Natural Hair Update #2

So the other day I braided my hair into about 20 braids (10 on each side) and let my hair completely dry overnight. The next morning I unbraided my braids,which had helped my hair to stretch out so that I could do an overall hair check. Sometimes its hard to check the health of your ends when you're rocking the curly fro. It always seems like my ends are really rough & choppy, but surprisingly they don't seem to be all that bad. I'm thinking that I'm going to break my heat free streak before I go back to school just to do a length check. A lot of people, who don't like to use heat at all, like to simply stretch their hair at the ends in order to check the length of their hair. But my hair kinks up so much that it's really hard to check the length of your hair simply by stretching it with your fingers....especially when you've had a couple of bad experiences with the scissors like I have (lol) and your hair is several different lengths. For the time being, I've braided my hair into about 30 (Okay so I just counted & its more like 50. I obviously don't have anything productive to do with my life lol) braids and I plan on keeping it like that for the next couple of days. No heat, no water, no combing  & bothering my hair. Just a couple of days of R & R for my hair. I will definitely post an update when I straighten my hair. But for now here are some of the things that I've noticed about my hair:

• Before I started my no heat campaign, my hair was thinning along the scalp directly above my forehead. On a perfect wash cycle, when I put heat into my hair the dead straight look last for about 2 days while the roller set curls last for about a week and 1/2, after which my roots start kinking up and it's time to wash my hair again. However, usually I get lazy and decide not to do anything with my hair at night. This leads to instant kinky roots which are thrown into my go to bun. I tend to pull my hair up into a really tight bun in order to give the appearance that my roots are still straight. Hah! Well this bad habit has caused some horrible thinning at the hair line. Thank God the good thing is that my scalp is now filled with lots of mini curls that are filling in the gaps where my hair line was thinning.
• I am really having a hard time figuring out if my hair has gotten any longer since April. I have trimmed my ends twice, cutting off no more than half a centimeter. Healthy hair grows 1/2 an inch per month so I'm assuming that it's grown 1 1/2 since April - the small bits of hair which I trimmed from the ends. This is why I want to "cheat" and straighten my hair just to see how long it is. I will say that my fro sits directly on my shoulders now, even on the hottest most humid day (which normally causes my fro to shrink). So that must be a good thing right?
• My kitchen hair comes down to my shoulders now when they are stretched out! Yay (:

I am adding a couple of new changes to my routine. I am trying to improve the health of my ends by sealing everyday with either shea butter or palmers growth treatment. I am in search of a good sulfate free shampoo. The co-wash was working well, but I still feel like I need a good conditioner to clarify my hair completely. Also I've been using Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-in/Detangler while I'm detangling. I'll be sure to add more updates soon.

Love love love,

Jackie (:

Natural Hair Update

Hey yall!!

I even rocked natural hair on
Easter :)

Okay so please forgive because it's been a good three months since I've last blogged. I got really carried away with classes & studying but I'm hoping that it will all pay off in two weeks (after finals), so my non-blogging won't be in vain. Anywho, here's the blog that I promised yall way back when!I have some amazing news about my natural hair journey. I went the entire month of March without flat ironing my hair!! I can't believe it. Now I'm in my second phase of complete naturalness and I'm going to try to last throughout the entire summer. Here goes nothing!! Haha. The last time I straightened my hair was the week before Easter. I washed out my heated hair that Monday & I've been natural ever since. I even rocked the natural look for Easter ;) Before you read this post, you should probably check out my original natural hair post for some beginner tips.So I've learned a lot along the way (but I've still got lots to learn) and here are some updated tips on how to care for your natural hair:

A Wash-n-Go Hairstyle (:

Dang Detangling: I still don't feel like I've mastered this. Ugh. However, here is my current cycle. i wash my hair once a week, usually every Friday morning (because it's the summer ;) )When I wet my hair for the first time after having straight hair, I wash my hair with a sulfate free shampoo. Then I condition it & rinse it out. Next I condition again,but this time I leave the conditioner in and add detangler. While I'm still in the shower, I put my hair under the stream of water and comb through my hair. This makes it a lot easier to comb through my hair. However, remember that although it is a lot easier to detangle wet hair, your natural curls are still fragile & can easily become damaged under water. After my hair has been natural for a while, I only use conditioner to wash my hair. Shampoo has some of the same ingredients as dish washing detergent (shocking right?), so there is no need to use it on fragile, naturally curly (and dryer, less greasy) hair. I would only advise using shampoo when you have used a lot of greasier products. However, if you insist on using shampoo in your hair, try to find a sulfate free shampoo. Finally, I detangle my hair using suave detangler for kids (yeah I know...immature right?) and motions leave in conditioner. The leave in conditioner makes it soft and manageable while the detangler makes it easier to comb through.

Products!?!
When it comes to finding the right products for your hair, the most that I can say is "to each her own." However, there are a couple of things to keep in mind before you begin your quest for the right products. There are five good products that you are going to want:
1. A detangler (pretty self explanatory)
2. A good conditioner (to properly clean your hair with)
3. A good leave in conditioner (for added moisture. I use motions cpr triple action leave in conditioner)
4. Something that you want to seal your hair with (to protect your ends from splitting up to the roots. I use unrefined shea butter)
5. A good gel (for when you wanna throw your hair up into a bun. I use eco-styler gel.
There are plenty of natural hair care websites which lists a great deal of information on finding products. I would suggest using curlmart.com (part of the naturallycurly.com website). They have a ton of AMAZING natural hair products and great reviews. This will help you to find the best products. In addition, target.com has a wonderful selection of what they call "multicultural hair products" with great reviews. Once you have read a couple of reviews on a product which you are interested in buying, I would suggest getting onto youtube and typing in "product name review on type __ hair". Ex: "Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding review on type 3c/4a hair". This way you can actually watch someone use it on their hair & have an idea of how the product may turn out on your hair.

What to do with dry hair?

As a natural, you're probably going to find that your hair dries out quickly. What you need to do is first apply a product with water as its first ingredient while your hair is still damp. I use motions triple action leave in conditioner. A lot of people also use Africa's Best Olive Oil Leave in Conditioner. After I apply my leave in, I top my hair with shea butter. This seals in moisture. At night I also like to seal my ends with shea butter. I'm still having a problem finding the right products to make my hair soft. I was looking into some products and i really like the kinky-curly hair care line method. I think I'm am going to try it. You might be interested in reading about it too. Click here!

I had an amazing twist out!  haha

Braid out/Twist outs are the bomb: I've found that when I wear my hair loose, it tends to get really knotty really quickly. However, no fear, twists outs are here.
Here's a quick how to.
But in my own words:
1. Do whatever you do to detangle your hair.
2. Plat it out into four to six sections.
3. Braid or twist each section.
4. Wrap hair and sleep overnight & BAM! Sexy, stress free hair.
Sometimes I braid my curly hair into sections for a big-curly-hair look (like in the picture above with the purple shirt). However in <--- this picture, I combed out my curls first and then braided them. Experiment and see what works best for you.

What to do with your hair overnight:


At night: There are several things that I tend to do to my hair overnight. If I want to preserve my curls I pull my hair into a loose ponytail directly on the top of my hair. This hairstyle, called the pineapple, preserves your curls while you roll around in your sleep.
Here's a great how to.

In the Morning:
Take your hair out the ponytail & shake shake shake your hair out. If the shaking method doesn't work, some girls like to add water to their hair (via spraying). However, this causes your hair to shrink up and often knot up. Instead hop into the shower, wash your body, but don't "wet" your hair by putting your head under the stream. Instead the steam from the warm water will loosen up your curls perfectly.

Miscellaneous stuff:
There are sooo many amazing natural hair blogs/videos out there. What I would suggest is to type in your hair type into the search bar (ex: 3c/4a natural hair care) and go from there. If you don't know what I mean by "your hair type" please refer to my beginner's post. However, here is a list of some of my natural hair faves:

1. The best natural hair playlist ever. This natural hair list has a whole bunch of natural hair tip videos. But remember, this is for my hair texture (3c/4a). Refer to my previous hair care blog for a link to a site that has a curly hair type information page. Find out what the name is for your hair type & try to find similar videos! But this is a good place to start.
2. How to elongate your curls: Use the blow dryer to "stretch out your roots."
Here's another great how to.
3. These are some great/informative hair styling videos:
Twist Rod Set (Part Three)
Defining Your Curls
How to pull your hair up into a puff
Q & A about Moisture
Bantu Knots!!

Welp that's all that I can think of today! I really hope you enjoy this post and that these tips are helpful to you!

xoxo,

Jackie ;)

Natural Hair for Beginners

Hey Yall! My last post about natural hair got a lot of hits so I decided to post a new one. I've literally been natural all of my life, with the exception of two painful years, but for the majority of my life I've worn my hair with some form of heat in it. My curls are so curly that they begin to curl one on top of the other and intertwine, thus forming dreads after only a week. Basically, I didn't know what to do with my hair. But in my spare time, I've been browsing through multiple natural hair websites & I've comprised a list of tips that I've wished I'd had when I started going natural:

Tip # 1: Know your hair type. This probably sounds stupid. It's the hair that you were born with. Of course, you know your hair. It's long thin loose curls. Or maybe it's thick tight & kinky. That's all well & good, yet trust me I've tried to type "hair tutorials for mixed race curly hair"......and nothing came up. Lol! Use a website like the following for the curly hair classification system. After you've figured out your hair type using this website, verify that it is YOUR hair type by typing the hair type name into the search bar of youtube. Videos will pop up with numerous people with your hair type. I have type 3c/4a hair.

Tip #2: Learn the Terminology. What is a big chop? A co-wash? Figuring out natural hair terminology is crucial to figuring out how to care for your natural hair. Use this dictionary to figure out every term that you need.

Tip # 3: Know What Ingredients Make for Healthy Hair. Many girls who go natural continue to use the same hair products which they used before their transition to natural hair. This is not good! Actually, many of the hair products which you used before your transition to natural hair, may actually have ingrediants which remove mositure from your hair. With natural hair, you need moisture!! This website offers the best Q & A session that I've ever read. Very informing.

Tip #4: Explore the Wonderful Worldwide Web. There are numerous websites out there to help you in your journey to natural hair. My absolute favorite is curlynikki.com. She has great hair tips, tutorial, survival stories (haha) and ideas. She even has numerous guest bloggers that help to make the website awesome. Use Youtube! There are so many awesome hair tutorials on the web. Like I said ^^^, type in your hair type and work from there.

Tip #5: Find a good detangling method. This is probably going to be my worst tip, because it continues to be my biggest struggle. But hang in there ladies (and gents haha), like me, you'll be able to persevere. Youtube, youtube, search search search...that's all that I can really say. Yet this post is a good way to start.

For the time being, I'm still using heat...a little contradictory after I gave all of these tips, right? Wrong! haha. For now I'm studying as many natural hair methods as possible. Pesonally, I don't think that the winter time is a good time for me to try to keep my hair all natural. I've worn it natural for several days, but it dries out really easily since there is very little humidity in the air. I am constantly having to wet it. So as soon as the spring comes and it begins to get more humid I will take another stab at natural hair. Hopefully when that time comes around, I will have all the right products and knowledge to take care of my hair. I don't want to go completely natural (as in using no heat) for the rest of my life. But once the summer comes, because it is so humid and pressed hair instantly frizzes, I plan to not add heat to my hair whatsoever. Also, I want to make sure that I am properly educated on how to care for my hair and not damage it. But to all of you girls who are teaching yourselves in the winter, I salute you!

Good Luck!!

All Na-tu-rallll!

Have you ever thought about going natural? Are you transitioning? Well, I have been natural for all of my life with the exception of two years (during which I had a failed attempt at a texturizer). I think natural hair is the thing to do, regardless of the fact that going natural has become a trend over the past year. We as black females should embrace our natural-ness & be happy with the hair that God gave us. What I like most about being natural is that there is so much room for versatility in the natural hair styles which you can wear. So anyway, just to give y'all a hint of the natural life, I've been photographing the different ways that I've styled my hair over the past two weeks! Enjoy!


Shower Fresh (Days 1-4): This is my completely natural, no heat hairstyle. As you can see I have a super duper curly texture of hair, but I also have sections of my hair which are straight, kinky, and somewhere in between. For the longest time I didn't know what to do with my hair to make it stay in the curly texture that it becomes after getting wet. However, over the past summer I had a hair epiphany & figured out what to do (lol). Every girl's hair texture is different, but here are my tips for wearing natural hair.

1. Don't waste your money on those expensive "natural hair care" products. You can use a lot of cheaper items & save a lot of money.
2. As a natural it's important to wash your hair using conditioner only. This "co-wash" is far less damaging that using shampoo (which contain ingredients like sulfate & paraben which dries out curly hair). I use garnier fructis conditioner. It smells great and it's cheap. Condition your hair and leave the conditioner in for three minutes. This helps to moisten your hair.
3. Rinse the conditioner out and recondition. This time leave the conditioner in. (Because I wet my hair a lot when it's natural I also sometimes use good ole Dove conditioner. Don't waste your money on an expensive conditioner because your hair will be wet a lot. Trust me it works!) Leaving the conditioner in your hair will keep the right amount of moisture in your hair.
4. While your the conditioner is still in your hair, add some detangler if you'd like (I use motions leave in conditioner spray & suave detangler for kids. The combination of the two make it easier to comb out any knots.) Put your hair under the stream of water and combing out knots will be a breeze.
5. Squeeze out the water from your hair and add a leave in conditioner for added moisture. I use motions cpr triple action leave in conditioner.
6. Wrap an old t-shirt around your hair and gentle squeeze several times to prevent excess water from leaking from your head (lol. Don't underestimate the amount of water that your hair can hold, especially when your hair thickens after going natural. I've had many a day where I had to run to the closest bathroom to squeeze out excess water from my hair).
7. While your hair is still damp add something to seal moisture into your hair. I prefer to use unrefined shea butter.
8. At night wear your hair in a loose high ponytail.
9. In the morning mix some conditioner, water and if you'd like a bit of olive oil into a spray bottle and mist your hair. The curls will come right back. However, because it is so dry in the winter, you may find that you have to completely wet your hair again to get the same curly effect (or in this case, splurge and spend some money on a natural hair care spritz to preserve your curls).

Like I said, because my hair is so curly and spongy, it tends to dread easily, so I only rock this hair style for several days.

Straight & Sultry (Days 5 & 6):
For these days I used a combination of Suave kids detangler (in the green bottle) and a leave in conditioner spray to detangle my curls. I blow dry my hair with a comb attachment and I then smooth castor oil from my roots to my ends and use a flat iron to straighten my hair. This style stays completely straight for about 8 hours. At night I braid my hair in sections (or make straight bantu knots) and wrap a silk scarf around them. In the morning I undo them and go over them with the flat iron. When I wrap my hair, I usually sweat out my roots by the morning, so these two methods work best. However, overuse of heat=hair damage, so this straight look lasts for a short period of time.


Curls Curls Curls (Days 7-11):
This is my quickest, easiest, most common due. I rub some palmer's growth treatment into my hair at night, before setting my hair in 15-20 large (pink) sponge rollers. I wrap a silk scarf over the rollers and sleep on them. In the morning when I take the rollers out all I do is pin my hair in whatever style I want and the curls fall into place. In this particular picture, I went over some of the curls with my curling iron to stretch them out. Notice how short my hair looks because of the tightness of the curls.

I hope you enjoy this & I hope my tips came in handy. For amazing natural hair care tips click on the KandeeLand link under my favorites to the left. She has amazing tips, blog posts & even videos on youtube!

xoxo

Jackie