Afro hair, should be curly ???

[mrdemmy]

I'm going try put this as simple as possible -I'm trying to find out if my child hair is naturally curly Becuase right now it's Afro.

She is 13 now and is mixed race .

When she was born she had really curly hair up until the age of 4 .

Once she turned 4 I started canrowing her hair as she started going school and I didn't want her to catch head lice or anything of a sort .

When I say I never left her hair out I never ,eve ,ever did .so we rarely saw her natural hair .

Eveytime I took out the canrows to do new ones I started to realise her curls started to go .but I will continued doing the canrows .

At age 6 all her curls were gone completely .  and had Afro hair but we never realised it or bothers as it was always done up for many reason like growth.

Her hair at age 13 is about little bit last her shoulders but it ust to be much much longer

At age 10 I relaxed her hair as she always wanted soft straight hair for some reason . But I still canrowed her hair .at this point her hair was quite alot past her shoulders .

Now at age 11 she started to take care of her hair her self . And never got it braided or anything or even canrowed AND SHE STRAITENED IT ALL THE Time for about 4 months .

I told her to stop it as it would damage her hair even if she still used hear protections .

However now she has straightens her hair for about 5 months now and it's always braided now


My whole point is is her support to be Afro.
Can I get get her curls back or is her actually hair Afro .maybe the 4 years curls was temporary ?

And when I wash her hair it goes curly .


pic shows when it's dry (it's not her but its exactly the same hair type )

The 2 and 3 picture is when it's wet with no twist

Please tell me anything you know I'm lost and thank you so much xxx

[NotSoYumMum01]

Hi,I'm not much help but what is she mixed with what is your hair like and her fathers hair like?my Dd is 14 and mixed race too . I have an Afro and her father had straight hair. Your dd's hair looks like it's meant to be an Afro,heat damage and relaxer in the past could of changed her curl pattern.

Dd 14 has her hair out naturally and it's very curly. Maybe try putting Mixed Chicks in her hair after washing. The shampoo,conditioner and leave in conditioner is great for holding the curls ,my Dd doesn't usually use the leave in conditioner as her hair holds the curls naturally,we just use Argan oil.

Here is a of dd's hair,don't have one when wet sorry. When straightened it's just at her waist.

[Image removed by MNHQ at poster's request]

[Listerscat]

Hi Mrdemmy

I wouldn't worry about comparing her hair to when she was very young, as kids hair can change so much.

People of black origin, including mixed race people, often (but definitely not always) have hair types of the 3a to 4c category. I have attached a google image search pic of the hair chart, but have a look online, there are lots of examples.

Your dd's hair might be naturally curly, and it could be that heat damage from the straightening has caused the curls to go (see google image pic attached). Of course, the relaxer will also diminish the curl pattern, and unless the relaxed hair is cut off, that's all still there.

However, you said that you noticed her curls were going a long time ago. It could be that between cornrowing, the hair was keeping the shape of the plaits and a wash or two would have bought the curls popping back, or it could be that her hair just isn't curly now that she's no longer little.

What may be helpful to you is to ask your dd to wash and condition her hair (with whatever you have for now). You should then look in the middle or at the back of her hair closer to the roots, to try to find parts that are not heat damaged or relaxed. You can then compare these strands to the natural hair types chart to try to establish what her hair type is. I have attached one from Google. It's only a guide so I don't get too hung up on having to exactly fit into a category, but when you're online trying to find hair products and advice from people with similar hair it can be very useful.

Once you have established dd's hairtype according to the chart, if it is one of the curly types (ie 3b) have a look on youtube at 3b "big chop" videos and curly natural hair journeys and tutorials and online at blogs. These will help you to know what products and styling methods are best for your dd's hair type.

If your hair typing check shows you that dd's hair isn't curly (4b for example) have a look at type 4b hair tutorials etc on youtube.

What might be a great product for me, often doesn't work for my sister because our hair types are different. Once you have identified what your dd's hairtype is there is a wealth of information online and some really inspirational videos and blogs just for her hairtype. Everything will seem so much easier.

I notice that you said that her hair has got shorter. Heat damage, and using the wrong products can make the ends break off and the hair get shorter and shorter. I would recommend that, whatever the hair type, you encourage dd to wrap her hair at night. Also, once you establish her hair type and best methods to maintain and moisturuse it this should help to minimise breakage.

There are some good natural hairdressers around, but none in my town. The local hairdressers all say that they aren't trained in afro hair (I have 3a and 3b hair, my sis has 3c and my dh has 4c), so I rely on the internet and Black Hair and Beauty magazine alot. I go online to buy products when I haven't got the time to go to London.

I hope that this helps. I'm sure that, whatever dd's hair type, with the right knowledge it'll look lovely.

[mrdemmy]

Her Father had Bone straight hair and I have Afro hair , what is mixed chinks I'm confused . And I've heard leave in conditioner is great for holding in curls ,but I don't know which ones are good and cheap her hair is beautiful and thanks for giving some advice xxx

[mrdemmy]

I kind of believe her hair shouldn't be curly really but I sometimes feel like it should ,yeah her hair was curly a long time ago but my friends daughter only realised she had curls at the age of 15 before that all she just to do was weave ,dye her hair like 3 times a month and relax it but she still go her curls in the end ,yeah we're not the same but maybe my dad had curls but I'm just not sure .all that can-rowing should of made her curls stay but they didn't ? I done as you say to wash and conditioner her hair and I'm looking and it seems her hair is 3c at the roost but 3a and the ends ,but when I simply lightly dry it with a towel it all goes away . got any product ideas for shampoo and conditioners and hair growing creams ,many thanks xx

[NotSoYumMum01]

Mixed chicks is a range of hair products. Great for holding curls,the leave in conditioner reduces the frizz after washing. Coconut oil is also good,I like to use it with he mixed chicks leave in conditioner so her hair doesn't have a crunchy feel. www.mixedchicks.net . I usually buy it off amazon unless I have time to go to an Afro hair shop x

[mrdemmy]

Oh I get it it's a hair brand. silly me thanks for the website I'll have a good look at their product line xxx

[LoveFromUs]

Relaxing hair does so much damage to the hair the only way she is going to get her natural hair back is to cut it short. Hair relaxer contains so much strong chemicals I have seen it happen to a number of my friends.

[mrdemmy]

I don't thing she what's to cut her hair for anything really as she's been geeking it since she's been born and it's past her shoulders. She loves her hair but I don't thing she wants it cut and risking it

[thenewaveragebear1983]

My ds is mixed race and her hair is cur!y but afro in texture, ie. Loosed curls but very dry. We use palmers range for afro hair and do the 'curly girl' method such as alcohol free shampoo and products, conditioner washing, and finger combing. The texture of her hair has dramatically improved and the curls are more defined and rounded than the tight afro curl.

[Micah]

She's 14. you seem very invested, and are talking about her hair as if it's you taking care of it and responsible for it. You say "when i wash her hair", "when i pat it dry" " when i relaxed her hair"

What does your dd think? Does she want all this input or would she rather manage it herself? I would think a 14 year old can at least was and dry her own hair?

[mrdemmy]

She 13 first of all and her hair is too big to manage . She would rather I helped her with her hair as it's faster instead of doing it her self .she can't relax her hair herself come on that's some nonsense I'm hearing . If she wants to do her hair I will let her and if she want me to do it I will. Age doesn't matter in anything and yeah she's 13!!!

[thenewaveragebear1983]

I have to agree, my dd is 12 and I do her hair for her, there is no way really that she could datangle her hair herself and often makes it worse if she tries.

[Believeitornot]

I speak as someone with mixed race hair and there's no way I could have managed my thick hair by myself at that age. My dd has thick curly European hair and I will be helping her comb, wash etc for as long as she needs it.

I suspect your dd's hair is difficult to identify, curl wise, because when she was younger you constantly plaited it so it never rested. Because her hair is now relaxed, the relaxed bit of hair will never be curly. So the only way to see the original texture is to grow it out then gradually cut out the relaxed ends.

[Katymac]

Curly girl is good - we use the old fashioned bottle of herbal essences conditioner & rarely shampoo

It's hard - even at 18 DD needs a hand if her hair has been combed or brushed wrong & it's very knotty - although the hairdresser says DD has been very careful with it recently and it is in much better condition

She goes on a photo shoot and it gets messed up and everything goes messy & it can take 2 or 3 hours to sort by herself, so if I'm around i help

[Listerscat]

Hi again Mrdemmy

Now that you know dd's hairtype you'll be able to find lots of blogs, sites and Youtube videos that specifically talk about 3c hair and the best methods to use.

Wearing curly hair naturally down is referred to as a 'wash and go' so a good place to start might be to google "3c wash and go", as well as "how to get curls back to heat damaged 3c hair", and so on.

Often when the curls are drying straight and frizzy it is due to heat damage, there are ladies out there with 3c hair that practically dedicate their lives to blogging about avoiding heat damage and/or restoring heat damaged curls to their former glory; whether thats through trims and treatments (if the damage isn't too far gone) or the "big chop" (see Youtube)

I mentioned last night that my sis has 3c hair. She used straighteners everyday for months and months, and when she came to wear it curly again she was frustrated that the curls dried frizzy and straight, and that her curl pattern had been damaged. She used protein, moisturising or hot oil treatments weekly (you can find them in £2.99 sachets by brands such as Pink and Aphogee). She also used Motions, Africare and Cantu brands to shampoo her hair, or sometimes just washed it in conditioner (which is called co-washing). She didn't wash it more than every 7 days and used moisturiser and coconut oil to loc in the moisture. Moisture is really important for curls. I've attached a picture of her hair straight, then heat damaged afterwards, and then after a few months of following the above routine. Her curls started to come back, as you can see in the pic. They weren't the most defined they had ever been, but a huge improvement if you compare the pics. Then over the years with regular trims she grew out all of the damaged hair and now her curls are now even more defined and less frizzy. (I haven't got a more recent pic)

I cannot stress enough that going onto the sites, blogs and Youtube videos for 3c hair is the best way forward. You'll definitely find that there are people with the same hair type out there describing the same issues with their hair and how they got the results that they wanted.

Another thing that is key is to not get caught up in methods and products that people with a different hair type use. All curly hair is not the same (That's why I haven't bothered to tell you how I do mine.) My sister and I have the same parents, and we both have curly hair, but our hair type is not the same and what's best for her hair isn't best for mine and vice versa.

Thats why looking at videos of people with very similar hair - 3c - is the best way forward, as is using the hair products that they recommend.

[Katymac]

Listercat - you are right everyone's are different. DD's hair floats between afro & curly depending on how much/which conditioner she uses, whether it was a rare shampoo, how much humidity there is in the air & how log it has been since her last wash.

Lots of good conditioner, no shampoo, washed today and not raining or tremendously sunny = beautiful curls

[Katymac]

I've always thought DD had some 3b & some 3c hair (photos on my profile)

[Listerscat]

Katymac - That's true, the weather!

[Katymac]

too hot & it's dry & crispy, too wet and it's frizzy, too cold is good (unless the conditioner freezes)