Operation: Length Retention (pt. I)

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am trying out a couple techniques this summer because I really want to retain length.  I know that my hair grows, but it seems to stay the same length because of improper maintenance.


Cowashing & Castor Oil
When my cousin first called me about cowashing back in the winter, I seriously thought she had been "smoking that stuff," as we often say in joking.  I am quite particular about cleanliness, and in my mind, there was no way washing my hair with conditioner was going to get it clean the way shampoo did.  Well, after cowashing these past few weeks, I must say I am HOOKED!  My hair is so much more manageable, softer, and moisturized.  And, all of the concerns I had about cleanliness have faded away.


Not only are my hair & scalp really dry, but there are a few spots that itch A LOT!  I have been oiling my scalp with a combination I made out of castor & tea tree oils.  The castor oil is great for the dryness & the tea tree oil soothes my itchy scalp.


Protective Styling
Again, to retain length, this summer I am trying to focus on styles that don’t require a lot of heat (from blow drying) & constant pulling, recombing/restyling, etc.

To achieve this week’s look, I did 3 two-strand flat twists on both sides of my head, plaiting the ends.  Then I horizontally two-strand flat twisted a section in the front so that I could have a wavy pompadour.  Finally, I divided the back of my head into 3 sections, and put 3-5 plaits in each section.  All of this was done while the hair was wet & I let it dry overnight.  In the morning, I took out all the plaits, brushed the hair back into a bun and made the pompadour in the front.

Give Us, Us Free!

“Give us, us free!”

No, that’s not the sound of my 7th & 8th graders anxiously awaiting summer vacation.  It was the sound of my scalp, hair & follicles crying out after being in braids for 2 months!  My plan was to make it from Spring Break (beg. of Apr.) to the end of the school year (middle of June), but I simply couldn’t take it anymore.  Plus after a couple braids that were on my temples suddenly appeared on my floor, I knew that my head just couldn’t handle it anymore.  So, Memorial Day weekend, I spent many hours carefully shedding those braids!

Now that my hair is back to usual, I have 3 things I want to discuss...and they all start with the letter C!

Color:  Back in December I went to the salon and got my hair colored.  I went to Faye at Faye’s Beauty Salon in the New Center area, and was very pleased with the consultation and service.  I really liked how Faye LOVED working with my hair in its natural state.  Anyway, my hair has grown some since then, and the color is now in the middle/ends of my hair, which I think looks super neat.  I had contemplated getting a touch up of color, but I’m kind of digging the middle/end bursting with color thing.

Cowashing: I have heard lots about cowashing, but have been leery to try it.  My goal this summer is to dabble in cowashing.  I figure, if it goes wrong, at least I won’t have to go in to work the next day!  I bought some more conditioner at the beauty supply (I don’t want to use the my Joico on weekly cowashes...just for deep conditioning) and can’t wait to get started.

Castor Oil: So, at the last hair-meetup, someone mentioned Jamaican Black Castor Oil for the scalp.  I couldn’t find that in any store, so I settled for some generic castor oil.  I must say, I really like using it!  I have a really dry scalp, and most oils don’t do anything for me.  I had been using Isoplus Natural Collection: Braids, Locks, & Twists Scalp Moisturizer because it truly moisturizes my scalp the way I need.  However, I was looking for something else because I get nervous about putting substances on my skin that are man made (ie. Propylene Glycol, PPG-5-Ceteth-20, Diazolidinyl Urea!?!?!?!?!).  I will try this for awhile and see how it goes.

Accepted, Affirmed, and...ACCESSORIZED!!!

Last night some of my girlfriends & I attended the Naturally Flyy Detroit Meet-Up #5 at Sweet Potato Sensations in Artist Village.  It was a time of celebration of natural hair, networking, & panel q&a.  I felt SO BLESSED to be amongst like-minded sisters and brothers who have embraced natural hair care.  My only regret is that I forgot my camera!  When I got in my car to go home, the three words I came up with to describe my experience were: accepted, affirmed, & accessorized.

Accepted
I think a few of my closest friends knew about a period of about 3 mos. this past winter/early spring that I refer to myself as "The Dark Night of the Soul."  It was a season of my life where I kept trying to figure out what was "wrong" with me & why I am 27 and still not married.  At one point I even questioned if wearing my hair natural was why I haven't been on a date in a HOT second.  Most of my friends who are married are not natural and a few had encouraged me to "just get your hair pressed."  I've been natural for 5 years.  But in February, I got my hair pressed for the first time in AGES.  And relationally, it got me nowhere.  After 2 weeks, I went back to being natural.

What I had to learn, and what was expressed yesterday by several gentlemen (on the panel & in the audience) is that it isn't the hair that makes you, but the confidence within.  I had worked really hard after undergrad to build my confidence, but somewhere along the way, I let all my hard work unravel.  Being in a room full of naturals (and their supporters) built my confidence in my decision to be natural, as well as to accept and love my decision.

Affirmed
From the moment I pulled into the parking lot, 'til the moment we left, I was affirmed.  The security team not only helped us park, but walked us to and from the venue.  When we entered into the meet-up we were greeted by gentlemen who had nothing but positive things to say about our hair.  All of us even received a wonderful poem, which in all honesty I didn't read until this morning while I was digging through my purse at church.  The poem, "Perfectly Beautiful (Just as You Are!)" made me feel so good, not just to be natural, but to be a BLACK woman.

I live and work in the suburbs, so most of the admirers of my natural hair are my middle-aged/senior, caucasian co-workers or my adolescent students.  While I appreciate their comments, it just doesn't feel the same as when brothers & sisters my own race and age complement me on my hair and affirm my decision.  I definitely left full & feeling like the queen that I am.

Accessorized
Ok, so, I am going to start putting aside money every pay period so that when I go to the next meet-up (July 30), I can have PLENTY of spending money!  There were so many neat things that I wanted to buy, but could only get a few.  I picked up a "Thank God I'm Natural" Shirt (w/ complimentary tote) and a clip from OMSoul.  Next time, I want to get some earrings from Created in His Image.

All in all, a great time, & I CAN'T WAIT for the next meet-up!

Curly Girlie

This week's hair inspiration came from one of my favorite singers as a teen...Gwen Stefani!

I hadn't done this since college...but took it upon myself to curl my braids.  How do you curl synthetic hair?  Good question!

First I put my hair in medium size ponytails all over.  Then I divided each ponytail into smaller parts and put rollers around them.

Then I GENTLY washed my hair with Joico's Color Endure shampoo and used towels to squeeze the excess water out of the rollers.  To make sure that the braids were really curled, I boiled hot water and dunked each section of rollers into a bowl of the hot water for 30 seconds.  (TIP: If you do this, be sure to hold a towel around your neck & ears...you don't want to burn yourself!)

I squeezed the water  out of the rollers, applied some extra-hold Pre-Con Gel to my roots to prevent flyaways, put on a scarf, laid a towel on my pillows to absorb any water & went to sleep!  The next day's results:

I took me awhile to figure out a good way to get my hair over like Gwen's.  I had to part it and put a scarf on it to try and flatten some of this hair.  I put in a couple of bobby pins & now I'm all set!

Heeeerrrreeee We Go!

So I decided to start a blog that will focus on two things that are important in maintaining in my life: my (natural) hair & my relationship with God.

I've been wearing these braids for over 3 weeks now, and wanted to do something different with them for this Holy Weekend.  My inspiration was from this post on Her Best Hair.  So I made 3 big twists on the left side of my head, then took the remaining hair, twisted it around, and made a bun/chignon thing...I might change it come Easter.

Have a Happy Good Friday!