Rainy Day Hair

My 2nd day Braidout didn't last past the morning after a workout and a rainy day. So I did two twists and bun. 

Take down from Yesterday's Braid-out

Light and fluffy curls. Loved the smell! 

Product recap 

ORS replenishing conditioner 

Kinky Curly Knot Today detangler

Coconut oil 

Deva Curl Super Cream 

Two Step Stretch on 6 months Transitioning hair

I love me a braid out. Twist outs have been the go to during my transition. My braidouts are pretty but not my fav with all the textures. So I came up with this two step stretch for Transitioning Hair, to achieve a better Braidout. No heat involved.

Conditioned Washed my Hair 

Thoroughly detangled under the water in sections. 

Added Kinky Curly Detangler to wet hair 

Keeping my sections, I flexi rod each piece. Carefully starting at the root and spiraling the hair around. I used rollers in the back for bigger sections. 

After about 3 hours my hair is still very damp. I take out sections and put some together to create a medium sized braid. Ending up with 8 braid plaits in my hair and roller the ends! 

That's it! Air dry and takedown 

The trick to dealing with Knots and Matting

On this journey as I go deeper into the months of no perm, I see now how knotting and matting can occur more often. 

Transitioning hair has matting and knots that hold on strong. The matting is due to simple things like not detangling all the time. But also to night time damage. If the hair is not in twists or braids at night, or sectioned off to preserve detangling, then more than likely the hair will get knotted or matted. Maintaining a detangle is the best and only way to ensure less matting and knotting 

But the truth is that I am not going to detangle my hair everyday. Some days I will be able to maintain the detangle by retwisted or rebraiding. So far, I do not retwisted or rebraid very often. Going to bed with a pineapple pony tail or my hair in a low bun or pony tail is what I will typically do and thus my hair will Matt and knot after 2-3 nights. 

The trick to dealing with matts and knots is to either prevent them or deal with them. Basically? There is no trick. If you or I want to see less matting and knots in our transitioning hair; we will have to learn how to maintain the detangle. By retwisting the hair or braiding it at night. This ensures the hair stays in sections and is held taught to prevent slipping or rubbing which creates unwanted matts. 

The other "trick" is to accept those knots.  Yes! Accept them that they will come. Because if you are protective styling even, you will have shredded hair trapped in your style that needs to get out. Therefore the hair will get tangled if not taken care d daily. So tending to the hair after a few days, just prepare to be ready to deal with the matts and knots. 

I have accepted during the detangling process that some hair is gonna come out especially if I have not done anything to my hair regarding sectioning or finger detangling in days. I don't even bother trying to section my hair without going under a shower and getting my hair sopping wet. The water is the number #1 detangler and healer of knots. Using my fingers I section my hair under the water. Then I add conditioner to my hair and finger detangle under the running water. If I feel my hair can handle it, I will then take the comb and carefully run it through my hair under the running water. 

People are afraid of detangling hair when sopping wet or under water. That is because the hair is weaker when fully wet. But detangling on damp hair is not a walk in the park if you know you are going to have knots. The best bet is to do it under running water gently. Detangling from the Ends and working your way up. 

When you come across a knot, you want to try to spread the hair and separate it. Pulling it wide and down to detangle from the knot. Eventually picking out each strand carefully until you are left with a knot and dead end strands. 

The biggest mental setbacks with detangling is feeling like you have to rush and that you are going to lose hair. So 

1. Be patient. Take a deep breath if you are getting frustrated because you don't want to take your frustration out on your hair. 

2. Be around running water. If you don't want to detangle under the shower or faucet, then at least be nearby one so that if your hair starts to dry up, you can make it sopping wet again. 

3. Get used to saying goodbye to hair. Hair sheds! So don't be overly anxious about seeing hair fall out. It is supposed to, it is natural. If you haven't combed in days, you will have more hair to fall out. When you see that ball of fallen hair... Just look at your head and see how much freaking hair is still on that head! 

4. Be wary of detangling products. Because nothing detangles your hair better than water. Most of these products even the ones named "detangling" are actually prepping the hair to dry and style. The product sometimes can get in your way and prohibit the detangling by "styling" the knot. The matts and knots can get even more hold because the product is made to hold your style. 

That's the best of what I got so far on this journey. <3 

Cornrows & takedown

When I use my cornrows I keep them in for a few days. I do them all going back because when it's time to unravel, there are more versatile styles I can make. This style I kept in for 3 days and worked out twice on it. My hair was matted in the middle and I know that I didn't braid that section properly and that's why. The cornrows were frizzy and messy by the 3/4th day. Though the unraveling still provided a nice small wave pattern. I'm working on using this style more for heavy workout weeks and looking to perfect it to my liking as well! 

Frizzy cornrows --- decent protective style. My scalp was a little irritated after working out and showering. Next time I will try not to wash hair after workout and see if my scalp responds better. The sweat from workout opens up pores as the heat from the shower water only seems to irritate my scalp more. 

The take down. Was difficult because I didn't properly braid the back. There was a lot of matting, but after patience and moisture I did have something to work with.... 

Last Week's Hair Regimen Review 10/18

I had intentions about having ONE way of doing my hair and abiding by that structure. But the truth is:

1. It's not that much fun to do the same thing week after week.
2. My lifestyle is not predictable enough to do the same thing
3. Work- out hair is still a work in progress...

So, from now on, i'm working to build that structure. But first will just do my best, live in the moment and see what methods work and what doesn't. For me the key to a structured Hair regimen will be about

1. Applying it to my unpredictable lifestyle
2. Making it fun, inspiring and something to look forward to.
3. Injecting commitment and consistency to see growth and health results.

Which brings me to last week's regimen which was completely different than the one before.

Monday - Washed my hair and DC'd. I loved the results after two DC's with the shea moisture. My hair felt different than before like it was heavier and i think its the moisture retention that has gotten better just from two DCs.

Tuesday - Had my hair in twists and kept it in for a day and a half and then unraveled for work that evening.

Wednesday - worked out in the AM and co-washed my hair. i pulled it up in a half up and half down for it to air dry and it air-dried pretty straight in which it was left in a low-bun for the rest of the week.

Thursday - Friday :  kept it in bun and on Friday did a video recording in which it almost looked straight completely! So air-drying without twist or braid - it is a 'thing'that I might want to try and see what else I can do.

Softest hair in a long time

It's been a long time since I felt my hair feel this soft. This Shea moisture DC are working. Putting that castor oil in bumped it up a notch too. Why bother change what is already working? I will be repurchasing that Shea moisture DC. 

Kept my hair in twists for 24 hours. Took it down and trimmed the ends. CertAinly not a uniformed look with my straggly ends but I kinda love it anyway. 

Last weeks Hair Regimen 10/11

Last Monday I put my hair in a mask Deep conditioner. Detangled. And then braided my hair into cornrows.

Not bad for the first try but ill get better as I go along. 

Tuesday - kept my hair in the cornrows. I took an early morning spin class. Showered but didn't wash my hair. I let some water go down my scalp and ends but not drenched. Put my leave-in in. 

Wednesday - I took the braids out around 3pm. Loved having my hair in this style. It was in cornrows for 2 days and the curl pattern was defined. 

From Wed-Saturday - I put the kinky curly knot leave in on the ends and pineappled my hair at night. I wore my hair out and did some half down / half in a bun. 

Today, I did a mask again. With castor oil mixed in. I did it on dry hair this time and found my hair responded really differently than last week on damp hair.

I am ready to meet my Hair

My hair journey has allowed me to experience my hair texture. While learning how to moisturize and maintain curly hair while my hair was relaxed, I had already begun the process of learning about my hair. I started to embrace my hair even back then while relaxing. But I always came short when it came to stretching. 

Stretching was fun and healthy. It introduced me to braidouts and curly styles that made being curly more fun. After a while, braidouts was my go to for a few years. I started texlaxing to get more texture. But everytime I hit 3 months of new growth I had to get a touch up. And I would have a sigh of relief as I witnessed my new growth smooth out and make my hair instantly longer! 

I will miss those days as I truly learned to love my relaxed hair. But that sigh of relief once I hit that 'creamy crack'. It is a similar feeling to the memory I have of first getting my hair relaxed. 

I was so tired of my hair. As a young girl wanting to be in, most girls had their hair relaxed already and I was slow on the trend. Truth is there was no environment that provided me to love my natural hair. My father was the closest. He was preachy about his disgust about how women's side burns would fall off. He didn't approve. But he was lame in my eyes. And too forceful, there was no love for the curls or the beauty of the hair. With him it was about justice. My mother seemed to do the best she could with our hair and I think she loved it and didn't want us to relax too soon. But she eventually knew that we would have to because of her understanding of "fitting in" and looking the part. There was no history or practices related to regiment or maintaining beautiful natural hair. So basically my natural hair had no chance. It was a Martyr to my culture and environment. I couldn't wait to have it look pretty and straight. I breathed my first sigh of relief on that first day I had my hair relaxed. 

My how time has changed. And the woman who I am today appreciates where she has come from and looks forward ahead. And yet even still as we charge forward we go back to the basics, the basics of being natural. 

Now that I am long past 3 months post relaxer, I see that the biggest mountain was turned to a molehill as my sister once wrote. The hump that I had to overcome was my mental relationship with my hair. When I saw the new growth as a relaxed chick, I was scared of it. I did not know how to deal with it. It is way thicker and less tamed. Now, I see the difference and I smile at the beauty of the health of my natural hair. And I sigh a different sigh, a deep sigh of goodbye... To the days of being relaxed. 

I am Ready to meet my hair

Vegetable Glycerin

Ingredient Spotlight : VEGETABLE GLYCERIN

featuring: curlynikki.com
Glycerin is far more water soluble than some of the other conditioning alcohols such as lauryl alcohol and cetearyl alcohol.

Glycerin is an alcohol, known also by the chemical names glycerol and 1,2,3, propane triol. It can be obtained via hydrolysis of naturally occurring plant or vegetable fats (triglycerides) or via chemical synthesis from petrochemicals. It is a conditioning alcohol similar to other conditioning alcohols, but it has three very hydrophilic hydroxyl (-OH) groups as opposed to a single one.

Synthetic glycerin has received some publicity as being a potential health hazard, and many consumers prefer to avoid it. It is typically produced from the starting material epichlorohydrin, which is a toxic chemical that is classified as a probable carcinogen. 

 Glycerin can be a great moisturizer and humectant for the hair. Care should be taken to use it in environments of moderate humidity.

Many heat-styling techniques can generate sufficient heat to boil the water inside the hair shaft, which can cause terrible breakage. One way to prevent or minimize this problem is to coat the hair with an emollient that seals in the moisture and that does not transfer the heat from the appliance to the hair as readily. Unfortunately, glycerin conducts thermal energy pretty efficiently (it transfers heat readily to the hair), especially when compared to silicones, proteins, and polyquaternium conditioning ingredients.

MORE INFO: http://www.curlynikki.com/2013/08/is-glycerin-good-or-bad-for-curly-hair.html

Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Mask

New Addition to my beauty collection and regimen. Trying out the Shea Moisture deep treatment mask. 

I did it two days ago. My hair is very dry so I'm doing it again. At the end of the week I plan to use it with my protein treatment ORS Hair Mayo. I'm working on preparing my hair for maximum moisture before doing my next protein treatment. I'm looking forwar to repurchasing my ORS Hair Replenishing Conditioner. A light protein that I will add to my weekly DC's. And I'll only do the ORS mayo every 4-6 weeks. 

Hair Typing on 6 month transitioning Hair

I have never been a fan of Hair Typing. However, I do see the importance of understanding the science of kinky curly Hair. Learning about the moisture levels and protein levels, the response of the Hair with certain ingredients and products to achieve the desired look, these are the essentials of understanding what type of hair you have in your head. 

Therefore, I'll move forward with the hair typing system until I create one of my own. 

Analyzing my Hair, I would say that I have 4c hair at the crown of my hair. 

The curl pattern loosens and is prob 3c at my nape. 

The right side is thinner, less body ...curls are mixed 4b/c? 

Left side is thinner too, but pokes out more curls 4b/c. This might just have to do with the manipulation from the old style that I had in for the past few days. 

And the front. 

As I journey down the road of transitioning to natural, I will be able to build on what techniques I can do to enhance my hair knowing the different textures 

I have observed that curly hair likes to clump together. And you kind of have to go with the flow of that. You flow and you manipulate the hair by observing what sections naturally want to clump

Together. 

A lot of anxiety is hyped around hair typing. But I believe with kinky curly hair you can have whatever look you desire. Just because you type your hair does not mean you are confined to only certain ways or hairstyles. Truly the hair will respond to what you do to it. After all, it is a material that responds to your powers of manipulation. So we 'hair type' to understand the science to get the look we desire. And the Regimen that we stick to, is what feeds gorgeous healthy hair. The regimen begins with loving your hair and feeding it love on a regular basis. 

5 Hour Air Dried Twist-out

I figure. It's best to record all - possibilities with my hair so I become familiar with all outcomes. 

I haven't done a short-term air dried style since my hair was permed. I'd always do it with permed ends, but with two textures of transitioning hair, I've chosen to allow the hair to dry completely; taking 12-24 hours to dry. 

But I didn't plan out my hair well today and had to wash and finger detangled this morning. I put my hair into individual twists and allowed the Natural Sun to help me air dry after 5 hours or so. 

When I took the hair out, there was actually some definition. I put my hair in a half-up/half-down style that has been a go to style when I have texture but no shape. 

I used my newly purchased, Kinky Curly leave-in, coconut oil and then mango butter. I'd love to try this again and see how my hair turns out on completely 100% air dried hair. 

Hair in twists--- looking mmmaaaad tired

Took hair out after 5-hour air dry and had some curl pattern. 

Pinned hair up. Half up / Half down --- go to staple style so far for transitioning hair. 

Product Review : Jane Carter Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner

This is a product review for The Jane Arter Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner. I am basing my analysis off of about two weeks of use on my Stretched or Transitioning to Natural Hair. I currently have different textures of curly and straight hair. 

I have been at a loss since my staple Leave-In, Herbal Essence Long Term relationship. And since then, I've begun to change my ideas towards keeping my hair relaxed and considering ending my relaxer routine. I have been using cheapie  leave ins from the beauty store that is just not keeping my hair moisturized as I allow my new growth to come in. And I'm on the search to find a new staple leave-in. 

My first impression of the Jane Carter Solution Revitalizing Leave-In, is a thumbs up. Since I haven't been using a decent leave in, I felt the major shift in my hair's moisture levels from the first time I sprayed this product into my hair. It has a light liquidy solution. Not thick at all. The scent is medium to strong. But I do not mind it. What I love the most is how much my hair has shifted in holding moisture in my styles. I'm curious as to what ingredients heighten the moisture in hair. 

The first ingredient is water and that's an A+++. I like that it is not a long ingredients list, and most of the ingredients are ones that I recognized as healthy and beneficial to the hair. Aloe Vera - acidic yet healing. Sage and Rosemary extracts, Henna for thickening and protection. Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein to promote the protein levels in the hair. 

There are some ingredients that seem very artificial. The Polyquaternium 7, that is right at the top of the list. This means it is very prominent in the product. Polyquaternium-7 prevents the build up of static electricity and it helps the hair hold the style. 

Closer to the bottom of the list we find ingredients that are in the product but not as much or prominent. Soyamide DEA, is a soy acid used as a way to make foam. It also builds up the thickness of the product. 

Sodium Cocoyl isethionate is not so bad. A sodium salt of coconut oil, it is a non animal derived ingredient used to cleanse the skin of oil and water. So it's like a cleaning agent in a leave in conditioner. 

Phenoxyethanol is a less toxic, non reactive bacteria killing agent. I take it as another cleansing ingredient of some kind. However since it doesn't seem to be taken from animal or natural seed or fruit, it is still a more artificial ingredient. 

Even though it has protein, I have not found it to harden my hair. With stretched transitioned hair the protein levels should be watched, so that the hair does not break. But I am comfortable to keep the protein levels high to maintain strength through this stretch/transition. 

I have skip and bouncy hair with this leave in. I enjoy having a liquid leave in for my curlier hair because it is easier to cover over the hair more than a thick creamy leave in. This leave in is excellent for detangling. And I like the bonus fact that it protects your hair from the sun. 

The directions say to spray into the air and walk through the mist. I do not do this technique. I spray concentrated to each section about 2-3 times till the hair feels like it is covered in it. This technique works for me and I have not found much issues with using it directly on my hair. Except for the fact that I might run through the bottle very quickly. It is not a very big bottle of product. I bought it two weeks ago. So we will see how long it lasts before empty. 

It is certainly a product that will reach empty because it's the best leave in I got so far since losing touch with my original leave in staple. It's not at staple status yet. But so far this is one to try. I imagine my full head of relaxed hair would absolutely loove this product. I'm curious to see how it holds up as my natural hair grows in more. 

Will follow up with an 'empties' post and final thoughts on it in the near future. 

Embracing Transitioning Hair Journey

As I journey on.... I realize that the best thing you can do is embrace the present moment. I have no desire to speed up this process. I'm not in any rush to get to my destination. I am thoroughly enjoying the ride. Yes, my hair is very different than before, but I'm enjoyin the challenge.

Truthfully there is beauty in all things, including the transition which is really the present moment which is destination in its own right. Two textures represents at the crossroads. It represents within the interim. I am slowly moving away from my straight hair and moving towards understanding and embracing my natural hair. Every moment counts. 

Casual Braid out On TRANSITIONING Hair

Yeah so I'm getting the hang of this transitioning journey. A lot of it consists of just sticking to the basics of what works and improving from there. 

Even with basic tools, co-conditioner, wide tooth comb, spray leave in and some oil, I can pull off a work-with-able look. A lot of women have demonstrated how difficult it is to transition by growing your hair out. But I'm loving the results. I love the fact that my relaxed hair had its own look, and so does my transition hair. I find it's best to enjoy and embrace the whole journey! 

Everytime I ace a hair look I'm itching to do videos. But, I'll wait and organize. As well as buy some new makeup! Yay 

Rollerset on Transitioning hair.

I will forever love roller sets. <3 

Analyzing new growth after 4 months

Enjoying my hair texture thoroughly. It's so different than relaxed ends. And I have  had a decent time embracing my new growth. It's thicker and sticks out more so my transitioning hairstyles are actually fuller looking than when my hair was fully relaxed. Because i texlaxed for the past 2 or so years, I am not seeing a drastic difference in the hair. However, natural hair is less uniformed. Less about how perfectly everything falls. It's more about the beautiful texture and the thickness. 

At my crown I find a mix of kinky a curls and little coils. It is very 'spongy' at the crown. That is where I have the most shrinkage too. 

At the nape of my head is where I find a more relaxed curl pattern with a silkier texture. 

As I progress, I may draw out a map of my head so Ican fully analyze. As I believe I may naturally be dealing with 3-4 different textures. 

The front is more 's' curl. It is similar to my crown, but it is less spongy. It kind of lays down flat. 

I imagine most curly hair girls experience a range of uniformed curls to various textures and this is due to the mix in genetics. So just like a fingerprint, no curly hair head is equally the same. This is why there are products that work for others and not. This is why there are some styles that compliment some, while others rely on a different style. 

Embracing my curly hair is like the epitome of embracing my uniqueness.