Transitioning with a sew-in

Well I did Sew - ins the first three months of my transition. Here are my recommendations to you.

A. Find someone who really KNOWS how to braid. Nothing like being stuck for months with tight a** braids and you cannot do anything about it. Also its bad for your scalp for them to be too tight.

B. Dont go the cheap route: Dont go buy cheap hair and then expect to be able to wash it and it goes back to the same state you bought it in LOL.

C. I have had better experience with untangling when my real hair was braided with human hair.

D. Do not saturate your hair with product. Go buy a squeeze bottle with narrow tip, put some warm Olive oil in it, and oil your scalp between your braids.

E. When you do decided to wash your weave, seperate it into fours, and wash each individual section in the shower. Do not scrunch it up, make sure you condition it like it was your real hair, and rinse really good.

F. far as the drying of your braids. I bought a dryer that I can sit under (if you cant afford that you can buy a hood attachment for under $20 to attach to your blow dryer) to sit under and dry your braids.

Hope this helps you!

Great tips tempertink!!! I was thinking of doing a few quick weaves this summer. Have you tried them and if so whats your experiance been with your natural under it? I was thinking then instead of a sew-in so I can take out every other week and deep condiotion my hair... Not sure about the glue though... I will be protecting my hair/braids with neck strips under the cap but still not sure....

I have been wearing a sew-in to help with my transition and it has really been an easy transition especially with keeping heat off of it. I usually keep my sew-in for abt 8 weeks, take it out, let my scalp breathe and clip my ends and I'm back at it...i would suggest the sew-in.

I am currently wearing my first sew-in weave and my head has never ever been so itchy in my life! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] With my kinky twists, I could easily apply aloe vera gel to my scalp to help with any itching that occured, but it is much harder now with the braids and tracks and all. Any suggestions?

@Songbird: How long have you had this install in and when was the last time you washed your hair? If you recently washed your scalp, create a mix of witch hazel and peppermint oil and spray it onto your scalp(not your hair). If it's time for a wash you can either use conditioner or shampoo(sulfate-free) but dilute with water in either a spray bottle or applicator bottle to get in between your tracks.

Always make sure your wefts(tracks) are completely dry or you could develop a sour-mildew smell. You can either sit under the dryer or blow dry concentrating on your braided base.

@HAMPTONSFNST: I've had it in for about a week and I have not washed my scalp yet. How often do you recommend I do this?

Honestly you may not like my answer but I'm ging to tell you like this: I do sew ins ALL the time. And so far have been transitioning almost 8 months. I had my sew in from beginning of month 3 to 5 and a half, so I kept it in 14 weeks (3 1/2 months) and I only washed it every 4 weeks..keep in mind I was not sweating much. I've had weave plenty times before and notice when I wash often it mattes up and has to be taken down sooner and to me it gets too much prduct stuck in the braids. All I did was spray some braidspray in about every 3 or 4 days on my cornrows and that was IT. My hair grew like a weed and was very moist and healthy when I took it out and there was hardly any tangle and matting. Honestly next sew in I will wash only 2 times (I did 3 last time) or just use the "no water shampoo". My closest friend doesnt wash hers at all and my sister's friend doesnt either and neither of them have any problems with odor or hair falling out. Both of them have really long hair

People with "nappy" hair don't have to worry about hair getting greasy and needing to be washed. Too much product and washing is when your hair starts to matte and get dirty. At one point I was using doogrow oil in the braids once a week and my hair was soooo matted up and stinky. So I suggest just a few sprays of braid spray once or twice a week.

Without weaves i wash my hair every 2 weeks. The less you handle your hair the better. More manipulation the more it falls out. And your hair is itchy because it is the first week. After 2 weeks it will itch less and less. it's just that the braids are tight now and need to loosen up. Try some braid spray: they relieve the itching.

Lots of love!

@Songbird: Since it appears that your weave is curly you can go ahead and wash it in twists about 1-2wk. I wore my installs for 6 weeks each yet during this time any tracks that were loosening I made sure to get tightened. To combat my itchy scalp I diluted my Keracare shampoo with water and applied directly to my scalp and followed with a cowash for my hair.

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond HAMPTONSFNST! I will follow your advice. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]