Once upon a time, a natural curly haired girl rocked wash and go’s like it was nobody’s business. Jump in the shower, shampoo, condition, finger detangle and proceed with my styler of choice and exit the facility. These were also the days of simply going to bed sans protection (never a good idea), waking up and doing the same thing all over again the next morning. As my hair grew longer, that was no longer an option for me. In fact my entire regimen changed – from the way I shampooed to my deep conditioning routine. My “routine” came from a place of “Never”. I NEVER section shampooed, I almost NEVER slept with a scarf, I NEVER paid attention to ingredients or put any thought into product selection, I NEVER detangled, I NEVER deep conditioned and quiet as kept, I sometimes skipped conditioner all together! #WhatTheWhat? I know!*clutches pearls* Arguably one of THE cardinal sins in the natural hair community! I’m a little embarrassed to admit these things and if I were Catholic, I’d take it behind closed doors and speak my ill ways through sacramental penance straight to an ordained priest via the confessional booth, but since I’m not, I trust you chicas with matters of the hair.
As a vet in this natural hair game, I can truly say when you know better, you do better. Cliché, but truth none-the- less. I was living the low effort, high impact hair life which served me well aesthetically but did little or nothing for length retention. As I started taking interest in my locs and recognizing the importance of moisture in my life, I also learned all the different methods of the wash and go. My definition was very literal– wash (shampoo and condition) and go (leave!) and that’s precisely what I did. I like to consider this time period, the prelude of my journey. You know, a piece that precedes a more important movement.
Through research and some tough lessons, I became more curl conscious and of course made sure that conditioners (regular, leave- ins and deep) became mainstays in my arsenal. I also graduated to other hairstyles, such as coils, twist outs and braid outs. Coils were too much work and didn’t last, twist outs looked like wash and go’s so what was the point, so I went with braid outs. I fell hard for the braid outs – I mean they were everything! They gave me the soft, loose wave I wanted without sacrificing a lot of length. My natural coils are super coily and tend to congregate in large numbers which can be good and bad; mostly bad. It wasn’t until recently, I revisited the twist out and I must say, I’ve once again found love. It is almost always mistaken for a wash and go but I’m okay with that. It’s a healthier version of the look and I am no longer washing it every day.
Yes, absolutely, after I co-wash, put a leave-in conditioner in my hair and then do my twist with gel, my hair does mimic a wash-n-go the next day. I'm glad to hear someone else does the same. I even think Naptual85 does her first night wash n go on twist.
This is what I would have posted to the tee.
I wore a lot of WnGs this summer and wore WnGs the majority of my natural hair life (12 years). But, after wearing TnCs for most of 2010 and 2011 and returning to WnG this summer, I can say that I am firmly team stretched style now because I can no longer tolerate the longer detangling sessions and the SSK and TSKs (two-strand … thought they deserved an acronym too;)! LOL!! I think back when I wore WnGs regularly, I didn't know why my ends became all tangled … thought it was just split ends and time for my semi-annual trim. Now that I'm entirely aware of what they are and finger detangle, rather than use a wide-tooth comb, the knots drive me crazy! LOL! So yeah, not saying I'll never wear WnGs, they just won't be a staple style!
Shelli
Im really not a fan of twist outs. They always give me more shrinkage than if I did a simple wash and go.
what this suggest help to me ? http://thecheapestnewcar.com
when i do twist outs the dont last as soon i leave the house my hair shrunken, some reason when i add gel it last
my twist outs look nothing like my actual curl pattern. They just look like twist outs lol. I prefer to wear my hair stretched to reduce ssk's and tangles. I wear my hair stretched, exclusively.
This is a wonderful video. I would like to try this on myself very soon. When you start threading a section how do you keep the first wraps of thread in place? I have never used thread for the hair in any way so I am not sure how to get it started. p.s. Beautiful girls!!!
When I twist my hair soaking wet it inevitably comes out as a stretched wash n go look, when I wait until my hair is damp/near dry it's more of a "normal" twist out look. I enjoy both and just go for what my mood calls for! 🙂
I've been putting my hair in chunky twists after I moisturize and seal my hair at nights. In the morning, my hair is still a bit damp and by the time I start separating, it looks like my wash & go's – just more stretched. LOVE IT. I've been doing this for the past few weeks. I certainly experience much less tangles, which is an added plus!
I always wear stretched styles (braid-outs, twist-outs, bantu knot-outs, etc). I like stretched styles because they look good and prevent my hair from tangling.
My braid-outs can morph into a lovely wash-n-go type look (a puffy, fluffy, Afro) if I let them. I love doing that 'cause I get a puffy, fluffy Afro without the excessive tangling.
My coils start to pop in my twist outs if I to seperate too much my hands get out of control sometimes then it looks like my wash n go but stretched from a pineapple. I like twist outs since my hair has gotten longer because I experience less tangling.
My twist outs turn into a wash and go look after about 2 days. It's like my hair is slowly trying to creep it's way back to it's regular coil pattern. I love it! And while I'm just almost 10 months into my natural days, I only want to wear twist outs! The "traditional" wash and go is just annoying because my hair is beyond thick and I haven't figured out how to get my hair inside of 8 hours, sans white product showing in my hair. It's just not for me! And as far as shrunken styles, I may as well love it because that is what my hair does.