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Curly Nikki

A Wash n Go for Multi-Textured Naturals

By January 27th, 202135 Comments
by Shelli of Hairscapades 

As many of you know, the section of hair on the right side naturally has a lot looser texture than my left side and crown, especially the area next to my part. This can make for interesting WnGs as this section is barely wavy and tends to fall flat, especially after the style is a couple of days old.

A Wash n Go for Multi-Textured Naturals

So, this is a quick and easy fix for my multiple textures. It’s so simple that some may wonder why I’m even sharing it. But, I figured, you never know, it may help someone who didn’t think of it yet!

Once my WnG is fully dry, if my right side is looking as it does above and I’m not pulling my front back, I set it for about 15 minutes or overnight with a few small perm rods! I either lightly dampen my hair with water or product before setting it on the rollers or I spritz it with water after rolling (the latter is when I only want to set it for a few minutes).

A Wash n Go for Multi-Textured Naturals

10-15 minutes later

A Wash n Go for Multi-Textured Naturals

Then, I simply separate any thicker curls into smaller sections and twirl them around with my finger to reform. The curls are loopier and larger than the texture on the left side of my hair, but blend well enough, as you can see in this ā€œafterā€ picture that I posted yesterday!

A Wash n Go for Multi-Textured Naturals
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Are you a multi-textured, WnG curly? What do you do, if anything, to blend and/or balance your multiple textures?

35 Comments

  • Lynn says:

    Thanks for the tip, I have looser curls on my crouwn and tighter curls near my neck. This will def. come in handy! šŸ™‚

  • NaturalCynt says:

    Cool…I'm a multi-textured CG. My left side has much looser curls than the rest of my hair. I sometimes finger curl that section and clip it for a few minutes with product. This gives it a twirly curl, however, the curls don't last all day. I think I'll try the roller set and hopefully I'll get longer lasting curls. Thanks for the simple yet helpful tip!:)

  • Anonymous says:

    Anon 11:28 am here again… Yes, Shelli, I normally end up rolling the end of my flat twist with a perm rod. In the hour that it takes for me to get dressed and drive into the office, the curl has time to set. I was also afraid that I could not do a "proper" flat twist, but I learned that the flat twist does not need to be "proper" to work its magic!

    Stacy

  • hairscapades says:

    Thanks ladies!!! Anon at 5:05, have you seen Naptural85's Winter Wash and Go tutorial? She starts it at night and it is dry by the morning. You can just search for the video on YouTube. Maybe there are some techniques in there that you can use? That is a long wash day and I can imagine it would be a welcome relief to cut out a few steps! But, I'm sure many envy your thick and luscious locks!!

    Shelli

  • Unknown says:

    Love thisĀ”!!! Great idea!!

  • Anonymous says:

    Not only do I have several textures from 3b to 4a, it's UBER dense. Hense, there are hours between my Wash n actually Going. After applying products, in sections of course, the hair from ear to nap has to be twisted (8 of them) or I will get fuzz balls. Then I clip in about 10 sections to stretch the roots. Then I sit under a hood dryer for about an hour. Then I diffuse each section starting from the back, cause that is still soaking wet. The rest of the sections are only wet where the clips were. Yeah, my wash day is ALL day. Suggestions are welcomed.

  • Anonymous says:

    I wish this info had been around when I was younger. I am 61 years old. Don't want to cut my hair down to a small fro, it is not becoming on me. If I am going somewhere special I run to the wig store. I will keep trying though.

  • Anonymous says:

    This is a great tip, I will do this instead of a curling iron. Thanks!!!

  • Unknown says:

    Thank you for this article! I am still trying to "find" my style naturally etc, but I am often so frustrated trying to fit into the defined stylos of hair type and what product fits etc. My hair seems to also span all textures from 3b to 4b and i often give up on styling and just go "back/up on one".

  • Anonymous says:

    I have this problem all over my head sadly. Partially because my gene pool is so mixed and partially because I stopped dying my hair and have been growing it out. I've got about 7 different textures in my hair so the curls are never even and the ends just turn straight because I still have a few ends of damaged colored hair. When I wash and go I comb through y hair while it has conditioner in it, then I rinse grab my products and have at it. I've found aloe Vera gel and a few bobby pins will help me set the damaged ends into somewhat curls and the top of my hair which goes straight and frizzy after a washing into nice waves and curls.

  • Unknown says:

    Thank goodness. My mom & I were just talking about our multi textured hair. I showed her my mushroom via Skype just last night. She had no clue. The front/crown of my hair is straight. Not bone straight, but doesn't need much heat (the reason I quit relaxing and just did blow outs b4 bc). The back of my hair is curly (pineapples perfectly). The center… well it does this ^ . In the center it's tighter and seems/is shorter and is prone to breakage. The sides of that inverted v are like the back…loose curls.

    If I wash and (truly) go my hair looks divided in the back…picture stringyness, curls, line of serious shrinkage ( like a cut) more curls. Voila…mushroom!

    if u know me then you know I turn 30 min meals into 45 -60min soiree/ A list dinner party. Meaning the instructions ain't working for me give me a sec i'ma make it FAB.

    So, my wash and (sorta) go consists of….. pig tails. Lol.. . Yep, pony on each side of my head. How high I put them and how far apart determines my fluffines. Think of it as power stretching…. I have to stretch my center and sometimes I'll twist the pony. If I twist just, the front I get a different wave/curl…
    Ponytails/mini pineapples stay in while I get dressed do makeup…. release and go!

    Smooches xo

  • hairscapades says:

    Anon @ 12:18, I get the mullet too!! Actually, I call it the mushroom, because it's a stem that hangs out of the "cap" in the back!! I try to roll those hanging pieces with the curly pieces that are above it, but they always fall out. I've had that part just cut shorter so that it doesn't look crazy, but my nape seems to get straighter and straighter. Yesterday, I wore a braid out and the pieces were hanging again, so I set them on those same perm rods for my drive to work and that helped a lot!!

    LM, do you twist outs or twist and curls? I find that a twist and curl is the most helpful for evening out my textures, but it must be done on wet or damp hair for me to get the best and longest lasting results.

    Shelli

  • LM says:

    I want to do a wash n go to try and keep my regimen simple for my schedule. I have alot of different textures and shorter hair which makes them that more noticeable. My hair only waves slightly on the left side with patches of 4a curls. The right side is tightly coiled 4a's. The crown is mostly frizzy with little curl pattern (4b maybe?), and the back of my head is loose 3c. When I wash my hair the different textures pop out and even my twist outs aren't uniform. I guess I will have to experiment with wash n go's to see what works and, if all else fails, puff it

  • Anonymous says:

    Shelli, You're hair is GORGEOUS! I don't do wash and go's because I have the multi-texture problem. My hair ends up looking like a mullet because the texture is looser in the back and it hangs and in the middle and sides I have shrinkage. My bangs are also looser. I have tried the rollers for my bangs and that seems to work for when I want an updo with bangs.

  • hairscapades says:

    Thanks everybody!!

    Awwwww, thank you pecancurls, Brooke and Amanda!!! Amanda, a salon?! Yeah, I think I'm one of those people who knows how to do my own hair, but may not do that well helping others with theirs hands on! But, I'll give you all the information I've stored and suggestions I've got!! LOL!!

    Anon @ 11:28, that sounds like a BRILLIANT and perfect method!! I'd probably still need to add a curler to my ends to get it to curl, but seems it would give more of an "S" wave, which is my natural curl formation, even where the curls are tighter! Now, if only I could figure out how to properly flat twist!!! LOL!!

    Annie, yes, you totally made sense! And I agree, finger coils just fall flat on my straighter hair and look like a "deflated" ribbon! Another option that someone suggested on this post on my site and that I've read before, is using a section of straw and securing the hair to it with a bobby pin through the end! That's good for creating a smaller spiral as I don't think there are perm rods that tiny! And, even if there were, free straws from McDonald's are cheaper than rods;)!!

    Anon @ 10:46, you soooo are not alone. A lot of people prefer the convenience of a WnG, but if that just isn't working for you, Twist and Curls have become my friend as a way to even out my multiple textures. I also have at least 4, if not 5, on my head and ranging from almost completely straight hair at my nape, with the curliest, coarsest and finest hair on top of that at my crown (3c I guess?), 3b or c shiny curls on my left and 3a on the right. It's all over the place! But, you know, it's mine, and I've learned how to work with it!

    Thanks again everyone!!

    Shelli

  • Annie L. says:

    God Shelli, so timely, I just discovered this issue and a similar solution only recently! My crown is mainly coarse (RE: less flexible) with medium-sized spirals that can look limp, the sides are very curly and the back is fine, slippery and loose curly/straight *sigh*.

    Finger coils work for every section but the crown. It actually becomes limp when finger coiled. The motion of twirling the strands around themselves (like Senegalese twists) while also twirling them around my finger creates TOO NARROW a cylinder shape and they collapse, looking exhausted and lifeless.

    These coils are naturally larger and the strands thicker and less supple, so the small-diameter overly coily finger coil motion DOESN'T WORK and needs to be replaced by old-school rolling methods. I roll the hair around a rod by pulling strands taut and wrap them around the rod FLAT just like Shelli's demo in a spiral direction, NOT like the method of twirling hair around the finger THEN trying to create that spiral shape.

    This larger, smooth spiral is the natural shape and pattern of that part of my hair and it looks good since I've figured this out! Am I making sense? Anyways, the limp, flat look was solved for me. It took me a while to figure out and I don't do this often because I hate messing around with tools and I like my undefined look as well, but when I want more definition at the crown, I know that this method, NOT finger coils or small twists, is the way to go. Thanks so much for putting this out there!

  • Anonymous says:

    I usually pin my front hair back because it is looser but I will try this out to get it to blend with the rest of my texture or at least to some degree.

    Megan Montgomery

  • Anonymous says:

    I have at least 3 textures ranging from 3a to 4a and anything in between. And one side of my head is a different texture from the other. Its so frustrating trying to style and I have done something similar to this just so my hair will look remotely close to the other. Thanks for reminding me of this fix. And its nice to know I'm not alone.

  • Anonymous says:

    OMG JMartinez516. This is my same problem. The 1st inch of my hairline is 4a while my hair gets progressively straighter as I move to my nape. I'm always trying to figure out what to do with it. I've been working with this for a year now w/o any definite fixes. My go to is usually putting a headband on until it dries or wearing my hair in my face. I love my wash-n-gos because i'm too lazy to do twist outs.
    I would like to read more on solving this situation from other ladies.

  • Asia Monique says:

    As my hair is naturally straight in front, and curly everywhere else, I would simply twist up the front of my head in smaller twists in the front with a leave in, and thicker twists in the back to even out my curl pattern some.

  • Amanda818 says:

    You really should open up a salon I would definitely be one of your loyal clients šŸ™‚ I am still learning about my hair bc'd Dec.2011

  • Amanda818 says:

    Great hair ! love it !

  • Anonymous says:

    Why didn't I ever think of this?! smh
    I've wanted to WNG for forever, but because my crown and front is practically straight, but my sides and back is curly, I've never been able to pull it off.

    Thanks for the tip. I've had an epiphany.
    Stacey

  • Anonymous says:

    Shelli your hair looks beautiful. I've only experimented with a wash n' go a few times & i've noticed that most if not all of my hair spirals on the ends & is kind of wavy at the top, but for the most part pretty uniformed. Thanks for the post

    Brooke B.

  • qubilah shabazz says:

    for the most part, my curl pattern is evenly dispersed, however the curls in the middle of my head are more wavy than the rest of my 3c/4a curls. after a wng my middle curls are limp, but it doesnt look too bad. thanks for this insightful information!

  • Anonymous says:

    The left side is not as curly as the rest of my hair, except for the roots. I think I acheived better wash and go's with a relaxer, but I did my first last month, and it wasn't so bad! I just left the left side do its thing, and didnt bother with blending too much. I got so many compliments.

  • Anonymous says:

    Yes having different textures are a hassle . I try so hard to make my right side of my hair blend in with the rest of my hair .

  • Anonymous says:

    Yes Shelli, it's a "duh" fix, but I love your advice and your hair anyway! Much love!

  • Anonymous says:

    this is what i do for the front of my hair.

  • Anonymous says:

    I've done this too for my looser hair and it works! šŸ™‚

    M

  • Pecancurls says:

    Shelli, WnG's are not my friend, however, I just wanted to pop in to say how lovely your hair looks. You wear it well. šŸ™‚

  • JMartinez516 says:

    @Anon 11:28 Huh…that might help me too…

  • Anonymous says:

    I have 4 very distinct different textures to my hair. Just yesterday I revealed to a couple of coworkers how I make my wash-and-go look a bit more consitent. After I apply all product, I flat twist the front of my hair a couple inches, put in a bobby pin, then finish twisting down the length like a twist for a twist out. I then finish getting dressed and drive to work. I take the twist out and fluff and separate before entering my office and the textures blend wonderfully. I also have to twirl a few pieces on my left side to match the natural spiral curls of the rest of my head. Hope this helps someone!

  • JMartinez516 says:

    Also, this front section of my hair gave me the blues when I was relaxed too!!

  • JMartinez516 says:

    I am definitely a multi-texture wash and go girl. I'm still figuring it out unfortunately. The left top side is looser than the rest of my hair – I think I've figured out that that side needs lighter product or to be parted so it mixes with the other side. That doesn't stress me out at much.

    What stresses me out is the entire front section around my face is (for the sake of calling out the difference) more of a 4a (with almost no curl definition until about half way down the strands) while the rest of my hair is 3b/c. Usually I pin it back because I have NO idea what to do with that. I may try this idea, but with smaller perm rods so it matches the rest of my hair.

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