3 Years Natural Growth

Happy Nappyversary to me!!

I got my hair blown out for my Nappyversary and my Birthday this past weekend. The blow out session was brutal because I haven't had a trim in a year. My ends were a complete mess and I had fairy knots for days. That's what I get for being cheap o_O

My hair has grown considerably since my last check in. Blade is still just as fabulous as ever. Here is his info in case you need it. (Also, Blade does do natural styles ladies, but he charges based on the amount of time for each process. Natural styles take longer so..you know what that means..)


Blade
Natural Hair and Beauty Tune-up Clinic
2200 Northlake Pkwy, Tucker, GA, 30084
Phone: 404-484-7136
(Tell him Natasha sent you!)


To maintain I set my hair on 8 flexirods each night and cover with one of my son's "Under Armour" type t-shirts. His shirts work great as head scarves because they stretch to fit over the rods without being too tight. A scarf that is too tight will cause night sweats and roller dents in your set. I release the curls in the morning and lightly separate the curls. It fluffs on its own throughout the day.

Taking a Break: Hair Senioritis

Maybe it's the fact that I'm going to my 10 year high school class reunion in three days...

Maybe it's because I haven't had a trim in almost a year and detangling is a beast these days...

Or maybe it's because Natural is no longer "new" to me now. I will be 3 years in the game come October...natural is a part of life these days.

It could be any of the reasons listed above, but for some reason I have not had the time or energy to deal with my hair for the last..hmmm..month or so. TDavis inspired me with "low to no" effort style and I have rocked it out to Puerto Rico and back.

It works for work, home, and vacay...and lasts me for at least a week at a time. I think that I like having my hair "put away" from time to time. Hell, sometimes it's nice to put on my shower cap and just see my face for once.

This is really two pig-tails jazzed up with an off center curved part. I smooth with EcoStyler w/Argan Oil gel (can you believe the jar is almost empty..it does work when used alone). I split the ends of each pony into two and twist. Then fold each side over and secure with bobby pins.

Easy peasey lemon squeezey... and I can be lazy another week...lol!

Product Review: EcoStyler Gel with Argan Oil

As previously mentioned, I FINALLY got my hands on some EcoStyler Gel with Argan Oil. I'm a huge fan of the Eco Olive Oil gel because it gives great definition, hold, isn't as drying as other gels, mixes well with other products, and most importantly, does not FLAKE.

I wish the same could be said for the Eco w/Argan Oil.

If you know anything about argan oil, you would know that it is an oil with a distinct scent. The Moroccan Oil products are argan based and are heavily scented with it, as are some of the Shea Moisture products. This gel smells nothing of argan oil, nor does it have the "feel" that argan gives products. Argan has a lot of slip...well all oils do, but argan has a LOT! It almost feels like a hair serum, to give you an idea. Argan is the second to last ingredient on the list, as is olive oil in the OO version, but come on now!

I've mostly used the EwAO on my edges and at the end of the day, I would have flakes. I haven't seen flakes like this since my days of using black Ampro gel way back in the day. At one point, I felt the need to add some water to my hairline to get rid of the flakes.

I tried using it for a wash n' go, mixing it with EVOO like I always do and it did OK. The EVOO helped to keep it from flaking and my hair was very defined.

So in all, I won't go so far as to say it was an EPIC FAIL, but the flakes almost took it there. That's a gel's #1 no-no! Eco is obviously running with the "Argan Oil" hype like most of the other national product lines, but I know the difference. Since I have a pretty big tub of it, I will keep working with it to see what works best and report back.

*Smooches*

Mizani Butter Rich: Dry Twist Out

Here are some pics of a dry twist out that I did using Mizani Butter Rich that I bought at the World Natural Hairshow. I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE this stuff! It softens my hair right on up for easy twisting. The consistency is somewhat watery when applied but you can feel the natural oils as you twist and when it dries. I would not recommend this if you are blowing your hair out with a blow dryer for a twist out because it dampens the hair quite a bit.

This style was achieved on a one day old wash-n-go. I didn't part, just grabbed sections as I went, applying the Butter Rich and twisting to the ends. I allowed it to dry overnight under a silk scarf, but my hair was still a little damp the next morning. When taking the twists down, I didn't fluff or separate for this reason to avoid frizz. Here are the results...

The next night I re-twisted in larger sections as Tdavis recommended. I literally took four twist and twisted them into one (without messing up the original pattern) and it took maybe 5 minutes. The next day my hair was bigger ( a little..dare I say...WILD, even) and I think I liked it more that way. Trying to get 3 day hair out of this set re-twisting with EVOO each night and applying Eco gel to the edges.

Oh, yeah! I finally got my hands on the EcoStyler with Argan Oil. More on that later. Have you ladies tried Mizani Butter Rich? It retails at about $19.99 per jar at most local BSS.

Blown-Out-Twist-Out Part 2

Thought you ladies might be curious to see how my hair is hanging in there after my blow out. I am *SO* not playing about getting the most out of this style considering the heat I used to accomplish it.

The pic above is me on day 4. The previous night I'd re-twisted in bigger, chunkier (is that a word?) sections because I was dead tired. I actually like the way it turned out, and it didn't lose as much definition as I thought it would.

By the end of day 4 my hair felt a little dry so I re-twisted with Canu SheaSoft Leave in conditioner. Because of its creamy consistency, I only used a little on each section so my hair wouldn't get too damp and shrink up. Day 5 my hair was off the chain..but of course I forgot to take pics :(

Last night I used big re-twist sections again and the pic below is me today (day 6). Not too much of a difference and still very defined. At this point I am *DYING* to co-wash my hair but I am going to try to wait until my Shea Moisture order comes in. Key word there being: try.

Twist Out at 2.5 Years Natural = Hang Time

This twist out was acheived with Giovanni 50/50 Conditioner and EVOO on hair that had been freshly co-washed and left to dry for over a day. As you can see I used smaller sections and twisted through to the ends. I was pleased with the results for the most part. Twisting the ends while wet is a horrible challenge, especially in the back where my hair is a lot more dense. There was a ton of frizz in the back, but I rocked it for about 3 days.

Then on day 4ish...I decided to pull it back in a pony tail because I don't handle frizz very well, and it's still to cold to wash-n-go. This time, I decided to leave some hair out in the front, adding a little more 50/50 and some water to make twists. While twisting, I noticed that the ends behaved a lot better on hair that was only damp and not soaking wet. I let them dry on the ride to work and unraveled very slowly because they were still a little damp.

I was amazed at how defined my bangs were with such little dry time, and they were in good shape at the end of the day. Another thing I couldn't get over was the hang time!! My bangs were hanging perfectly and even had a little swing to them (ok!! ---ya'll know we naturals sometimes miss the swing!!) I retwisted at night with a little water and managed to keep them for about 3-4 more days.

Needless to say, this inspired me to dry twisting my whole head from a "mostly dry" state.. I did it and well...you will have to stay tuned for the results...lol!

Product Review: Taliah Waajid's Curly Curl Cream

I know I recently posted about using bobby pins at the ends of my twist outs to prevent frizz, but shortly after that post, I tried a product that changed my outlook on how I can style my hair. That product is Taliah Waajid's Curly Curl Cream (pictured above is the Curl Sealer...umm..my bad! lol!). The cream is a new item in her line for curly hair that is designed specifically for those with tighter curl patterns. Typically, I am a huge skeptic of stylers because I feel that I can achieve a very similar look with conditioner and oil, but at about $9 each this product is worth trying out.

I twisted my hair using Taliah Waajid's Curly Curl Cream and while I was twisting, I noticed that it smoothed and clumped my curls together so well that I didn't notice that I was twisting to the ends. Usually, it is difficult for me to fully twist to the ends because the coils bunch together and get smashed. The Curly Curl Cream solved that problem for me. It gave me a well defined twist pattern down the entire length of each section, incredible hold, and elongation. The set lasted me about 3 days. It probably would have lasted longer but I was lazy and didn't pineapple.

As much as I loved the Curly Curl Cream, I do have to report that after three days I attempted to co-wash and re-twist my hair using it, and it was a no-go. My hair felt different. I can't explain it, but it felt dryish and didn't twist as easily. After it dried, it was even drier, so I felt the need to co-wash again the next day with my beloved Giovanni 50/50. After a few days of babying, my hair was back to its normal moisture level....but I was left wondering what went wrong.

I haven't given up on the Curly Curl Cream. I plan to try it again, and maybe it's something that I will use when I have special occasion styling to do. It gives killer results, but I have to figure out why my hair got so dry so I can effectively moisturize in the future. I have a few products from the line to try out and I will review each one. I gave away some products to friends and family to review because I thought they were better for their hair types, so I will have them weigh in as well.

Have you ladies tried Curly Curl Cream? If so, what was your experience?

Type 4 Twist n' Style with Bobby Pins

The pic above is the reason I'm willing to give twist-outs another go. The difference is *so* tiny, you can hardly see it, but boy it works wonders...

**Bobby pins saved my twist-outs.**

For a really long time I struggled with twist sets. I tried everything from making them larger, smaller, flat twists, twisting all the way down, coiling ends, multiple layers....and everything yielded similar results. I always ended up with defined roots and frizzy ends. But that has all changed, and I owe it all to the Bobby Pins (BPs).

One night, after a particularly dreadful detangling session, I got serious about twisting my hair to keep it from getting matted. Keep in mind that I have been attempting to train my hair to "hang" down, so I thought pins on the ends would weigh the twists down and stretch the length a little. At the end of each twist, I stopped short of the ends, smoothed them through, secured with a BP and let my natural pattern/ends do the work.


The results were impressive.....


...but it wasn't until I tried the same method with smaller twists that I was sold! I also lucked up...well, more like "lazied up"...onto a work appropriate hairstyle. At the end of the twisting session (and partially air drying), I worked from back to front, tucking the bobby pins back to tie my hair underneath a silk scarf. The next morning I simply removed the scarf and did my makeup. My coworkers loved it! It would have been even better if the parts were neater, but I didn't really plan this as a style. So, whatevs...






That night I released the twists and fluffed. I rocked the biggest, stretched fro that I have ever accomplished. The set lasted me about 4 days by pineappling and sleeping on a silk pillowcase. The pic below is me and my Valentine, rocking day 4 hair...

The "Kinda Sorta Not Really" Part

Lately, I have been parting my hair down the middle in efforts to see if my hair will "hang down" if you know what I'm saying. Long ago I came to terms with the fact that there doesn't seem to be much of anything that I can do with my hair that can compete with these ridiculously tight curls. Parting it differently gives me a new look without too much effort.

The sad part about parts...is well...I hate parts! LOL! Not that I hate ALL parts, just parts, that look like parts. Now that I'm thinking about it, I don't know if I even like the word "parts" but I digress...

So I typically make a "Kinda Sorta Not Really Part" when I am setting my hair. I do this by parting with my fingers or using a comb to make a deep zig-zag part that will pretty much cover itself once the hair is dry.

Even though my hair is getting longer, it doesn't hang down and likes to stand straight up in the top. I am trying to train it to fall to either side and it's working some. The key is to know how far back to part or you will end up with pancake hair (ie. all the volume on the sides and flat on the top).

To get this look I co-washed, rubbed some Giovanni back through,"parted" and pulled it back into a loose pony. The pony stretches the curls in the front by morning, so I just release and fluff. Gel and bobby pins along the hairline help it to fall/stay in place.

Wet Styling- Mini Pineapples

Hola Chicas!

It's been a while since my last post...crazy how time has flown. I was in the process of moving this month, so things have been really hectic trying to get my furniture out of storage, etc. Some really weird things happened that I just won't even go into b/c I am hoping that it was a one time occurrence, and I don't have a creepy neighbor to look out for.

But since I have been gone, I haven't had time to try much of anything new with my 'do. The only thing that I am doing differently now is allowing my hair to dry in mini-pineapples. I first read about this on CurlyNikki, and the blogger was showing us how to preserve dry styles on short hair with this method. People with longer hair can pull their hair up into one high pony (hence the pineapple name) but other's with shorter hair or tighter curl patterns have to make smaller sections.

To do this, I follow my same co-wash routine and apply leave-in conditioner mixed with olive oil to damp hair. I finger detangle each section, pulling the oil mix through to the ends, and loosely band with an ouch-less band. By loosely, I mean no more than twice around. You don't want them to be too tight, and leave a huge bend in your hair once dry. Sleep with the puffs out on silk pillow case. Your hair should be mostly dry by morning.

The next morning, remove each band slowly so you don't get tangles. Wet your hands and fluff each section, hiding the parts (which really aren't parts, since I part with my fingers...easier to cover them that way). To define my edges, I smooth them with a little EcoStlyer gel and use bobby pins to make my hair fall to either side, framing my face.

The end result is hair that is dry for the colder weather, fuller, with more curl definition/elongated curls. I've tried to make this last with the dry mini-pineapples, and that works for the first night. By day three it's pretty much shot to the curb.

Hope you ladies have a wonderful Holiday Season and get to spend it with the ones you love most.

Smooches!

Natasha

Detangling/Styling

This is a shot of my hair freshly co-washed with Giovanni Smooth as Silk with a little left in. I detangled in sections and twisted each section, pinning each twist up with a bobby pin. I released in the morning and my hair was nearly dry. It's been getting colder out so dripping wet hair is becoming less and less an option these days.

Once I'm in the car, I do my make-up, release the twists, and fluff to hide the parts. My hair looks a lot bigger with less definition because of the huge sections, but its something different.

Happy Monday! <---- If that's even possible! LOL!

Style Preservation: Pin Curls

Way back in the day when I straightened my hair for the first time in over a year (Feb 2010), I learned the hard way on how to preserve my sleek tresses. The very first night, I wrapped my hair as I usually did when I sported a relaxer. One shower and 8 hours later I awoke to a huge puff ball on one side of my head and no curl definition on the other. DRATS!!! $90 down the tube... or so I thought.

I managed to flat iron the puff back out, and the next night, opted for something different: dry pin curls. Pin curls are really easy to do if you have a little curl on the ends of your hair already. Use smaller sections if you want curlier hair...I opted for larger sections to get loose curls. Once your whole head is done, cover with a loose silk bonnet as opposed to a scarf tied too tightly (will smash the curls).

See pics below...I forgot to take pics of the after, but it was cute! No puff and still very curly.

My Nappy-versary Celebration!!

So Friday was the one year anniversary of my Big Chop, and I celebrated by treating myself to a trip to the salon to have my hair pressed and trimmed. After searching high and low for a salon that I felt comfortable with, I ultimately went with a stylist referred to me by my Soror. She has been fully natural for over 2 years and her hair is BANGIN'!

The stylist's name is Blade and he works at Upscale's Salon off of Wesley Chapel in East Atlanta. My appointment was at 12:30am and I was running a little late due to "inclement weather" ;) Even so, I walked right in and over to the shampoo area. The shampoo tech, I forget her name, did a wonderful job working the shampoo in and gave me a scalp massage that put me to sleep in the shampoo bowl! I'm just glad I didn't start to drool in my sleep...LOL! Afterwards, I was allowed to sit under a hooded steamer with a conditioning treatment. This is a nice departure from the shower cap/hooded dryer method. I plan to research the benefits of the hooded steamer..more on that later...

After a quick blow dry, I was given a very thorough trim. I was scared that he would cut too much of this hard-earned length...LOL.. but he only cut about 1/2 inch at the most. I was then pressed out with professional grade ceramic irons that made my hair flow like silk. Most shockingly of all, was that I wasn't burned one time, which I kind of expected would happen. Since it was snowing out, he offered me (and applied) a plastic cap to preserve my style.

In the end I had more than my desired result! Blade is the TRUTH! Any of you ladies looking for a stylist in the Atlanta area should definitely check him out. All of his clients that I saw while I was there are naturals, and he finished one girl before me and her hair was on point.

It's now Monday morning, and my hair is still doing well. My co-workers love it, my son loves it, I love it!! That's all for now...but forget what I'm talking about...I will let the pictures speak for themselves...

Corporate Natural

This is me rockin' my natural at work...you can probably tell by the fake azz smile, right..LOL! But in other news, after three years of pure HELL, my braces are finally off!! I guess it was all worth it. All I know is that these teeth better stay put or me and my orthodontist(s) are gonna have some problems...This particular day, I was sporting 2-day hair resulting from a 2-strand, flat-twist out.. It's crazy how short it looks after I sleep on it. Fluffing is not really an option for me past day one, because it ruins the pattern from the twists and I end up with fuzz :(