Sumthin' New

I just posted this pic on Twitter and had to share it with you all too. 

After wearing my hair straight for a whopping 5 days (shame) I'm back to curly with a little something extra.

 

Freetress.

Celtic Girl.

Color 2.

Video coming soon.

The Regimens...

I transitioned for nine months...

I Big CHOPPED on Dec. 13,2008

From 08-Feb. 09
My regimen from this time was pretty much not structured and because of that my hair stayed dry and I wasn't using the right products (even though I thought I was). I was in love with using products like Sunsilk Captivating Curls and Herbal Essence Long Term Relationship because of the way they smelled.


---I co-washed everyday...morning and right before bed.
---I was kinda against shampooing so I shampooed maybe once or twice a month....but I was constantly co-washing so that kinda cleaned my hair
---Whenever I did shampoo I made sure to deep condition and detangle
---I had a bald spot in the front of my head from transitioning so I made a mixture of rosemary oil, shea butter, castor oil, and jojoba oil and every night I massaged that oil mixture onto my scalp and mainly that bald spot. Within a couple of months I saw growth and now THERE'S NO BALD SPOT!!!

====Main products used====

 Sunsilk conditioner and leave in, my shea butter mixture, my hair growth mixture, and that's all I remember

From the end of Feb 09- May 09
By this point I started to see growth and with more growth came more tangles. I noticed that I needed to start detangling more and I needed to do something so that I didn't have to walk in the freeze'n cold in the morning with wet hair.So I started twistin.


---I co-washed no more than twice a week.
---Shampooed once or every other week.
---Deep conditioned everytime I shampooed
---I TWISTED MY HAIR UP EVERY SUNDAY NIGHT AND WORE A TWISTOUT UNTIL FRIDAY....Sat. and Sun. were my off days.
---I started back taking my vitamins and biotin supplements. 
====Main products used====
Cantu Shea butter used for twistouts, and my shea butter mixture

From May 09-Aug 09
During this time I was on summer vacation and didn't feel like twisting my hair up every Sunday night so I pretty much wore a puff or a wash and go.


---Co-washed a lot 
---Shampooed, DC, and detangled once a week or every other week
---Every now and then I wore a twist out.

====Main products used====

Cantu Shea Butter, shea butter mixture, Aussie Moist conditioner, Clean Eco styler Gel, and Giovanni Direct Leave in

From Aug 09-Dec 09

By the time I went back to school my hair grew a lot and I could finally say I had some type of regimen. Because of the amount of growth I had I was able to start doing way more styles. And in Oct I was finally able to get a PONYTAIL...YAY click here to watch the video. 

---Co-washing became more of a style so I didn't do it a lot only for certain styles 

---Shampooed, DC, and detangled once a week

---Every other night I would either castor oil or my Wild Growth oil from Sally's and massaged my scalp

---By Nov. I started wearing medium sized twist as a protective style

====Main products used====

Eco styler Gel, Organic Root Stimulator Lock and Twist gel, castor oil, Wild Growth oil, Giovanni Direct Leave in, and Bed Head Moisture Maniac

From Jan.10

I finally started to find my staple products and finished putting the final stages on my current regimen. There's nothing really major to talk about. 

My current regimen:

---Again I don't co-wash a lot only if my hair is dry, I am about to switch styles, or I just feel like it.

---Shampoo and detangle once a week

---I don't deep condition any more only if it is a protein deep conditioner

---I have trimmed my hair multiple times since I've been natural.... so I guess I trim maybe every 4-6 months

====Current products being used====

Sheamoisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie and Moisture Retention Shampoo, Eco Styler Argan and Olive oil gel, Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding, Pantene Curly Conditioner, and Tresemme Conditioners

It Just Hit Me!!!

Can you tell the difference between the these two pictures???

One looks really old and raggedy while the other looks neater...right.

Before I straightened my hair this past week I defined my curls again using the ECO Styler Agran Oil Gel and Sheamoisture. This time I noticed that my curls were much more clumped together and I was able to get more days out of it. Well I realize now why sometimes my hair comes out clumped and defined and other times just a mess after day 2. I showed you guys this technique back in Dec. but this past month I have been rushing when doing it and that's why. The key is to smooth the curls together, don't separate the curls (which gives me the twistout look), and let it dry like that. I also realized I wasn't getting my roots all over and that caused my hair to look frizzy.

Nothin' Like A Good Hair Day

It seems like lately I've been having bad hair days like everyday. But today I must say I was really feelin' how my hair looked. I liked it because it was stretched but stringy and I was loving the definition (considering this was 4 day old hair). I switched it up an wore my hair pulled back with a leopard print headband. I originally pulled it up to so I could take a shower but then I started thinking of wearing it pulled up but didn't because I didn't like the back of it. Pulling it up helped to stretch the curls, so all I had to do was fix the top with some more gel and water. 

Will it Work?

Every time I have good hair days with twistouts or wash n gos (defined curls) I always tell myself that I'm gonna start wearing my hair like that more often...of course that usually doesn't last long. But in the last few months I have to say have been rockin' some successful twist n curls and wash n gos (defined curls) and I've wondered if I could really keep my hair healthy and in those styles. I have found that those styles are kinda like my protective style because I'll wear them for like a week. In addition there's less manipulation involved,it's versatile because I can always pull it back into a ponytail or something, and it's good for my edges because I don't have to brush them a lot.

Old Twist n Curl

Old Wash n Go

So what do you all think??? Will it work...I'm going to see and keep you all updated. 

Having Soft Hair Isn't All That Great...

Lately I have been defining my curls a lot (that's a whole other post) and using my two favorite product combinations, Sheamoisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie and Eco Styler Olive Oil. Before I started using the Sheamoisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie with the Eco Styler, my hair would have a little crunch to it but that hold would slowly go away after like three days. But now that I have found a product that will cut down on the amount of hold it seems like my hair is just too soft to get multiple days out of it and it frizzes up much easier. Now I'm torn between having soft-bouncy hair or stiff-crunchy hair. Take a look at these pics:

Giovanni/Eco Styler:

Sheamoisture/Eco Styler (2nd Day Hair):

What's a girl to do???

Look I what I got!!!

As I type this post I am extremely excited and overjoyed. I bought the Ez Combs today...and they actually work. At least the little style that I did worked. I finally decided to get them because 1. they are really cheap at Ross and Marshall's and 2. they seem like you can do a lot of styles with them in a few minutes. Since it has only been like 30 minutes since I got in the house and popped one of them in my hair I can't do a full review (plus I didn't want to mess up my hair) but please believe once I get some time with these bad boys I will definitely let ya'll know how they work. Oh and the price was $ 2.99 at Ross and $ 3.99 at Marshall's.

 
Right now I can tell you all that it felt very comfortable and secure on my hair and removing it wasn't bad at all. Stay tuned =)

Shrinkage.

The other day I did a video on the new technique I use to define my curls. As I watched the video over I noticed how much longer my hair was when I first applied the gel than when it dried (this is nothing new). But for some reason I am always shocked to see how much shrinkage there is when I do stuff to my hair. So looking at the amount of shrinkage in the picture above, that must mean that when my dry hair starts to touch my collar bone my wet hair is going to be way somewhere on my stomach =) Umm I'm a little excited about that.




I know that's random but I just thought I share that with ya'll...lol 

Review for Taliah Waajid Curly Curl Cream

The Product Dislike List...

1. Herbal Essence Totally Twisted Scrunching Gel (ABSOLUTELY DESPISE THIS STUFF) 
2. Yes to Cucumbers Leave-in Conditioner
3. Jane Cater Revitalizing Spray Leave-In
4. Giovanni Smooth as Silk Shampoo
5. Elasta Qp Olive oil and Mango Butter Moisturizer 
6. Herbal Essence Long Term Relationship Leave in
7. Beyond the Zone Noddle Head (NEVER EVER AGAIN)
8. Beyond on the Zone Leave-In
9. Avalon Clarifying Shampoo
10. Cantu Shea Butter ( I used to love this stuff)

What's on your dislike list???

This list is in no particular order.

Twistout with Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding

I decided to use my Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding for a twistout (which I haven't done in a million years it seems).


Products used: 
Giovanni Direct Leave-in
Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding


I used my Denman D41 brush for some curl definition 

I'm truly falling in love with my Curly Pudding. It's great for wash and gos, twistouts, and probably much more =)

Disclaimer: I hate how these pictures don't capture how AMAZING this twistout came out. I promise it looks better in person and it's not as frizzy as it looks on here  :(

How to get waves....

Hopefully I can make a video showing you guys how I get my waves in more detail.  It's pretty easy. 

I always start start with dripping wet hair.
Then I apply a leave-in/moisturizer followed by oil.
Then I brush my hair back a little before applying the gel with a soft bristle brush.
Next I apply a generous amount of gel (I love using the clear Eco Styler for a more wavier  look).
Then I brush the hair back.
Next I put my scarf on for a few minutes. 
And that's pretty much it !!




Be sure to look out for a quick tutorial on this =)

Miss Jesse's Curly Pudding

8/16/10-Today was the first day of classes for me and I decided to try something different (i never like to test out a product before a big event). I prepared and applied my hair as I normally do with other products like Eco Styler Olive Oil or Kinky Curly. And then it hit me. "I don't have a blow dryer here at school. Dang it." I started worrying because I didn't want to leave the room with noticeable globs of product in my hair. I ended up just leaving hoping no one would notice (thankfully it was hot hot hot outside). 

First day application

Second day

8/17/10- So far I really like this stuff. It is a little comparable to Eco Styler BUT when I use Eco Styler I don't get nearly as much volume the first day as I do with Miss Jesse's Curly Pudding. 

Donut Anyone???

Here's another simple, professional, quick, versatile, easy, on the go, and everything like that protective hairstyle. giggle.

I have been trying to do one of these buns ever since I was able to get a ponytail but for some reason they always ended up looking odd and not what I wanted. 


I used to do donut buns a lot when I was relaxed with the sock bun. So I'm SUPER EXCITED about my neat little bun. BUT the only issue I have with it is the size. it's too little. I want a bigger, thicker, and a little looser bun. So I'll keep working on it, I'm sure all I have to do is just pin the hair down farther than what I did this time.


Products used:
~Co-washed w/ Bed Head Self Absored Conditioner
~Giovanni Direct Leave-In
~Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel (MY LOVE)


I'm keeping this it in for at least 5 days (as I'm typing this, it is day 3)




Sidenote:
I would also like to add that I think I have finally mastered the art of waves. Like the bun, I have also been trying to master how to get those gorgeous waves that we naturals produce oh so lovely. With a little help from my mother (who by the way is au naturale now!!!) and inspiration from my Big Bro, I get sick sea thinking about how crazy their hair waves up. ok that was a lil lame.lol, I think I got it now =)

Cruise Hair

 

I'm back from my cruise (okay I've actually been back for a week now) and I must say I had a wonderful time with the fam =) As you can see from the pictures I didn't wear my twists. I took them out before the trip but don't worry I put them right back in when I got back home. I'm going to try to keep these in for at least 3 weeks to a month. 

While vacationing I learned a lot about how I should maintain my hair while vacationing.

1. Moisturize. A LOT!!!
2. Wear some type of protective style.
3. Don't shampoo your hair too often. Of course.
4. Don't co-wash too often. (My hair was tangled up soo much when I got back)

What I took with me:

- Giovanni Shampoo

-Tresemme Flawless Curls Conditioner

-Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel

-Shea Butter Mixture

-A Comb

-Satin Scarf

But overall, my hair didn't get too dry. Because I was on chill mode, I didn't want to be in mirror too often doing my hair, so I wore wash n gos, puffs, and buns. I think applying a lot of shea butter and sometimes leaving the conditioner in helped to keep moisturized.