I don't think the shunken up hair after you shampoo is the natural state.

[cmw45]

I have noticed in a lot of threads that when ladies refer to their hair's "natural state" they are referring to the shunken up state there hair is in right after they have shampooed and conditioned. However, after much consideration, and an extended conversation with my own napps, I don't think that this is the "natural state" of one's hair.

I think that hair is kind of like a sponge...

When you take the sponge out of the package, it is slightly stretched out, soft and well moisturized. However, if you put the sponge in dishwater, rinse and the leave it to dry, the sponge can shrink up to almost half of it's natural size and may look very dry and stiff. Lightly spray the sponge with water and it returns back to its natural size. Dunk it in water and the sponge will hold a great deal of water and become heavier then it is in it's natural state.

I use this sponge example to say that I think that after you have washed your hair you have stripped it of a lot of the natural oils...which is why it shinks up so much. Even if you then put conditioner on your hair, the conditioner is not the hair's naturally produced oils. (A lot of the times you will notice that it takes several days after shampooing for your hair to start "behaving" like it normally does. It is why most of us feel like we have our best hair days when our hair is "dirty." At that point, most of the natural oils have returned.)

I don't think the dry shunken version of our hair after we have stripped it of all of it's natural oils is a fair representation of what our hair is like and to tell you the truth, my napps confided in me recently that in the past they have been offended

 

[JustKiya]

*grins* at the conversation with your napps. I wonder if my napps talk to other napps they see?

Hrm. I can definitely feel what you are saying - but at the same time, I think it's REALLY hard for nappy hair to have a 'set' state. That's one of the things that makes our hair so interesting - from day to day, even if you do the SAME thing, it's liable to look a lil different.

But, at the same time - in order for it to be in it's 'neutral' state - to say it simply - it would have to be unmanipulated, no product, and dry, yes? I do feel what you are saying about the lack of oils, though. So, maybe dry, unmanipulated, 3 or 4 days post washing?

:scratchch

It's one of the reasons I'm so 'meh, whatever' over hair typing. I can make my hair look like 3b-4b without trying hard - heck, that happens through a good DC session!

 

[cmw45]

*grins* at the conversation with your napps. I wonder if my napps talk to other napps they see?

Hrm. I can definitely feel what you are saying - but at the same time, I think it's REALLY hard for nappy hair to have a 'set' state. That's one of the things that makes our hair so interesting - from day to day, even if you do the SAME thing, it's liable to look a lil different.

But, at the same time - in order for it to be in it's 'neutral' state - to say it simply - it would have to be unmanipulated, no product, and dry, yes? I do feel what you are saying about the lack of oils, though. So, maybe dry, unmanipulated, 3 or 4 days post washing?

:scratchch

It's one of the reasons I'm so 'meh, whatever' over hair typing. I can make my hair look like 3b-4b without trying hard - heck, that happens through a good DC session!

I would think so.

O-KAY!

 

[AtlantaJJ]

This is interesting, as we see with the use of salt, yogurt, henna, baking soda, etc we can affect the texture of our hair from its just plain shampooed and conditioned state. Banding and braiding makes a huge difference in my hair texture. So just what is natural anyway?

 

[JustKiya]

This is interesting, as we see with the use of salt, yogurt, henna, baking soda, etc we can affect the texture of our hair from its just plain shampooed and conditioned state. Banding and braiding makes a huge difference in my hair texture. So just what is natural anyway?

I don't know. I remember there was a conversation about what 4b hair looks like, and it was generally agreed that you 'couldn't' use hair that had been braided/banded/stretched/anything'd to determine what it would look like, because our hair so EASILY takes on other shapes/styles.

I can tell that MY hair's 'texture' has changed over the last two years - whether from increased health, increased moisture, different 'substances', etc. Heaven knows, I wasn't (and am not) trying to change my texture, but - it is as it is, ya know?

 

[changedlife]

I have noticed in a lot of threads that when ladies refer to their hair's "natural state" they are referring to the shunken up state there hair is in right after they have shampooed and conditioned. However, after much consideration, and an extended conversation with my own napps, I don't think that this is the "natural state" of one's hair.

I think that hair is kind of like a sponge...

When you take the sponge out of the package, it is slightly stretched out, soft and well moisturized. However, if you put the sponge in dishwater, rinse and the leave it to dry, the sponge can shrink up to almost half of it's natural size and may look very dry and stiff. Lightly spray the sponge with water and it returns back to its natural size. Dunk it in water and the sponge will hold a great deal of water and become heavier then it is in it's natural state.

I use this sponge example to say that I think that after you have washed your hair you have stripped it of a lot of the natural oils...which is why it shinks up so much. Even if you then put conditioner on your hair, the conditioner is not the hair's naturally produced oils. (A lot of the times you will notice that it takes several days after shampooing for your hair to start "behaving" like it normally does. It is why most of us feel like we have our best hair days when our hair is "dirty." At that point, most of the natural oils have returned.)

I don't think the dry shunken version of our hair after we have stripped it of all of it's natural oils is a fair representation of what our hair is like and to tell you the truth, my napps confided in me recently that in the past they have been offended

I understand what you mean. Few weeks ago I washed my TWA and didn't do anything to it, just left it alone no products, towels, etc. Then my hair formed those little tight coils ( if that's how they are called). Dh looked at my hair and said, what did you put in your hair to make it like that? I said, nothing! This is my natural hair without combing it. Then, he said, so a comb is not natural? Huh

 

[JustKiya]

I understand what you mean. Few weeks ago I washed my TWA and didn't do anything to it, just left it alone no products, towels, etc. Then my hair formed those little tight coils ( if that's how they are called). Dh looked at my hair and said, what did you put in your hair to make it like that? I said, nothing! This is my natural hair without combing it. The he said, so a comb is not natural? Huh

See, that's why I used 'neutral' state, instead of 'natural' - neutral, to me, seems closer to what we 'mean'. At least in my head it does. Our hair is always natural assuming it hasn't been chemically altered (and please, no sides trips along that road, ladies! ) but it isn't always 'neutral'. Technically, my hair is almost NEVER neutral, as I wash, DC, etc in fat two strand twists, most of the time.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

See, that's why I used 'neutral' state, instead of 'natural' - neutral, to me, seems closer to what we 'mean'. At least in my head it does. Our hair is always natural assuming it hasn't been chemically altered (and please, no sides trips along that road, ladies! ) but it isn't always 'neutral'. Technically, my hair is almost NEVER neutral, as I wash, DC, etc in fat two strand twists, most of the time.

I like that word neutral, I am going to borrow that if you don't mind!

 

[diligence]

Great point!

 

[anon123]

So what do you think is the natural state of our hair?

 

[vkb247]

I ususally use the term "naked" to describe hair that has only been washed and air dried with no product.

Natural to me means unprocessed so because I am texlaxed I never see my hair in its natural state.

If you don't think that a dry, shrunken (?) 'do is a good representative of our hair than what is?

 

[cmw45]

So what do you think is the natural state of our hair?

To tell you the truth I think it would because our hair is so versatile that it is hard to pin down a point at which it is in a "neutral state." Maybe it is always changing like JustKiya. Wow...that sounded really deep for no particular reason at all.

I really don't know. All I do know is that even the type of shampoo determines can drastically change what the "neutral state" looks like. For example, if I use CON Shampoo in the green bottle and then rinse my hair well when I get out of the shower my hair will be pencil size curls that are kind of stretched out. I will dry shorter but not completely shrunken. Now on the other hand, if I use a less moisturizing shampoo when I get out of the shower my hair can look DRASTICALLY different without doing a thing different.

For example....this first photo is after I shampooed with Suave Coconut Shampoo.

Forgive the relaxed ends and just look at my roots.

This next photo is after I started using Shikaki to shampoo my hair instead...

Both of these shots are on hair that has not been conditioned but only shampooed hair that has been left to dry. (The first photos is hair that has transitioned for 4 months with relaxed tips and the second photo the second is a month after my BC...not the best comparisson...but the best I have...I will have to try this again on my hair now.) While I am not saying that this is definitive proof of what I am trying to say...I guess it's the closest I am going to get.

 

[Ms Lala]

This is a good question because on some days my hair looks like 4a and others 4b sometimes it has curls and others it's just frizz,even when I'm using the same products. I also notice that some shampoos really strip my hair and I just end up w/a ball of fuzz that has no curl or anything. I don't bother trying to really type my hair it's kinky, coily, and coarse.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

To tell you the truth I think it would because our hair is so versatile that it is hard to pin down a point at which it is in a "neutral state." Maybe it is always changing like JustKiya. Wow...that sounded really deep for no particular reason at all.

I really don't know. All I do know is that even the type of shampoo determines can drastically change what the "neutral state" looks like. For example, if I use CON Shampoo in the green bottle and then rinse my hair well when I get out of the shower my hair will be pencil size curls that are kind of stretched out. I will dry shorter but not completely shrunken. Now on the other hand, if I use a less moisturizing shampoo when I get out of the shower my hair can look DRASTICALLY different without doing a thing different.

For example....this first photo is after I shampooed with Suave Coconut Shampoo.

Forgive the relaxed ends and just look at my roots.

This next photo is after I started using Shikaki to shampoo my hair instead...

Both of these shots are on hair that has not been conditioned but only shampooed hair that has been left to dry. (The first photos is hair that has transitioned for 4 months with relaxed tips and the second photo the second is a month after my BC...not the best comparisson...but the best I have...I will have to try this again on my hair now.) While I am not saying that this is definitive proof of what I am trying to say...I guess it's the closest I am going to get.

Awww we can't see the pictures I haven't washed my hair with CON in a long time, I should try it and see how my hair reacts.

 

[Sui Topi]

I agree OP!