Self Relaxing? Or thinking about it ?

thiccknlong

New Member
I was talking to some of the ladies earlier about the cost of going to the salon for a retouch...it's ridiculous y'all, I promise :)

Well, in an effort to reduce that high salon bill, to prevent breakage from their inpatience in not babying my hair even when I ask them to be careful AND to prevent rinsing with the mega hard water here, I'm thinking about self relaxing.

I use affirm w/ fiberguard, which only a licensed cosmet. can purchase. But, I've seen it being sold on Ebay in the big tub. I want to buy it ($60.00, for about 6 perms thats $10.00 a perm !!!), but I'm scared it may not be any good by the time I get towards the bottom...

What do you think ?
Have any of your purchased relaxers this way ?

If I buy a water softener, I can perm my own hair, do it for cheap, and not have the breakage from the stylists ripping thru ....OR the hard water...alot of hair saved, still on my head
 

Cleve_gryl

New Member
I'm seriously thinking of self relaxing with my next touch up. It will be about 6 years that I've done my own touch up so I'm a little hesitant, but my hairdresser has burnt my edges off, and always leave nice scabs on my scalp.

I'm also curious about a good gentle relaxer to use. I hear alot of rave about Phyto ($60/kit) and ORS Olive Oil. Even for the Phyto price I'd be saving tons of money versus the salon and could satisfy my PJ needs! :grin:
 

janeemat

Well-Known Member
Try $95. That's what I dropped yesterday at my stylist for a relaxer and rinse/color. I've had a bad experience with home perms, bald. Never again. I'm sure these ladies on here can give you good tips for self relaxing. I'm just more comfortable leaving the chemicals to the pros especially since I've learned to stretch and not mess with permanent/demi colors.
 

CAPlush

New Member
Cleve_gryl said:
I'm seriously thinking of self relaxing with my next touch up. It will be about 6 years that I've done my own touch up so I'm a little hesitant, but my hairdresser has burnt my edges off, and always leave nice scabs on my scalp.

I'm also curious about a good gentle relaxer to use. I hear alot of rave about Phyto ($60/kit) and ORS Olive Oil. Even for the Phyto price I'd be saving tons of money versus the salon and could satisfy my PJ needs! :grin:

I'm right there with you, I used to do my own relaxer all they time and I'm not sure how/why I stopped trusting myself.

Quoting LondonDiva "If anyone is going to jack up my hair, it's going to be me!"
 

thiccknlong

New Member
I have fam in the hair bus, so it's easy to apply (detangle first) and mk sure you have a reputable perm...and you are ready to go.

I'm not afraid of applying it...i'm afraid of the hair and $$$ i'll be out of if i DONT start doing it
 

B_Phlyy

Pineapple Eating Unicorn
I'm think of self-relaxing also, but I think I will practice with some of my conditioner first to make sure I get the hang of it.
 

thiccknlong

New Member
B_Phlyy said:
I'm think of self-relaxing also, but I think I will practice with some of my conditioner first to make sure I get the hang of it.

wow thx ! excellent idea...i have to use this one
 

cneal

New Member
i started relaxing my own hair in 10th grade...and i'm 24 now. actually, i've never had it relaxed in the salon. my sisters did it before i was able to. i haven't stuck to a specific brand...my selection usually depends on how much i want to spend that day. :ohwell: i recently relaxed my hair using optimum care. with every relaxer, i always mix in olive oil with the creme.
 

God's Anointed

New Member
I actually have never been to the salon either. My sisters have done it for me and recently (about a week ago) i didn't my first self relax. It turned out great! I used a tint applicator brush and like i said, it was great. I don't think i'll be going to a stylist unless i wanna get my hair styled or something.
 

gymfreak336

New Member
CAPlush said:
I'm right there with you, I used to do my own relaxer all they time and I'm not sure how/why I stopped trusting myself.

Quoting LondonDiva "If anyone is going to jack up my hair, it's going to be me!"

Let the church say Amen!!

The only person who will relax my hair is a fellow board member. I actually went to sallys today and I got all the things to relax my hair for less than 15 bucks.
 

gymfreak336

New Member
cneal said:
i started relaxing my own hair in 10th grade...and i'm 24 now. actually, i've never had it relaxed in the salon. my sisters did it before i was able to. i haven't stuck to a specific brand...my selection usually depends on how much i want to spend that day. :ohwell: i recently relaxed my hair using optimum care. with every relaxer, i always mix in olive oil with the creme.

How much olive oil do you add? I am thinking of trying this out.
 

thiccknlong

New Member
gymfreak336 said:
Let the church say Amen!!

The only person who will relax my hair is a fellow board member. I actually went to sallys today and I got all the things to relax my hair for less than 15 bucks.

Now that's what I'm talkin bout. That's cool b/c you to can do each other's hair, save a LOT of $$$ and keep much hair on your head by doing the rest ( condition, roller set or airdry) yourself.
 

gymfreak336

New Member
thicknlong said:
Now that's what I'm talkin bout. That's cool b/c you to can do each other's hair, save a LOT of $$$ and keep much hair on your head by doing the rest ( condition, roller set or airdry) yourself.

One of the great things about self-relaxing is that you can condition how you want to with the products you want to use. I was actually looking at the instructions on many relaxers out there and alot of them say to apply a conditioner for 10mins, rinse, neutralize for a full 5 mins 2x and then proceed to other conditioning. This was on the motions relaxers. Now, when I go to the salon they don't do this. If these are "professional" products how come they don't even follow the instructions. If they did maybe people would go back more regularly. Imagine how much stronger you hair would be if you got this treatment every time you touched up.
 

cneal

New Member
gymfreak336 said:
How much olive oil do you add? I am thinking of trying this out.

honestly, i've been doing it for so long that i couldn't tell you. it's like when you're cooking...you just know how much seasoning to add. [lol] guessing...maybe about a quarter of an inch when the container is flat???
 

gymfreak336

New Member
cneal said:
honestly, i've been doing it for so long that i couldn't tell you. it's like when you're cooking...you just know how much seasoning to add. [lol] guessing...maybe about a quarter of an inch when the container is flat???
Thanks, I think I get it. When I relax again I will put half of the relaxer in a separate container and add a couple of splashes.
 

thiccknlong

New Member
gymfreak336 said:
One of the great things about self-relaxing is that you can condition how you want to with the products you want to use. I was actually looking at the instructions on many relaxers out there and alot of them say to apply a conditioner for 10mins, rinse, neutralize for a full 5 mins 2x and then proceed to other conditioning. This was on the motions relaxers. Now, when I go to the salon they don't do this. If these are "professional" products how come they don't even follow the instructions. If they did maybe people would go back more regularly. Imagine how much stronger you hair would be if you got this treatment every time you touched up.

I never noticed this, good lookin out. I will try this when I self relax.

I need to get my hands on some of that Affirm first :lol: ...
 

gymfreak336

New Member
thicknlong said:
I never noticed this, good lookin out. I will try this when I self relax.

I need to get my hands on some of that Affirm first :lol: ...

Yeah, take a look when you have a chance. When I relax I will be silk elements mild relaxer. Followed by motions silk protein conditioner for 10 mins and then washed with proclaim neutralizing shampoo twice and I am going to let it sit for 5 mins each time. Then I will condition for 30mins with a moisturizing conditioner. I haven't decided which conditioner yet.
 

thiccknlong

New Member
gymfreak336 said:
Yeah, take a look when you have a chance. When I relax I will be silk elements mild relaxer. Followed by motions silk protein conditioner for 10 mins and then washed with proclaim neutralizing shampoo twice and I am going to let it sit for 5 mins each time. Then I will condition for 30mins with a moisturizing conditioner. I haven't decided which conditioner yet.

Now I will say this, the last stylist I went to did do follow that regimen...but not for the specified amt of time...she permed, conditioned after the rinse (3-5 mins), then neutralized.

I saw where one girl said she met someone on the board...and they were going to do each other's relaxers...that's a good thing also...but I'll work on getting some of that perm...so much $$$ saved...and i've watched my folks (licensed cosmo's) do it for so long growing up, i dont think it will be hard
 

asubeauty

Well-Known Member
I think I'm going to start self relaxing too. I just discovered a small bald area right at the front and center of my hairline from a "professional" :nono: I can rollerset and trim my hair on my own. If I can self relax, I won't have to depend on a stylist at all.
 

Cleve_gryl

New Member
I've read that adding oil to the cream sort of stops it from penetrating. Not that I wouldn't be happy with a texlax result, but is it good for moisture purposes or to stop the relaxers penetration?
 

newflowers

New Member
I am curious about htis too. Does does the addition of olive oil added to the relaxer creme benefit the hair? If the oil seals the hair cuticle, does it not do the same when relaxing? Does it make the relaxer gentler on hair?

This is such an interesting concept, but I am not certain how/why it works.
 

gymfreak336

New Member
newflowers said:
I am curious about htis too. Does does the addition of olive oil added to the relaxer creme benefit the hair? If the oil seals the hair cuticle, does it not do the same when relaxing? Does it make the relaxer gentler on hair?

This is such an interesting concept, but I am not certain how/why it works.

I think that it addition of oils does add the overall conditioning but I also think it helps slow down the "relaxing" process so that you are able to monitor your results better.
 

cneal

New Member
i read some where awhile back that it make the relaxer gentler on your hair as well. as far as it stopping the relaxer process all together, i have to disagree...my hair still comes out nice and straight. i have a fresh touch-up in my siggy. if adding oil protects me from the possible harshness of a relaxer, i'm cool with that. :look:
 
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