Transistioning

Transition takes place when you make a mental decision to no longer use chemicals on your hair that changes its texture. This process involves removing all chemicals from your hair, whether you have a relaxer, texturiser or curly perm. Once the chemicals are removed you are then in the final stages of going natural, this is when you develop a relationship with your hair, in order to find what best suits you.

Three Steps to Transitioning
1st - Love thy Hair
How much do you love your hair?
How does your hair impact how you dress, think, and way of life?
You need to develop a dating scenario with your hair, just the getting to know stage. Some of you may already be in love with your hair at this point, which is good. But for those who are still tampering with the idea, this is the time to start dating. Talk to your hair, and listen to what it’s telling you, have conversations in the mirror and ask yourself these questions.
This will determine whether you are ready for the move or not!

2nd - Get those chemicals OUT!
Some women opt for the big chop, which is an extreme change to a person’s appearance, and can be quite daunting (I personally loved this) I became the Barber Shop Queen. But, we are assuming you have successfully accomplished the 1st step, so this should already be a decision you have made. However you may prefer some of the following approaches.

1 - Cut your hair progressively, whether over weeks or months (Cutting your hair is not requisite for going natural, but it might help to prepare you (and those around you) for you hair in a natural state).
2 - Go to the hair shop with friends (make it a girlie day) and try on some natural looking wigs. Take some pictures with a digital camera (as it's faster) and go home and start to visualise how that looks on you (I've just made that up, so I don't know if it works!!!)
3 - For those that have never tried extensions - this is a good time to try it, with a lot of choice out there to suit you.
4 - Be inspired from other Tyte Curl sister & brothers online; in the street (there all round wherever you look) remember they started their hair journey somewhere.
5 Magazines can be a good source for ideas, even though natural hair is under rated slightly, you should come across a few styles to get your mind ticking

3rd - Growing relationship with my hair
Your Natural!!
So what do you do now? Find what works for you, don’t make excuses about your hair being hard to manage, or wishing you had ‘prettier’ hair; you now have to work with what you’ve got. This is probably the hardest part; you may be tempted to revert back!
But hold on…. Remember the 1st step…your hair was talking to you, telling you what it wanted?

Working with a TWA (Teeny, Weenie, Afro)
* Visit the barbershop regularly; to keep your Afro trimmed, and get a nice fade into your neck, which helps with the definition. Barbershops look scarier than they actually are, when you walk in you will be surprised with the vibe and laughter. Yes the whole shop will probably turn and look at you, just walk to the first chair and ask about getting your haircut. By the next visit you will part of the Family!

* Work with colour – you can find a lot of natural hair dyes, however you may find that if you want a brighter colour, you will have to use peroxide first to bring the colour out (I found that Dark and Lovely Blonde, brought out the colour really well, it contains very little peroxide) You could start with a semi-permanent colour first to get used to the shade before going for a permanent colour

* If the afro is growing quite high, you can use a light gel to twist your hair into small sections, to change your hairstyle

Working with 3 – 4 inches of hair
This is a kind of in between stage * You can continue with comb twisting your hair
* Visit a salon or friend who can assist you with cane row styles, or use extensions

* Start working with two strand twist, with cane row at the front

* Wear your hair out in an afro or use a bando to hold the hair away from you face

* You may make the decision to start locing your hair, you can refer to our article on locing Here

Not forgetting those that are already TyteCurl sisters & brothers - ask yourself when was the last time you did something differently with the way you wear your hair? Whether you are transitioning or already natural these steps can be applied at any time during your journey.

Try some
- Colour
- Hair ornaments (Zayunu By Design)
- Head Wraps