting on dry or wet hair. like tkj25 said, twisting on dry hair will give you a more even appearance. that's why if i wear twists it's always done on dry, stretched hair. once i wet it, they shrink to different lengths.

I always twist on dry hair. My hair shrinks regardless of if I twist wet or dry.

 

[Poohbear]

Also with naturals it's harder to make your hair grow down...my hair will grow out before it grows down. You may want to do your twist anyway to train your hair to go downward...other than that you have to wait until the front grows out longer to get the even look and then cut the back to even out with the front at that point.

Ummm, this wasn't the problem. My twists actually do hang down rather than stick out... I wish they would stick out more and have more volume on the sides but that's just not the case with my hair.
When I wear twists, they always look flat on the sides like I have a box head or something. The first day looks fine but after sleeping on my twists, they shrink up on the sides and make my head look square.

 

[Poohbear]

i think your twists look cute. if the long part in front of your ears bother you, i'd just swoop it behind your ears. i wouldn't cut it. that's what i do when my hair is that long.

you can get 8-9 inches of hair to hang to your chin if you stretch your hair first ( blow dry with comb atachment, dry in big braids, or banding) and then twist, or try dry twists -- they hang better than wet. also braiding your twists up at night (10-12 braids) will help them maintain a stretched look. hth

If I put that twist behind my ears, it will be showing on the sides because the twists above that area isn't long enough to cover the root of that twist behind my ears.

I always twist on dry hair. I've tried blowdrying once and they did hang more but still had the same shape. And the sides were still shorter than the rest. And the next day, my hair shrunk. My hair is VERY resistant to staying stretched/straightened. Here's a pic:

I'm going to try flat twisting the front and having twists in the back as cheetarah suggested. I tried to do this one time but I made the flat twists too big for the front. I will figure out something soon.

Thanks ladies for your comments about my twists. It makes me feel a bit more comfortable with them.

 

[Bint Yusef]

The smaller the sections the less this tends to happen to me.

 

[Ayeshia]

Yes. ITA. Also( and this is just a theory) but you're head curves up, so wouldn't you need to have longer hair in the front in order for it to look even in twists? Like how when you cut your hair very short the front has to be much longer then the back to create a bob. Does that make sense? I have that problem too, the front of my hair always look shorter, and that's why I don't really wear my own hair in twists except if their pulled up, but when i wear it out I only twist the front to lengthen it, and leave the back alone, and it evens things out.

yeah this is what I was saying as well.

 

[Ms Lala]

I can't really tell from the pick but have you tried wearing a head band or scarf in the front. . I had a similar issue when my hair was about your length, as it grew out I started cutting it to hang more even because the back looked super long and odd in comparison to the rest. For a more uniform look I would make the twists about half the size they are, twist on dry hair, and set them on small rollers and fluff them out when done. I think this will help with it looking different lengths and it's how I used to do my twists. What product are you using to twist your hair, this may be adding to the shrinkage?

 

[Poohbear]

I can't really tell from the pick but have you tried wearing a head band or scarf in the front. . I had a similar issue when my hair was about your length, as it grew out I started cutting it to hang more even because the back looked super long and odd in comparison to the rest. For a more uniform look I would make the twists about half the size they are, twist on dry hair, and set them on small rollers and fluff them out when done. I think this will help with it looking different lengths and it's how I used to do my twists. What product are you using to twist your hair, this may be adding to the shrinkage?

yes, I have tried wearing a headband or scarf around the front of my hair but it does not look right at all (that's why I've never taken a picture of it). The headband or scarf causes the ends of the twists on the sides to stick out from underneath the headband or scarf. And plus, none of my twists in the back hide the scarf or headband.

I twists on dry hair... And I usually don't use any products when I twist my hair. Products cause more shrinkage. And whether I do small twists or medium twists, the shape turns out the same and my twists always look flat on the sides.

 

[Kookie]

Hi!

I just wanted to say that I had the EXACT same problem!!
My hair was taking the shape of a mullet!
I had shorter sides (after shrinkage) and the back was noticeable longer and shaped in a sharp "V"--I reallly didn't like it all.

I usually do lots of wash n gos--and the shape that I had, was just not flattering to me.

A couple of days ago...I just went and got my hair shaped/cut/trim'd for the very first time since going natural.

The problem with that is: they cut the "mullet/tail" in the back off, pretty much.

Don't get me wrong...I love the shape of my hair now.... My wash n go's just "look" better to me. But it's just that...I worked hard to retain the length that was cut.

The Cut:
Just as someone else mentioned....the head is round (duh! )
- So quite naturally...at the very bottom (nape)...8 inches there versus 8 inches on the sides of the head--is no match.
Someone else also mentioned that...if you cut your hair into a shape--you will have varied lengths....and this is true too.

It really comes down to what YOU want.
If you can work with the uneven-ness after shrinkage--then do that until it grows out more.
But...
If you wear a lot of wash n gos and/or your twists just don't look appealing to your eye--get it shaped in a way that is more appealing to YOU.

That's just my opinion......

ETA: I'm editing to state that: When I got my hair cut--that was my first time letting a PROFESSIONAL STYLIST cut/trim/style my hair since going natural.
I usually do my own trims though--my ends are usually always healthy as a result.

 

[Chinagem]

Poohbear, besides the different shrinkage patterns the only reason I can see for your twists appearing shorter is b/c they are further up on your head so they don't hang down as far. If you a twist (that appears shorter) from the top of your head and then measure a twist (that appears longer) from the nape area, will they still measure about the same length?

 

[angellazette]

My hair does that as well. Sometimes I don't care, sometimes I'm like ewwww but I figure that's how my hair grows. Even if I cut the back short, it'll end up growing out like that again so it's just something I deal with. I'll pull it back or maybe pull it up but I like the way they fall on you Poohbear.

 

[jtsupanova]

My hair does the same thing when I twist my hair wet, always has and probably always will (no matter how long my hair gets)

It hangs evenly when I twist it dry but over time twisting dry breaks my hair off

So what I do is that I just flat twist it in the front in different, patterns designs... sometime I don't even flat twist that far back and it looks as if I don't have flat twist at all just that I have pushed the hair behind my ears. If that makes sense