Deep Condition

Lately, I've been shampooing and deep conditioning with protein every 2-3 weeks. That's based off of whenever I feel that my hair needs to be shampooed. This week, I had a lot of product in my hair from doing a blowout ( I wore a wng but decided I wanted big hair. I used the Palmer's Hair Milk when I blow dry. I did a puff so I applied tons of gel. I ended up turning the blown out puff into a twist out and then into a twisted out puff. And yeah, all this was within a week. lol!)


I was really tired last night but I knew I had to do my hair. So I shampooed with Renpure and applied the protein dc mix that I previously told you about. I left that on for a few hours before rinsing. I then applied the moisturizing dc mix. I ended up putting a bonnet over my shower cap and sleeping with the dc mix in my hair. I was too tired to finish washing my hair. I put a tight headband over my bonnet to make sure it and the shower cap didn't come off over night. When I woke up, I rinsed and detangled with Renpure. I then applied a little HETT to shingle and leave in a little bit for hold. 


My hair turned out so great. It's soft and very  moisturized. My curls are tight and well defined. This was truly a great treat for my hair. I will have to do this every once in a while, especially in the winter. I took some picts and was amazed at how my curls looked. 

24hr Walgreen's

Headed to Walgreen's to satisfy the pj in me when I got off work. To say this was a GREAT experience is an understatement. First, I only went to purchase two products: Renpure Organics poo and condish. I was initially disappointed because I wanted the moisturizing set but the tops were broken on all of them. I settled for the "I Love My Hair!" body and shine duo. Then, I was thinking about the fact that I haven't done a dc in forever so I grabbed Renpure Organics Amazing Miracle Deep Penetrating Reconstructor (with aloe, kukui & silk protein). Remembering that I needed something to seal and I'm out of Castor oil and not loving Shea right now, I turned around and grabbed Hollywood Beauty Olive Creme (smells like a perm though :-( yuck!). But I picked it up because it had a free container of Olive Cholesterol deep conditioning creme. Then, I saw Organic Root Stimulator Replenishing Paks (grabbed 2 for $1.39 each). And as I walked down the aisle, I saw shower caps (needed one for my dc as I just had to throw away the one I had) and black headbands (all black ones are broken). So, this long list of products cost me LESS than $25. The Renpure Organics was buy one get one free and all 3 of them have mail in rebates. So really, after I mail them in, I'll have spent $13!

All this for less than $13 after mail-in rebates

When I was checking out, the clerk told me how beautiful my hair was and said her granddaughter had natural hair down to her waist. She had been having trouble finding products to use on the child and asked my advise. I told her for detangling, I use HEHH or HETT. Upon her request, I showed her the two products, explained how I detangled and showed her a few other products I'd tried or heard were good. She was so happy! She told me again how beautiful my hair was and that she was so happy she was at work tonight so that she could meet me. She said that God sends angels when we least expect it and on this night, I was her angel. That was about 30 min ago and I'm still smiling. I almost went to Walgreen's last night but changed my mind and went tonight instead. There was obviously a reason why. I feel really good.

Detangling

My hair is getting longer and with that, detangling sessions are getting longer. W-n-g's aren't so quick anymore but are still one of the styles I mainly wear. I've been getting fairy knots for the past month or two. I officialy despise those things! I'm also getting more tangled and knotted hair. They are easy enough to get out but still I worry about breakage and splits because of it.

Currently, I detangle using just my fingers. I prefer that to a wide toothe comb because right now, it's easier and it works. I did use a comb one day and felt like I was breaking off a bunch of my hair. It shed the same amount but I just didn't like it. Plus, I felt like it seperated my curls a little too much and gave me a jheri curl type of look. Lol! I love chunky curls. (Guess I won't be investing in a Denman after all.)

I shed a lot so I'm going to continue to detangle a couple of times a week. Stretching detangling sessions would probably be horrific. I'm going to stick with HE conditioners for detangling sessions. The slip they have is awesome. I'll only stray from this line when I go organic (meaning when I have more $$$$). I will continue to use my fingers as I am most comfortable and less scared about breakage as I have more control over what's happening to my strands. I will reincorporate monthly deep protein condish into my regimen because I'm noticing a lot of elasticity when detangling. My hair has too much moisture and very little strength. Gotta get over that protein fear because my hair is telling me she needs it. I will listen!

Keep it simple

I was reading some hair site, not sure which one, and there was a woman with a fierce w-n-g. She wrote instructions on how she acheived hers. She had a long list of steps that were too much for a w-n-g in my opinion. To me, it's real simple: cowash, shake, moisturize and seal.

One good thing while reading her list was I remembered that my w-n-g turns out soooooo much better if I leave a little of the condish in when I cowash. So, using HETT, I did a cowash. I shook my head (I tend to use a washrag to cover my face so the condish doesn't get on my face). Moisturized with SoftSheen Carson Roots of Nature and sealed with castor oil. I let my hair drip dry so I wrap an old tshirt around my shoulders when I do whatever else I need to do. I've gotten to the point where I don't even blot my hair with the tshirt or a towel. It seems to work better for me that way because my texture easily gets frizzy. But to keep it from dripping too long, I do shake my hair for at least a minute to get rid of as much excess water as possible.

I immediately loved the results. My hair looked like it did when I just get out of the shower. Perfect curls with practically no frizz. And the curls were so well defined. I love it. A couple of people asked if I did a strawset. I've done it a 3-4 times with the same results.

One thing I can say, I don't like how my hair hangs down when it's dry. I fluff when it's 75% dry. I also think it's funny that the front seems to hang down like bangs if I don't fluff it a lot.  

Other random things

Here's a few other random things that happened while my hair was straight.

It rained Tuesday. I forgot that I needed a hood or umbrella. There is an umbrella somewhere in my Jeep. Not sure where. I was literally lol-ing as I ran throught the rain to my Jeep. Luckily, my hair didn't revert.

My supervisor (black woman) is always asking me when I'm going to loc my hair. I tell her at least once a month that I'm not. Apparently one of her relatives when natural via locs and she has it set in her head that I am too. When I straightened, she commented that it looked nice but she preferred my hair the other way. She said that it suits me and shows the amount of confidence I posess to wear it that way. I don't require anyone's approval to wear my hair any particular way but it pleased me that she likes it.

After the bantu knot out, I needed to dc, poo and do a w-n-g before work. I used my new favorite dc mix and let that sit for an hour. One thing I found interesting was the amount of dc I needed to use. My hair was straight and dry when I applied it. I used less than half what I normally use. I was shocked and it felt weird. But the dc took very well and my hair was soft and moisturized as always.

I got tons of happy compliments from family and friends once my hair was curly again. Also got a few request to never straighten my hair again because my natural is so becoming on me and it makes me, me. A few people who really pay attention to my hair commented that my hair seemed even curlier after that first w-n-g. It actually did. Not sure why.

Surprise, surprise

Okay, so you may remember my post on how irritated and disappointed I have been with a friend who was saying negative things about my hair and commenting on how "lucky" white girls are because of their hair texture. She calls me this weekend and announces that she has decided to transition. Apparently, a woman at her job has been natural for a few yrs and after seeing this woman's hair (I believe it was straightened) she has decided to grow out her perm.

She asked her co-worker for help and all she did was send her a link to a hair forum. She only said I just grew out my hair and I joined this forum. I'm thinking...really? That's all the info and encouragement you can give someone who's just starting their journey?

I have to admit, when she first asked me for help, I didn't want to. I was thinking of the stupid shit she's said about my hair and was like eff it, she can learn on her own. But then I thought about it. If I had to go through this alone, I wouldn't have even know what to do or even where to begin. So I agreed to help her as much as I can, including going to the store with her this weekend to help her pick out products. I sent her the links to a few of the sites I love and I'll just be one of the people in her support system as she goes through this transition. Hopefully she'll make it.

I just hope now she stop all that "white girls are lucky" crap and embrace her own hair.

Enter the Soapbox

Let me first say, I don't have anything against a woman with a perm. I may be one of the few naturals I know, but I had a perm for a long time and loved it. Second, let me say that I have nothing at all against weave. I had a sew-in for 3 months before my BC.

I have a friend who is a weave queen. She looks fab. The colors and cuts she picks compliment her skin tome and face shape very well. She doesn't wear them until the look messed up. Every few weeks she will purchase a new one. It is extremely rare that anyone sees her real hair. The few special occasions when she is not wearing a wig/hard wrap, she has some type of hair peice added. She feels her hair is healthier than most since she hardly does any manipulation. I have to say, her hair is thick. It would probably look healthier except the weave dries it out. She claims to be growing her hair to APL and then will stop wearing weave. (I say claim because she has been saying this for years and when it gets close, she cuts it in a bob. She does have a perm.)

I always felt she was insecure about her own hair but to each her own. If she wants to rock a wig everyday for the rest of her life, it's cool. Has no affect on me. Since I've gone natural, her insecurities about her hair seem to have mutiplied. Like seeing my hair in it's natural has made her realize her fears of her own hair. She made comments about having nightmares that her hair was short and nappy, causing her to wake up and touch the silky strands of her lace front for comfort. She's told me that my freshly washed hair smells like Jheri Curl. I haven't snapped on her for those comments because I see them for what they are: fear. Right after she makes those comments, she follows them up with statements on how she would go natural but she doesn't have "good hair" like I do. And she doesn't want to cut her hair. I tell her texture doesn't really matter. She'll never know what her's is like until she's natural. And I tell her she doesn't have to BC and that I'll help her through her transition is she honestly wants to try it one day.

The above is no big deal. Just converations we frequently have. What is making me mad is her revelations that she wants hair like a white girl. She has said to me twice in the past few weeks that white girls are lucky because they don't have hair like us. And asked why can't we be lucky like them and have hair like theirs. She feels their hair is better because they don't have to get it done all the time and they can just throw it up in a ponytail whenever they want. We have to get a comb and brush and stand in the mirror to put our hair up. She's upset that even with her weave, she can't achieve a quick pony because she has to make sure the tracks don't show. According to her, it's just not fair that they have better hair.

She's always trying to get me to agree with her on these statements. I keep telling her I don't agree because I love my coarse, thick, curly, nappy, sometimes unruly hair. I love that I can do so many different things. Most white women have the option of wearing their hair up or down. If they want a particular style, it takes hours at the salon, a lot more money than black women spend, and it only last one night. I can get a style for $35 that will last about 2 weeks.

Whether permed or natural, the last thing I envy is another race's hair. I like that I have options with my hair. While hair from anyone's head is unique and beautiful, I will not spend hundreds of dollars a month and never show my hair to emulate someone else's. It makes me angry and sad to see my friend so ashamed of her hair. I used to think the naturals who preached about self-hate in relation to hair were tripping, but I see that in some cases, it really does exists.

Length and stuff

I figured out part of the reason why it's hard for me to have 2 day hair. It's the length and possible texture in the nape, ear and temple area. These are the parts of my hair that are less culry than the rest. The rest of my hair is either very wavy or tightly coiled spirally type things. The nape/ear/temple has very loose and frizzy curls. My hair appears longer and thicker in those areas than the rest of my hair. So I tend to want to wet it everyday to make it shrink and not look so long compared to the rest.

Wonder if there is any way to fix this. Suggestions?