The Big Chop: What to Expect

The big chop is cutting off all the relaxed or damaged hair at once and starting from your natural texture. It removes the two-texture problem in an afternoon rather than over a year, and it is the fastest route to healthy hair. What it asks in return is being comfortable with short hair for a while.

What your texture will actually be

Probably not what you expect. Curl pattern varies across a single head, so the crown, the nape and the sides can all behave differently, and the pattern at the front is often looser than at the back. Years of relaxing can also change how the follicle behaves at the hairline. Heat damage from before the chop shows up as sections that do not curl at all and never will. Give it a few months before drawing conclusions, since freshly cut hair is short enough that shrinkage and weight hide the pattern.

Shrinkage

Tightly coiled hair can appear a fraction of its actual length when dry, and this surprises almost everyone after a chop. Hair that measures four inches stretched can look like one. This is not a problem to be solved, and products claiming to eliminate it are describing stretching rather than growth. Banding, twisting or a blow-dry on low with a comb attachment will stretch it when you want length shown.

The first products

Keep it short. A gentle shampoo, a good deep conditioner, a leave-in and a curl cream will do everything a short natural style needs. Short hair takes very little product, so small sizes are the sensible buy while you find out what works. Add a satin bonnet or pillowcase, which matters more than any styling product. Resist buying an entire shelf at once; you will learn more from four products used consistently for a month.

Styling short natural hair

Wash-and-gos are the easiest and are genuinely the point of a big chop, since a short coily cut needs little more than product on wet hair and time to dry. Beyond that, a pick for volume, a soft brush for the edges, and headbands or scarves if you want variety. As it grows, twist-outs and braid-outs become possible around three to four inches.

The first few weeks

Most people go through a stretch of not recognizing themselves, and it passes. The hair is also at its healthiest it has ever been, which is worth remembering on the days it feels like a mistake. If you want a middle route, cutting to a short tapered shape rather than the shortest possible length gives you a defined style immediately.