Texlaxing? Hmm. . . What is it anyway?

Indigenous Curls Shares Natasha's Texlaxing Experience

What is texlaxing? We recently interviewed a curly girl who used the texlaxing method on her curls. There is some controversy surrounding this in the natural community. Some ask, 'Is this still considered natural'? Texlaxed curls can appear natural, and be worn straight with minimal effort.  Many choose this method because it works best for them. Natasha shares what she has learned on her curly journey.  

Natasha Says:

Well... The first time I heard about texlaxing was only a few months ago. I stumbled upon that term accidentally when I was doing some research about hair care and how I can manage my hair. 


 So, what is “Texlaxing”

 Texlaxing is basically when one relaxes their hair just enough to retain some texture. There are 3 ways to do it:

x        Using a milder form of a relaxer (this could be obtained by either diluting the relaxer or purchasing the mild form of it, for example if one uses Super, they could switch to Normal).

x        Using their regular relaxer for half the amount time they normally would take to relax their hair.

x        Both techniques could also be adopted –use of a milder relaxer + letting it sit on the hair for half the amount of time normally required.

 Keep in mind that texlaxing is done using a relaxer. There is no special kit for this method. Just as the term suggests, texlaxed hair falls between retaining some texture and chemically relaxed hair.

 Pros and Cons of texlaxing

 In my opinion, having texlaxed hair gives everyone else the impression that your hair is natural. Truth be told, it may look natural but it isn’t, although it possesses certain characteristics of natural hair. Because texlaxing is a method in which the hair is not 100% relaxed, not all the protein bonds are damaged leaving it significantly stronger that having it fully relaxed. Texlaxed hair generally appears thicker and fuller, so it may be better for those who don’t like the thinness of having completely relaxed hair. On the other hand, for those who are transitioning from relaxed to texlaxed, like myself, some disadvantages I face are as follows:

x        The hair gets a lot drier a lot faster, so one has to be on top of their moisturizing regimen.

x        Two demarcation lines – one between the new growth and texlaxed hair and another one between the texlaxed hair the relaxed hair. Maintenance of three textures is not easy and requires some time and effort.

 Ever wondered how I begun?

 Coincidentally, on the 29th of July 2013, I went to my hairdresser for my yearly relaxer and this time the only difference was that I switched relaxers. I bought the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil (Normal) Relaxer. Note: My new growth was nearly 4.5”. So my hairdresser went on as she normally would to relax my hair. After the relaxer was rinsed out and shampoo’d, I noticed that my hair was only about 50% relaxed, and boy was I happy with the texture my ‘new growth’ had. It was a lot thicker when it was wet. The only thing I wasn’t too happy about was my 100% relaxed ends. The demarcation line between the two textures was quite evident in the wet state. My hairdresser convinced me that it wouldn’t show much after it dried, so she went on and dried it. Another thing was that my hair appeared slightly shorter because this time it was not all 100% bone straight.

 

 

 

This is a picture a few weeks after I got my hair texlaxed. Loving the thickness and the cute little bow. I tucked in the ends, and placed a bobby pin to keep it in place.

 

 

 

 More From Natasha