Thinking...Natural

Commenter said: u make me wanna go natural...I just don't like dealing with hair at all...n my hair is way 2 thick to not be relaxed...so idk, maybe I'll try after the summer

I say: There are so many things I can say to that. First, one of the most important things a person needs to have with natural hair is patience(or a lot of money if you want someone to do it for you all the time lol). So if u don't like dealing with hair and don't want to, being natural is really really hard. Second, when was the last time u've dealt with your natural hair? I don't mean that stage that ur hair is in right before ur go get another relaxer when the new growth is showing its face...or what ur hair was like as a child before ur first relaxer...or even what ur hair is like with a relaxer...basically u can't truly know what ur natural hair is like until after u have ur BC. Relaxers(or texturizers or texlaxs) can sometimes make the hair even harder to manage. Also, our hair changes over time, for example, my hair is NOTHING like it was when I was a child. No hair is too thick to be natural y do u think that?

Like many things in life u have to reach a breaking point where ur mind is made up. For me, it was a time that my relaxed hair was cool and no big hassle. The one thing that constantly bothered me was my hair seemed like it had been the same darn length for years. Spending money on relaxers every 9 weeks for what...I felt like I was paying money for my hair to look exactly the same as before...I was making no progress.

I adored natural styles on other ppl and one key thing was I didn't wish my hair was like theirs. Instead, I wanted to know what my hair would be like natural. Actually, seeing their hair made be think about how different my hair would be from theirs. I didn't care what texture I was going to have I was ready for anything. A friend of mine decided to stop relaxing and I jumped on the boat. I had no idea what I was doing but I researched my butt off and learned. No one from home was natural so I had no motivation up there...actually they motivated me to not be just like them haha. The natural girl I knew at school wore mostly semi-straight styles...it was cute but I didn't want to deal with putting heat on my hair all the time. My best friend's hair from my first school was awesome to me! She told me stories of how it took her 5 or so hours to achieve her styles, but oddly that didn't deter me. Her hair was very thick and coarse and beautiful.

My main point is try not to have preconceived ideas about what ur hair would be like. U have to be accepting to what the creator already decided. Have u already set and reached ur hair goal? Even if u decide to stay relaxed make sure ur taking care of ur hair. Happy Hair Growing.

In new news

Hope your week is starting off well. Spring is finally here!!!! This coming up weekend is Easter Sunday and I get to go home and do a little celebrating. My family always goes out for breakfast the weekend of my grandma's birthday, which is this one, so I get to see all my fam!!! Also, I get to go admire my new nephew...at only a month old number 9 already has such a personality.

Protective Styling? As much as I love wearing my hair in a puff I need to keep up my protective styling for many reasons. One reason being....I'm working out again! Yea I fell off the wagon last year but Im hopping back on with hopes of losing my tummy. I plan on doing cowashes or rinses(with only water) after my workouts. Also, I have to tell you about my little nightmare. So after three weeks I washed my straighten hair. Let me add it was my first time straightening since being natural. After my first wash my hair felt HORRIBLE. It felt brittle and my curls that I love so much were a hot mess. After complaining to my bestie she enlightened me with the knowledge that I needed to wash my hair a few times for it restore all the way to my natural state...whewww so I thought. At the time, I wasn't at home and I had virtually no products with me. I took a trip to Sally's and bought a moisturizer that I had never used. Thankfully it did the job. Sadly, my hair and texture still doesn't look exactly normal but it feels hydrated. Also, I promised myself that I will be serious about moisturizing . So nightly, I section my hair then moisturize, apply butter, and a light oil. I can already tell a big difference. Now, I'll I have to do is decide on what protective style I want to do for Easter. HHG.

Out from Hiding

Hey everyone. I've been really bad and Im sorry. I keep saying that I will stop my large posting gaps but it hasn't happened yet. I've been so caught up and haven't had any spare time.
Catch up:
I got my hair straightened in February and it turned out pretty good.
My old stylist tried to convince me to get my hair straightened every two months....hmm soo not happening. She also had a really rough time trying to detangle my hair...that must have been from me going over a year with combing hahaha. She has convinced me to comb my hair at least every month or so I can make sure I get all of shed hair out. I've had it straightened for three weeks now with no extra heat which was typical when I was relaxed. I plan to wash it within the next week.

In other news, I'm about to iron out my hair regime and make it solid. I'm still thinking about eliminating shampoo from my washing routine...not positive yet. I have been completely absent from the natural hair world that I was so obsessed with before. I might poke my head back in the scene soon.

After my trip to the salon my APL goal of May(I don't remember the exact month) has been delayed :( I can't blame it on the salon my ends were crappy which was my own fault. So my new APL goal is set to September.

Gotta head to class.


I'll be back soon :)

In my experience

Someone told me the other day that you "get bored" of your natural hair after 4 yrs so you go get a relaxer. I highly doubt that this is true lol. Naturally, I get bored easily period and this includes my hair, but that doesn't mean I want it to be relaxed. Idk maybe its just me, but I'm in love with my hair and regret that I ever wanted to be relaxed. My hair isn't hard to manage and I love my curls and kinks. If I ever get that bored I will find something else to do like cut it or something. Some may be a little irritated with my point of view, but I could really care less.

I'm trying out new styles all the time and love every minute of it. Here are a couple of pics of a style I did over the holidays. I also updated my fotki.

Although, sometimes I go through periods where don't feel like doing my hair. Like right now....I put in two strand twist last week and have been wearing a hat on top to keep my head warm. I have been doing better at moisturizing because Ive been noticing that when my scalp gets dry now my scalp gets incredibly dry and itchy.

New Hairstyle Idea

Side French braided/Two Strand twist Up Do

I see she posted this video back in Aug on youtube, but I'm just now seeing it so it's new to me lol. I'm trying to tonight. I'll let you know how it goes.

Become a better u

This post is dedicated to a very special person in my life. I love her to death, but I'm really starting to believe that she doesn't see her own beauty. Yes, some say beauty is only skin deep but I believe it starts within and shows throughout. We have to learn every part of us is beautiful from our hair to the soles of our feet. Lately, she's been trying to convince me(and obviously herself) that her issues aren't as deep as I'm making them seem. Let me give you a little background on her.

She decided one day probably over a year ago that she wanted to get over the creamy crack addiction. She saw how successful my hair journey is coming and also how damaging relaxers can be on our hair. She mainly used protective styles during her first period of transitioning.

After many talks with me and also my friend she finally BC'd because she realized the relaxed ends weren't helping her at all. Then the heavy door of reality hit her in the face. Her natural hair wasn't what she hoped it to be. Her complaint is that she doesn't see her curl pattern and her hair is short. I've tried to explain to her that she has to get over it...yea I'm guilty of tough love.

I've push her toward natural sites and videos but it doesn't look like she's making any progress. Mentally, this woman is still in transition. It's been over two months and she has never worn her hair out around her church family and friends. She's been hiding it with a wig. This is a woman who never wore a wig in her life until she stopped getting relaxers. She hasn't played with her hair much but has toyed with twist-outs and braid-outs. In her opinion they are not "cute." Her husband is pretty cool until we get to the subject of hair. He is not supportive of it at all and she's is letting him believe that his lack of support isn't a big deal. HELLO ugh this woman is lying to herself. It's obvious that her feelings are hurt despite if she wishes to admit it or not.

I do understand that natural may not be for everyone but u can't convince me that this journey is not a life changer. It has made me blossom in soo many ways and I'm truly a different person now. I have become more patient, loving, understanding just to name a few. Help me help her.

It gets old fast

Ever since I was very small I could never keep my focus on anything very long. To make it plain, everything usually gets old pretty fast. I would get something new and after a few days or maybe a week if someone even asked me where I had it last I couldn't tell u. I'm 23 now and I still have this issue. This could even be the reason y I keep "forgetting" to write blog posts lol. Anyways, it gets extremely bad with hair styles. I can keep a style for three weeks max. Its pretty sad. I try to stretch but by the third week I'm telling myself that it needs to come out. I always seem to pick the worse times to take my hair styles down too. I decided I wanted to take my crochet braids down last night at about 11pm even tho I knew I would be too tired to wash it and that I had to be at work today at 8. So now I'm sitting here with a dirty head of hair a day before Thanksgiving. Plus, I plan to drive up north my mom's house tonight. Ugh.

Happy Sunday

Hi guys,

I had my mind made up that I was going to make it to church this morning...FAIL. I stayed up to after 4am talking to my close friend and didn't wake up until after 11 this morning.

Lately, I have been extremely stressed with my financial issues. I'm prayin that I will make it through this trial very soon. I'm truly tryin my best.

I don't kno about u but I'm always drawin a blank when it comes to my next style. I kno it will be a protective style...I usually always style true to that. But other than Idk. Two weeks ago I randomly decided I would install yarn braids. I was inspired by yet another one of Black Onyx's tutorials style videos...check them out



I bought the products and started one braid....then I got lazy and didn't go through with it. I ended up doin my usual front braid back two strand twist style and I didn't like it one bit for some reason. I ended up retwisting the front a week ago. I did I twist out last night and I'm ready to wash it out already. So I'm definitely washing my hair tonight, but I don't know what I'm doin to my hair. Ugh its so frustrating. Well guys gotta go figure out what I'm doing to it.

*Patting myself on the back*

Last night I had a great idea of getting up extra earlier today so I could go to the gym before my 8:30 class. Normally, I would have kept hitting the snooze button until it was too late, but for some reason I was full of energy when I woke up this morning from only 4 good hours of sleep lol. I had a good workout and I'm really thinking about advancing my routine soon very soon. I've lost a total of about >5 lbs. I know that's not a lot, but I'm very proud of myself. It's been about a month since I started working out about three times a week. I'm starting to notice my stomach flattening and my flab tightening...its great.

After my workout, I took a shower and rinsed my hair at the gym when a thought hit me. I would have never been able to rinse/cowash my hair on an almost daily basis when my hair was relaxed. And even if I could I would have never been able to slap some activator gel and a headband and just go. I was admiring my curls in the mirror and I still can't believe that my hair is natural. This might be easier for some ppl to accept, but to me its a huge change. Personally, its been a change for the better. I love love love my hair and I know she loves me too lol.

The Relaxed Decision

I'm interested to know y after finding out how harmful relaxers can be and hearing all the horror stories of the damage its caused we still feel we(black women) need to get our hair "permed" on a regular. I've been natural for over a year and I love it. I realize that some individuals find it hard to care for natural hair so they continue to relax...believe me I'm not hating. I just would love to hear y they love relaxers so much. I would love to know y they are so addictive.

I don't talk much about my decision to go natural, but I began thinking really hard about this when I began to read the post Good Hair. As a child I can remember going to the hair dresser every couple of weeks with my mother and sister. I don't have many memories of my childhood but these visits are clear. We were all natural but got our hair pressed on a regular. My mother never did our hair at home(by this age my sis could style her own hair), so I never saw my natural curls...if I even had any left from getting my hair pressed so often. My mother wore her hair in tight rollerset curls and I hated it lol. It reminded me of a 60's hairstyle. As I got a little older my sis got her hair relaxed by a stylist from church....then my mother got hers relaxed. It only seemed natural to get my hair relaxed too...or so I thought. I actually learned to love the feeling of head getting burned from the relaxer....odd and weird I know. One time my head burn so bad it literally felt like my hair was going to fall off. My stylist had to pour antiseptic over my whole head. Yet, I didn't think twice about it. I felt like it was my own fault that I got burned. I wasn't supposed to scratch my head. It's like we are brainwashed. That's not normal. Y would I want something in my head that burned that much? Some women feel that their hair is only beautiful when their new grow has just been fried and their hair is bone straight. I wasn't that type. I wanted my hair to grow and I wanted my hair to be healthy. Once I began to learn about natural hair I challenged myself and transitioned from the relaxers.

Like I said before, I'm not hating on relaxers. I believe that we have free will and can do what we please to our hair. I understand that natural hair can be too much to handle at times. I just wish we as black ppl could be more open to change. More willing open to our eyes when something is obviously wrong with us. I know so many women who have bald spots all over their heads and you can see their scalp from just looking at them from behind...yet they still go back and get there hair relaxed. I know that some women feel that relaxed hair is more acceptable. Those same women will wear blond synthetic weave and think their hott.

I also know women who are very aware and knowledgeable(or they have good stylists) of whats going on to their hair. These women understand that relaxers need to be stretched and carefully applied. It would make sense for these women to choose to continue to relax, so my curiosity grows deeper for women with damaged hair. I want to know y they find so much comfort in getting them. It can't be so much that they wanna be just like celebrities or the tv because the majority of them are rocking lacefront wigs not relaxers.

I know their are historical facts and research on this, but I just want what is really going through these women's minds. I want to know what their really thinking. Hmmm...I just wanna know.

Taking a Step Away from the Puff

Even though I loved my puff I am going to take a break from them. I'm not sure how often I will wear my puff now, but it def won't be everyday. I've even tried a new style

I hope to keep this style until my 1st napturalversary . 8 days to go yayayyhh!!!!

Yay Twist Out Success...Well Sorta

If you know anything about my hair...u know it does exactly what it wants to do. After I BC'd I was introduced to a head of hair that I had never met before lol. It was stubborn but darn pretty. I love every inch of it...well I've learn to love it.

I often joke about not being about to do a twist out because they normally look like

this

which looks much like

this

which is just a wash n go. Because I like the 2nd pic more I normally don't wear twist outs.

Lately, I've been noticing a lot more knots on my ends and suspicious breakage areas so I need to add something to my regime. After looking at Beautifulbrwnbabydol's regime video I thought...hey I should try doing 2strand twists at night.

So I did and I used
And my 2nd day hair turned out as follows:

I'm satisfied lol

I feel like...

this

lol...For the summer I am planning to rock wash n gos with full force, but so far I have been feeling like I have a jheri curl for the first hour or so after my cowashes. I might know the source of the problem. First off, I have a new puppy that demand all of the time at home. When I finally have a chance to get in the shower in the mornings before hopping on the bus to get to work it I'm rushing and running around the house like crazy. Second, I've been trying to kick towels out routine. I love my curls so much more when I have ringed the crap out of head. I know I've heard using tee-shirts as a sub, but I can't seem to find the time to grab any while I'm rushing. So instead I've been ringing sections of my hair with my hands to get the access water out...umm it sounded like a good idea at first.

By the time my hair is styled and I'm out the door I have condish and moisturizer running down my neck. Ugh I can't stand it. My skin is extremely sensitive and absolutely hates it. When I started doing this a couple of weeks ago I ended up with a huge rash on back of my neck and ears that itched like crazy. I managed to get my eczema on my neck and stuff cleared up by using ACV and coconut oil several times a day.

I'm not sure what to do about the drippige...

Who can be "Natural"

This question was brought up when I was talking with an old friend. She has always been someone that receives the question "What are you?" I've been knowing her for over 8 years and I still finding myself driving down the street honking and waving at a White girl wearing shades thinking she's my friend lol. She identifies herself as black which is 110% fine by me. Her mother is mixed with German and Black and her father with White and Black. Around the same time me and my old roomie decided to be free from chemical fires she decided to do the same(or prolly before I don't really remember). She has beautiful hair and it's full of curls. Honestly, she prolly never should have considered perming in the first place. Note: I say that only because her texture always looks pretty much the same. For example, On Monday she walks in the door with straight hair(that hasn't been permed in months) and on Tuesday it looks exactly the same(She has just come from the salon in which she paid $60+ for a perm). True story.

Because of the way ppl ridicule her about what race she is and finds herself defending her right to called Black on way to often basis she feels she her hair isn't "natural." I quickly disagreed.

Number 1: She's Black(or AA to be politically correct)
Number 2: She doesn't have chemically altered hair

But she feels that maybe because

Number 1: She doesn't look "Black" (she has very fair skin and green eyes)
Number 2: Her hair 3B/3C isn't "nappy" *cringing* or kinky

The pic I found closest to her hair is:

I dreamt I relaxed my hair!

I've read about having these dreams on one of my natural sites. I read it thinkin...that's crazy I hope I never have one of those. Well ladies I did and it was horrible. In my dream I was preparing my hair to do a straight style. All of a sudden I got the bright idea to relax my hair so it could be straighter. I added the perm and instantly regretted it. I couldn't believe I was doing this to myself...all my hard work was flushed down the toilet. I threw my head under the sink and rinsed it out. I quickly thought...if I wash it out right away it will kinda still look natural. Once I had completely washed out my hair I cried and cried and cried some more.

I woke myself out of my sleep, because I heard myself wimpering. When I opened my eyes my puppy was looking at me like I was crazy lol.

10 months already?

The other day I was browsing through my usual hair forums (nappturality & blackhairmedia) and I saw that a poster hit her 10 month napptural mark. Then it hit me I forgot my 10th month of being natural :(. It was officially May 16. Well, I won't forget again.

I promised myself that I would keep my kinky twists in for at least 6 weeks. Hmm...idk about that. I love my real hair and have always hated weave so I don't know if I can last. I'm sure that my hair is loving the break from manipulation. Maybe I will take these down the Friday before Father's Day, so I can look extra fly on Sunday lol.

1 1/2 more months until 1 nappversay. Yay!

Kinky Twist Mishap

Well, as I mentioned before my plan was to put my kinky twists in as soon as I finished up the semester. My plan actually came through, but I having a little bit of difficulty.

1) I started my hair on Sunday night. It's friday at 4pm and I'm still not finished. My excuse is that I'm working full time and I only have time to work on my hair for a couple of hours at a time.

2) So when I purchased 4 bags of hair to be on the safe side. I discovered that one of the bags was a 1B/30 and all the rest are 1B/30. I assumed that 1B/33 would be lighter so I used that bag first and I started doing my hair from the back up. Ugh I was wrong as heck. So now the back of my hair is extremely lighter than the rest of my hair.

I pray that I it looks fine.

Hair Style Change Plz

K so I've been talking about my lack of hair styles for weeks now. This week is officially the last of school this semester. My plan is to put my kinky twists in directly after school ends. Hopefully this one will actually happen. So far my other hair plans have been dropped ridiculously. Since my BC in July 08 I have been really good with dcing 2x a month and washing 4x a month. Well I haven't washed my hair at all in at least 2 weeks and I've only cowashed once in that time. Plus, I haven't moisturized my hair in days. Ugh I know. I blame it on stress, drama, and tiredness.

Today is Wednesday and I still have two more finals this week plus Mother's Day on Sunday. So hopefully Saturday I will give my hair a lil TLC...she really deserves it for holding up with all the crap I've been giving her lately lol.

Monday I plan to start on my hair. Part of me wants to hold off, because my "friend" doesn't like when women have hairstyles in their heads for more than 3 three weeks. I guess she will have to suck it up and love my hair however I decide to wear it. :)

I'm drawing a blank with styles

So shortly after I BC'd winter was around the corner and I made big plans for protective styles. That's exactly what I did...I religiously wore two strand twists for about 8 months. I was able to retain so much length during this time which makes me soooo excited. My twists usually consist of flat twists in the front and two strand twists in the back. I get tons of compliments on it and after time I loved how they look on me. Before April of this year, on really warm days and or sometimes that day before a wash I wore my hair in a high puff. I also love this style on me, but if you know me I hate repetition. I like to constantly do something new. Even as a child when get something new and play with it for a week max and move on to something else.

So here is where the problem comes in. At nighttime I faithfully wear a bonnet(Mon-Fri) but recently I noticed that my hair is beginning to peak out the side because my hair is getting so long. It's sorta irritating because I don't feel like braiding my hair EVERY NIGHT before I got to sleep just to wake up in the morning and style it again. I love long hair and don't get me wrong I'm truly happy about my growth...but...at my length what should I do? I want to try something new. I refuse to were my hair in a protective style 98% of the time in the summer too. I purchased some combs so I could try a frohawk. Did it work for me.... of course not. I also tried wearing my hair in a lil bang thing (I'll try to post a pic) with a puff in the back. It's a really cute style but it only works for me on wash day. Lately I've been seeing folks do bantu knot outs in their hair and looks GREAT but I don't think my hair is long enough yet.

I'm def not bored or thinkin about doin anything drastic but I needs some more ideas. Can anyone give me any tips on how to do a frohawk?

Nite Hair Care Slacking

So, several months ago I posted that I had been slacking with my night hair care. Well, I still am. Normally during the week I'm pretty good at wearing a bonnet at night, but my hair care during the wknd is inexcusable. I think that my problem is when I wear my bonnet I think I am not sexy for the night. I don't want to be around my boyfriend like that. He's neva said anything about it, but I know if I was him I would want to rip it off my head when I was sleeping. Also, my fro is starting to get enormous so I can't wear a satin scarf anymore at night. I have to either deal with the fact that he is going to see me with a bonnet on a regular or find something prettier to wear.

April,