color & twist!

So I decided I wanted random highlights thru out my hair, predominantly in the front, instead of a solid color (easier to maintain). My sister did it with Joico Vero K-Pak Color.

Afterwards I washed with Giovanni 50/50 shampoo, Dc with Joico moisture balm & Humectress with heat for 40 minutes. Then Giovanni Direct leave in & Dr. Bronners leave in, some Curly whip on top of that & finally sealed with castor oil.

Straightened my hair....

So I don't what happened but I got this electric straightening comb from Sally's & I decided to try it out on my hair. And NO! My hair was not prepped for a straightening episode, I was in twists with castor oil. I initially intended to just do a few of my twists to satisfy my curiosity...I put some Ultrasheen Creme press on the sections as I went....the process was so simple, the comb glided thru my hair, my hair was so silky, I had done half of my head before I knew it.



So I did my whole head & here are my results. I was pleasantly surprised by the thickness & length. Had to do the ponytails for fun!

Updo - My french roll!!

I am finally able to to do a traditional updo >>> a french roll! And due to the thickness of my hair, I don't need any aids, socks, foam or bumpitts !! I didnt use any gel, so I did use quite a few hair pins to keep hairs in place. In the future when recreating this style, I would definitely use some gel or aloe vera to hold hairs in place. And of course, some decorative accents! ;)

Trying a wet rollerset

Today I will be attempting my first true rollerset since being all natural...I have tried the cheat/stretch method of tension blowdrying 50% & sticking rollers in to lengthen it. Today, I am attempting the real deal with sopping wet hair to see what happens.
1. Shampooed & deep conditioned.
2. Applied Giovanni Direct as a leave in. This is my hair afterwards, before I did any manipulation/combing.

3. Sealed with castor oil.
4. Applied Fantasia Frizz buster Straightening Gel to each section before rolling.
5. Sat under ionic dryer for 1 hour.
6. Airdried the rest overnight;still not 100% dry in the morning :(

Coconut Milk & Lime Hair Treatment

This is my second time trying this coconut milk lime treatment on my hair. I hope it makes my curls more defined with less shrinkage in the long run. Last time, (10/3) it seemed my hair was definitely clumping more, shrunk less and had more defined, larger coils. Here are so pics from last time:

And here are some pics from this time:

Stay tuned!!

Pics of my fab twistout!

Here are pics from my fab twistout! This is my most successful one to date....when I took them down, I applied a mix of coconut oil & Giovanni LA Naturals Styling Gel to each twist.

My first attempt at smaller twists

Yea! I just passed my 15 month mark!!!
This is my first attempt at smaller twists in an effort to get a more uniform twistout result.
This is my hair freshly washed & conditioned & SHRUNKEN UP!!!!

I applied Giovanni Direct Leave-In, just sealed with Castor Oil. Here are my smaller twists which I will leave in for the week:

Hair regimen today

I got a jar of Kinky Curly for my birthday, but I'm not ready to use it yet....I'm going to research it on youtube first THIS STUFF IS NOT CHEAP!

So today I decided to just do twists, but also to try to see if I could stretch my hair out some by letting the twists dry on large rollers.

1. Prepooed with the Ojon treatment.
2. Shampooed with Ojon Shampoo.
3. Conditioned with Giovanni Tea Tree conditioner & suave Humectress
4. Rinsed, applied Giovanni Direct leavein with VO5 strawberries & cream milk(love the smell).
5. Sealed with Castor Oil , applied Giovanni Gel to each section before twisting & placing a large roller on.
6. Airdry overnight.
7. These are the 5 day results of leaving the twist in.

Trying to stretch it out....

Ok, my hair length is great, but it shrinks up so much I am uncomfortable at times wearing my fro. So I was thinking what could I do to stretch it out some without straightening....and I remembered a post on LHCF about using the blowdryer on the hair while stretching out the hair( I think it was Pinkskates) & keeping the dryer moving up & down the length of the hair. So, I did something similar but on cool setting mostly and only partially drying my hair, completely avoiding my ends. So here are the steps I did:

1. Prepoo with Ojon with heat 30 minutes.
2. Shampoo with Ojon Mositurizing Poo(sulfate free).
3. DC with my Joico!
4. HE Breaks over for the combout, sealed with castor oil.
5. Used the blowdry on cool & warm setting while stretching hair, holdings the ends to avoid drying out.
6. Put a roller on each section immediately after.
7. Airdry overnight.

I don't know what I will do with it in the morning, depends on how it looks! That's it...update tomorrow. I know, I know, pics too!

PS: I love what this technique did to my hair! My fro is longer & fluffy!! Even my hubbie kept touching it!

Almost 2 weeks since my BC....

It will be two weeks tomorrow since my BC; I still have not wore my natural hair alone to work, I'm just not ready. On my last wash day, I twisted it into about 24 sections and I have been wearing my half cap to work with a matching scarf. Other than work, I have been wearing a coordinating silk scarf whenever I have gone anywhere. I guess this is an unplanned protective styling 2 weeks....

Kind of at a loss of what to do

Since my BC, I have been kind of at a loss for what to do with my hair. I know it takes time to find out what works for your hair, I know I have to work thru this....and yes, I know my hair will grow out & become longer and not shrink up into nothingness forever.

Friday evening, I did a quick co-wash and tried my transitioning staple, Bantu knots....much harder to do with shorter hair, I had to pin the majority of my knots. I also had a bunch of straight hairs which I clipped during the process. I kind of liked the look, but I definitely need to find something to help with the hold & the shine.



This evening, I co-washed with V05 Peaches & Cream, then DC with Coconut Oil & Joico Moisture Balm with 30 minutes of heat. I used Giovanni Direct Leave-In & Pantene R&N Conditioner for the comb out.

I must say it is so nice to be able to comb my hair without tangles & puny relaxed ends needing extra TLC!!! I still have a bunch of renegade relaxed ends, I am just snipping them when I see them.

I decided to try braiding tonight, but I did the front row in twists, since I plan on wearing my half cap. I added Giovanni LA gel to the front twists to see how that works. My twists or braids ends don't just curl under...I wonder is it due to my remaining unsnipped straggly relaxed ends, I hope so. My twists from Thurs. were frizzed out the next day, but I didn't really use any holding product on them. I'll report my results tomorrow.



PS - The twists seemed more defined, however one of the front braids was not dry...but off to work I had to go, so it kind of frizzed up immediately. I blended in the front with my curly half cap and whoop there it is....

I did the BC!

I did the BC on 7/2 !!! All natural in da house!!!

Excited!

Ok, I am getting excited about my BC....TOMORROW!!! I can hardly wait to see what my hair will do without the weak limp relaxed ends.
I have been wearing my hair with either the front out & loose with my natural look half cap or pulled back up into a kinky ponytail; either style showcases my waves, curls, kinks....I have had many comments about my hair, most are positive. It seems non-Black people have no problems with it, many say it is so beautiful and that I should stop wearing headbands and just let it be free, LOL; I usually wear a silk scarf that matches my clothing as a headband if my hair is not up.

Wash Day...

My next to last transition hair day!

1. I prepooed with Ojon Restorative Pre-Cleansing Treatment.
   
2. Shampooed with Ojon Tawaka Rejuventaing Cleanser.
   
3. DC with ORS Replensihing Pak, Suave Humectant, Texture Smoothing Conditioner & Rosemary EO with heat for 30 minutes.
4. Leave in is Giovanni Direct, Pantene Relaxed & natural Conditioner for the leave in comb out conditioner. Sealed with Castor oil.
5. Placed hair in about 20 twists, secured at base with hair clip.
6. Air dry over night.

Hair comments...

So my parents were visiting this evening & I just had my hair up like in french roll kind of, but in three sections, one in the front and 2 in the back.
Mom: What's going on with your hair? Your hair makes you look like an African.
Dad: That's how it is supposed to be looking.
Mom: He means it looks good like that.
Me: What do you mean?
Mom: Oh, I meant it in a good way too.....

Different textures of hair on my head

After washing my hair last night, I applied Pantene Relaxed & Natural Conditioner for my combout. I detangled & finally used my Denman. I brushed my hair up into a high bun, planning to look cute with uniform waves in my natural hair & wear a kinky puff that covered up my relaxed ends......The front of my hair was not wavy, just kind of there, I don't know if that makes any sense or not. The back, waves! the sides, waves! the front, just doing it's own thing!
Now I know, by getting back to natural, I have to let my hair do what it do....I guess I will just learn to work with it. In an effort to increase the texture in the front, this evening I decided to lightly dampen the front & section and twist into about 7 twists.

I'll update tomorrow to show if it worked. If it works somewhat, I will thoroughly dampen and twist in uniform sections for definition in my up do this upcoming week.

PS- Ok, this definitely helped with the defintion, but I need to start closer to the root.

Definitely getting mentally ready to BC!

This morning I was taking down my french braids in order to DC before shampooing & it just came to me to wet my hair and just cut it RIGHT NOW! I don't know where this came from, but it was just like CUT IT!!!!! DON'T WASTE TIME DOING YOUR WHOLE HEAD OF HAIR...JUST CUT IT AND WORK WITH YOUR NATURAL HAIR THIS WEEKEND!
I decided if I still felt like this after the DC & shampoo, I would do it this evening....
This passed...

my new half cap!

Mia girl! Love love love it!

Doing the deed....

So I think I have finalized my BC date....DRUMROLL PLEASE! July 2nd is my planned date for now. I plan to make up a batch of Curly Pudding on the weekend. I also need a backup wig...IN CASE I HATE IT!

One of my best comb outs!

After being somewhat frustrated with my hair last week, I did some researching on curly hair sites and came across http://tightlycurly.com/ . I tried Herbal Essence Break's Over, one of her suggested combing conditioners which is left in hair & not rinsed out. This combout was one of the easier EVER!!!

Here's what I did this time:

1. Prepooed with Ojon Restorative Pre-Cleansing Treatment. The label says leave it on for up to 5 minutes, but whatever, I put it on, went to the grocery store, & then rinsed it out.
2. Shampooed with Ojon Tawaka Rejuvenating Cleanser. Conditioned with Ojon Tawaka Rejuvenating Conditioner for 5 minutes. Rinsed out.
3. Sectioned hair into 4 sections and applied Giovanni Direct Leave-In. Applied HE Break's Over to each section as a leave-in. Combed out without very few tangles or knotting YEA!Sectioned each quarter section into 2 sections and did Bantu knots.
4. After this I proceeded to go get my hair cornrowed by my mother, in the two layer style so I can pop on my half cap whenever I want.

I will definitely be using this method going forward. The only other thing that worked this well was the oil rinsing method I tried a few months back. I can't wait until my BC, when I can try the fingercoil method with the conditioner like the tightlycurly.com site recommends for the ultimate curl definition with no friziness.

Nettle Tea for my Hair

So I am brewing nettle & horsetail tea for a hair rinse, 2 cups worth. It reportedly stimulates hair growth, thickens and softens hair and darkens grey hair after continued use. There are several favorable mentions on the internet, on the LHCF and in several natural beauty books I own. I plan to use it on my upcoming wash day and continue 2-3 x a week. I am planning to get my french braids again.

I forgot to use it on wash day, so I refrigerated it & poured it on my scalp and hair while braided up the next day.

Nettle contains a great number of amino acids, glucidic substances, amines, sterols, cetones, ketones as methyl heptenone, acetophenone, volatile oil, fat substances, sitosterols, formic and acetic acid, panthotenic acid, folic acid, chlorophyl, protoporphyrine and coproporphynine. It also contains vitamins C, B2 and K, beta-carotene, calcium, magnesium, iron and Si salts, & phosphates. Because of these wonderful compounds, the plant also has anti-anaemic, anti-diabetic, hemostatic and diuretic properties. http://www.liveandfeel.com/medicinalplants/nettle.html

What does Obama's hair feel like....

P050809PS-0264, originally uploaded by The Official White House Photostream.

President Barack Obama bends over so the son of a White House staff member can pat his head during a family visit to the Oval Office May 8, 2009. The youngster wanted to see if the President's haircut felt like his own.

Vanity....

I keep thinking is it vain to not BC at this stage of the game? At 11 months, I have a nice amount of new growth, but I have become hesitant and ambivalent about doing the deed. Previously, I couldn't wait to reach this time....but now I am here and I have many doubts and uncertainities. I know most of them I really shouldn't care about...and usually I don't care what people outside of my small circle of close family & friends think...so why am I having these thoughts? My DH has said he doesn't care what I do with my hair especially if I stop wearing fake hair and it's all my own hair!

• Will I still be cute and a babe?
• Will people who already know me view me differently?
• Will people who don't know me at all form a different opinion of me due to my hair?
• My head is already big, will it look bigger?
• Is it too short to style?
• What type of curl pattern will I have, if any?

Hair it is here it is....

After being spoiled with no maintenance corn rows for a week, I have to get back to the business of making my hair look presentable & contained enough for work ( although I frequently fail at the containment portion....)
I did 12 Bantu knots & wore a half cap with a coordinated scarf all week. I wore a matching scarf covering my head with a knot in the back, while I did errands today and I don't think I got any funny looks, but I really didn't care that much anyway today. This evening, I applied my OVT/MT, spritzed and put into a high bun, tied a scarf to see what kind of waves I will get. I have an early appointment, so I will just wear my bun if it looks OK. I will take pics & post tomorrow. I have been slacking on pics due to my laptop's motherboard was out all week....

Vacation Hair

So I was on vacation to the Dominican Republic for a week. I got my hair corn-rowed to the back in 2 layers. It was so carefree!!! I think I have found my style for the rest of my transition. My Mom braided it for me & she kept saying I should just cut off the permed frail ends, I was really surprised that she felt that way. I bought a new wavy, braid out textured half-cap (NBF HW Aspen 1b/27) and it was perfect!

Wash day

Ok, so I haven't washed my hair in almost 2 weeks, I did rewet it with distilled water in a cheat attempt to decrease the volume...I have been wearing my kinky/ wavy half-caps with my front out since it matched from my bantu knots.

Today was really hectic and quite a few spontaneous things happened and I really wanted to wait until tomorrow, but tomorrow may be worse, so I am going to just do it this evening.

Sadly I didn't have a chance to pre-poo, I shampooed with Giovanni 50/50. For my DC, I used my Joico Balm(still love it!), EVOO & rosemary EO with heat for 30 minutes. My leave-in was Giovanni Direct and I sealed with castor oil.

I placed my hair in bantu knots to airdry over night and called it a day. Sometimes this hair stuff takes JUST TOO MUCH TIME!

My hair is on my mind

and my mind is on my hair...
Ok, so as of late ALL of my hair thoughts are of cutting off my relaxed ends!!! I think it will be so liberating and so much easier to work with....It will be 10 months next week, longer than I thought I would make it transitioning.
I am going on vacation to the Dominican Republic in early May for a week & I would so love to BC before I go and just be free and wash & go...but I am afraid to be without all my hair support products so early in the all natural hair game. I was debating going to get some braids with hair added before I go, but I have mostly decided against it. I am currently planning just to get my Mom to do cornrows in 2 layers before I leave and just leave it like that for my days chilling on the beach & add a kinky half-cap for evenings.

Random hair thoughts

So I am nine months into this and I am always running my fingers thru my new growth. I am so tempted to BC but I am trying to wait until I have enough length...enough length for what I'm not 100% percent sure yet LOL. I would prefer to be able to at least pull all my hair back into a bun/pony.

I absolutely love my texture...right now. I do have concerns about my texture appearance once I BC...will it curl up, coil up, kink up or just hang there.

Then the hair comments I already get, which I know will only increase and become more vocal once the BC is done. "Your edges are kind of rough", "Hey nappy", "I hope your hair won't look like ____(someone else natural whose hair ALWAYS looks dry) like you just rolled out of the bed & came to work".

Still lovin' my Maxiglide!

I was kind of wanting straight hair, so I decided to Maxiglide this week.

1. I prepooed with the Ojon Conditioning Treatment.
2. Shampooed with Ojon Hydrating Shampoo.
3. Deep conditioned with Joico Hydrating Balm with heat for 45 minutes.
4. Giovanni Direct for a leave in & Mizani Heat serum.
5. Sealed my hair with Castor oil.
6. Sectioned & detangled in 4 sections.
7. Twisted in 12 Bantu knots & air dried overnight.
8. Maxiglided in sections and put a flexirod on each section while still warm.