Hair Update: Style and Care

Hi everyone!!!

Sorry it's been a while, but things have just been crazy and on the move at work. I call it a night as soon as I get home! (and grade papers) I'm working on heading to Charlotte, NC next school year, so if anyone knows of any openings, let me know!!! Anyway, I want to give a quick update on how my natural hair journey is going. I have established my new favorite style. It's a blown out afro. It looks great on me, but my only issue is blowing it out so often. I hate doing my hair for hours and blow drying it just takes too long for my taste, plus I feel it's damaging my hair. My bathroom floor is usually filled with hair when I'm done, and KNOW that is soooo not right. I just checked out a vid on Youtube on how to do a curly fro. I'm going to try that tonight and see how it comes out in the morning. I'm wearing a pulled back puff right now. I want to get away from the heat, the hardening, crusty gel, and tying my hair back. I may be doing it wrong, but I cannot wear my hair with a scarf or stocking tied around it without having a headache by the end of the day. So, I'm going to try the curly fro method without tying anything on my head. I'm getting a headache just thinking about it.
Also, I changed shampoo. I was using Creme of Nature, which is what I used when I had a relaxer. I just kept using it, but I've been trying to get my hair soft and shiny and whenever I put that shampoo in my hair, my hair felt hard and crunchy. Didn't like it. I'm using Organix Coconut Milk shampoo now. It's ok. My hair feels so much better. I'm finishing up my Pantene Moisturizing Conditioner and will try the Organix conditioner with the shampoo and see how that works.
My hair is really frizzy and I don't know what to do about it. I've kinda given up on it and just living with it. Also, I absolutely LOVE how my hair feels and look when it's wet!!!! Is there ANY way that I can keep that up when it's dry???????? My curls are so defined, but stretched, and can go for a really cute style. I love that I can rub my hands over my hair and it stays the same (not get frizzy and poofy). But once it dries, the poof takes over and the curls are harder to see. I use gel but it dries and flakes, AND makes my hair hard and crunchy. I don't want that. I want it soft, curly, defined, stretched, healthy, and shiny. NOT frizzy, poofy, shrunk, hard, crunchy, flaky. Or am I asking for too much??? If I am, I can handle it, just need to know.

Well, I am off to buy some rollers and give my hair a break from being tied up and toasted. OHHHHHHHHH, and I want to change my color too! I have highlights, but I hate them b/c they are starting to look like an animal print. My students say my hair looks like the peanutbutter and jelly sandwiches I eat for lunch (the little "darlings")lol. I want one solid color, but what? I want it to be a dark color, or should I just stick with my natural hair color?? I'm not going to do anything until my highlights grow out so I have time to decide.

So please add any comments, suggestions, ideas, whatever you have to help me!!!! It will be greatly appreciated!! =)

One more thing: Where would be the best place to buy shea butter. I used it before but it was scented and my family hated it. I was just happy it made hair so soft. So I need to get some that is not scented. Thanks!!!!!! Here are some pics...

first flat ironed since BC

I'm On Youtube!!!!!

Hiiiii Everyone!!!!

I haven't been on here in a while and just wanted to make a come back by saying I JUST POSTED MY FIRST YOUTUBE VIDEO!!! I'm so excited. I've been on youtube for a while just watching and getting lots of tips and much needed information. Now I have my own contribution. LOL It's just a vid of my hair journey from birth to my BC. I'm currently working on my next vid which is my journey from my BC to my 1 yr anniversary (which will be in Jan. 2010). But I may post the first 6 months....don't know yet. Anyway, just check out the video and tell me what you think. I feel bad for taking so long to post something but teaching really takes a lot out of you! And when I get home all I can think of is SLEEP. I'm also currently struggling with my scoliosis. I haven't been doing a good job of keeping up with my stretches since I finished physical therapy and so I'm paying for it with the awful pain. Also, I have been trying different things with my hair lately and I just got it colored. I missed my color so much. I'll put up pics! I also got it flat ironed when I got the color in. It was hell going through that so next time I'm flat ironing it MYSELF!!! LOL Well, I'm going to go now and finish cleaning my room and eat something! Watch the vid! The link is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmb-HmtUo9Q

Styling

My hair so far as of Feb. 1, 2009...

I did cornrows in the front and left the rest as a fro before this style but I don't think I have any pics...

My Hair Discovery

I can't remember at this moment if I have mentioned what my hair texture or curl pattern is. It is very coily, like little springs all over my head. Right now I am in the middle of twisting my hair for a twist-out look later this week. I have noticed that in the middle of my head, my hair is different. The rest of my hair is very coily near the scalp and crazy near the ends. I take it this means that it's chemically altered hair that still needs to be cut off. If so, I will deal with later when my hair grows out some more, which is going well. But the very middle of my head is coily all the way through to the ends. The length is the same as the rest of my hair but in this area the natural curl is all the way to the ends. I don't understand this but I love it all the same. I have taken pictures of my hair texture and hopefully will get those up soon.

My BC!!!!!!!

Going Natural!!!!

Hello everyone!!! I have started this blog specifically for natural hair care. I have been natural for a year and recently did the big chop to get rid of the damaged hair from relaxer and color. It has been so uplifting and I cannot stop smiling! I was a little nervous at first because I didn't know what my boyfriend would think of my hair being cut so short. I figured he would be okay because when we met my hair was a mess. I was transitioning and still had all that damaged hair flying everywhere. But when he saw it, he didn't comment on it, just made a lil whislting sound and he cannot keep his hand off of it!!! I was driving somewhere one night and he rode with me and he played in my hair most of the ride! He's the best. I'm just so happy with my hair and I fill so relieved and like so much is lifted off my shoulders. It's like I have cut off all the negative in my life and left with the healthy and positive things in life. I feel good.
I am dealing with some natural hair issues already though.
Shampoo
First of all, I'm trying to find the right products for my hair. The shampoo I have been washing my hair with for years is Creme of Nature. It works beautifully on my hair but that product has changed and the ingredients in the updated products is more harmful than the outdated one I have been using. I'm trying it out to see if it continues to work well on my hair.

Conditioner
Second, I am trying to find the right conditioner. I started off using Pantene Pro-V Curls Conditioner. I used it with the Pantene Pro-V Curls Mousse and Gel. My hair came out great! Just had a few damaged straight ends and just clipped them off. The only thing I did not like was how my curls were hard. I was kind of expecting them to be soft and shiny. I stopped using the gel afterwards to keep my hair soft. When the conditioner ran out, I looked for something that would moisterized my hair because it was beginning to get really dry. I tried Aussie moisterizing conditioner and bought some shea butter. OMG!!! My hair was soooooo soft and moisterized!!!! I couldn't keep my hands out of my hair! The only problem is my hair was not looking as curly. Some of my hair was straightening. I'm still trying to figure it out. I have noticed my curl pattern also. My roots are very tight tiny coils. But my ends are a little different. I don't know if I need to cut more off. Right now I'm just going to let it grow out some more before cutting it again. So I have gone back to Pantene Pro-V Curly to hold the curl pattern in my hair.

Moisterizer
I am trying to find the right moisterizer for my hair. I started using pure shea butter mixed with my moisterizing olive oil and my hair was sooooo much softer and moisterized as I mentioned earlier. The thing is, the shea butter I bought was scented and the smell drove my family crazy whenever they went into the bathroom where I mixed it and applied to my hair. If I can find pure shea butter without the scent, I will be so happy. I just don't know where to find it. The only kinds I find is already mixed with other chemicals I'm not comfortable with includind sulfate and mineral oil and a bunch of other hard-to-pronounce ingredients. I just bought some moisterizing lotion from Pantene. I will probably mix a little in my water spray bottle I use when dampening my hair.

Gel
I started off using the gel that's part of the Pantene Pro-V Curly line but it made my hair hard. My aunt turn me on to IC Fantasia gel. I used it and it worked very well but left my hair hard and with flakes. I have been using Smooth and Shine hair gel for years because it was a soft gel and didn't leave my hair hard so I've been using a dab of that! I plan on trying the Kinky Curly. I don't know if it will leave my hair hair also.

Overview
So I need a little help finding the right products for my hair. I wash my hair once a week and co-wash everyday. So right now my questions are:

1. What is a good shampoo that is not harmful?
2. What is a good moisterizing conditioner for naturally curly hair?
3. What is a good moisterizer to keep my hair moisterized between washes?
4. Where can I find pure shea butter?
5. What is good gel to hold my curls without the hardening and flakes?

Well, I will be back later with updates! Please let me know of any tips!!!!


Relaxed and plain...the hair I mean ;-)

My first BC (LOL)

Then the color...

Transitioning to natural...(how I looked when my boyfriend met me! Eeekk!!!)

A roller set...came out really nice!

Thanks!!!