is it bad to relax the halo while stretching? Do anyone relax there halo?

tenjoy

Well-Known Member
I have always stretched pre LHCF. But maintain me temple and nape hairs I would only relaxed my halo, about 1.5 inches in from temple and 1 inch from nape. This helped me to not stress those hairs by trying to force them down. What is your thoughts about this. Ne to LHCF as of yesterday, but am already addicted and love it. You guys have given me more advice and tips than any stylist I know!

I am already bs length. achieved this by bunning as you all would say. Who knew I was already on the right track!
 

AllAboutMoi

Active Member
I don't think its a bad idea to relax minus the front edges and nape area. Basically you want to only stretch those areas? That may help if you are seeing thinning and breakage their.
 

aloof one

New Member
I think she meant she was stretching everything else and keeping up relaxing a little of her edges and temple so hey woudlnt be all over the place (to keep from stressing her edges by trying to lay them down all the time).

I was relaxing my edges early in my transition before I realized I lost some texture I did not want to lose, and my edges still have scab hair that I was trying to get ri of. But had I kept relaxing and was stretching, I couldn't have relaxed my halo cause I would be afraid of overlapping.
 

dillard

New Member
ok, to make sure i understand what is going on.... i have never heard this term"halo" before... so whenever you touchup, you never do your edges and nape, but always keep an inch or so from the roots natural?
 

tenjoy

Well-Known Member
When I say halo, i'm referring to the all the edges and nape, all the way around like a big ring. not the middle of me head, just the outer parts of my hair line, going in about 1-1.5 inches.
 

aloof one

New Member
I dont think its bad as long as you don't overlap once you relax your whole head. Just know your edges are supposed to be really sensitive and some people say they grow better if you stretch those areas as well. In fact, there are some ladies who don't relax their edges for a while while they continue to relax the rest of their hair so that they can retain more growth there. Either way you should be fine as long as you don't overlap, Im sure.
 

hothair

Well-Known Member
:welcome3:
I thinks she's saying she relaxes her edges. If it got you to brastrap and your hair's not suffering I say go for it. What's your regimen like?
 

tenjoy

Well-Known Member
I have no real regimen yet. But I dont comb alot, just brush the top into a bun, almost everyday. But know I will stop brushing and will only finger comb. I wash only was when Im relaxing wich is only about 3-4 times a year including just the halo, except the halo. I will now change the ponytail bunning to jus a big twist bun so that I have no elastic. My edges are AL length, so i have not had any problems with relaxing the halo.

What contributed to my length, I think is styaing away from th salon. not washing (although I will try doing the oil rinse thing and deep conditioners, but no shampoo), and not combing or manipulating. oh and stretching. Of course I learned to identify the reasons for my growth from you guys. Im now addicted to LHCF and I fret over every little hair I see. :wallbash: I think im going crazy, but at least i will have long hair.
 
Last edited:

dillard

New Member
oh that's interesting. i never thought of doing that. i'd be scared that i would overlap and really mess up my edges when I do touchup the rest...

but i could see some benefits to doing that too, i actually could prob stretch longer if i did that...
 

Reinventing21

Spreading my wings
Hi ! I'm new to subsribe, but I've been a lurker for 1 1/2 years! I know exactly what you mean, because I have done the same thing. Never thought to call it relaxing the halo, tho. I like that. :yep: Anyhoo, years ago when I had a great stylist ( my hair was brastrap), that was how I would stretch between relaxers. She never knew how I was able to maintain hairstyles because by the time I would come to see her I would have a yard of new growth. My regimen was to get a professional relaxer and then around week 6 I would tame the halo in order to stretch another 4-5 weeks. I wore my hair curly so the new growth in the rest of my hair was mixed in / hidden in my curls. That said, my halo hair is strong, because doing this never caused thinning or breaking. Just baby those baby hairs!:spinning:
 

tenjoy

Well-Known Member
Hi ! I'm new to subsribe, but I've been a lurker for 1 1/2 years! I know exactly what you mean, because I have done the same thing. Never thought to call it relaxing the halo, tho. I like that. :yep: Anyhoo, years ago when I had a great stylist ( my hair was brastrap), that was how I would stretch between relaxers. She never knew how I was able to maintain hairstyles because by the time I would come to see her I would have a yard of new growth. My regimen was to get a professional relaxer and then around week 6 I would tame the halo in order to stretch another 4-5 weeks. I wore my hair curly so the new growth in the rest of my hair was mixed in / hidden in my curls. That said, my halo hair is strong, because doing this never caused thinning or breaking. Just baby those baby hairs!:spinning:

My experience exactly. A set does hide the new growth, and my halo always laid nicely!
 

Sly

New Member
I've come to this conclusion I may have to relax. I am natural with thick hair; type 3c/4a.

Glad I found this post because the 4a part of my hair is the "halo". I love the texture of the rest (middle) but those edges :wallbash:. I am approaching my year end 'of bunning' and I want to celebrate my length by wearing sleek styles and straight edges are a must!

I need your help, guys! Should I get my entire natural head relaxed, then stretch longer, and maintain the halo in between relaxers. It sort of makes sense to me, but I want to make sure I have thought of everything before I commit. What are your thoughts? Tenjoy? Reyna21? Need your expertise.:grin: Anyone else try this with success?
 

almondjoi85

New Member
I used to get Halos all the time when I was swimming in college. My hair did ok...:ohwell: I don't do them now tho and I think my hair is healthier.
 

Sly

New Member
I used to get Halos all the time when I was swimming in college. My hair did ok...:ohwell: I don't do them now tho and I think my hair is healthier.

wow. ok. so was this a term stylists were familiar with or did you do the relaxing yourself? and how did it work? Here is my understanding of how I may approach:
1) get full head relaxed (as someone who is a natural)
2) stretch for more than 6 weeks
3) when ready to relax halo put vaseline/base on crown/middle
4) when ready to relax crown/middle put vaseline/base on halo

my question is how often are you to relax halo? and how long do you keep the relaxer on (considering edges/nape can be fragile and you do not want to overlap/over process)
 

Reinventing21

Spreading my wings
Hey Sly! Well... let's see. For me, my halo hair is straighter than the rest, and relaxes very easily in a short amount of time (except for the very tip of my nape which cannot be even classified and I could probably leave the relaxer on from sun up to sun down with no damage :lachen:). Anyhoo, all of my halo hair is healthy.

Now what I got from you is that most of your hair is 3c, and you like its texture, but the front halo hair is bushier and does not lay smooth. My mother's hair is like that too. I also once saw a biracial girl extremely fair, with blonde hair that was 3b all over with 4a halo edges in front. If that had been my child, I would have relaxed the front halo only, cuz the difference in textures was enormous. In my mom's case the difference is not as extreme so she can get away with other techniques like wetting that front, add a leave-in and a dot of gel, and tie down with scarf till smooth.

So my advice is this: If you like your 3c texture, then don't relax all of your hair. I would use other techniques to deal with the halo or straighten it with a relaxer. If you relax this part, keep on the min of time, and do extra things to care for that part of your hair.

If you want to wear all of your hair straight all the time and forget your 3c texture, then relax all of it. (But I would prefer the first option if you can get away with it). Hope this helps! :grin:
 

Sly

New Member
Hey Sly! Well... let's see. For me, my halo hair is straighter than the rest, and relaxes very easily in a short amount of time (except for the very tip of my nape which cannot be even classified and I could probably leave the relaxer on from sun up to sun down with no damage :lachen:). Anyhoo, all of my halo hair is healthy.

Now what I got from you is that most of your hair is 3c, and you like its texture, but the front halo hair is bushier and does not lay smooth. My mother's hair is like that too. I also once saw a biracial girl extremely fair, with blonde hair that was 3b all over with 4a halo edges in front. If that had been my child, I would have relaxed the front halo only, cuz the difference in textures was enormous. In my mom's case the difference is not as extreme so she can get away with other techniques like wetting that front, add a leave-in and a dot of gel, and tie down with scarf till smooth.

So my advice is this: If you like your 3c texture, then don't relax all of your hair. I would use other techniques to deal with the halo or straighten it with a relaxer. If you relax this part, keep on the min of time, and do extra things to care for that part of your hair.

If you want to wear all of your hair straight all the time and forget your 3c texture, then relax all of it. (But I would prefer the first option if you can get away with it). Hope this helps! :grin:

Great advice! My hair is like your mother's very subtle difference between the halo and rest of the hair. I guess I want the best of both worlds: be able to maintain thickness of my hair yet wear sleek styles and straight edges. I know moisture/low heat/low maintenance will be the key.. . oh and no overlapping relaxers. So much to think about. Definitely going to give it more thought but this might be the way I go for sure! Thanks Reyna21 and tenjoy!!!:grin:
 
Top