Sooo Unnatural!

2010 hair!

2010-07-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

Video coming about what's been going on and another video about my new hair style! There will be pictures too! Yea!

Oops! Hair update!!!

2010-02-26T14:45:00.000-08:00

I had a trip where I needed travel size bottles. So I tried an all garnier fructis process! loved it!!!!

It was the daily fortifying shampoo and conditioner. Then I used the leave-in like normal. And then the sleek and shine styling cream. LOVES IT!

I'm so gonna start doing this way. My hair always comes out soft, but it was super soft. Also, it was not at all greasy. It could be a little shinier, but I'll work on that.

I STILL need to get my ends cut...lol, perhaps this week.

Also, I am gonna wait til Easter and then see how much growth there is and cut off the blonde. So once all the blonde is gone, that should take care of all the ends.

I'm doing that because I want black hair...

I want black and then I'm going to dye ONLY that center patch of hair this time. It will be a way lighter blonde than last time so that my rinses take better. And then I will be able to do my rinses without heat for more temporary coloring.

It is LONG! Can't wait until I get money to get it straightened!!! Yea!

winter style1

2009-10-15T17:45:00.000-07:00

I finally remembered to post photos! These are with my hair, not the wig lol! Forgot to take pictures those days. So same idea but with a bang coming down. A few times I let the hair fall in the back but it got to be hot or itchy. As it gets colder I will let more hair hang when i rock the wig though.

For my hair, I just parted the "bang area" from the rest. Then I used bobby pins to hold the sides back. This was nice for the past 2 days as it has been rainy and kind of cold. So even though I had to wash my hair, and leave with it wet, my hair was protected and my head was kept warm. I made sure to put extra moisturizer on my hair. There is gell on the "bang area".

I think it's cute!

Fall hair!

2009-10-09T20:53:00.001-07:00

I got some hats! I got 3 (so now i hve 4) from Forever 21. Yellow (mustard), hot pink, and gray. So cute! I will take pictures maybe tomorrow with them on. I never uploaded the video cuz i forgot lol!

I been thinkin bout straightening my hair myself. But it has been rainy and just got warm again...so if i do i migt have to wait until like the end of the month. We will see.

I am in school and have a new parttime job sooooo that will obviously factor into time and when/if i can do my hair. It is just soooo thick that i know it will take forever, it always has lol. Even in those pics i posted a longtime ago, and it was short (After the fiasco), it took like hours! But i do know some ways to help it andddd i also think the fact that the back is longer will help cuz it will be easier to grip.

The way i did before and will probably do when i finally get time is this (not spending any money except to get the ends clipped!):

wash, etc

leave-in conditioner and moisturizer mix like usual, no gel

here is the change....i will use a little extra moisturizer cuz the one i use is also a good heat protectant (the ORS olive oil lotion) mixed with some glossing polisher.

Gonna use my 1 inch ceramic iron and i'll do it in the same wrap style i always do. After that, i will go ahead and clip the ends i can or just go straight to get it trimmed. we will see about that part.

Oh! so i mentioned my hair being dry lately. So I have been off and on doing the wig with the beret thingy. Well today it was dry even after i added the moisturizer, i thought maybe an oil to seal it so i put glossing polisher on top, did the charm! Not greasy but it help the moisture in, i was glad! Feels good....plus it was warm today so that helped lol!

If i do straighten it this month, i will def take pictures and maybe do a video. I looked at my calendar today, i forgot I had sechedule myself to straighten my hair on the 25th lol! we will see, maybe i will!!!

Protctive hats

2009-10-03T18:24:00.000-07:00

I posted this photo in my Protective style entry about my wig. I love these type of hats! so cute
These 2 pictures were from my phone, today i wore my wig out with this hat thingy on top.

So see mine is very plain jane. it was like $2 at Sallys or some other hair store.

Last night i looked up those hats....the cheapest i saw was like $5 at Forever 21. Okay that's cheap except i want like 5-10 of them. And i know me, i get bored over time and quit wearing stuff for a while only to pick it up in a few years (or the next cold season lol). And we know i'm broke. Investing $25 to $50 is not the business.

I started thinking, can i find fabric like this? Sweaters and such? I will have to see, but if it is over like $3 a yard, then i dont want it cu i might as well buy it. I did find really good simple patterns. Some involved knitting....I can sew but have no idea how to Knit. My mom said i could learn....so i am looking at youtube videos and u know what, duh i dont have time to LEARN a whole new skill like that right now!!!

Well when looking up stuff to see is it crocheting or knitting i saw dollies like ppl put on tables!

I had thought about cutting sweaters i buy at a thrift store but was like, can u cut sweaters? well perhaps i can go find dollies!!! they are already circles and such..and tend to be white or cream so they can be dyed. I am gonna look into this tomorrow.

Going to Hancocks and a thrift store.... and walmart if i do need to get yarn or sweater fabric. u can do it with like fleece and felt and stuff but i like the sweater look, it slouches better to me.

In case you forgot, the wig is not quite done and there are issues with the shaping, sooooo these hats let me be able to do something cute and me while wearing my wig and protecting my hair until i am able to full on wear the wig. Very similar to how i always wore different scraves when i had my sew-in

let's see how this play out tomorrow....i am gonna still look at see if i can learn to knit quickly or not, she says it is easy.....cuz there were tons of good quality yarns for $2!

Protective Style

2009-10-02T20:02:00.000-07:00

Who knows if i'll be able to for real wear this wig for Halloween......wanna do spiral curls with the bang, it may help since it is so big anyway.

If all else fails i'll wear those little beanie hat things? idk what u call them, it's in the video. Point is this wig will be my protective winter style. It has only been cool a few days and my hair is already drier ugh.

So i def need to start wearing it soon.

I plan to be able to do less to my hair. But first i need to go get my hair trimmed. Since it is cool, i am debating on a few things.

I could straighten it myself and see how it looks plus wear it down a couple days and go get it trimmed at Great Clips.

They aren't the best but they are cheap and they do fairly well if you just tell them EXACTLY what you need from them.

Or I could go to a barbershop and have them do a shape up. Barber is $20 plus tip. Greatclips is $14 plus tip and may be less cuz i think i have a coupon. Idk if they are good with fros and not willing to take that chance. So Sunday morning I may wash and deep condition my hair and blow it out and straighten it, and then go to Great Clips. I think? gotta check their hours....They close at 5pm on Sundays....that wont work. Maybe I'll do it tomorrow instead even though i just deep conditioned yesterday. We'll see, I guess i need to detangle more that deep condition it :)

So it will just be for sake of looking and getting it cut cuz i'm sure it will only last a couple days, it's always humid here ugh.

After that, i'll be wearing the wig. I'll do all the normal stuff except i wont have to pick or style my hair after i moisturize it.

Also, i want a tighter wig cap cuz my hair is still big under mine and it makes the wig look weird.

I guess here is a picture of those hats.

Hats look really cute on me and i especially like these lately. i got one from a hair store less cute but it works well enough.

I want some more but i see they are a little pricey....to the thirft store i go or maybe platos closet i guess. I'm so broke.

If i can get a ton of cute hats and stuff, then i can wear the wig . we'll see what happens.

the video

2009-09-30T21:44:00.000-07:00

okay, i reviewed the video and realized something....my camer does not record very well so it is kind of blurry and not as light as i would have liked....so i may post snippets of the video to show before and after, but i am gonna do another video with my computer so it is clearer. lol

Work!

2009-09-28T21:19:00.000-07:00

I worked on the wig! So these are some new pictures of it! Isn't it cute????

I know it is not perfect yet....and some ppl said it looks like a wig still. I know! I'm gettin there!

I need to take down some of the volume on the sides, but lord, we lucky the bang dont look a hot mess lol, i will figure that out eventually.

Anywho, for this still be my first wig and my first time cutting any type of hair, i think it looks pretty good! Funny thing is, the fullness is probably how my hair would look in this style cuz it is so thick. Remember the red from last year before the first cut? Very voluminous. I pulled the front flatter and it was cuter, so it is a little more about smashing it down a little than real cutting. At lest for the sake of not messing it up, :)

I also tried it with one of those net thingys, it was cute. So maybe if i am uncomfy with the full volume, i'll where it with that. I liked it. And right after i took it off, the wig was flatter, and looked better. I think the bigg thing too is my hair! even with the wig cap, my hair is kind of big. So when i push down on my hair, it flattens out. I wish i could cornrow lol! or at least flat twist. I'll figure that out i guess.

VIDEO COMING TOMORROW!

I worked on the wig!

Nicki Minaj Wig!!!!

2009-09-28T19:03:00.000-07:00

That's what I am calling my first wig lol! cuz everything i am bout to do to it is very much like her hair.

The bang

The color

I found a video on cutting a bang, so I know how to do that.

I want to buy a 1/4 or 1/2 pack of blonde so I can dye it (rinse it) pink or purple or both. And i will insert the 2 dyed track in the back on the under layer so i can pull them forward when i want to :)

Pictures soon!

Tyra Banks/Joy Bryant

2009-09-28T09:28:00.001-07:00

Too happy i didn't care to try to see Tyra debut her "natural hair", lol! I just knoew it would be anticlimatic!!! Her heart was in the right place but how u gon have a relaxer talkin bout love your natural hair? smh!

Joy Bryant came out with a blog like a sarcastic ode to her weave. And one of the hair blogs i read i follow on twitter and FB....her and other subscribers were saying how they felt sorry for Joy Bryant and her insecurities.

Did we read different blogs? They say they got the sarcasm but read between the lines....i think they added between the lines. She talked about loving being able to switch it up. Duh! that's why ppl love them. Please beleive if i could afford them or had more money to make more wigs, i would be rockin them all the time! well not really but like often. Cuz i could be short and natural one day, long and straight the next without damaging my hair.

I personally like wigs more. Cuz I can easily get to my hair. I can wash it, moisturize it, then throw on a cap put the wig on and done.

I had a sew-in once and i wasn't feelin it. It didnt look bad but my hair didnt blend 100% with the hair cuz of color issues and length and humidty....which let's remove length and call it humidity cuz that was what was causing my hair to stick up. And then i never was a fan of cornrows.

I love how cute they are but after a couple days the cute goes away as i remember i cant easily stratch my head! ugh!

So I am more of a wig girl now that i learned how to make my own wigs.

But i just feel like a lot of women aren't open minded. They are either ultra relaxer, ultra natural. And very few of us fall in the middle where we understand it all!

I relaxed my hair last year for a new months and realized very fast that i was no longer into them and cut it off. I know i love my natural hair and don't want to harm it by straightening it too much. Also, when u straighten often your hair gets used to it and won't curl up after a while. I like my fro!

Full weaves are expensive and alot of ppl cant do them good. Plus the itchiness lol for me anyway.

So i am def a wig girl in the making!

Just need more money so i can afford more hair to make more wigs :D

Happy Anniversary!!!!!!

2009-09-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

lol, i didn't do the video yet. Sorry! i was out of town and had alot going on this week. So perhaps next week, i will.

I so need to go get it trimmed though, i think i will do a before and after trim video/pictures, so yeah.

I am going to shampoo it this week to try to make more of this rinse wash out because I just want it out lol!

Oh and i am gonna cut my wig, with a bang cuz i wanna wear it for Halloween. I am gonna be a "Wizardary School Girl" so it would had too the nerdy if i have a bang lol! So cute!

one week

2009-09-18T15:18:00.000-07:00

In 4 days it will be my anniverary! September 22, 2008, i cut off my hair after i had it relaxed for a few months trying to have a change and then realized i in fact was not a relaxer girl anymore lol!

So on that date, my hair was the extra low cut i love love love. I had pictures on my old phone, but if u look at any previous posting with my ultra low cut, thats what i had. Since then i have only had trims, not cutting! And it will be a whole 365 days of continuous growth!!!!!!!

I was considering picking it out today but i think i will wait until then. I think before i pick it out, i will flat iron a couple areas, cuz lord knows i dont feel like doing it all. But i might do a couple areas. If not, i will still pic it out for a good fro pic and I will also post photos of me pulling it straight in significant areas with postings of my hair straight before to show the length.

I am so excited

But i have had the itch to cut it. to prevent that, i am looking into ideas for new styles i could get when i get a job and get some money to keep up stuff.

In the mean time, i can start rocking my wig cuz it is getting cooler!

I am gonna see if I can get some more hair to do a new wig. If I am able to get the hair, i will be cutting the wig i have so it has a bang. I said before that it is a little thin near the swoop separating point so i would have to add hair. but if i keep it straight and just cut a bang, it is full enough.

I am still a broke student, so for real if my mom or anyone asks what i want for christmas/graduation, i will say money for hair! lol! and i will be down at the hair store, buying some more hair. I'll get a half bag of blonde too, so that i can rinse strips of it different colors and put them into my wigs when i want to! If i am able to cut this wig with a bang, it will def be Nicki Minaj inspired with color on the under layers.

I'll do a new post of styles i want to create with wigs....so my new hobby!

Big hair

2009-09-16T13:16:00.001-07:00

My hair is still growing, getting bigger.

I have not deep conditioned in like 2 weeks and am so paranoid lol. I will finally have time tomorrow. So i will def do the 12 hour sitting. I'll also plan to pick it out, so i may have pictures to put with the ones from last time i picked it out in like June or something?

I have knots, ugh! i try to snip but i think it is just time for a real trim!

Baking soda, Sallys, etc

2009-08-30T08:49:00.001-07:00

Okay, i still have not remembered to buy some baking soda to try that baking soda thing. I keep forgetting, oh well.

I forgot i had a $5 off coupon for sallys that expires tomorrow, so today i will go and get another thing of deep conditioner since it is so expensive, ugh!.

I have not used shampoo in over a month....or 2? So, I am considering doing it in a couple days when i do my deep condition. Just to be sure I have been getting my scalp clean good enough.

OMG, my hair is so soft. I had not touched it a whole lot til yesterday. It dried and i happen to feel it and wow! it is so soft! Amazing!

headbands

2009-08-26T11:14:00.000-07:00

I am just now deep conditioning today, had too much running around to do to do it other days. So I'll just let it stay on all day like i did last time for 12 hours, came out super soft.

I bought these headbands. This set and another that was more bright and metallic. Ummmm, idk how i liked it on me. I will have to try it again with my fro picked out.
Lol, short entry, that's it!

Greatness!

2009-08-23T09:54:00.001-07:00

So i washed my hair last sunday when i deep conditioned and then wednesday. That 12 hour deep condition was great, and it has been soft! so i am gonna stick with twice a week! It is less time-consuming and still works well.

Taking the conditioning cap back....i also have to find this $5 off coupon i had so i can get some of those cute hair accessories they have in the front. I hope it's where i think it is! yea!

This week

2009-08-16T19:31:00.000-07:00

So i have been deep conditioning most the day, need to wash this out, lol! Umm, i bought a conditioning cap, you attach it to your hand dryer but it was hot in my house so i never used it. I will try next time.

Somehow i made it a wek withut washing my hair because i was afraid of falling again. The amount of conditioner i need for my hair is getting out of hand. So now my tub gets really really slippery. Sometimes i forget to put comet down as soon as I get out. Well forgot bad after not only washing my hair but also coloring and deep conditioning. extra slippery. So i was standing on a wash cloth i hand drying in there, stepped off and fell. pulled my back my arm my shoulder and hit my shoudler. I was in pain.

I ran out of comet after that day. So until i went to the store, i was paranoid, so i just didnt wash my hair lol. It took it pretty well actually, was still soft throughout the week, still looked good. So i might try washing it less. It did itch a little more though, so maybe i will wash only twice a week. Like Sunday and Wednesday. We shall see.

I need to try a new style i am getting bored with this....but there is only so much i can do with bobby pins, lol!

Color!!!!!!

2009-08-10T07:59:00.000-07:00

I just rerinsed my hair. Same Racy Wine, but i did my whole head. So I am a fushia-head! lol! I hate that it will look more and more red overtime but oh well. Read is cute on me!

I am still just cowashing a lot. It works out pretty good! I need to get my ends clipped, still have not done the sides. May have to check out some of these natural salons i heard about.

We shall see! I like leaving the black in cuz it let's me see how much my hair is growing! Yea!

Semi New Routine

2009-08-07T16:10:00.001-07:00

Okay, so i am currently just a cowasher....i have not used shampoo in like a month or so.

My hair does seem to be softer. I reversed the order a tad. Since the VO5 is so moisturizing it just sits if my hair isn't clean first. So I put the tea tree oil conditioner in first....it has sulfates in it like a shampoo so it gets it clean, then i put in the VO5 and then if i deep condition that day, it follows. I have still been putting EVOO on top of the deep conditioner.

My sides are knotty cuz i never trimmed them....totally forgot, lol. soooo need to do that one day.

Also my color is fading finally, so i am gonna redo it.....I might just do the whole thing this time, we will see. I will just look like a red head lol....

It seems to still be growing well, you can't tell until i pull it down cuz of the shrinkage. I won't be straightening in October cuz I can't afford it.....so it will be more like January or later depending on when i get some money!

Wigggggg

2009-07-17T17:46:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my wig....I have pics but the fro is making it look weird at the top. So my new style may be flat anyway. if it is, i will take new photos in the wig. I styled it and CLOSED IT and it looks good!

Right now it is pinn curled up to hold curls. It was pretty easy, the hair was from a sew-in i had. I have some extra hair (my sister left it here for a ponytail she had) and so i may use it to fill-in a couple spots. I have to see when i have my hair flat though.

It's really cute on me lol!

Late I know!

2009-07-17T17:35:00.000-07:00

Finally positing photos of the hair! So the pic below is with the twists in still.
Side view and you see my braids andddd the big twists in the back
My EVOO!!!!
THe pink comb, brush for the slicking back parts and water bottle
BRAID SPRAY IS DOING ME GREAT! A whole week and i can go a couple more days
Took the twists out in front
The ones in back lol

Pictures are out of order....had i looked at this one i would have known those 2 twists were back there....took 2 days for me to feel it. Fresh braids!!!!
Twists still...not bad!
Isn't this color cute! even if not showing right!

So as you can see one side is up more....there is a bobby pin holding it over.....both side picked over the braids was too even for me....i need off-centerness in my life!

The braids still look good! obviously not that fresh but realy good. I am gonna see when i can get them redone and wash my hair the day before that and deep condition. I want it done for my family reunion (next weekend) and my bday (the 29th!!!!!)

Yea!

2009-07-11T10:51:00.000-07:00

Photos coming soon!

The twists worked in some areas not in others, lol so i combed them out and went with a fro....I made the style a little more assymetrical. The symmetrical is cute but not me. When I get it redone, I will either have differnt numbers of the braids on each side or braids on only one side. I like it most when i see one side or the other. I think I'll do like 6 and 8 braids or the braids in diferent directions. I have this other idea for a style but gotta find a picture. Like Jonelle Monae but with braids! And some Prince styles but with braids!!!!!!!!! Yea!

Clipped Ends!!!!

2009-07-10T21:52:00.000-07:00

SO i got my hair done today and clipped my ends just a little while ago.

My same friend did my hair, pictures tomorrow!

I did good on my ends, but a couple small spots i cut a tad too much....not a huge deal.

It felt much better....i tried some twists in the front to pull it so it hangs little....probably wont work but we will try it.

Pictures tomorrow...i checked and that video is a little long so i may do it in parts as it is. Ummmm, so iguess that is all.

Oh I used my spray bottle to wet the area not braided, then i parted areas beginning in the front and worked backwards. As i finished a section i put my moisturizer mix on it and twisted it. At the end i rubbed evoo on the areas on style twisted or braided. and then i sprayed the braided and twists with braid spray. and i like to use a scarf for braids cuz i think the bonnet would rub it too much.

Oh my braids are a little extra hanging and he braided to the ends so no need for rubber bands, sooooo, i tried to twist them together to hold them down....hopefully the scarf will help lol!

Pics tomorrow! promise!

Midweek

2009-07-08T12:25:00.001-07:00

Decided to deep condition twice a week. Been planning to do that but i needed a good schedule for it. So I will do it on the weekends and then wednesdays. But the wednesday will be the old way, where i just saturate it and cover it instead of taking an hour to part and divide. The quick way i just kind of feel around and finger comb it and then detangle it. Takes 5 minutes.

Glad I put the EVOO on top of the conditioner, my hair is holding moisture really well this week! i like it!!!! I will def continue to do it that way! But forgot to buy more EVOO today, i think i have enough for a couple more times!

Bought more VO5 today, was gonna try a Fruitisse one but it was $5 compared to $1, i am broke, lol!

I got my shears! So i can finally clip these ends!!!! I think i am gonna do it when i put the deep conditioner in, so to a point i will have to part it all like usual.

May do a video....will upload the other one today if i remember!!!

And i am redoing my rinse today! plan to do it a tad different maybe!

update since deep conditioning

2009-07-07T18:15:00.000-07:00

Ummmm, so i will post it shortly....but basically i was deep conditioning (my long way) and i showed my growth!!!!!!!!

OMG! My hair is getting so long! I'm really excited that i decided to grow it out for real this time. I think I will be meeting most of my hair goals in October.

It is healthy and thick and strong!

It may shockingly be the Keri length! I'm bad with depth perceptions but I really think so! Judge in the video. I have until the end of October (not the beginning)....that leaves roughly 4 months, so about 2 more inches of growth. That is so so exciting!

It is getting past the odd over the ear length now, it is just about to the bottom of my ears. The back is really close to touching my shoulders!!! The front is touching my glasses now. The back itself is long, even from the middle. The middle area is getting there, it will help create nice layers!

So so excited.

Products to buy soon.......

-hair shears (for my ends)

-VO5 conditioner (it is working great)

-EVOO (will run out in a little bit)

something else but i forgot lol

IDk if i talked about it but....

2009-07-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

This is a product I really really want to try. I saw a girl on youtube....http://www.youtube.com/user/KinkyKurlyQueen

and she used the MaxiGlide. It is a safer straightening iron thingy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCzR_lR-SDc&feature=channel_page

She had the Maxiglide XP. I think it is like one side a cermaic plate and the other side is a brush. I have seen alot of these coming out lately but this is the only one i saw being used by a real person. I watch her videos on youtube regularly, so I have see her natural hair. It is expensive....like almost $100 but I really want one!!!!! I straighten my hair in October....so it will probably not get straight again til 2010 which will be probably when i have a job and can afford it!

http://www.maxiusbeauty.com/

Next Color

2009-07-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

So i wanna start trying other colors, and I went to Sallys cuz i currently use Jazzing but it has less options....well tons of options but most are plain, i need wow! so i was looking at these

http://www.sallybeauty.com/wild-haircolor/BTZ12,default,pd.html?cgid=Hair05-02

it is BEYOND TTHE ZONE COLOR JAMZ and there are several colors i want to try. %5.79 each so i ned a gift card or something. NExt colors i want, if you look on the right side are!!!!

Party Time Pink....cuz bubble head is similar to what i have and i wonder if party will be brighter.

Huckleberry Blue

Not So Shy Violet

Tripped Up Turquoise

Wild Red

See that is already $36 lol! So ummm yeah. I need to pick one and I will buy it. Probably the blue or violet cuz they are the most different. And they would look crazy fly for my birthday!

I think i read them before and they work the same as Jazzing.... i think.

http://www.sallybeauty.com/Sheer-Haircolor/SBS-320913,default,pd.html

This is what i currently have...The Racy Wine....mine reads more red, i think due to the under color. See how all those are subdued? ugh! i need brightness in my life!

Co wAsh

2009-07-04T08:56:00.000-07:00

when i cowash i do it like this: (forgot to say it)

VO5 Strengthing Conditioner

Tea Tree Oil Conditioner

Sometimes I add in the Silk Elements as a 3rd step or with the Tea Tree Oil.

I think i am doing this today when i deep condition cuz it is supposed to be HOT today and I need as much moisture as possible!!!

Moisturizer: Garnier Fruitisse Leave-In Conditioner, ORS Olive Oil Lotion, some glossing polisher

Style using Silk Elements Liquid Gel

I wore one side up for a week, I am either doing the other side or both sides this week! I will decide in a few when i see how it looks.

The pink is still looking good! It doesn't seem to be washing out yet (maybe because i havent used shampoo). It is supposed to last 8 washes. We shall see1

Weekly Stuff

2009-07-03T15:37:00.000-07:00

Did I talk about this before? My weekly routine?

I wash (cowash) my hair roughly every 2 or 3 days. I lately started only actually washing it once a week. I dont prepoo just cuz, it doesnt seem to make a huge difference.

Wash-->Tea Tree Shampoo

Condition-->Tea Tree Conditioner

Deep Condition-->Silk Elements Moisturizing Treatment with Olive Oil

I did it last Friday when I colored my hair (minus the washing cuz i did it a few days before). So tonight I am gonna do all that. I deep conditioned in 4 sections, i am gonna do that again now that it is long enogh lol, and i think i will wash it in the 4 sections too. It looked really good.

I was gonna try to go out but i'm not so that makes it a good time to try it out!

Surprise!!!!

2009-07-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

I need a better picture....like during the daytime. So it lloks like i dyed the front red, but it is actually a pink color....kind of fushia i guess. But it doesn't look like it unless it is semibright. But I love it. Also, i have been pinning one side back cuz with it normal i look like i have on a bozo wig. But i so love this color! and my hair iis growing alot! will post more pics later!!!!

Next Morning

2009-06-26T11:22:00.001-07:00

So sometimes when i wake up my hair is a tad dry....but it was still pretty soft this morning! And the grapeseed oil is unscented so i felt good!

Grapeseed Oil

2009-06-25T20:19:00.000-07:00

Okay, so finally found a store with peppermint oil....so expensive. I got grapeseed oil for my skin so figured i will just try that instead. I am mixing it with EVOO and will put it in at night before bed.....not alot. Just to massage my head and cover my ends!

I picked it out today, looks good! it is growing!

Peppermint Oil

2009-06-24T17:15:00.001-07:00

So I found places online to buy it but not a store. Well GNC has it but it is $20 for a $oz bottle.....no! so will have to order it! But I will be mixing it with some evoo that i have (you can't use it straight, it is too concentrated).

Anywho, I put in my moisturizer right before bed (deep conditioned late in the day), and it did help me sleep!!! so will def be moisturizing at night. And I guess since i wrapped it up right after, it was soft this morning. Will keep moisturizing at night!

I need to find something lighter though...(the peppermint) because my moisturizer is too heavy after a few days and so it would be heavy after one day.

Hair color

2009-06-17T19:33:00.000-07:00

Okay forgot this before....I also plan to"Refresh" my color in a couple months. I want it a little lighter, so i think i will get the next color brighter, because my rinses will take better, i think.

I think the next color up is Light Golden Blonde. So I will try that.

I am thinking about doing it in July (right befre my birthday!!!) but am concerned about the heat. So we will see. Gonna try the rinse again first.

Also, when i refresh my color, I am not planning to do the roots.......right after I colored my hair, I looked at a before picture and loved the black. And then i saw a picture of lil mama with her black and blonde and loved it. So I am going to keep letting the blonde grow down, so it will be a mix. I think it will make it more fun when i do rinses!!!!

And I always forget to do this, but i want to moisturize at night too.....one reason i want to try the peppermint oil. It will help me relax!

Summer 2009 plans

2009-06-17T19:20:00.000-07:00

Plans/goals!

Plans.....still waiting til October to straighten my hair. Recall i said never perming again! ever! no texlax! nothing of the sort, ugh! But what i decided to do as a treat to myself for making it a whole year (actually a year and a month). I will be finding a GREAT Dominican Salon and having them straighten it. That is 4 months from now. I am planning for October 26th to 30th....cuz Halloween is obviously the 31st and a saturday.

I am planning to get my hair trimmed soon....i may go to Curltopia. I have been keeping it up well, but have not had it trimmed in 6 months and think i should to be sure i dont grow it for nothing. I see and feel weird ends.

Since I met my "short" goal....the length where i said i would be happy if it got past my ears (going with the mushroom look). I am looking at longer now. By October i hope it will be shoulder length.....sounds like alot but it is actually close in the back now, so the sides can get there, i think. That puts the front probably down my nose, the sides at my chin and the back touching my shoulders.

Something I want to try is pepperment oil.

OH FORGOT! So I did move away from shampoo as often. I cowash mostly, shampoo like once a week. And it is working well. My hair holds the moisture better i noticed!

So yeah, gonna find a whole foods or just go to trader joe's and get some peppermint oil. Gonna deep condition a little more often (was doing once a week) now gonna do twice cuz it is HOT!

pictures coming soon....

forgot!

2009-06-17T18:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so have not written in here since march! dang! let's start with that hair style.

I had it for a week and forgot to get braid spray so it was itchy....nothing was helping it. it got dandruffy and i was done. but it was really simple and cute!

After taking it out me and my friend who braided it got busy so i never got it braided again like i said.

Easter, i colored my hair! GASP! I know I said i wouldnt but i did and am so happy because when i change my hair, it relieves stress. and honey! right after that there was tons of it!

So idk the color...it was dark and lovely and it was like a golden blonde (not the light golden blonde). My hair was DARK, so it came out not that bright but i like it. I did try the pink rinse on top of it, but you couldnt see it well. like just in a portion.

Oh! so, it has been growing very well....i picked it out about a month ago maybe? and it was pretty large. It could be longer for 8 months, but u know most of that was during the cold months. I am hoping it will grow more now that it is warm.

I am trying to be sure I keep it moisturized since it is so hot and it is colored. Have to keep up with that. The funny thing is, with the humidity, my curl pattern comes through really well.

But the shrinkage is crazy, so it looks short still. LIke it looks like it is the same length til i pull it and it's like wow! there is hair! and lots of it. Actually, i made avideo but it was long and never uploaded it. May make another. But it was like a short mushroom cut. Like i have a good length bang section. The ear area is past my ears, it is doing great! trying not to ramble so i will make a new post for my new goals. and another for photos!!!

Oh and my routine is roughly the same, but want to make one addition!!!!

Cute New Hairstyle

2009-03-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

LOVINGGGGG my new hair!!! Never did try to upload the video again because was too lazy. Made nother but yeah, need to edit it. So this is my new style....inspired by the one below!!!!!

Had my friend do the braids, so my whole head is braided going toward the direction of the ponytail. It is a drawstring kinky afro ponytail.

Differences:

Me: $10.00 drawstring ponytail smaller, less full......synthetic hair

Her: $250, not sure what kind of of weave it is but it is human kinky....like i dont know if it is drawstring or what.

I got this done 5 days ago, and i am trying...TRYING to keep it 2 weeks at least. I have a very dry scalp so it is itchy. I try to moisturize my scalp every day or 2 but still itchy like under the braids. Anywho, I want to try to get new braids every 2 weeks.

I want to redo this style but lower because the ponytail is a little high and short but i still like it. But not on the same side, I am gonna switch sides so both sides get the same thing done to them.

I like it alot though, and it am able to leave my hair alone better. No cutting or coloring!!!! Yea!!!! So I should do good. I think i am just gonna kind of continuously do this for bout 3 months (til July) then i will do a rest period and check my growth and all. Then keep it braided up again until October, and check my progress. It will be the warm months so i have to do it because these are the months where i generally will cut my hair off or try a new color. But yeah, so gotta find some more styles but for now i will keep rocking this one.

I really like the ponytail, i want to find some more ponytails though. This was my first drawstring ponytail ever!!! Yea!!!

I am oiling it using an applicator bottle that has ORS olive oil lotion mixed with some Parnevu Tea Tree Oil I had, it makes it easy. I just squeeze it onto my scalp and then rub it in between all the braids then i go back and rub it on the braids and on my edges.

MArch Update....video!

2009-03-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

Made a video but these things load so slow....idk why....so will do later....

i discuss my hair growth! It is roughly where it was when it was straight in june...looks like a short mushroom cut....it will be cute as a long one in October! Yea!!!!

Gonna try coil outs, twistouts, and braids to help with the growth!

Still plan to wait to color and straighten til October. Still plan on doing the blonde so I can rinse any color I want after that with my black. So excited about my growth!

Will post the video later today promise!

The Keri Hilson pic is of the style i am refering to in the video....the longer mushroom....that is also about the length i hope my hair is by then. I like it because it is versitile. You can wear it like that or you can change up the front for swoops and such. Kind of will let me cheat and have a bang!

As for the color pattern....I think i am just gonna go in a do it like randomly....like not have a set pattern like the front of the back or whatever, i am just gonna do what I feel cuz I want it to look good in a fro, and i want it to be kind of random not calculated. We will see.... I gotta get a highlight cap thing cuz i usually do my whole head.

But yeah, SO THE 2 pics of me above Keri are old from last summer....but like thats bout where my hai is when I pull it out! So it is actually growing a little better than i thought. Cuz like that was 7 months and this now is 6 months....haha, one month less. Soooooo 6 months, is twice of what is on my head now, that should be keri length even if it dont grow faster during the warmer months!!!!!

LONG HAIR DON'T CARE....YEAAAAAA!

March Hair

2009-03-05T06:55:00.000-08:00

I know i have been slacking off... i have been busy. So in a little bit I will go wash my hair and detangle and take photos. I never did before, so now i can't really tell how much my hair has grown, lol! So yeah will be doing that.

I detangled the other day and not much hair came out on the comb, that was good! So i think i am good on that. Not much shedding. But i have been stressed out so my hair is probably not growing like it should. I may have to get some biotin to help it along. Prefer not to cuz vitamins tend to do weird stuff for me. lol! We will wait and see. Otherwise, I have not changed much. I just try to stick with my plan. My hair seems to be doing well. It has been itching more lately, so hopefully that is growth and not dryness. I am gonna have to start applying moisturizer to my scalp at night since i dont apply it directly anymore. I just put the gel and mix in my hand and pull it through from root to ends. So yeah. Anywho, will be back with photos.

I have a friend whose hair looks great! I want mine to look like hers! It is so long! But she didn't cut hers for a whole year, lol. I have 7 months to go. Ugh and my hair is still so short! I gotta relax so it can grow like i want it to.

Oh also, i need to get stain pillow cases....because it gets hot in my room at night and wearing that bonnet does not help. At all....I feel like i am on fire sometimes it is so hot up there. like i was stuck in a oven while i was sleep! So yeah, i gotta work on that Because oh it is not working.

7 months left.....AHHHHHHHHHH. Lol....that means in 2 months i will get that itch to cut it. I already got the itch to color it, but i have been resisting because I know i can't until it is the amount i want. I hope all the cutting has not messed me up. Ppl always say that if you keep it short it wont grow....i hope that is a myth cuz i was cuttin like crazy. 7 month...october......oh Lord!

photos

2009-02-01T07:07:00.001-08:00

Okay, lol i decided to go ahead and do it since iwas thinking about it. I got nautral and straightened styles since i will be doing both. i will say why i like each photo.

Her curls are small like mine. See how hers are defined and cute, i like that. So hopefully i can get mine to that state. And i like this style, actually i prefer when you have your hair more to one side.
I just like bobs, lol! And i lprefer ones that have different lengths in the front. Like either it gets longer as you go around or if the fronts are slightly longer, i like this cut. i would do more fun stuff especially with that longer piece. Flip it, spiral it, etc.
This style is fly. I would like something like this. And picture pink highlights, i would look slightly punk even though i am not, but my outfits would bring it back to being me. I really like this cut.
i like bangs too. Styles like this are just sexy. But i only like the asymetrical look if it is a longer fuller bang.
I think the pink highlights would look good here too. If i get a bob like the first one up there, i could easily do this.
This too. I like flips and stuf in bobs....and layers, makes them more versitile.
I probably would not have waves all over, but in te front could be cute.
Picture this style shorter, i love this style though
Trying to find a spiraled front picture, lol!
i like her highlights, i could do my blonde like that and then the pink is more sporadic. That way if i do a patch in the front for my swoops and flips, it looks less funny.
I still love this color, lol! Since i am doing the highlights blonde, i could do this color too when i rotate between pink and blue violet.
I love bangs....but it is either bangs or swoops :(
Rihanna hair just be fly..... I wish i had that stylist. She does Rihanna and Keyshia Cole and other ppl. Her name is Ursala (not spelled right).
OMG! I just love Jill Scott, she is too gorgeous!!!!! And her hair is always fly! Maybe in like 2 years, my fro will be as gorgeous as hers!!!!!!!!
Love this style.....just picture me with it shorter. I have seen it on people with like chin length and longer hair and it is a style you can continue to wear no matter what. I love it. And i love this color. Keyshia is one of few ppl who rocked the 2 tone look correctly.

So those are all styles i have in mind. I obviously have to decide between the bangs and the swoop. And you can tell i am leaning more toward the swoop idea. i get bored with bangs easy and they get in the way. you can fake bangs with swoops.

8 months.....well i guess more like 9 since we are going for the end of October, Until S-day....straighten day, lol! My weight loss goal date is Halloween. I want to straighten my hair the week before that. So recall it has been about 4 months since i cut it. But there was not too much growth because i was stressed and going through stuff and still getting my routine and products together. So if you count when i got it together, we are looking at december-ish. So we will just see.

I think as i find hair i like, i will start adding it in posts, just sincei know i wont have much to talk about. I mean i do but you know as far as what my hair is looking like.

Some noticable changes

2009-02-01T06:54:00.000-08:00

My hair is showing growth. I can see it!!!!! Also, i am seeing the curls more and more. It looks good, i am happy. I think when it gets longer, it will look better. Still tiny curls but they will look alot better. That will be exciting! I think the growth is one track. A friend of mine who went natural like last February i think, she just straightened hers after almost a whole year and it was to her shoulders. We all know the length of my hair at 7 months, lol! So i need to make it past the 7 month mark for real this time. I am just ready to have long hair again. It will be a nightmare to do though, lol! Like now i can deep condition in the shower and the styling part takes a couple minutes. When it gets longer, i am gonna have to for real deep condition it to get it all. And i am going to have to part sections and all.

I saw a process of how you shingle...it is a style alot of ppl use. I dont know, i need to see it on different model. That one had really loose curls, i want to see it on someone with hair more like mine.

That is about it....if my hair is like hers in the ear (october) i will be able to color it. I think i will just go to a salon and get it cut into a style (not a lot of cutting), just in layers, and then i will cut it. I meant to find photos to upload. i will do that. not of me this time, of styles i want to be able to do.

Mid-January

2009-01-20T15:18:00.000-08:00

My hair is doing well. I have not started working out yet. The beginning of school was not the time to start. Actually it was the sleep issue, lol! I got that together now, so yeah. So I have not been washing all the time yet. But it looks good, I tried putting the moisturizer mix and gel on at the same time. It came out pretty good, and the hand thing is working out. Happy with it! It is itchy....let's hope it is growing!

Busy and not much changing, just decided to do short updates.

Official Update is Here

2009-01-11T08:44:00.001-08:00

Okay, with my hair being so short, and it being humid this week, I think I won't detangle for a little bit. The one day it was no humid out, it came out good still, but it keeps raining.....i think the weather got confused and said "oops, i forgot to make it rain in the rain season, let's catch back up". LOL!

I say that cuz yesterday, i didn't feel like detangling and i knew it was raining and it came out better, the curls were defined.

My issue is still that my curls are so small....like you know how people have like the big curls? Mine are so tiny, and when i try to finger curl using my hair, it looks like a knot of something. I remember when my hair was long after the first 7 months, that it was still small curls but bigger. So perhaps as it gets longer, they will just stick out better. I will see, I just wish i had the bigger looser curls. OH WELL!

Update

2009-01-08T09:39:00.001-08:00

Don't feel like doing a video and posting all.....and this is short.

So did the cowash half of the routine again yesterday. And it was okay....not quite as curly, i may have combed/detangled too much. I am gonna try not detangling next time.

I have a huge issue with shrinkage sooooo that is a problem i am working with.

Also, i think i use to much moisturizier. I am gonna use less. I think i will apply it a little closer front to back but squeeze it less maybe.

My head is itchy.....but since i am doing the same stuff that helped it not itch, i guess it is growing! Ugh, ithat is what i hate about growing.....all the itching, lol! It does not itch bad yet, but enough. I think my hair grows faster when it is warmer out, sooooooo it may get bad in a few months....or if it decides to get warm again.

Also....school started this week. I am gonna try not to stress out and all. When i was stressed and down at the end of 08, nothing happened, but at the beginning of 08 when i was stressed my hair was falling out. Like I would wash it and there would be hair all over the tub, ewwwwwwww. So, yeah....let's not have that.

New Routine

2009-01-05T18:21:00.000-08:00

The website I mentioned is http://cosmeticdatabase.com/index.php

Enjoy!

Video!!!!!

2009-01-04T20:58:00.000-08:00

My first video! Yea! Please excuse the low quality and my random confused expressions, lol! I am still figuring this out.

wig photos...

2009-01-02T21:30:00.000-08:00

Finally got them all uploaded....took forever, but anywho so these are pictures with the same wig but this first set i pushed it back to look shorter.....excuse my expressions....i was on ichat while taking them, lol!

I think this is around the length it will be by the end of the year....but it will be cut into a bob so it will look a little fuller.

I took these on my phone, whick is why they are a tad blurry. But this is the full wig and maybe my hair will be this long.....sometime in 2010?

Right here is where i VERY QUICKLY cut off the length to show it more bob like....my photoshop skills are way better than this but i did it in like 5 minutes (for all the photos not each lol).

That one is cute...the above, lol! The most bob-esque i think

Cute too!....even though it is blurry

I like this one too!!!!!

So below is where i played with the pink.....again very quickly done, lol....within that same 5 mintues.
was trying to show a flipped pink piece...pretend (i will find photos later)

under layer pink
i like this picture! lol

under more

a little of both....still a nice style!
Soooooooo, this is basically what i have been talking about. Let's hope i can reach these goals....especially those ones i really loved, oh that would be great to have when i start interviewing!!!!

First Wash of 2009 details

2009-01-02T21:20:00.000-08:00

Okay, so i forgot to put in the pre-poo while i was doing stuff, lol! So i just decided to give the shampoo and conditioner alone a whirl. And OMGGGGGGG! I missed shampoo that tingles....and I have never had conditioner that did. My head feels amazing right now! Yeaaaaaa!

And I realized some flaws in my regimen. So I will be washing everyday now becaue I will be working out. I dont want to over shampoo...or deep condition 800 times a week. So I think I am going to wash 3 times a week, cowash 4 times a week, and deep condition on the wash days. My workout schedule is 6 days a week. 4 cardio only, 3 cardio with strength, so I think I will be washing on cardio/strength days and cowashing on cardio only days. But where does that leave day 7???? LOL! Oh, i already accounted for it, never mind!

I need to start talking about other stuff....eventually i will start posting photos i find of styles i like. Oh and the photos i took earlier, I will put up tomorrow probably!

I found my wig!

2009-01-02T15:14:00.000-08:00

LOL! So thought i would post some photos i took. It is actually a long wig, but i pushed the length to the back so it would look like a bob! This is where i expect/hope my hair will be by the end of the year! The wig's length is like 3 inches longer than it looks here....maybe 4.

Just realized that i would have to change the format, so since i have to do that, i will go in photoshop later and actually "color" where i want it to be pink, so there are live photos.

Coloring thoughts

2009-01-02T09:37:00.000-08:00

I know i talk about this like i am doing in tomorrow, but it helps me think of all the possibilities BEFORE it is too late.

So previously I said I would dye all my hair blonde and just add rinses. But that could get pricey. So I remembered before when i was gonna go my hair out (and nver did), i was going to let my fro get fairly large and then do like a "triangle" of color on the top. Like from my forehead to almost the top center. And back then it was gonna be a blonde area with red all around.....still diggin that idea, but i want to preserve all the strength i am giving it. especially on the sides and back. My hair grows well but those areas tend to get a little weaker because i lay on my sides especially. So I think what i might do instead is do that idea. But keep the rest black. So this would put my area that can be dyed on the top of my head, not on the under part, but i think that is okay. because when it grows out, it will end up toward the bottom anyway. And the styles i have in mind work well with that.

When I have hair, I am a bob person....They have always complimented me well, and i love them. They can be both chic/sophisticated and fun/playful. And as long as you don't have a definite bang, they are versitile. Part on the sides, the middle, or my fav was no part at all (although that was back when i had a dandruff problem, lol).

Also, maybe i do the triangle one time, then when it grows out, maybe i will move the area, that way i test it out. And when my fro gets really big (in like a few years), it is possible that it wont look bad having 2 colors on the sides. I just know with a smaller one, it could look a little funny.

Triangle-point will begin at the forehead and go back. It may also be a diamond. And i dont know if it will begin in the center of my forhead, it could be off to a side a tad bit. If it is off to a side, then if i part it or just push my hair in that direction, it would end up under the black automatically.

The coloring will take place after the first couple straightenings. I want to be sure i have a good amount of hair first. I am thinking I want my hair to be at least past my chin before i begin coloring. By that i mean my hair on the sides and back. The front is always shorter for me, so it might be at my chin (10-11 inches). It is highly possible that the coloring may not even happen in 2009. But my hair is full, and the fullness does help when there is less length, so if i feel it is a good and full bob, i will do it. The area that will be colored will most likely be like a flip or spiral or swoop of hair that extends from the top to one side. I don't plan for it to be the full length of my hair. Which is why the fullness plays a big part. When i straighten it, if there is an area that is like at least between my eyes and nose, i will go ahead and color it.

And if all else fails I can be Cleopatra Jones for Halloween! LOL! Oh which reminds me, i need to work on my revised idea of a Harlee Quinn outfit.

First Wash of 2009

2009-01-02T09:25:00.000-08:00

I have photos somewhere of my hair before....i will just use some christmas photos i think, lol! Oh wait, i got it cut since then.....well looks the same.

So anyway, I am about to wash my hair with my new products and test my styling stuff. I put some of the gel on my hair last night just to see and that spot was still soft....good look!

Recall, if all goes well my new regimen is as follows:

PREPOO using mix of VO5, ORS Olive Oil Lotion, Tea Tree Oil (ORS or Parnevu is what the other one is).

WASH using TTO shampoo, TTO conditioner, and Silk Elements Moisturizing Treatment.

STYLE using mix of Garnier Fruitisse Sleek and Shine Leave in conditioner, Olive Oil Lotion. Then applying Silk Elements Liquid Gel.

Oh forgot to state changes.

I will apply the prepoo every morning when i first get up and put on a plastic cap before my workout. That way I can be doing something and the heat generated will help it work.

For the wash, i am thinking of another way. I always get in the shower wash m hair and all those steps put in the deep conditioner and then bathe. But i think I will wash my hair and all, put the deep conditioner in, do the other getting ready stuff, then get in the shower and bathe and rinse it out. That way it has longer to work. Then once I get out the shower, i just have to lotion up, get dressed and style my hair. I will continue drying it with a scarf, i like that :)

And of course I will wear my new bonnet at night or when lounging around.

Sally's Visit

2009-01-01T14:31:00.000-08:00

Oh! I am happy I was too lazy to get up and go to Sallys the last few days, today there is a sale! Don't know how long it will be going, but yea!

So I got the Shampoo and Conditioner for 2 for $10 (5 each) instead of $8 each! And I got some more of my beloved deep conditioner (on sale for 6.99) and I got the liquid gel (not on sale but only 3 something). And 2 applicator bottles (2 for $3, instead of 1.79 each). And i got a bonnet. didnt get the one i mentioned because i would have to pay 2.39 every month and a half, no thanks. So i got one that was 2.49 but is supposed to stay on your head (as opposed to friction with the pillo pushing it off).

I also went to Publix and bought some Vo5 conditioner and more Fruictisse. Sally's had the Silk Treatment butttt i opted to leave it because it was 7.99 for a kind of small bottle. I didnt feel it was worth it. The Fruitisse was actually cheaper at PUBLIX than at WALMART.....major gasp there! It is usually 3.94 at walmart, it is 3.23 at publix. I went to 2 because the one by Sally's was out of it, but that's where i saw the price. So i was going to go to the one right by my house on the way home, but i was next to another one when i ran other errands. So yea! Saved money twice! The VO5 is like anywhere between .78 and .94 at walmart...it changed at some point, soooo yeah, but at publix it is 1.09 so i bought 2.

I talk about reorganizing my entire life in my fitness blog (not there yet, doing it after this one), and i mention reorganizing my whole apt. As part of that, i have issues throwing things out sometimes, so stuff i know i wont use, i will just put in the back or in a box in my vanity, but i am gonna sort the stuff that is in my current routine and have it up front and read. Although i have alot, so it is possible the current stuff will all be on the vanity with the rest stuffed underneath, lol! we shall see!

So, this is my official product list.

Pre-Poo

-VO5 strengthening conditioner

-ORS Olive Oil Lotion

-Proclaim? Tea Tree Oil/ORS Tea Tree Oil

Wash

-GVP Tea Tree Shampoo

-GVP Tea Tree Conditioner

-Silk Elements Olive Oil Moisturizing Treatment

-Shower comb

Style

-ORS Olive Oil Lotion

-Garnier Fruitisee Leave-in Conditioner (Silk and Shine?)

-Silk Elements Liquid Gel

Okay, with that said, I still have alot of my CON shampoo, so I might just give that bottle to someone. I think I have more because I stopped washing twice everytime. And I Co-wash more. I read about shampoos not being really good for you and blah blah blah, but whatever. I just dont want it to be wasted and just sit there in my cabinet. As for the Biolage, there is not much left in it, so What I will do is, I will use it up, but i think i will use it when I co-wash. I wash my hair like every other day usually, so maybe once a week i will use it instead of the tea tree one. It was too expensive to just use in my pre-poo, lol. And once it is gone, then that will be the end of it. As for the style section. I think that area is fine. It will all be done wet, so it should be fine.

I got 2 applicators, probably dont need both, but oh well. So the shampoo is gonna go in one of them. Shampoo is supposed to be applied to your scalp only, not your hair (because of the danger issue....sulfates i think). The rule is shampoo your scalp, condition your hair. So i will use that to apply it directly to my scalp. The pre-poo will go in the other one. And the style section obviously in the one it is in now. Luckily my vanity should not be too crowded. But i will have to put the bottles in something alone.

Wash stuff will just be in the shower, but the pre-poo stuff and style stuff will need to go under the sink.....crowd city down there once i get stuff situated (perhaps a box is betteR). So just the applicator bottles and the gel go on my vanity. I decided to do alot of the bottles because when i traveled recently, i had way less huge bottles. so it was alot less stuff i had to take with me! I will continue that. I keep my deep conditioner in a really small food container (it never goes back in the kitchen), and it holds about 2 to 3 washes worth of conditioner. Maybe I should save the biolage for when i travel. It is a smaller bottle than the tea tree conditioner is. I dont travel much but it is a thought.

I may start combing the pre-poo with the comb too, i will think about that. Oh! speaking of combs. So i looked at the comb in the store. It looks just like mine BUT the teeth are actually closer together and it is smaller. Also, the balls are like silicone covers at the ends of the teeth. A quick way to cover a manufacturing issue if you ask me, and luckily it worked out. I will keep mine. It was about the same price, maybe cheaper. Okay, soooooo, i think I covered everything.

Oh forgot, so in the fitness blog i discuss getting back on my workout plans. This will help my hair too, because being healthier promotes hair growth! yea!

See, it is a brand new me!

Products I want to Try in 2009

2008-12-31T20:23:00.001-08:00

I guess I will do categories

Washing products

Styling Products

Electronics

I guess that is a good way to break it up, lol!

Washing

GVP Tea Tree Oil Shampoo

-is supposed to be highly compareable to Paul Mitchell, so that is good. It will be 5.79, not back. The shampoo cleanse and stimulates your scalp and aids with growth. I miss shampoos that make my scalp tingle, i think i mentioned before the Doo Gro one i used to use.....i checked the label (my mom has it), that stuff is also a thickener! nooooooooooo thank you!

GVP Tea Tree Oil Conditioner

-so I know I have conditioners, but i am curios as to how this would aid the shampoo. And it is cheaper than the Biolage (15) at 8.49. So i may get it when the Biolage runs out, which could be soon, lol! Cuz I use a good amount at a time.

Jilbere Shower Comb

-shower detangler, but will wait on this...it is only 1.29 though, but it looks the same as mine, so not a major priority.

Deman Brush

-so these are also for detangling, but like it is 7.49.....i saw ppl with looser curls use it in blog videos and all. Sooooo, perhaps the comb is better for me.

Styling (includes anything after washing)

GVP Silk Treatment

-okay so this product is basically a leave-in conditioner that can be used on wet or dry hair. It is supposed to be weightless and ads all the stuff i want. And I wonder if it is like Silk elemnts stuff. Cuz that stuff keeps my hair sooooo soft. If i can replace the Fruitisse with this, that would be cool. It is 6.99. The Fruitisse is like 4 something (a little more :(

Hair Rules Curl Cream

-it is like 18 (expensive), so i want more info on it. I have a friend who used it before, but was not like oh it was this or that, so it must just be okay....not at Sallys

Kinky Curl

-I see this brand alot but i dont think Sallys has it so i would have to go find it.

Go Curly Styling Serum

-okay, so i dont know much about this stuff but I am looking for one that is not so expensive, so i may try it out. I will see when i go to the store.

Silk Elements Designing Silk Mousse

-It is 3.50...I don't like mousse sometimes, i have some now, but it makes your hair a little hard at times. Not sure if this one will.

Silk Elements Liquid Styling Gel

-it is 3.69, it says that it leaves your hair silky (clearly i like silk elements), as a gel it stood out that it is liquid and it says it does not leave residue or make your hair crunchy and all the bad gel stuff. Sounds more like Jam, and i loved me some Jam but hated the smell. I love the smell of silk elements stuff. And I have been looking for a gel that brings out the curls. Definately gonna research this. I guess what i would do is try mixing this and the GVP treatment stuff in place of the olive oil, fruitisee mix. Or keep the olive oil. That bottle is huge, so i will have it forever, lol!

GVP Smothing Serum

-comparable to Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum, so a good look. it is now on the website for 5 hmmmmm, might need to save a couple dollar and get it now! lol! So I heard the paul mitchell is amazing and this is too. It will be what i use when i start to straighten my hair again. After July.

ELECTRONICS!!!! LOL excited

GVP Pro Low EMF Turbo Hair Dryer

-okay so nowthat i look at this one, not sure why i picked this one. it is not a ceraminc, lol. So i am not sure....oh wait i looked, it is. Okay, sooooo ceramic and it is 64.99

Hot N Silky Gold Barrel Professional Tourmaline Hair Dryer

-this one is ceramic i guess, and made by silk elements, so yeah, clearly why i picked it. 33.99

GVP Ceramic flat iron

-not on my wish list but if my current 2 dont work okay after a while i will try it. But they work just fine and when it gets long, I can use the 2" again. So not a high priority but it is comparable to the CHi and all it's hype so whatever.

Tangle-free Hot Aid Brush Iron

-so this interests me, i heard about them on this blog i like and you can straighten your hair. I hear it is way less heat and you can do it on wet hair, so that would be cool. it is 28.99, so i am really interested in trying this. Like if i need to touch up. And also, i was thinking instead of blowing out the roots with a blow dryer after straightening, or for touching up (cuz i will be working out again), this could be cool to quickly hit roots and edges.

Soooooo, I never said why i wanna use all these Paul Mitchell comparable things. I read interviews with this celebrity hair stylists that does not just quick weave everyone's hair, she actually takes good care of it, and she talks about how great those products are (the tea tree stuff and skinny serum) and i found from many sources that GVP really is comparable. Paul Mitchell is at Trade Secrets but gets pricey fast!

I am going to the store tomorrow, so i think my list will be as follows

GVP Tea Tree Shampoo and Conditioner

GVP Silk Treatment

Silk Elements Liquid Styling Gel

Magic Satin with gro Treatment Bonnet

Applicator bottle

I also need a new pillow case, buttt have not seen them in a while anywhere and i cannot seem to find them, so maybe the bonnet, cuz i have 2 scarves, that works good for my drying process.I have 2 pillowcases but like they are both well over 10 years old, and there are snags and all, so like there are spots that do pull. And the issue I have with scarves and bonnets is my apt gets hot upstairs (where my bedroom is), so i get overheated and take it off. I have a bonnet but the elastic broke, but i am able to keep it on without getting too hot, maybe because it is not double wrapped. The bonnet named above is the brand of scarves i had with the conditioners in it. I liked them, not sure that it really helped the growth but it did help it be softer. I liked that. it is 2.19.

And i am getting another applicator bottle to try out those new product mixtures. Whatever products get switched out for will go into my pre-poo mixtures. So they will still be used! I am so proud of me!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEARS! this was supposed to be done before 12, lol!

Hair Resolutions for 2009!!!!

2008-12-31T19:58:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I have been slacking off horribly! Ugh 2008 was such a not good year, especially the period where i did not write anything.....just wasnt not motivated!

So before the resolutions/goals....I got my hair trimmed on the 27th, and it is growing. Recall I cut it back in September. So, right now it is like 2 inches in the middle, 1 inch in the front. I am working on relaxing and all so it grows better. Luckily it has not been falling out but still.

Resolutionsssssssssssss

In short

-grow!

-strengthen!

lol! that is the short version. Here is the usual detailed version! yeaaaaaaaaa!

So, on average hair grows about an inch a month, and mine does pretty much that unless i stress for long periods of time or cut it. So my goals are based on checkpoints. These are my birthday (July), Halloween (October, duh), and 2010 (January, lol). So we wil just say 1 inch is what we have now, just for a even length.

July-8"

October-11"

December-13"

So that is assuming nothing happens....what I officially wrote down as my goal for 2010 is 10".

I love the thickness...shocking i know, but like in natural form it is like ahhhhhhhhh, too much, but when it is straight it is full, and Ihate seeing ppl with thin hair. Soooo yea, let us keep the thickness!

10" hair by 2010!!!!!

Strengthening....so i mean it is thick, and seems to take stuff really well, sooooo i am just trying to be sure it is. So i have been taking better care of it. :) Much much better! These are my changes I am making to my routine. Have to go to Sally's, tomorrow if they are open. I have a open list of my wish list stuff, I just sat down and researched tons of products I read about on blogs and stuff.

One thing I changed, not sure if i said it before, but in my bottle with the Olive Oil lotion, I added my leave-in and some glossing polisher. It works pretty nicely! My hair does not look dull black anymore, so i won't need to do the black rinse!

New Routine

prepoo - tea tree oil, lekair (or a conditioner i find that is cheaper)

wash - Tea Tree Shampoo (GVP equivalent of Paul Mitchell)

condition - Biolage (still...it is the strengthening conditioner, i love it)

condition2 - Silk Elements Olive Oil Moisturing Treatement (almost out but love it, it is the moisturizing deep conditioner. I comb it through with a detangling comb)

Moisturizing-the mixture i just talked about above. (Although, i am getting low on the leave-in....so I am going to switch it with a curl cream...still researching)

Okay, forgot some things.....so if not LeKair, I will just go to walmart and get some $1 VO5...i used to use it before, and i loved it :) Forget why i stopped.

Condition2, I am gonna either ge a Jibere shower comb or Denman detangling brush. Not sure which yet. I guess the comb cuz it is cheaper. I have a detangler now, so not a huge deal. The comb is $2, the brush is $9. I think for now, i am good. Mine could be better, ppl rave about that comb but i read one review that said the balls may come off the ends and it snags hair. Mine has a rounded end no balls. So it works just fine (and feels great)! So for now, comb. And what i noticed is that I used to just comb and detangle with the leave-in and then my hair would look blown out, no curls. But when i do it with the deep conditioner, it is detangled and curly when i rinse it. I like that :)

So curl creams, I am considering Hair Rule, Kinky Curls, and a few others. This blog I like is gonna do Hair Rules reviews soon, so i will see. I think in my next entry I will list all the products I am considering purchasing.

I think I covered everything.

I won't straighten my hair until at least July....and i am thinking of only coloring a section and dying it black to match the rest. Because I think it would help keep it healthy much better.n

so late with my updates!

2008-12-18T18:48:00.001-08:00

So finally have time!

So my hair is growing well, it is in good condition but i do need a trim. So I have been deep conditioning when i wash my hair and my new routine has been this....well i added some things yesterday since it is enough to it i feel. Stars next to things will indicate additions.

*Prepoo (using biolage, silk elements olive oil deep conditioner, ors olive oil, garnier leave-in) for just a lttle while. I didnt use heat cuz i was already too hot that da lol!

Wash with CON still (about to go by the tea tre shampoo soon!)

Condition twice (once with biolage, then with the silk elements)

I try to take my time showering once i put the silk elements in

Then this tip i read on a blog is cool, instead of a towel, you use a scarf and wrap it around your head. It gets all the excess water while you get ready, so by the time i am ready to do my hair, it is not dripping anymore.

I used to do the Garnier fruitisse then use the applicator bottle for the ors, but the other day i just combined them both in the bottle and applied to the scalp!

I love this routine, the silk elements really really makes my hair soft, i love it. And the direct method is great because my hair is not greasy but is moisturized and i like that.

Today i didnt do anything new to my hair but it is still soft and rarely itches!!!!

So right now the new things i want to buy are the tea tree shampoo, a new satin pillow case, and i am considering getting another black rinse Because it as grows it does this dark brown/dull black thing that i dont really like and i am trying to fight the color bug.

COLOR! SPEAKING OF COLOR, I HAVE A GREAT IDEA! So i previously talked about dying it black and pink and possibly ad blue violet on the bottom. butttt i was like well this time i will straighten whenever.....oh i am buying a new dryer too!

So anywho, so my plan is when it gets long enough...i am thinking like between july and october....I will dye it all the honey blonde i used to wear. So when it is natural it will be a nice blondeish color. And when i want to straighten it or perhaps try different colors, i will be able to just put one of those color rinses in since it just stains your hair. So lets say i want it black and pink one week but then i wana be poison ivy (or harley quinn or cleopatra) for halloween, so i may need it red or red and black or all black. The rinses dont damage your hair, so i think that would be a cool idea. cuz i wont cause more damage but i will have it very versatile as far as curly or straight and color choice!!!!

I am definitely letting it grow out this time. It is time for a change, and it could be a fun one!

Whole Week

2008-10-09T11:57:00.000-07:00

It has been a little over a week since the cut! I feel happier, I am me, I know what to do easily.

I have made some changes....I use my deep conditioner when I wash my hair every few days.

Something new I did since it is so short, and it is working well. I wash my hair every 2 to 3 days when it is short, so i put in alot of leave-in and rub it in. I like to use alot, probably more than i need but oh well! Then i comb it with a fine tooth. WRONG if you have alot of curls and all, but my hair is short so it goes straight through it, no yanking or anything. I will do this until it starts to curl up. I just start in back and comb forward. It gives it a more laid down look.

I am happy I did this.

OH! On the hairblog I love, she asked about how your Significant Other is about your hair journey. Recall my being upset about the friends and family one. This one is so great! It's a small thing that makes me look forward to finding someone one day!!! All these women's husbands/boyfriends are supportive. Some were iffy but they are all very supportive because of the progress they see. YOu know men love nice hair. It is really nice to see that! LOL, some where funny. One, her and her husband are using growth serums onhis beard to grow it, lol! Others theirs are trying to learn with them and ask if they need things when they go to the store....things specific to their hair! Funny! And then there are the ones who go with it because they dont want to upset her and want her to be happy....i like those because at least it's not like the friend/family being all negative.

Probably wont have REAL results to report for a little bit. One thing I learned....even doing the Sillk Elements for a few mintues while in the shower leaves your hair reall soft! I am sold! I will be buying the bottle when I get some money!

STARTING OVER!

2008-09-29T12:13:00.001-07:00

I got it cut today! I meant to take a before picture but forgot, lol! But it is short. Actually it is just long enough to curl, but it is the tiny tiny curls that are next to my head. YEAHHHHHHHHHH! EXCITEMENTTT!

I SO FEEL LIKE ME AGAIN, LIKETHIS IS MY STYLE. IT IS FUN AND FREE AND SIMPLE AND CLASSY!!!!!

PICTURES LATER!

After I got it cut, I washed it with the CON and conditioned with BIOLAGE. Then I put in the leave in and let it dry and put in the Olive Oil Lotion. Feels great looks great!

HERE'S TO NEW BEGINNINGS!

LOL, I lied

2008-09-28T18:56:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I am trying to find a barber and had to ask around. Of course ppl ask why.....I don't get why ppl make big deals out of stuff. I change my mind a lot...oh well, it usually works out better in the end. Don't feel like getting highly into it. I just don't wanna talk much about what I am doing because when i chnge my mind ppl seem to think i just am randomly doing stuff and it gets really irritating to answer questions. So I just whether DO stuff so after awhile you see what I am doing. One of the reasons I like having a blog...I know i am mainly the only person who will read it but it is nice to talk like I am talking to other ppl so when I read it it is more interesting? IDK lol! I just like holding myself accountable and having a record.

So i decided to get it cut tomorrow at Great clips so I have more time to pick a barber. I want to go to one close to me. I know some that are cheaper and still good but further....Might as well stick with one near by and save gas. So the one I am thinking of going to is like 15 minutes down the road i think.

Also, i need to make a new routine comment! My hair will be too short to really prepoo for about a month or 2. So I will concentrated more on keeping my scalp/hair/head lol moisturized. Once it starts to get thicker, I will start prepooing. That is like 1 to 2 months for real. Once I can prepoo, I will start steaming. What I used to do was put a warm towel on my head sometimes. It felt nice, so I will do that until I start prepooing again. Feels good on your face and head! Also, i think once my CON shampoo runs out, I will by tea tree shampoo that i mentioned. I have read alot that paul mitchell is best yet pricey. At Sallys they have that GVP brand stuff that I found out really is comparable to it, some products being better. So I will be buyng that one which is the same price as the CON one! I don't know how much is left in the bottle, will have to check.

As far as deep conditioning......I may just do the directions for the normal version until it gets longer. Those say put it on for like 3 minutes and rinse. When I wash my hair I usually wash first then put the conditioner in and actually wash my body while it sits on then rinse since most conditioners say 1-3 minutes. So I will just do that...and maybe just put the hot towel on my head too. It's not scorching hot, just like warm. My warm enough is if it fogs my glasses just a little, it is hot enough but not too hot....pretty good system.

Then with it really short, it dries in 2 seconds, so I will put on the Leave-in and Olive Oil Lotion and be done!!!!!

Once it starts getting longer, I will of course add steps. Like towel blotting, then leave in, then olive oil. And I will go back to the dryer prepooing and deep conditioning and then add in detangling. For the next 2 months though, it will be pretty carefree even with prepooing being added. It will get more complicated with detangling as it gets longer. But still the whole process is much easier and less time consuming. I am happy about it and should have done this before. Granted you cant do something you dont know, lol!

Knowing me i will think of something else....so yea

Steaming

2008-09-28T16:47:00.000-07:00

Something I am gonna try incorporating is steaming....i finally found enough info on it!

So remember I used to do my prepoo by using a plastic cap with a hot wet towel with another cap on top. So if you don't have an steamer (which i dont and cannot afford, lol), you can do that and sit under the dryer for around 30minutes to an hour. Basically it softens your hair and helps it in other ways. Helps it grow...it opens up the follicles.....oh oops, I forgot! LOL! You do this with your deep conditioner (well i saw some do it with the prepoo too). So it opens the follicles and helps the deep conditioner REALLY REALLY get in there! i am still cutting it because i need the stress-relieve but it will be cool to try. Also, I want to get peppermint and tea tree oil. Well really just pepperment, tea tree is kind of iffy to my nose. But like mint oils help your hair grow and get rid of dry scalp. i know i said i didnt want to use growth aids but these are not just growth aids, the do other stuff. Also, after this scarf is done (2 months), I will get the bonnet one of it, that way i dont always smash my hair and don't mess up my edges anymore.

And i saw a cool video on detangling.....too bad i had already figured that out! LOL! But at least I know that i was doing it right. My whole thing is ugh, those tiny tight curls I have. I want the big loose pretty curls. I am happy it is not just like a big mass of ugh but those little curls get more frizzy and tangled. Then again I would get lazy and not detangle always. So maybe if I do more often it will do something? lol! Not sure what. Luckily I have no reason to worry right this minute. It will be too short to even tangle for a little bit. That is highly comforting.

So for real this time, the next entry will be the official begin, lol!

Best Idea all around

2008-09-28T10:17:00.001-07:00

Scroll down for explanation of these pictures.....

Okay, so clearly my hair is a source of major stress right now. When I am crazy stressed, I usually cut my hair off or color it....cutting works better, lol!

So I am cutting my hair and starting over....so after today, the next entry will be STARTING OVER. I am gonna cut it low, I am about to supply a picture of that...well the range of where it will be.

The plan is to cut it now (Octoberish), and let it grow until July natural. But still doing all the things I have learned like prepooing and deep conditioning. And Moisurizing with different stuff that i find works better, lol!

No coloring (hardest for me).

Regular trimmings.

Doing everything RIGHT.

October to July will be 9 months, and at the end of that time, maybe I wont actually get a relaxer, maybe i will find out some other way to straighten it. We shall see.

PICTURES! Okay, I wanted to show the difference so this makes more sense. There is another picture a couple years ago where i was taking GREAT care of my hair because i thought i was growing it out (as opposed to the lack of care this year when i thought i would cut it off anyway)....but that picture is missing. It had actually gotten way way longer than in the middle one but hey, it is a goal to top!

First picture is from November 10, 2007. My hair is extra low...actually my fav style. It is very me and I rock it well. But I want long hair and that is too extremes lol! The good thing is, it is now like old reliable. When something goes wrong with my hair I cut it all away an have that!

Second picture is like midJune 2008. My hair had grown and had color. Could have been way longer and healthier but like I said I thought I was gonna cut it to the above picture length.

Third picture is like June 29, 2008....it was actually about a week after the second photo was taken. I did this one because you can see the length in the back as well. November to June is the amount of hair you have their.....well a little shorter....this is after my first trip to Great Clips before I went the second and third time.

New things are good....I am gonna be optimistic about this!

Great Clips

2008-09-27T18:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, so that comment that i can't get up here is what i think....

Basically 1/2" off the whole back....1/4" on the crazy bad side.

I don't get what these ppl's problem is with CUTTING HAIR! I understand there are tons of idiots who dont understand the thoughts behind getting trims but I do. If i tell you to cut ALL the damaged ends, why can't they just do it! They are so stupid. And the girl said yes I cut it all off....no you did not! Ugh...so stupid! I think they worry more about keeping the length than just cutting it off. I would whether my hair LOOK AND FEEL AND BE healthy than long. I have had long hair before, thanks! I can handle waiting. I really do prefer health over look....I have had like not even 1 cm of hair on my head....i look fly with no hair. Yes it is harder to style but i am figuring it out. And actually, I bet if i get it cut, then i may be able to actually do wash and gos.

Just wanted to vent really quick. The only reason i never got it recut was because i did it before, and i didnt want to them to think i was always doing it to get over on ppl.

New thoughts....probably the smart thing!

2008-09-27T18:16:00.001-07:00

I personally really like my hair tucked back. And I know I talk talk talk about grow grow grow. But like if you look at the pictures you see the scraggly ends. And I mentioned before just getting it all cut. I am thinking about just getting all that cut away. I moisturize and moisturize and it is softened but not enough for me lol. That stupid sew-in! Oh well....so I am gonna keep up this routine for now, since i just started the new routine I will keep it going until my next relaxer.

But depending on what it is like by the end of October it may ACTUALLY be this length. That will set me back but i am sure it will be more helpful in the long run. I am willing to do anything to make it healthier...I.E strong and soft.

I will decide by then....just uploaded these to show. See how short it can look from yesterday! LOL! But I like it....it looks better in person i think. But those high megapixel cameras sure do catch the flaws, ugh!

Day 2...I finished my hair

2008-09-26T17:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, these pictures are the styling process for my hair! Yesterday I let it air dry...well yesterday/all night. Excuse the wildness....but you will be able to see what the TOO MUCH VOLUME post was talking about.
The above picture...and the next are when i combed my hair out before parting it and sectioning it out. Ugh, look at my edges :(

That is too, it looks rough.....I don't like that
So these are my hair in sections....I like to do about 5-6 sections. I do the sides, the top and the bck into 2. It makes it seem like it goes faster.

I put on the olive oil lotion on each section. If i do it all over at once it will mostly be in one area.
First section to curl

I curled it....near my ear is a little awkward. That is one of the still rough areas...actually this whole side is...but it feel good/better now!
Whole side done!
See how you still see all the "great texture".....

Both sides done

Top done

Top done, trying to comb to tone it down
See how that side looks! the right on the picture.....it looks just "textured" But you saw it was also curled.....
All done

Trying a saran wrap treatment. It helps flatten out your hair and give it sheen. So That is 2 pieces, one around and another on top

As you can see my head sweated a little....i sat under the dryer about 15 minutes.
It is much flatter and this side looks slightly better :)

LOL! not my best picture....or a good angle. Anywho, so the next test is how will it look once it is wrapped tonight and then combed down. I know i tie my scarf too tight and pull it too hard on my edges. So I am gonna try to do it looser. Also, i dont know if i will actually wrap it or just tie it in place. Wrapping usually keeps the curls but last time did not. But if i dont, i will have to put the sides back sooner. So we shall see.

Too much volume....

2008-09-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

The point of a "texlax" and underprocessing is to have more texture so it is more healthy and has more volume. Well to me there is such thing as too much. I like height on hair but goodness. I can have a sleek style and a curled style but not a sleek curled style? Well the top can be. Ugh! So i did the front already and the sides. I am going to finish the top/black later. I have no where to be so i am relaxing.

The top/front and sides are kind of high. You can still see the damage on the left side (my left) but it feels much better. the right is a tad damaged still, but it looks much better. I am tempted to have all the left cut off, lol! but then it would look funny because the puffiness would not allow for a fly look. Oh well :PSo next I will do the top back. The top is gonna have crazy volume, lol! Last time it was so high. On the other hand, I tried to see if i could roll my hair and i have a couple old foam rollers, it held!...in the front anyway. But I don't have enough. But the only place that needs to be curled is the bottom near my ears. It tends to flatten out after a day or so. Not sure why. The black actually makes me look bookish! LOL! I thought the deep dark black would keep it kind of unique but i look quiet. Hmmmm, take note for me, no black without another color.

Also, I have been reading up on the pink. I know how to do it. So i am excited about that for when it gets long enough. I am being patient. Lord please let it be to my chin or close by by then. Oh the other reason for so much volume. It is "layered". That is why I say Lord please. Like the bottom layer will be but I would like a thicker amount to be that long. Sooooo, it may be close to that. I hope. Unfortunately from the temples of my head, it wont be....i doubt it will be anyway. It will be like where it is now by then maybe. (where the lower layer is). And the back will still have a "short cut" look to it...it is not long enough to be like a bob yet. It is getting there.

I am getting discouraged just because I am sick of the puffy but i know it will be fine when it gets longer. It being so close to my head (lol being short) I think is why it is just so irritating to me. I remember my hair was not bone straight and was puffy when long. Actually would be high like it is now, but when I wrapped it and took it back down, it would have volume but look good still. Like in the picture before the second cut. You could see it was volume but it was longer so looked nicer. I will be happy when it gets to that length honestly, lol! And then we will work on the next phase!

This week' wash and color

2008-09-25T16:44:00.000-07:00

Today I actually remembered to take pictures...yea! So I will use them to say what I did. There are alot but oh well, for the most part i think i uploaded them in the right order.

I was trying to get a close up...you can kind of see new growth....oddly the edges did not get wet, lol! Just like the middle and top. So you can also see how much it has grown since that color was done. Could be more, but oh well. I am slippin on my eating habits so yeah. It is going well enough for me so far. So as you can see the color is almost gone! Maybe by the end of the year it will all be cut off? We will see!
These next few are my prepoo....this week I did the Lekair with my Biolage and carrot oil...the carrot oil on the ends only.

Plastic cap for the dryer!
Under the dryer lol...i did 18 minutes....should have been 20 but I am a clock watcher and i couldn't take it anymorE! I had it on medium heat
After the prepoo before the wash

The prepoo stuff
I just washed it...see the random assortment of textures? Ugh!

Before adding the color in
Forgot to turn the picture....but that is the color, it is just black
The color..thought I uploaded more here, oh well....You get the idea....but hmmm, it looks a little weird here. Looked fine everywhere else
Plastic cap! I went through 3 today lol! I sat under the dryer 10 minutes then let it sit 25 more...the directions say 25 at room temp but for gray do 10 under the dryer and let cool for 5....a tad confused but no recent relaxer so i guess it was okay.
I hate rinses....ugh
After I rinsed? Maybe not because it is on my head still....lol!
Oh no that is before the rinse....So this is the new deep conditioner i use. I love it! It feels so good and makes my hair feel really good. Okay from here i got my pictures confused. So these may or may not be a combo of my hair with the conditioner or after i washed the conditioner out....I don't know lol, sorry. But I think I did a good job with the coloring!

To end, I put on my leave-in conditioner and I combed it through....Oh i combed the deep conditioner through too. I think i pulled most of the curls. I am attempting to use less heat therefore trying not to blow it out. Should work out fine. I am letting it airdry the rest of today and tomorrow i will style it. Probably the same fly style i did....or maybe i will reverse it, we shall see. And i will take pictures of it this time. Also i think the color might help it look better. With the red, since it was slightly uneven when it grew and was cut, it looked funny in the back. So this should help that out.

Oh I was thinking of doing a "corrective relaxer" but no. I read you should have a pro do it and i am broke so whatever. I think as it gets longer, it will be okay because it will help it look voluminous whereas with it short, it is just irritating.

That's all for today....styling process tomorrow!

Next Day update!

2008-09-22T16:05:00.000-07:00

Yes! I let my hair stay slicked and tied down all night so it would be flat, with the top part pinned up. When I unwrapped it, it was still soft. Even the areas on the side and back that were really rough feel good! So I was gonna do a funky flip spiky thing on the top but i curled a little too light. I had started with the very front and so it ended up being curled back, so i curled it all back. And so it has this slight roll thing going back, think an old school permed look for a man, lol! Or that model chick that was semi masculine....she was in Change Clothes and Go (Jayz). It is kind of like that. Very cute!

I love how it feels so far. I am gonna keep using the Silk Elements and doing this new routine. Also, i used much less product....just the olive oil lotion on my hair before curling it, so it is finally not greasy. I think i wont be using th glossing polisher anymore. Then again, i was putting it on every strand, lol! We will see. I tend to use products stop and then use them later.

Only difference in the styling...next time i will start curling from the top and go forward because as I went back, I could not see over the curls and i was smashing them or trying not to and didnt seem to straighten it as well. Mainly the ends of it.I am excited about it though. And this length is way more versatile than ppl think!

Silk Elements

2008-09-21T18:39:00.000-07:00

Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

I used the silk Elements moisturizing conditioner today! And my hair feels much better! It is softer and easier to comb through! Like I semi blew it out because i am trying a slickback style with the back and sides and it was pretty soft.

Also, there are a few areas that are just really rough, even they felt better today!

I did do a little different today....My prepoo was just Lekair and Olive Oil, I didnt do it like a relaxer, i just put it on there. I let it stay on 40 minutes then did 5 under they dryer. I washed once with the shampoo and twice with my Biolage. Then put in the Silk Elements...I didnt do it like a relaxer either. This conditioner is much thicker and i did not need the whole package. I did use it very liberally, especially on my ends. I sat under they dryer for 7 minutes with it then washed it out with cold water. I used the same leave-in but instead of the straightening cream, I sprayed oil sheen (bottle says to do so before blow drying for added shine). I used a pomade to slick it but the curlyness stayed. Anywho, so i "slicked" it back and tied it up for about 3 hours. It was flat but you could see the curls in it. So i went ahead and flat ironed it down and back on the back and sides.

There is alot of hair! I semi flipped the back and it was a pretty good length....I am trying a new style this week so next week (maybe) i will try a flipped style!!! This week I am going to try a spiky fly away thing. I read the way to achieve those is to flat iron it and then use a pomade and finger style it. So we will see how that works out!

So I am going to continue to use the Silk elements because it seems to be working pretty well. One week and it feels that nice. Also, i think doing the conditioner stage even though I plan to deep condition is a good idea. It is a fortifying strengthening conditioner so i need that.

I am excited!

Product choice maybe?

2008-09-18T19:08:00.003-07:00

Okay, so I have been searching and looking and a few times while getting my replinishing paks, I notice Silk Elements has one too. So today while on my fav blog I noticed ppl saying they used the line. I looked at reviews of different conditioning stuff, and it seems to be a good product. It is supposed to make your hair very soft, silky, managable, etc. I found they have a daily conditioner and the deep conditioner. So, I think I am gonna go get it tomorrow and wash my hair early in the day...maybe. If I don't do it tomorrow, Sunday definitely. I want to do it tomorrow because I am supposed to go out tomorrow night. However, i would hate to do it only to sweat and have to redo it. Soooo, idk yet.

I am thinking about how to change it up....I just need alot of moisturizing right now. some (not all, or even most) of my hair is really dry.

When I wash it, I am thinking of just cowashing.....I want to try a new routine to see what happens. Something like this:

Prepoo (the normal way, not the deep condition way), cowash (with my biolage twice), deep condition (trying the moisturizing kind, silk elements first off). Then I will do the God awful part, ugh!!!!! But I thinkkkk, I will use the leave-in conditioner and then if that conditioner I want to try is a cream like it said, I will add it maybe? Or if they have a straightening cream, I will try it. Then do the blow out process and then flat iron it all. The reason I want another straightening cream is because I would like to try something a bit stronger. I don't think the garnier is for my hair type...like I think it may not be for hair a thick as mine. It is just so thick, I would like it to be much straighter and looser BEFORE i even start to flat iron it. We shall see what i can find. I don't have much money, so gotta see what happens tomorrow.

I have all these ORS products which I love, but the smells and some of the oilyness is irritating me. And it really is weighing my hair down. OH! I still have the Olive Oil lotion...it does not smell that bad sooooooooo maybe I will use that. It is to protect your hair from heat....not sure if that helps with the straightening part though.

Gonna find that out tonight.

I am sure my stress does not help!

Okay, and something else. So I would love to just be "bone straight". it is really frustrating to have to do all this extra straightening. So, my sister said she read that it is okay to relax the rest of your hair from time to time. And that maybe with my next relaxer, I should. Also, because clearly the back of my hair is still curly. So, I think I am going to do that. The only issue is that I would like to find where she read about it so I know how long.

In my mind, i think if you do that, you should do the relaxer on the new growth, smooth it and then put it on the rest of your hair and then smooth it for not that long. Like really not long. But I gotta find it.

GROWTH!!!

2008-09-18T19:08:00.002-07:00

This is my hair!!!!! As you can see, I have some versatility. I can tuck it back so it is short, or comb it all down. I have been doing it down then as the sides flatten out, I tuck them. But look at how long it is getting!!!! I am so excited!!!!

FIGURED IT OUT

2008-09-18T19:08:00.001-07:00

Ifigured out why my hair feels rough. I was looking over the hair blog I read and this was a list of moisture based deep conditioners which should be used when your hair feels like mine. This gets it back nice and soft. It is just dryness! So I can fix it! The ORS is on the protein list....too much protein does that. I was wondering that. So either tonight or tomorrow i will be going to Walmart to get something on this list to use in place of it for the next few weeks to get my hair feeling great. I think depending on how it goes, my new plan is to use the ORS only when I get the relaxer for the protein. I get alot in my diet, so I may be okay without it. I eat plenty of high protein meats and vegatables. (I am a semi fitness/food addict so I pay attention to the nutrition facts).

So the goal at the moment (since growth seems to be doing fine), is to get my hair feeling soft and moisturized.

MOISTURIZED

SOFT

SHINY

current goals.....

Oh keep forgetting the pictures, guess I can do it now!

This week

2008-09-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I did go back and blow out the back...should have did the same to the lowersides. I really dont understand why that step determines how my hair FEELS I understand it looking better because it is not curly when flat ironed but it feels different. So right now, I am not too happy with how the sides look. I am gonna wait a few days and redo it. Probably Saturday because I am going out that night anyway. Also, since i can do 5 days during my break, I should be washing it Sunday. And when I wash it sunday, I am going to add my Biolage into my prepoo. Also, I may start buying 2 replinishing packs. That way I can do it more like my prepoo, where it is for sure being fully saturated. The back feels better but there a couple rough areas. I pulled it apart so i could touch the strands and like a not even 1/8 of an inch is what is rough, not all of it...that is good. I cannot afford to get it trimmed more, so i am gonna keep working on moisturizing it. I noticed last time that me taking care of it softened it. Then I will get it cut with my next relaxer in October.

Also, I am running low on carrot oil, so i am gonna try to use the tea tree oil in its place. It is getting a little cooler and again i cannot afford more carrot oil. I should have gotten the part by my ears cut down, because it is longer than the rest and it seems to do whatever (it is like half down my ear).

At the rate I am going, I should have chin length hair by January though!!!! I am happy about that, I just hope I can get it back healthy. It never used to feel like this, so i am highly concerned. I hate oils, so what I would like to do is find a daily moisturizing cream that is not $800! lol! That would be great!

Late Wash

2008-09-16T20:01:00.000-07:00

I washed my hair a couple days late because I was crazy busy with school. Ugh! But now i am officially on break, so I will be able to do 5days!!!

I pre-pooed with Lekair, carrot oil, some other conditioner, and some indian hemp oil I had. I washed it with the shampoo (twice like you are supposed to), then I deep conditioned with the replenishing pak for an hour. Oh I pre-pooed for 2 hours. After that I let me hair air dry with the leave in conditione and straightening cream. The back was not very soft and it was way too curly, so i rewet it (after trying to flat iron a little of it) and blew it out. I already did the front and am procrastinating on finishinG! LOL! I am so lazy right now, and I deserve it. Sooooo, I am going to go on and try to finish it now so I can wrap it tonight. The sides (in the same spots) are a little rough. But over the week last week I was able to get the to soften up. I thought it was a split damage issue, but it seems to be dry. I thought all the conditioning would help more. So Maybe it is dry/damage still. Anywho, I am about to finish the back. Sooooo if there are any developments there will be 2 of these!!!

2nd wash

2008-09-06T14:02:00.000-07:00

Okay today I just don't feel like uploading the pictures and I should be doing school work, so I will make this quick-ish.

I had alot to do today, so I got up and did my prepoo mix (LeKair, Carrot Oil, and a conditioner leftover from a color), put the baggie on and left for about 2 hours. It was good and hot outside, so it did a good job. I washed my hair, but it has been pretty dry (NO MORE SEW-INS FOR ME....MY HAIR NEEDS CONSTANT MOISTURE) so I used the shampoo once then my Biolage conditioner. After that, I patted it dry with a towel and put in my deep conditioner (ORS replenishing pack). I didn't feel like sitting under the dryer (and have alot to do), so I left it on for an hour with a plastic cap. I washed that out with COLD water. Then did the leave-in conditioner followed by the straightening cream. I blew it out, but I was slightly lazy, sooooo some still had to air dry. I took a break and did some stuff, then went back and used the ORS glossing polisher and flat ironed it out. I think it looks much better this week (the style). And I think it looks less dry. It feels better, some parts are still a tad bit dry, but much better than last week.

Also, I have a little dandruff but not a ton, so it is not that visible. Last week I had been applying carrot oil at night (or in the morning if i forgot). I noticed when my hair gets really dry, the tea tree oil (which is oil based, carrot oil is water based), it seems to just sit on my hair and never absorb. And when i do the water sealed by oil, it does not help either. Since it feel so much better this week, Ithink if i keep this up, it will soften up soon. Maybe by next month it will be soft like it was :(

Oh! After the wash, my hair was curly, but the newly permed area was more straight and the curls seemed looser. That was good, there were som thick areas of curls still but not many.

I will be happy when it gets long enough to roller set because then I can do that instead of flat ironing it every week. That will probably be the end of the year though. It is only September and my hair is already close to what i want it to be (on the sides). The back has so much layering that it will take longer, but as far as bobs go, it will just look lik I got it cut like that probably.

After second perm, day 4

2008-09-03T17:27:00.000-07:00

My hair is still looking really good. Very straight and laying down. It is also softer now and looks great. I was gonna wash it tomorrow because I was supposed to go out tonight, but I am not going, so I guess I will wait til like Friday or Saturday. Hopefully this time won't take 5 whole hours, but I am sure it will because I want it to look good and I will get tired.

It is the last couple weeks of school, so I will probably do it off and on whichever day. Like do all the prepoo, wash, deep condition, blow out. break. flat iron front break flat iron back. Actually I may do the back first this time that way I can kind of decide how I want the front to go. I have it parted on the left now going right. It was only parted at the top of my head and going all around before. Next week I will do no part again or part on the right. And I might let the sides hang. Now they are tucked back so my hair looks shorter than it is. Cute nontheless!

Oh I have not been using the tea tree oil (bcause it seems to just sit), but I have been doing carrot oil at night or in small quanity in the morning since it actually absorbs (water-based).

I have to clean up, so I might not do a heat prepoo when i do wash it. I might just air do it....depends on how I feel though. I don't feel my hair would get what it needed without the heat because it is so thick no matter the time. Like my hair was not crazy soft after the deep conditioning last week. So I also think the heat prepoo is very much needed.

I am sleepy right now, so hopefully i will remember to post my pictures tomorrow....hopefully.

2nd Relaxer!!!!!!!! Pictures coming tomorrow

2008-08-29T18:55:00.000-07:00

Yea! Excitementttttttt!

I had my sister relax my hair today for me, and styled it and it looks great.

My camera died so I cannot upload the pictures yet. But I will go through the longgggg process.

So we used ORS Normal relaxer system....I had said I would do the regular relaxer not texlaxing today, but it is still....unintentionally, lol! She said I should leave it in longer, we did the resistant hair time and it was still curly. So it looked like a REAL texlax (loose curls). So I let it air dry while i ran errands. And learned (like I said last week), that does not work. It is coarse and not nice (with leave in conditioner in there). So I was about to cry, the moisturizers I used did not help. So I co-washed it (I rinsed, put conditioner and repeated), and then did that LONG process I saw made it look and feel great.

After the wash, towel-dry (just pat, don't rub). Apply the leave-in conditioner, apply the straightening cream, blow it out, apply glossing polish, flat iron (i do it to each piece as i part it). That took me almost 5 hours (including breaks). So if i didnt get tired, it would have taken 3, lol. Mind you my hair is short!

On that note! It has grown! It is like the length before the fiasco! In 2 months! I forgot a product. I do use a growth-aid, but not a cream or anything. It is these satin scarves that come with growth serum on it. You replace it every 2 months. I am going to take a picture of it too....well the package.

It looks good though! I just need to go get my ends clipped tomorrow. For the most part my ends look good. Really just the back and a little on the left side need to be cut....mainly the back. I will be able to wrap it again now. So that will help with the styling.

EXCITEMENTTTTTTTTTTTTTT! PICTURES TOMORROW!

Oops

2008-08-25T17:34:00.000-07:00

Washed my hair yesterday, and learned something. That week I started doing blowouts was the make or break week. So I got lazy and just flat ironed today....so not a good plan. I need to do the blowouts. Also, my ends looked split so I need to ensure I do not forget my tea tree oil nights. So I plan to wash my hair on Friday (a few days early), so instead of wetting the front and redoing it, I am gonna scarf/hat it up until then. This will also allow me to do carrot oil nights, tea tree oil mornings to what is out on my head. Next Monday makes 3 weeks........lol! I so wanna just take this out. Sooooo, I have company this weekend, I may take it out like Monday morning....since I plan to go out sunday!

Wanted to be sure I made a note of what NOT to do again. I guess if I take it out Mondayish, then I can spend 2 weeks conditioning.

I admit it....I am a flip flopper!

2008-08-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

LOL! Sooooooo, in talking with different ppl (Who have healthy hair and wear sew-ins), I may do my relaxer on the 13th. One said she does hers the same day she takes it out, the otherwaits a week. I was gonna wait 3. I think I will do the one week. That way I can use the entire week moisturizing deep conditioning and all without getting sick of wearing hats and scarfs. Also, that is the last week of school, so I think it will help me not having to worry about my hair.

What I plan to do during that week is: take sew-in down, heavy pre-poo (well really like I normally do lol!), then wash, then deep condition (same way I do my pre-poo since i have a bowl to put it in). Then I am going to use my leave-in while it is wet. When it dries I will do what I did to help strengthen it that I kind of stopped doing. I used to do carrot oil at night followed by tea tree oil in the mornings. (I stopped and only did the tea tree oil either at night or in the morning). So, I think doing that everyday will help it out. I don't use a whole lot. Like just my middle finger worth. Then I rub it in my hands and just run my hands through my hair paying close attention to my ends. Then if I feel a little itchy that day, I will put some on my scalp. I have never been much of a scalp oiler because my hair gets way to heavy. Even when I use "weightless oils". I used to just do Oil Sheen but even that gets heavy after a while. But I noticed doing the day night thing, it gets heavy less fast. So I will do that up to the 12th, and then do my relazer the next day.

This will be my first but I would like to be totally self-able aside from the trimming. I go to great clips for that. So Iwill also be going to great clips on the 13th....or the 14th depending on the time. Because I will have to relax it, deep condition it, let it dry (still plan to air dry), and then flat iron it. Then we will check out my new length. I hope it is like a noticable change, lol!

On another note, I tend to getstressed out with school and especially during the last couple weeks. I am worried about the sew-in and all because my hair cannot shed properly braided up. So I expect a lot of shedding when I take it down. However, my fear is that it will be more than that. Last quarter (grad school but we do quarters so you can get more done in less time), my hair started falling out. And this is when it was still no chemicals. I mean it was falling out each time i washed it like I had it braided for a long time of something. It was not a good look! LOL! Keep in mind, it was still thick.....too much hair, I swear.

I was suggested growth aids, but I am still worried just because of the trouble I had before with them. The increased itching, the dandruff. OH! AND SOMETHING I NOTICED IN RESEARCH! Most of these growth aids also INCREASE thickness. Nooooooooooooooooooo, thank you! If my hair gets any thicker i will cut it off again. There is just too much up there. It takes me like 1.5 hours to straighten my hair and it is short....it took that long when it was long just because of the length. It is was more thick now! LOL! I cannot deal with MORE thickness. Oh yeah! so I measured some of the hair in the front of my head, it is now 2 inches long!!!!! That is with the humidity! I am so excited. I just need like 3.5 more inches in certain areas for it to be to my chin. I think since it had been "layered" before, it will grow into a layered look again. I hope so, that would be quite convenient again, lol! That way, the sides will make up most the length and the top just comes down too. That would be great! I like layers because it gives you added volume.

Soooooo, anywho....I am gonna try something tonight when i wash my hair, we will see how it goes. I don't want to pre-poo with the heavy conditioners because of build up so i am gonna do just olive oil with that squeeze bottle. And just try to saturate my braids as much as I can.

New thoughts

2008-08-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

So I had generated a photo video of my hair buttttt it did not work out well, lol! so, moving on. I looked at my hair. And I was talking about doing a bone straight instead of a texlax.

I think I am gonna do that for real. But now what i am thinking about doing is doing it myself. But I am a little nervous about it. I don't want to do more damage but at the same time, you have to do it to learn how to do it, lol! But I think this would be a good time to try it. Like feeling my hair that is out and how it felt before I would straighten it (and after). The back is pretty much all new, like it is completely curly. The sides, mostly the same, the top and upper sides are the only part with any straight ends. So I am thinking about doing the next relaxer in September (The 28th of that month will make 2 months). I was thinking this because I had these pictures in my movie thing but like on close ups you can see my hair is not very straight at all. And not in a cute textured way, lol!

So I think during the breathing period, I will be getting it back strong. I will probably take this down on September 6th, that is like 3 days less than 4 full weeks. But that is cool cuz I don't need to be stressed with it during my last couple weeks of school. So then from the 6th to the 28th, I will be doing the extreme conditioning. I think I will try to avoid any type of straightening. Like probably just wear hats and scarves for that time to let it get back strong and ready for the relaxer on the 28th. So it is like 3 weeks to get strong. Then relax it the 28th and then see what happens. This sew-in thing is hard, so i don't know if I wanna continue. it is just stressing me more cuz i am like what does my hair look like, is it blending, it looks fake. I can't deal with all that.

So I think that will be best. It is not like I will be doing much anyway to worry about my hair lookin a certain way. I mean I might, I dont know.

I also thought of getting micros....My hair is short so it would be a good time but the taking it down process is like UGHHHHHHHHHH! LOL!

We will see. I just have been going back and forth with it.

Quick hair journey!

2008-08-22T16:15:00.001-07:00

This is the picture referred to at the bottom as the next....So this is after I had to get all the color cut. Don't let the smile fool you, I was not happy at all. The next picture post will have all the pictures since then of my hair growth. This was July 6th I think.
This is my hair the week before the texlax! When you look at the picture of the wrap style, would you think this was the same hair as that? i didnt!
This is my goal....not the style but the length and state semi...This is all MY OWN HAIR! Before I got bored and cut it all off, lol! I was 18 in this picture. It was long and silky and soft and healthy. However, it could have been healthier.
This is the happiness before the horror. All that color is what had to be cut off. I will have the cut picture further down
Oh yeah, this is the picture before cut above. When I had to get all my split ends cut. So as you can see, in 7 months, this is the amount of hair I can grow. Literally, 7 months before this picture, I had a low low cut. Like a man's hair. There was not brushing or anything because that was how short it was. I was like a centimeter from bald (literally). So this shows you why I am confident about how much hair I can grow in that period of time. Actually this picture is after the first trimming, the above is after the second. And the picture next is after the final trimming after the horrible incident.

Products to try/the other category!

2008-08-22T16:07:00.001-07:00

So the hair color on the left is the one I currently have...there will be close ups later! the one on the left is my plan color for parts of my hair later on!!!!
Since I am having issues getting moisturizers to some areas of my hair, I got a hair color bottle with the thin applicator to get to the hard to reach areas. that is just olive oil in there.
I got the spray bottle to keep my hair wet when I do my blow outs because it tends to try quick
So...previously I said iwas gonna use the Cola something color of Jazzing....wrong color it was a red! lol! This is the one I want. Ruby Wine. I decided to go on and buy it and test it on the weave. So when I wash my hair this weekend I will do a strip in the front....think Miss Cherry from that female rapper show thing on VH1.
This is the color I recently put in. It is the one that is safe enough to do after a relaxer. It does nto smell much and worked pretty good. I just missed an area.
This is some stuff my friend who did my sew-in gave me. It is gycerol based so is clear and liquidy. It did not seem to do much for me, but I didnt use alot so I ahve most left. I am gonna save it for when I take the sew-in down. It has instructions for how to soften your hair before taking the braids out.

Product Pictures....after washing and daily care stuff

2008-08-22T15:54:00.001-07:00

Sorry for out of order products....I can only add 5 at a time not remembering to do them from bottom up....So this is my flat iron. It is a Gold N Hot ceramics. I usually keep the heat on like 250....it smokes past that...although it is not all that straight either but I am more concerned with getting my hair back healthy so it is okay for now. I also have this one in 2 inch (this is one inch)
ORS TEA TREE OIL....i try to remember to put this on my hair every night...however with the sew-in it is a little hard to get in some areas. But this stuff has helped my ends so much! My hair went from appearing to need another trim to looking great!
GARNIER FRUTIS SLEEK AND SHINE anti-humidity styling cream...this stuff works great. I used it the first time I did my blow out and that was the first time since I started this new hair journey crazy trip that my hair was really soft. Although humidity did get to my hair, it did last longer. Like 2 days longer than usual. Also, this heat-protectant is not oily at all. I like that!
This is the Conair Styling Brush for short to medium hair. It works good as far as holding your hair for blowing out without pulling it out or anything. Also, the handle is a gel-handle and is very comfortable to hold. Like your fingers don't cramp up (i might just hold stuff too tight :P)
The blow dryer I use for blowing my roots out. I set the temp to high and the power is on low, so it is hot but does not burn it. Next time I may try a lower heat setting with high power.
These are the 2 combs I use most. I use the pink one usually when I wash my hair and the other one is the daily brush. Before the sew-in, I just used my fingers mostly and another wide brush similar to the conair one....which is now missing....
This is the new product i mentioned the other day. It works really well. What I started doing is Fructis blow out, this flat iron.

PRODUCT PICTURES! Washing and Pre-pooing stuff

2008-08-22T15:39:00.000-07:00

Carrot Oil! Hate the smell but it works really good for split ends!!! Since I can't stand the smell on my head for long, I use it in my pre-poo. This with the LeKair is probably what makes up the most of the mixture.
I mainly only use this in my pre-poo now....it is really oily and I hate oily stuff, so I tend not to use it as much. However, it is a great heat-protectant.

CREAM OF NATURE MOISTURE-ACTIVE SHAMPOO....smells good and works great. I have been using it for over a year now. I switched to this when Doo-Gro became ineffective
MATRIX BIOLAGE STRENGTHENING CONDITIONER...is working pretty good. I have been using it since July 4th weekend.
So this is the Olive Oil that I use....maybe not EVOO, but I love it! Also, I add it to my pre-poo mixture.
I have been using this leave-in since my hair was "natural". I love the smell and it makes your hair really soft.
The base for my pre-poo and perhaps the reason for my crisis. Not saying it is a bad product but definitely never use as a deep conditioner.....you live, you learn.

Other People

2008-08-20T19:30:00.000-07:00

My main source of info regarding hair is a blog called Healthy Textures by a woman named Marchrieamour (lol Steve Wonder, love that song). Anywho, today she posted for ppl to comment about how friends and family react to their hair journey and goals. I read most of the comments, and it is amazing how many people are negative.

This posting is semi hair related, but not really. As I talked about in previous postings, I had a crisis with my hair and had to get it cut. I was highly highly HIGHLY upset about this, and I cried for about 2 days. When I went to people for support or advice, some reacted as if I was completely stupid for being so upset. I am not a self-absorbed person, but when my hair does not look good I feel very self- conscious. It hurt me a lot when I spoke to ppl who just said things like "you are overreacting" " it is not that serious" and things along that line. These were not random people but people I considered to be close friends. I am not saying they should have cared about my hair, however, they should care that I am upset.

So, it did not surprise me that there were negative comments....I just did not expect so many. Like I have a lot of new goals, and when I have goals, I like to share then. Hair related (or not) it is very unsettling when people you consider close to you react negatively.

A lot of the comments included "just go to a salon". From experience, salons are not always best. Also, as someone who once paid $55 a month to get my hair done at a salon., paying 14 every few for a trimming, 7 for a relaxer, and maybe every 6 months or so getting new moisturizers, shampoos, conditioners, etc......I am fairly sure that doing it yourself HIGHLY outweighs the cost. Maybe they have that extra income....salons are not reliable. Stylists are ppl, ppl are not perfect.....ppl have nasty attitudes.

I don't see why you would not support someone who takes time to take care of their own hair. IT IS NOT YOUR TIME AND ENERGY GOING INTO IT!

Unfortunately we live in a world with negative ppl around us. That is one reason why I started my blog. It gives me a way to stay accountable and positive about my goals.

Sew-in Update

2008-08-19T16:00:00.000-07:00

Still have not uploaded the pictures......because when I started to, I realized I didn't know how! lol! Yes, I am pretty slow.

Anywho, so I have had my sew-in for a week now. It is itching but not too much more than usual. I am concerned that I cannot apply my tea tree oil to my ends like I used to. So I guess during the "breathing" period I will take care of that. I washed it yesterday and let it air dry. This week my hair does blend better, I guess because I made sure to try to strip the shine from the hair. It feels good and looks good. It is all soft and feels the same as my hair (both feel very silky and soft!)!!!

I think the next wash should strip it good enough, let us hope so!!!

So in addition to my 2009 plans, I decided what I want to do with my hair color. I have always wanted pink hair but have never done it because pink is such an out there color. So, I am gonna keep the black, but the under layers will be pink. I plan to start with the front though. I picked the under layers so when it grows out, you cant see the roots next to it. Also, if I want to tone it down, it is under the black but if I want to make it pop, I can flip it. This will start with a swoop. Then as it gets longer....maybe like shoulder length, I will do the under layers all over. I plan to use the Clarol Jazzing for that....something Cola is the name of it. i know by the top of the year, my hair probably won't be swoop length. So I will see how long it is, and possibly continue to wear like 1 or 2 tracks that i dye pink and cut to the proper length.

So updated plan!!!!!!! Sorry, I am a list maker!!!!!

Sew-ins (or braids) until December
Texlax/relaxer in December (will come back to this)
Ends clipped (plan to also do during "breathing" times)
Pink my swoop or sew-in a pink swoop

So I say texlax/relaxer because, I may just relax it. I am not sure yet. Like I used the ORS one, so I plan to do that but I want to add EVOO to the relaxer which helps condition it while it relaxes it. I don't know that texlaxing is the way to go for me because my hair is HIGHLY textured. However, at a longer length, this may be okay. Like I said, I am I believe a 4b (the s-curl one). And they are crazy tight curls. My hair draws up quite a bit.

Also, my first "breathing" period begins during my last couple weeks of classes....and that is not good, sooooooo, we will see if I do it either a week shorter or longer (I read 5 weeks is a max).

Anywho, I will see how this goes.

NEW PRODUCT!!!! I finally spend the $6.50 for the ORS Glossing Polisher! That stuff leaves my hair sooooooooooooo soft!!!!!!!!!!!!! And it has a soft, NOT OILY shine to it. If my hair was out (and blended with the weave) it would be gorgeous! Amazing product!

That's all for now!

Sew-in News

2008-08-14T17:54:00.000-07:00

I got my sew-in on Monday...took like 4 hours...longer than she thought.

I like it alot, I don't look as weird as I thought I would with hair. A longtime ago I was going to grow my hair out and rock scarves, so I had got alot. So now I am doing that! Mainly because I am having issues blending the top where my hair is visible. Trying to figure that out, the weave is way too shiny, lol! Sooo, ummmmmmm yea.

Other than that, all is well! It is not itching much more than usual and I can reach it. I had to quit my part-time job, so I will be coloring my hair (the weave) in a couple areas. I have always wanted pink hair, so I will be doing like 2 inch wide strips in pink on the front sides. Not the top layer, the lower levels so it is a little subdued!

I am going to wash my hair this weekend, so I will see how that works out. I read to use squeezie bottles with diluted shampoo and conditioner in then, so I will be trying that. And then, I think I will braid set the hair maybe. Or just let it dry and curl it. I either twist it in a bun or put it up in a bonnet at night so it retains a slight bump. It is a little more natural that actual curling. I learned that trick when I used to get micro braids.

Sooooooooo, that is pretty much it!

Excited/Nervous!!!! I wish I bit my nails!

2008-08-10T19:41:00.000-07:00

So, today I washed, deep conditioned, and colored my hair.

So I pre-pooed with just the LaKair and Carrot Oil. Instead of appliying like a virgin perm, I just used a few quarter amounts of both so it was semi saturated, sat under the dryer 20 minutes, washed it.

I finally used my ORS Replenishing Pak....was great. I semi applied it as a virgin perm. Next time I will put it in a container like my pre-poo mixtures so it is easier. It was in a packet so it was hard to do it all. But came out good nontheless.

Last, I put in the black rinse, it is the Clariol one for relaxed hair in a brown bottle. If you are in like Sally's it will be near the Jazzing bottles. This one is safe enough to do the same day you get a perm, you just should not use heat if it is the same day. I always apply mine in sections. Starting with the top middle, then the back and then the sides and front. I rub it in good massaging my scalp and then I apply some more like a moisturizer. I sat under the dryer 10 minutes and just with the plastic cap for 15 more. And then rinsed it out. It looks pretty good, a little darker than I thought it would be but I like it!

SO I bought my hair today for my sew-in. I will be getting it done 9am tomorrow. I have pictures I need to upload but I lost my cord for my camera. Soooooooo, when I find it, I will upload. I got 1b hair....it is a little lighter than my rinse but not like a crazy amount so it should be okay. Also, I am highly nervous about having long hair. I decided to save myself $14 and not cut it down. So it will be like to my armpits in some spots. My hair was a few inches from that before. So, it will be new to me. I hope I don't look funny.

I considered doing wigs, so i tried some on.....wigs are not for me! I may need the ones personally made for me! LOL! So the sew-in should look better....my main concern is that the hair left out will get puffy from the humidity and be obvious it is not the same. Really worried about that.

Gonna find my cord and take pictures before and after tomorrow and hopefully post all of them soon!

The Official Update

2008-08-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

So it has been 5 days...I am washing my hair tomorrow, so figured this would b the best time.

My hair is still very soft and managable! I am so excited. Only issue I have is nothing new. Because of the new growth/humidity/length it is starting to look puffy in the roots again. No big deal, the main part is that is feels and looks much much better. (Got a few comments about how it looks better!)

So Monday morning I get my sew-in. I am just getting a chin length bob. Enough to look like I have way more hair, lol but short enough so I am not hot all the time. I figure if I get the sew-in monday, it will stay in until September 8th (4 weeks). Then around September 20 something, I will get another one, or a perm....we will see. It is growing nicely, but I am concerned about the puffiness of what will show, so depending on that will make the difference.

I plan is to do sew-in (4 weeks), rest (2 weeks), sew-in, rest, etc until around december...well after Christmas. Even with the added chemicals, I really think my hair will be the length it was in June. I had got a hair cut last in line November and didn't get it cut (or even my ends clipped like I should have) from then to June....7 months. And it was low like a man's hair, if not lower than some!

So starting with like 1.5 inches of hair, from June to December is 6 months. Like I will be happy when it gets slightly longer than Rihanna's hair for now. That is a length I can easily maintain on my own.

Oh, so since I make sure to use my Tea tree Oil every night, my ends look great! I thought I was going to need to get them clipped but they are fine! I have definitely found products that work for me.

I am still a little nervous about the sew-ins.....so starting Monday, the entries will include what I learn about sew-ins and I will do monthly updates on my hair growth and state like when I take it out.

I am continuing to do research on taking care of my hair while it is in that state so it doesn't end up being worthless.

I know you can kind of use those bottles like the one you use to do hair color and put diluted shampoo and conditioner in it to get to your hair without risking causing build up later. And I think I will pre-poo the normal way instead of the "deep condition" way. Like just running the conditioners into my hair.

I wish I knew how to cut hair, lol! I have to pay like 25 for the hair and then 14 for a cut...ugh! Oh well, it is only 34 a month....well 6 weeks really. So by December, I will be paying 34 like 3 times.

Okay, so I just counted out 6 weeks a few times through december. I would end a 6 week period right before Christmas. I do not want to go into 2009 with a sew-in so we will do a Christmas official update. Relaxer and all that week. Maybe I will even treat myself and go to my old stylist. She was really good with my hair.

I didn't mention this before, but the reason I am trying to go as long as possible is because 1) I want my hair to grow without damage, 2) the longer your go (while taking good care of it), the more new growth so the less likely there will be damage because there is less likely you will overlap......like you know .5 inch new growth is a small amount, so it would be hard to confine it to jus that. But if there is like 3 inches, there is much less room for error.

Stratch the stylist idea, expensive!

Excited!

Two-Day Update

2008-08-06T13:16:00.000-07:00

So, yea!!!!!!

Two days and my hair is crazy soft! Like it is so silky smooth and gorgeous. It was not quite so good before....it looked how I hate. I am finally happy with it. I will definitely continue doing this routine. It is amazing....I can't wait until it grows!!!!

Felt like updating!

Blow Out

2008-08-04T20:55:00.000-07:00

Semi-success! Have not gotten my sew-in yet, so I did something different.

So I just washed my hair today. This time I pre-pooed with a combo of EVOO, Lekair, leftover color conditioner, and carrot oil. I have my dryer now, so I sat under it for 20 minutes on medium. Washed with same stuff....this is where is is different.

So I still used the Garnier Fruictis Sleek and Shine conditioner. Then I used the smoothing cream. I put it on my towel dried hair and tried a blow out today. Basically you use a round brush and a hand dryer. So I bought a Conair round brush with the plastic on the tips so it doesn't pull (I have one that is not round too). Since my hair is short, I do not have to worry about accidently tangling my hair around the brush (oh and there are ones for short hair).

Anywho, it worked out pretty well! My edges are very straight....the back still not to straight but straighter....i think, lol! I have a cheap something ion dryer but it does the job and I have used it before when my hair was straight a longtime ago. It is pretty safe. So I put it on hot but on low blast. I probably held it too close to my head, but there was never any burning or smoking so it is okay. And it is not like completely extra bone straight but very straight.

When I got done, it still had the puffyness (you know the I have new growth and just washed it and straightened it look). So I had been planning to try a saran wrap treatment. Since I had my dryer I did that too. So after I blew it out, I got 2 pieces of plastic wrap, the first really long to go around my huge head :P and the second to go over the top. Next time I would do a smaller top piece and maybe put it on first under the around piece. My hair DID come out layed down and with a really nice sheen!!!!! Yeaaaaaaa!!!!!! I think the amount of plastic may have been a little thick so I think I will try a tad less, my head sweats easy and I think it may have been about to. Nontheless, I am very happy with the results and depending on how it holds up the rest of the week, I will try it again.

Oh stuff I forgot about blow outs. My hairs in some areas kept drying, so you have to wet the roots again before you actually blow it....not sure why, but knowing heat and hair, I think that would burn it. Also, i don't know how much the direction matters, I read somewhere to do it vertically but I do not see much diffrence

Another thing, before the saran wrap treatment.....after the blow out the bottle said to put more cream on, which I did. You have to moisturize your hair, I may have done too much lol. But I had already put tea tree oil on before I decided to do it. And unsure if it was good for the dryer, I went on and put a SMALL combo of the olive oil heat protectant lotion and olive oil....literally, little. The combo was a dime amount.

I was about to tie it down.....I try to do tea tree at night, olive oil or oil sheen in the morning. It stays soft and has a more natural sheen that way I have noticed.

So I will definitely continue this if it lasts the week.....if not, I may still do it but like twice a week.

Yea!

Heat

2008-08-01T10:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, so my hair didnt look as good this week. When I washed and straightened it, it had tons of volume and was nice. You could see the new length....however, due to excess humidity and rain, it is not looking to hot. Sad....

So I have a friend who makes her hair grow with sew-ins I researched them and I think I am gonna get one. That way I dont even have to put ANY heat on MY hair if i dont want to. She does all the things I found that were key to a good SAFE sew-in so that should help me alot. And since a friend can do it, I save money. Try $25 a month (plus like 14 if i go get it cut into a style). I set benchmarks to see how long I can wait to get a relaxer just to give my hair time to chill somewhat. So I wanted to wait 4 months (October 28th) or 6 months (December 28th). But with the short length and excess growth, some of my hair is more new growth that texlaxed hair lol! Most is around half. Soooo, yeah, sew in would be good for me right now. I am more willing to pay 25-40 a month than to continue walking around looking unsure.

I am thinking a chin length bob, nothing too too crazyily long, because no matter how much I ad it iwill be obviously not my hair at this point. I hope to do this (depending on when I get it done) maybe 2 to 3 months (plus/minus the period between to let my hair breathe). And I think this will work out well because by December at the rate my hair is growing now, it should be the length the weave will be or at least to my ears.

I like doing the swoop bang thing with short hair, so I would not mind taking it out at that point and just wearing it, then when I want it to grow a little faster, we will go back to the sew in and again until is long and luxurious like it used to be :P

I am going to keep researching in the mean time....I did not realize all you can do with human hair. So I am excited about the possibilities.

I didnt post the process because I put too much EVoo in my pre-poo last week and it was really messy and getting everywhere in my bathroom, soooooo less runny oil next time

I'm so smart

2008-07-26T11:42:00.000-07:00

SO I finally figured out how to record on my mac (yeah not the smartest cookie), so i will so videos from time to time! So I am washing my hair tomorrow or tonight, not sure yet, so I will show how I pre-poo. It is different from other videos I saw but I do it similar to how some people do their deep conditioners, should be interesting, my first video :)

So I said I wanted to try some new things when I wash my hair this time. I was going to try having it braided and wear a braid out but I remembered those dont last mainly bcause I sleep hard on my head and flatten it out and with the length it may look worse. So instead I am going to try blowing out my roots if I can find my dryer....it disappeared in my room...weird. Like I said, I have around a half inch of new growth in some areas and I want to see how well that will work out as opposed to flat ironing it all out because I was really tired after doing that and I just want to try diffrent things to see how well stuff works on short hair since most blogs are aimed at longer hair.

I am beginning to get a little tired of the shortness because less hair does not equal less maintaance so anything to make it quicker while keeping it healthy is great. The major problem is the fact that it is literally half curly half straight....and not on the same strands. there are areas that are all curly (the previously mentioned broken sections along with the areas that are half and half....weirdness.

Still searching for other thing I can try to do, mainly to blend my hair without straightening before tonight/tomorrow so I know what I am going to try.

Looking forward to making my video!

A week later...

2008-07-25T17:28:00.000-07:00

I am really glad that I was able to straighten my hair with the flat iron. It has been really humid and semi-rainy the last few days and my hair still looks good.

I have noticed I am starting to have dandruff again....I had it semibad before even though I keep my hair moisturized. My fav shampoo for that used to be DooGro Dandruff Shampoo but sometime last year I guess they changed it and it became dandruff AND growth shampoo. I learned a longtime ago anything to stimulator growth does not work for me. It makes my hair grow even more like it should but that makes it very itchy and with more itching came WAYYYYYYY more dandruff. It was pretty counteractive so I stopped using it. I am thinking about using it again since I want fast growth but I am very worried about the itching. It was pretty extreme....if you have ever had a tattoo done, when it is healing and it gets to the crazy flaking itching stage where you wanna claw (my left shoulder blade) off because it is so bad....it was just like that if not more.

I forgot to measure my hair, but I am washing it Sunday so I will measure it with the new growth more visible so I can have a much more accurate number from a few main areas. Again my goals are around my ears by December....meaning somewhere between touching them to covering them. And by that I mean a section from the top of my head reaches down that far. I also want it to be soft yet strong. By then I think my color may be cut off, if it is, I will be getting a new color. I am thinking the color I had before because it was pretty bright and I like bright colors. It was a orangy red color and really nice on my skin because of my orange undertones. That sums up my year end goals. By this time next year, I hope to have shoulder length hair at least.

I am trying something new this week, so I will have a post on that after Sunday.

Yea!!!!!

2008-07-21T13:43:00.000-07:00

So yesterday I was able to use my 1" flat iron to straighten my hair!!!!!!

Before that, this week I bought my Olive Oil and had been using it. So when I did my pre-poo I used the LaKair, ORS Lotion, Olive Oil, ORS carrot oil (for my ends), and some left over conditioner from one of my colors. It was really soft, and long.....

Like I said my hair grows fast, I knew one side of my head had alot of damage and was really short but I realized just how much was when it dried. I let it airdry, so it is kind of whatever happens happens. So, since my relaxer on June 28th, I have over .5" of new growth in most areas in the top and middle and sides. I cannot see the back but it is at least .5" because I was able to grip it enough to flat iron and the edges, like in the front a little less. So that is a great sign.

The issue was that beccause of all the damage I had NO idea so much had broken off and now I see even more damage was done that I thought. I had never had color issues so now I am a little concerned about anymore coloring. I will definitely wait until all the current color is cut out before I add a new one. It won't be blonde so I am not too concerned about doing it on my own.

I would be more happy if I didn't find so much breakage had occured but I am happy that it is showing signs of improvement. The new growth in those areas in thick and soft just like the new growth in the areas that was still healthy.

Since I was able to use my flat iron, my hair is much less "up?" so I was able to lay it down...THINK Mia Farrow in Rosemary's baby. Oddly enough when I straightened it that was the look I wanted.....ironic.

I do not recall if I mentioned but a dime amount to a nickel should be enough Olive Oil. Too much and it will kind of sit there like a big shiny glob but in small amounts it leaves shine without the gloppy look. I forgot how much that stuff came running out the bottle.

On the 28th, I will measure my hair and my new growth seperate so I can give an accurate average on my new growth and progress!!! I am really excited about it!

My Routine

2008-07-18T10:23:00.000-07:00

Currently, this is my routine:

-Pre-poo

-Wash in shower

-Apply leave in conditioner

-let air dry

-straighten with hot comb

As soon as my hair is long enough to flat iron, I will. I hate using the hot comb, mainly because I cannot curl it (but I hate curling irons) and also it is not ceramic (neither are my curling irons that I hate. Both my flat irons are ceramic and work amazing.

What does that word even mean!

2008-07-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Before I straightened my hair, I did alot of research....it was like a whole new world was discovered while i was "gone"! Pre-pooing, cowashing, saran wrap treatments, etc. When I left off there were ceramic flat irons becoming popular....I felt lost.

So in finding out these terms, I had to go to 20 different places to figure out what things meant, and it was REALLY frustrating. For that reason, I figured I would just quickly put them all in ONE posting together. And I will include info about texlaxing. Not an expert, so this is my understanding of all the processes.

Texlaxing-using a texturizer to loosen curl pattern (texturizers are weak relaxers)

using a relaxer either half the time, without smoothing, and/or adding conditioner to relaxer. The most popular addition I found was EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil), the amount to add varied. Basically by reducing times and smoothing, and adding conditioners you are able to reduce the harshness of them chemical. Also, the conditioners help condition your hair while you relax it.

I didn't do that the first time but I will next time (found that tidbit after the fact). I used to use EVOO in my hair anyway, the only reason I stopped was because when I would go to Italian restaurants or eat anything with EVOO in it, i felt like I had hair in my throat because that was my association.....weird but true. However, despite that it works wonders. I used it just as a moisturizer (use a dime amount and just rub it through your hair).

Personally, I think texlaxing may work better on longer hair....before my fiasco it was fine, but with it shorter, it is way too much texture and hard to get it to lay down.

Pre-pooing (pre-shampooing)-putting a mixture of conditionering products on your hair dry before you wash it. Then covering with a plastic cap and letting it sit. The time depends on a few things. If you use a hot towel you can do like 20 minutes...I guess a dryer would be the same time (don't quote me). And if no heat at all, around an hour I read works. I personally do a hot towel for 30 minutes because I have to reheat it.

Most people say conditioners but I found that it is a mixture so stuff. Most ppl use products that they want to get rid of anyway, conditioners that are okay or just a cheap one along with other moisturizers they dont really use. In addition, you can use honey, olive oil, joboba oil, coconut oil (I plan to research those more). Currently, I an using a mixture of LeKair Cholesterol Plus (have a new conditioner that works better), ORS Moisturizing Lotion (since I really dont have olive oil right now), and some ORS Carrot Oil. I use both because I bought a ton of moisturizers and it is good for protecting ends. My hair is short so i use my hands, but you can also use a brush like the one for a relaxer to apply it. Think of applying it like a relaxer to virgin hair. Like get it ALLLLLLLLLLLLL over your hair, make sure you get those ends!!! Then, I put on the cap. The first time I did not reheat the towel so it didnt do anything. But last time, I put a slightly damp towel in the microwave for 3 minutes, put it on for 15 minutes, reheated and put it back on for 15 more minutes. And my hair came out REALLLYYYY good! It was shiny, and soft and not dry at all!

After all that I wash it....I use Cream of Nature, it is in an orange bottle, will look up the name. and start adding pictures soon! I go to Great Clips to get my ends clipped and they have a fortifying conditioner by Biolage (will look that name up too). I let me hair air dry with Garnier Fruictise Leave In Sleek and Shine Conditioner......I didn't mean to use so many different brands but some is what I had when I went unnatural soooooo for now I am keeping them. I have always used "nonmatching" products and have never had a problem with them. I loved Fruictise before and it works well, and it still does.

Co-washing- Conditioner washing....use conditioner in place of shampoo. Pretty simple. I used to do it before, I have not done it with my hair straight yet. Maybe Sunday I will.

Saran Wrap Treatment-After you flat iron your hair, you wrap it then wrap saran wrap around it, put a heat protectant on it and then sit under the dryer for 20 minutes. I HAVE NOT DONE THIS, mainly because I do not have a dryer right now and I dont think it would work for me. But I do plan to try it. It is supposed to help "flatten" your hair (from the fresh washed puffyness) as well as give it sheen. From what I saw in Vlogs, it works great....on long hair. I will add pictures of that when I try it too, should be next week.

Hope that was helpful!

Before the relaxer!

2008-07-17T14:06:00.000-07:00

So, I decided to talk about something I now know about. Before the first new relaxer!!!!

I mentioned in the about me, that I had 2 colors on top of each other. When my hair was natural, I kept it colored, and there was never a problem. When I had it done, I got my ends clipped and everything was fine. But when I washed it, there was trouble.

The first color was done in February, the second in April. All the hair that was there since February was BRITTLE, DRY, SCRAGGLY, HORRID looking. I could not comb it, it was hard and just depressing. I did not know what I had done wrong, especially considering that my roots all the way down to the hair with the april color were straight, soft, and gorgeous. I went to have it fixed and was informed that it was due to the colors. Being natural, there was no problem, but once the relaxer was added, it was pretty much over.

So, if you were a habitual colorer like me, beware, you may lose that length.

Aside from that, everything went well. I researched tons of relaxers and settled on ORS (Organic Root Stimulator), I actually had a friend do it, because I dont know how to. And she did the whole process in half the time. One difference I will try next time is adding the olive oil in to the perm. But I chose that one because it had a TON of great ratings including by people who texlax, and I will continue to use it.

Something else I made sure to do was to be sure I would have the time to make that change. I am in grad school, so I didn't want to add a ton of extra stress to my life. I actually did it during a break so that i would have time to adjust before school started back. That was a very good idea! You can see how much time you need, what works what doesnt, so it is very helpful.

That's all I have for today. I am going to try to do this maybe twice a week to chart my progress and add anything new I learn.

****Remember it is hair...it will grow back****

A little about me!!!!!

2008-07-17T13:58:00.000-07:00

As stated in the description, I was relaxed from 4-19, natural from 19-22...and now I am texlaxed.

I AM BY FAR NOT A HAIRSTYLIST, I am learning as I go, because honestly, I cannot afford one right now :)

I will add pictures as soon as I find some (new computer so most were lost on old one a longgggg time ago), that way I can show my hair before it was cut off, after, and now.

Currently, it is around 1.5" long, I am semi confused on the whole 4a/b all that jazz so when I post pictures, somebody let me know! All I know is it is THICK! I had my first texlax on June 28, 2008 and I am planning on the next one in either September or October (if not December).

It was longer when I intially got it done, but thanks to my excessive coloring when it was natural, all the length that had 2 colors on top of each other (first actual entry will discuss that learning experience) had to be cut off.

My hair always grew fairly fast, so my true concerns are on being sure it is healthy. I ready to make actual goals for what healthy means to you. So mine are currently to have hair that is shiny and moisturized since i have a very dry scalp usually.

Enjoy!