7.09.2010

In My 2 Months as a Natural…



Time is flying; it definitely doesn’t seem like I cut my hair 2 months ago but it has been.  I’m starting to develop a regimen which will probably change as I start to run out of products and want to experiment with new ones.

Once a week:

-I deep condition overnight with either a mix of oils or my mix of HEHH, olive oil and honey or if I’m feeling a little lazy I’ll DC for an hour under a dryer the day of.

-Finger comb right before I hop into the shower and divide my hair into sections

-Cowash with Trader Joe’s Tea Tree Tingle, Trader Joe’s Nourish or Aussie Moist.

- Rinse my hair with cold water to reduce frizz

-Squeeze excess water out of my hair with a t-shirt.  I don’t do my twists/braids on soaking wet hair, it works better damp.

- Run a mix of JBCO and coconut oil through my scalp.

-Section my hair, applying a dime size amt of Shea Moisture Coconut Hibiscus Smoothie as my leave-in and a dime size amt of shealoe focusing on my ends especially.  I then detangle with my Denman and twist/braid.

-After that’s all done, I’ll seal with whatever oil I grab first and throw on a scarf.

When untwisting:

-I rub my hands in a little Shealoe and untwist from the bottom up.

-After all are unraveled, I fluff my roots with my fingers.

-Spray a little of my spray bottle, not enough to undo the style just to refresh my hair, and I’m good to go. Depending on my outfit, maybe a headband, flower, or bow!

Before going to bed:

Depending on what look I’m going for the next day I may spray my hair all over and twist again or use my Shea Moisture Style Milk to retwist loosely.  I rarely sleep without retwisting my hair.  Seal my ends, scarf and sleep.

So far, I’ve learned that my hair doesn’t like to be soaking wet.  Gel and I do not get along but I’m gonna give EcoStyler a try for the sake of experimentation.  My hair likes being in stretched styles, wash and go’s lead to a tangled mess.  I trim randomly whenever my ends just don’t seem right.  The easiest way for me to trim is while my hair is twisted.  I don’t cut very much off; I “dust” my ends, maybe a ¼ inch at most. I must moisturize and seal my ends daily because my hair dries out very quickly which leads bad ends.  I’m partial to chunky looking twistouts as opposed to super defined ones.  One of my future posts will be a length check so I’ll have something to compare when I hit the 6 month mark.  That’ll be my next “In My _ Months as a Natural…”

7.08.2010

The Reason Why I Now Love the Denman

 

Thanks to MsVcharles, I no longer wanna throw this brush against a wall.  A simple revamp turned it from something I regret buying to something I can't live without.  It's so much better to use for detangling than a widetooth comb before styling.

7.07.2010

Protein/Moisture Balance

Lately the question of moisture & protein has really been bothering me.  Every week before I wash my hair I use a deep conditioning mixture that's supposed to be moisturizing but am I over-doing it? My hair feels soft and the dryness/brittleness that I had initially experienced isn't a problem but should I be using any protein treatments?  Fast forward to me looking up information on the subject and coming across a pretty comprehensive article about Protein/Moisture balance.  It's all about experimentation so I'll be trying until I learn how much protein or moisture the Fro requires.  Currently I'm gonna try using a protein leave-in every other week and see how my hair reacts to that.  My friend has a couple blocks of Lush henna that she's willing to let me try so that will be my next attempt at strengthening my hair.  I finally finished my Hello Hydration DC mix so I'm thinking of what to try next.  Maybe another Shea Moisture product when I run out to Target to buy another bottle of the Moisture Mist.

Here are the links for Protein and Moisture Balance and Over-conditioning

Corinne Bailey Rae- Closer

Love her music & her hair, it's especially nice to see it pulled away from her face with that veil. So pretty!

7.06.2010

Back Now

I was gone this past week because my boyfriend flew up from North Carolina for his birthday/the holiday, so the entire week was devoted to celebrating and spending as much time with him as possible. That meant no updates.  But he flew back yesterday :( so I can focus my attention to my other baby, MeEntirely.  I got a really good suggestion to put a little more effort into trying to get a post in everyday and that's just what I'm gonna do.  I can see this site going places and developing a following but I need to put the work in first.

(The birthday boy & I at a Yankees game- the heat & sun was not so nice to the fro :( )

(back view of the hair)

(Birthday dinner at Sea restaurant)