ABCs of Texlaxing

Texlaxed hair is gradually becoming more popular in the hair care world. The aim of this post is to break down basic things about texlaxing, how it's different from relaxing or texturising, how to texlax and it's pros and cons.

What is Texlaxing?

Texlaxing is deliberately under-processing the hair during a relaxer application process. This leaves a bit of texture in the hair,  this implies that the hair is not allowed to be bone-straight or silky straight. The amount of texture left in the hair or how under-processed the hair is,  depends on individual preferences.

How to Texlax

Texlaxing is done with relaxers (both lye and no-lye). This is how it is different from texturising (done with texturisers). It's also where the name was coined from i believe; Texture + Relaxer/Relaxing.

Method 1: Reducing the relaxer application and processing time to 15 minutes or less

Method 2: Reducing the applicator before mixing it with the relaxer creme in no-lye relaxers.

Method 3: Diluting relaxer with carrier oils (olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, sunflower oil). Add 1 - 3 tablespoons to the relaxer depending on how weak you want it to be, and mix thoroughly.

Method 4: Saturating/coating the hair strands with a carrier oil just before the relaxer application process.

Any of these methods can be used and two or more methods can also be combined. Each method or combos can be adjusted to give preferred texture. For example, someone using a no-lye relaxer could pour 80% of the activator into the relaxer creme to get hair with just a little texture/coils. Another person that only wants to adjust the curl pattern slightly could pour 50% activator or less into the relaxer creme. The activator makes the relaxer creme in no-lye relaxers potent, hence the more you add, the straighter your results. The more oil or conditioner you add to your relaxer,  the weaker it is and you would have more texture or kinks left. 

My method:

I apply a light oil like olive oil all over my hair

I add 2 tablespoons of olive oil or coconut oil to my relaxer (ORS lye Relaxer).

*application and processing time usually less than 15 - 16 minutes and I smooth the relaxer just once with my fingers.  No combs

There are posts on here detailing my texlaxing routine.

Pros of Texlaxing

• Slightly less chemical (relaxer) damage than in bone-straight relaxed hair
• Thicker hair or more volume
• Some natural hair styles would give better results in texlaxed hair than bone straight relaxed.  For example; braidouts,  twistouts. Updos & buns also have more volume
• Usually more manageable than unprocessed natural hair

Cons of Texlaxing 

• Getting same texture results at every touch up might be difficult. This can be managed by being consistent with method(s) used and application and processing times
• Higher probability of breakage because of texture similar to kinky hair, dryness, breakage at the line of demarcation between new growth and texlaxed hair, and varying texture results from touch-ups. This can be managed by regular sealing & moisturising and deep conditioning.
• More difficult to manage than bone straight relaxed hair. The texture and thickness makes texlaxed hair very prone to knots and tangles like in natural hair. To manage this, work in small sections, detangle your hair thoroughly before washing, keep your hair stretched post wash and generally handle your hair like it's natural.
• Texlaxed hair is also chemically processed and should be treated accordingly. Regular light or medium protein treatments (ORS replenishing conditioner, Organics hair Mayonnaise,  ORS Hair Mayonnaise, Aphogee Two Minutes Keratin Protein Reconstructor,  Vitale Olive Oil Hair Mayonnaise etc. ) once in 4 - 6 weeks and strong protein treatments (Aphogee 2 Step Protein Treatment) 1 or 2 weeks before texlax touch-up.

My Verdict: Texlaxed hair is NOT for a lazy hairlista, else there would be frustration due to dryness, breakage and so much thickness and volume. However, if you are ready to put in the work, you can have the best of both worlds of natural and relaxed hair. *winks. Search out texlaxed hair bloggers or vloggers, learn about their struggles, success and be INSPIRED or otherwise.  Lol

If you have any questions, drop a comment below or send a mail to hairvolutionbybee@yahoo.com.

xx, 
Bee. 

Disclaimer: Everything stated in this post is based on my personal experiences and should not be take as scientific or professional advice. Please do your personal research before making any drastic haircare changes. 

Texlax/Relaxer Update #4

Compliments of the season, trust you had a wonderful Christmas celebration. I did my last texlax touch for 2016, last week at 16 weeks post. I had yarn Senegalese twists installed and kept that in for two weeks. I had a touch-up prep. wash day 5 days before touch day. See here to read how I prepare my hair for the chemical treatment. Unfortunately, for this prep wash day I was out of Aphogee Two Step Protein treatment. I substituted that with ORS Hair Mayonnaise, a table spoon of Tropic Isle JBCO with Sage and 2 tablespoons of Braggs Liquid Aminos.

I followed my normal texlax routine. Deep conditioned with Organics Hair Mayonnaise + Motions Moisture Plus + Honey. I air-dried, then straightened my in approximately 1 inch sections at 180°C. Leave-in: African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Moisture Intense Leave-in Conditioner
Sealant: HairvolutionbyBee Whipped Shea Butter
Heat Protectant: Fantasia IC Carrot Growth Serum
I've been dealing with breakage for the past few months. I still don't know exactly why, so I wasn't really expecting to retain length.

Length check

As you can see, I actually retained length, my ends however, are in a very terrible state. My hair has grown into a very annoying thin "V". I guess you could say this is my first setback.

Ponytail

SETBACK RECOVERY STEPS
Cut off thin ends
Keep relaxer stretches to a maximum of 12/13 weeks
Ensure moisture-protein balance
Reduce hair manipulation by keeping protective styles simple (buns and wigs mostly).
Daily moisturising and sealing

Post-trim hair (I would cut off about 1.5 inches more soon)

I hope your ends fared better than mine this year. Kindly share tips you think could help me with my ends. Catch ya in the comments section.

xx,
Bee

Texlax/Relaxer Update #3

I texlaxed on Monday, 30/08/16 at 17 weeks and 3 days post. I prepared my hair the usual way, using aphogee two step protein treatment. See here, to read how I prepare my hair for texlax touch-up.

For the first time on my hhj, someone else did my texlax for me!!! I had my texlax touch done at HairvolutionbyBee Lounge by one of our stylists. And she did a very good job following all my prompts and instructions. Felt good really. Finally, a texlax day without the stress and arm-ache.

Steps followed:                                  

• My hair was parted into 4 and detangled.
• Petroleum jelly was applied to my previously relaxed hair to prevent over-processing from relaxer runoff during wash. Petroleum jelly was also applied to my hairline and top of my ears
• About one-third of the jar of ORS lye relaxer was mixed with two tablespoons oof vegetable oil. Lol? yea, you read that right. I was out of olive oil which use normally. So i used good ol' vegetable oil from my kitchen.
• The diluted relaxed was applied to my hair. Application and smoothing time (fingers only) was 12 minutes. I left it on for another 4 minutes. Making a total of 16 minutes.
• The relaxer was rinsed out, and shampooed thrice with Vitale Olive Oil Neutralising Shampoo. The shampoo was left on for 4 minutes the third time before rinsing out.     
• Deep conditioned for 15 minutes with heat, with a mix of ORS Replenishing Conditioner, Roux Porosity Control, and Motions Moisture Plus Conditioner.
• Megagrowth Profectiv Daily Leave-in Strengthener was applied and sealed with HairvolutionbyBee Whipped Shea Butter.

My hair was then rolled with large rollers, I sat under the hooded dryer for a while but I didn't have the patience to sit till my hairgot dry. I simply combed out the curls and I was left with fairly straight hair.

This texlax was a very successful one, the vegetable oil was a good call after all. I love the texture I was left with.

Post-trim Hair

However, I observed I'm having an unusual amount of breakage. I'm trying not to freak out. I noticed about two weeks before my texlax touch-up but I believed the Aphogee two step protein treatment would keep it in check. Alas! I was wrong. I ended up trimming so much, I trimmed twice on texlax day, and once the following day. My plan is to give my hair some TLC and do a henna treatment which is long overdue.

I don't think I retained much length this stretch due to the thin ends which I had to trim (1.5 - 2 inches). I didn't really do a length check or comparison pictures because I didn't flat iron. However, I measured for my hair diary before trimming. I will do an update on that in another post.

xx,
Bee

Texlax/Relaxer Update #1

Hello darlings,

This post is coming later than I planned but the past week has been SUPER busy for. Even right now I'm so knackered. Anyway God is my strength always. So let's cut the chase, I did my relaxer touch-up on 04/12/15. Yay! my new growth was driving me crazy so I glad for the opportunity to do away with new growth for a while.

I have been self-relaxing (texlaxing) since the beginning of my healthy hair journey. So I would highlight the steps and processes I take since this is my first relaxer touch-up post.

1. I always have a pre-relaxer touch-up washday. This is usually a week/5 days before touch-up day. On this washday I clarify and do a hard protein treatment using aphogee two-step protein treatment. This is done to fortify my hair against the impending chemical treatment  (relaxer)
2. The day before the touch-up or early that same day, I detangle thoroughly, part my hair into four quadrants and I then make 1 inch sections in each and twist up. I do this this to make application of the relaxer easier and faster. I texlax so pre-parting my hair makes sticking my time limit a breeze. 
   
3. I apply olive oil/coconut oil on my scalp and all over my hair (new growth and length). Then I apply vaseline to the previously relaxed/texlaxed ends, the perimeter of my hair and my ears. The vaseline is to protect the previously relaxed/texlaxed ends from relaxer run-off while washing out the relaxer as this could lead to over processing and eventually breakage. 
4. I use ORS lye relaxer in normal strength and usually use half of the jar per touch-up. So i scoop a half of the jar into a small bowl that i use only for this purpose, the I add about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and mix well. 
   
5. Then I apply the relaxer to the pre-parted sections. The application usually takes about 8-10 mins (approx. 2 mins per quadrant). I then smooth with my fingers only making sure the relaxer is well distributed to the new growth. Smoothing usually takes about 5 - 8 mins. So the entire process usually takes about 15- 18 mins.
   
6. I wash out all the relaxer using warm water then I do a mid-step  protein treatment with aphogee two minutes reconstructor. Then I rinse the conditioner out and start washing my hair with neutralising shampoo. I'm currently using  Vitale olive oil  anti-breakage neutralising shampoo. I usually  lather 3 to 4 times and I leave the 3rd and 4th lather in for about 3 or 4 minutes. 
7. I wrap my hair in a cotton tshirt to absorb excess water. Then I deep condition with ORS replenishing conditioner for 20 mins with heat.
8. I then wash the deep conditioner out with cool water and apply roux porosity control conditioner for about two minutes then rinse out. 
9. I tshirt dry for about an hour, then I apply my leave-in conditioners (Aphogee pro vitamin leave-in or Aphogee green tea reconstructor and/or megagrowth profectiv daily leave-in strengthener). I apply my oil mix to my scalp and seal with either my oil mix or fantasia ic carrot oil serum if I want to flat iron.
10. I usually air-dry or blow dry with cold air but I wanted to do a proper length check this touch-up so I sealed with fantasia ic carrot oil serum and blow dried in small sections using medium heat. After this I flat-ironed in one-inch sections at the lowest heat of my Babyliss flat iron (140°C.)

                  Flat-ironed hair...BSL?
Overall, I was happy with the results of this relaxer touch-up and Yay!!! I got to BSL....drum roll!!!!!..... However, I have decided not to claim BSL just yet as I would prefer thicker ends. Seems my hair prefers to grow into a V-shape though. So i took off about 1.5 inches all round. I should be Full BSL by my next touch-up.
                     

                   1.5 inches trimmed off

                     
                         Post-trim hair

                       So far....so good...

I hope I didn't bore you with my longgggg post.

Later Darlings, 

Stay fabulous.  mwwuaaah!