New Goodies!

Hi friends - I hope you all are having a great weekend and enjoying the early peak of Summer (for those in the Northeast)!

I purchased these bottles a little over a month ago after seeing them on Jeni's blog. I had been in the market for glass bottles to house some of my oil mixtures and products, but didn't commit to finding what I needed. Once I saw her post, I decided to use the same vendor. Glass bottles are great to store products in because they contain less potentially harmful chemicals than their plastic counterparts (such as BPA).

I purchased the following and love them!

 

From left to right:

• 6 oz: I use this bottle for the oil mixture that I apply to my scalp on a daily basis. This has a dropper so it allows for easy and controlled application to my scalp. 
• 6 oz: I'm currently not using this bottle, but I'm sure that I'll find some use for the pump.
• 6oz: This bottle has a spray nozzle which I LOVE for M&Sing! I previously had trouble getting just the right amount of oil to seal my hair. Now, I actually fill this bottle with EVCO, warm it up if it's not liquid, and then spray it on my hair after moisturizing for even distribution on my strands! It's also a bit less messy than applying the oil with my hands - #winning!
• 3oz: I purchased this bottle for traveling. I've been traveling a lot lately and need to be able to transport whatever oil(s) I need in my carry on bag!

Until next time!

Roller Set #FAIL

After I relaxed my hair the last time and had such a traumatic experience with tangling as a result of wearing corn rows and not detangling regularly, I decided to start experimenting with different options to replace the corn rows under my wig.

My goal was to experiment with different ways of straightening my hair so that I could regularly remove the normal shedding and reduce the potential for tangling on wash days. I had the bright idea to try a roller set, not with the intention of wearing it out, but with the logic that it would be a nice way to get my hair "straight" without having to blow my hair dry. I washed and conditioned my hair myself and then hightailed it to the Dominican Salon to have them roller set it. 

Welp - here are the results of that idea: a hot mess!

Here's the thing, as I mentioned, my honest intention was not to wear this out as a style, but in my mind, I imagined that my hair would come out a bit straighter than this, but that just didn't materialize. The main issue is that because my hair has a lot of texture, it's too curly to actually straighten out on the rollers, so the ends were sort of clumped and confused when the rollers came out. The girl who roller set my hair told me from the gate that this wasn't a good idea, but I needed to try it to be comfortable with checking this option off of the list. This wasn't the worse experiment, but I definitely won't be trying this again because I still ended up putting two cornrows in my hair to wear under my wig. 

Mission unaccomplished!

Happy 1 Year Hairversary

I can't believe it's been one year already, but it's true friends. I started this journey 1 year ago today and feel like I have barely scratched the surface.

It's interesting how much things can change in one year. This whole thing started when I searched online for natural hairstyle options and after one click lead to another, I landed on Ms. Kibibi's site. The rest is history. 

The interesting thing about this as well is that I started this journey natural. Just in case you haven't read my hair story (which is pretty lengthy, so I would likely skip it too), I got my first relaxer at 2 and in 2009 decided that I wanted to go natural. I stopped getting relaxers and was 100% natural after about a year and a half. I liked that I didn't have any chemical in my hair, but because I exercise daily and like straight hair, the two were a recipe for disaster. After starting my hair journey and seeing all of the gorgeous relaxed heads, I decided that I could have a nice head of relaxed hair that was long too (I was one of those people who thought that letting go of the chemicals would result in longer hair...not in my case).

So to make a long story short, following are some of the takeaways from my first year:

1. I can actually do my own hair! It's still a struggle, but I'm much more comfortable with handling my hair myself than I was one year ago (you couldn't pay me to do it)
2. My hair likes to be wet when being manipulated - it's more pliable
3. I don't have to saturate my hair in oils in order to moisturize it
4. Coconut oil is my friend
5. This is a journey...

I definitely underestimated how much work and PATIENCE required on this journey. However, I'm glad I decided to embark upon it and hope that next year's update is more exciting, including longer length!

HHJ

Rusk Hair Products

Hi ladies - happy Friday!

Quick random post - so I'm actually in Houston, TX this weekend for a conference. I don't know anyone here, so I decided to hang in the lobby/ bar area and meet some of the attendees. So myself and about four other women with beautiful hair were sitting in the lobby and a woman approached us from Rusk Hair products and said that Rusk was in town doing a hair event and wanted to know if we would be interested in modeling for the show. I think she also mentioned something about a hair cut - so not happening!

Anyway, we all declined the invitation because the weekend is jammed packed (each day legitimately begins at 7:00 AM and goes until 9:00 at a minimum...need I say more?), but me being secretly obsessed with all things hair, I wanted to inquire about this hair event and understand more about exactly what was taking place. But alas - I'm away for business, so gotta stay focused!

Also...super, extra random, there was a guy with the rep who asked us to model and he looked weirdly familiar, but not as if I knew him personally. Anyway, I think the guy was from Chris Rock's movie Good Hair. He was the chocolate coach with long dreads who worked with the girl who cut hair upside down in the Bronner Brothers hair show. Do you remember what I'm talking about?

Relaxer Results

So I got my relaxer today. I have mixed feelings about my hair. The results are fine and as expected, but the process to get to the final results was TORTUROUS! When I think of getting my hair done, I like to think of being relaxed, having a wonderful experience, etc. Fortunately, I do go to a great salon that's very comfortable and relaxing, but when it's time for my relaxer, it's a real process.

I'm partially to blame for today's experience because I took my cornrows out last night, but didn't comb through my hair to release the shed hair. I honestly thought my stylist would do that once I arrived, but she didn't. So you can only imagine how things turned out....I had 1,000 knots, tangling, etc. So. Not. Fun. Once I got in her chair to get my hair blown out, the torture session continued. As I sat there, bearing the pain, I was thinking to myself - what can I do differently moving forward?

I think I'm going to ease up on the corn rows and maybe try roller setting my hair and then wrapping under my wig. This way, I'll get to release the shed hair on a regular basis rather than have it accumulate.  I hope this also significantly reduces the tangling and knots that I get.

I'm not bashing my stylist because I do feel that she listens to me and has been accommodating to my hair goals, but I just don't think it's normal to go to the salon and be in that much discomfort. I think a lot of the issue as well is that I have very coarse, thick hair that is texturized, so there is a good amount of texture and curl in my hair. This may be causing more harm than good.

My Mother mentioned that she thinks my hair is too coarse and thick for the way I'm currently caring for it in terms of wearing cornrows and getting them redone monthly. I agree with her in that I need to return to my bi-weekly visits because I think that will help with maintaining my hair a little better.

Sorry for the long post - I'm rambling and likely not making sense. I'm just frustrated because I want a better experience when I get my hair relaxer and I don't know how to achieve that with the state of my hair right now. Anyway, below are some pictures and comparison shots vs. my last relaxer. My hair felt longer when I was getting it done, but looking at these pictures....not so much. My hair used to be this length, so I don't really feel like it's changing much (I had cut my hair a few months before starting my hair journey, so that's why this length feels normal). Hopefully I'll start to see a difference in length soon.

Novermber 2011 Relaxer & Trim

November 2011 Relaxer & Trim

March 2012 Relaxer & Trim

March 2012 Relaxer & Trim

KONY 2012

So Ready for my Relaxer

Next week this time I will be writing a relaxer update post and I can't wait! I am sort of torn when it comes to wearing my wig and keeping my hair braided because it's a great style for low maintenance and manipulation, but I actually think I'm tired of it. I'm tired of walking around the house looking like a mix between a furby and a WNBA player. It's just not cute.

So I'm happy that I'll get a relaxer and wear my hair out for a few weeks (although I'll still wear my wig to work during the week). I am planning to continue my wig regimen through my June relaxer, and then wear my hair out for the summer.

I think the reality for me is that I still dread don't enjoy doing my hair because it's really time consuming and difficult to manage. So if I stick to my wig, then I don't have to deal with it. Perhaps things will be a little easier when I start doing it again because I'll have a little more experience under my belt from last year. We'll see...