Product Review: Herbal Essence Totally Twisted Curl Define & Hold

Absolutely love this product!! It has a very soft and sweet smell. Even better it never dissappoints.

How I use it: I usually use it for my braid outs. I do my braid outs on 70-80% dry hair, moisturize, and then appy HE TT to each strand of hair per braid.

Results:

I have used it for bantu knot outs as well. I would definitely be repurchasing when I am out, and will definitely reccomend it to anyone, looking for an affordable and fabulous product. I picked this up from my local Dollar Store, for about $4.




The Braid Out pictured was done on 70% dry hair.
Moisturized with a mix of Aussie Miraculously Smooth, water, & coconut oil.
Parted hair is 4 sections, did 2 braids per section, applying Herbal Esscence Totally Twisted to each section to be braided.
Rolled each braid end with a perm rod.
Allowed the braids to sit for 24 hours, because I have no life!! LOL

HOPE YA LIKED!

The Castor Oil Challenge

The details are on: Hairlista

 

I will be participating in the:

Ultimate Level *New* :

• Apply Castor oil to your scalp every other day. Use sparingly. Massage it in. Focus on Damaged areas.
• Apply 1 tsp of castor oil to your deep conditioner weekly with heat. Rinse thoroughly.
• Seal your ends with a Castor oil after you moisturize your hair (or mix it in with your usual sealant). Use sparingly.
•  

My damaged area that I will be focusing on is the middle of  my nape area. I often part my hair down the middle and I guess I have recieved some major breakage back there.

I honestly hate having to DC under heat. Typically, I DC overnight bc I am too lazy to hop back in the shower after only 30 minutes of getting out, doing it overnight allows me to rinse it out during my morning shower...buuuut since the rules say to DC with heat, I will suck it up for the next 3 months and "just do it".

The deep conditioners that I will be using are:

Aphogee 2 Minute Reconstructor: Once per month
CON Argan Oil Intensive Treatment
Aussie 3 Minute Miracle
I will be alternating between Creme Of Nature and Aussie

I will be mixing a tad bit of Castor oil with my Coconut Oil for a sealant.

Before Picture:

 
Hoping to make it to BSL by December 28th!!

Back to Blogging About Hair.

Ok, so now that I have a bit of my life (and energy) back, perhaps I can get back on track with the hair updates! As of now I am 3 months, post relaxer, my plan is to relax again in January. I have no clue how I was styling my hair during the pregnancy, I guess braid outs....


around the end, I got braids...


I kept them in for about a month and a half, and started missing my hair...not only that, I got them too long and they became annoying....so now I am back to braid outs, my go to style.
 I set this one on flexi rods.
To be honest, I am a full time student as well, & currently working out, so now working full time, on top of keeping the household, I have to come up with a regimen that will agree with my lifestyle. It will have to be something quick, convenient, and easy!
 ONE THING THAT I DO KNOW....I AM SO IN ON THE CASTOR OIL CHALLENGE PART 8!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She's BAAAACK!!!!

Hello my loves!!! I have soooo been gone and I am very apologetic for that! Being on maternity leave, at home, I had no time to sit at the computer and properly update, four children and a husband I was always on the go. I blog from work, needless to say, I am  back at work. Before I get to yapping allow me to introduce you all to my little love bug...

 She was born on July 30,2013...around 12:00. I was 40 weeks and a few days, she was in no rush, and I ended up having to have an emergency c-section. She weighed 8 lbs and 15 oz. and was 21 inches long <3 She is my queen, my heart, and I am just SOOOOOO in love!!

Here she is with her brothers :


They LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE her!!! Probably more than I do.....not really possible but you get the point. Zaidon, our youngest son, is 3. I thought he would be jealous, he is such a momma's boy, but surprisingly he just loves on her, constantly kissing and just staring at her, so sweet. My oldest, Trelan (white shirt) is 7, he is the provider, always wanting to hold and feed her. Lastly, Caden (yellow shirt) is 6 and he is her protector, when she cries he is the first to run in the room and see what is going on. What can I say, she is one lucky girl :-)


Her and her daddy....His first girl, need I say more??? LOL He is just a big cotton ball, this is his baby girl!!! He is so in love <3

As for momma, I am adjusting well. Learning that time management is key to dealing with 3 school aged children and a newborn. Needless to say, despite the fast paced days, and sleepless nights, I am loving EVERY minute of it. Can't thank God enough for my little (or not so little) family!

Two Year Relaxed Hair Care Anniversary!!

Yay me!!!!!!

What can I say? I stumbled upon hair care regimens for relaxed hair, 2 years ago, after being tired of the rat nest that I called hair! I have not looked back since. One thing that I have learned is that besides longer hair, healthy hair just really is easier to maintain than unkept hair. Duhhh right??? Lol 

Another thing is that, caring for hair is not at all as hard or difficult as it would seem. Some ppl may hear the weekly routines & cringe, but once it becomes routine, & repetitive it easily becomes apart of your lifestyle. 

 

One of my first braid outs, compared to today's BraidOut :-)

 

I remember hating to wear my hair in curly styles bc I was NL & so badly wanted to be SL. Curly styles of course makes your hair look shorter, now 2 years later my curly styles are SL!!! I love it!!!

How I Stretch My Relaxers

Hi all!!! I know it's been a minute and my posts have now been few and far in between. Life has been pretty busy for me, being too tired to even breathe and still managing to be mommy to 3 very busy boys and trying to even meet the basic criteria to being anything of a wife! LOL. Luckily my husband understands when I am just a ball of nothing, still he travels for work so when he is gone...it's just me, belly and the kiddos.
I am now 35 weeks along 5 MORE WEEKS TO GO!!!!!

Second picture is primarily because my hair looked a hot mess in the first pic :-/ LOL...anyway on to the topic of this post:
 

STRETCHING RELAXERS

What is "stretching"? 

Stretching is distancing the time between each relaxer. I will say pre HHJ, I used to relax my hair every 4 weeks, I thought it was routine to relax your hair once a month. Once I began my HHJ, I began stretching them out to every 20-24 weeks.

Typically you would want to stretch each relaxer out to at LEAST 10-12 weeks...some say 8 but I personally don't see "enough" new growth showing at that time.

Most beginning stretchers, begin by stretching one or two more weeks than usual. For example, if I were to normally relax my hair every 8 weeks, I'd attempt to stretch my next relaxer day to 9 or 10 weeks after that, then 11 or 12...and so forth. 

Some call me a "Super Stretcher" because I attempt to only relax my hair 2 or 3 times a year. I would loooove to relax my hair only once a year, during the Summer, but I like to straighten my hair too much for that. Which brings me to the tips when attempting to stretch.

Keep in mind the longer you stretch the more new growth you are accumulating and having to deal with 2 different textures (your natural coils and your relaxed ends). 

Because of the difference in protein structure, the new growth being stronger than the relaxed ends, it makes it extremely sensitive to breakage. Learning to carefully manipulate your hair during lengthy stretches is crucial. Which is why I have yet to make it past the 24 week mark, I always seem to get breakage at the very top of my head and in my nape area....I know that I am too rough, heavy handed with my hair...anywho, I am rambling, let me get on to the tips. I feel qualified to offer these tips because I have been stretching for 2 years now, have learned from a few mistakes and still make a few :-/ Don't judge me!lol

Tip 1.  MOISTURIZE YOUR NEW GROWTH!!!!

Being on a HHJ we know moisture is important at any rate, relaxed or natural. However keep in mind that these two different hair textures has two different needs. Your new growth, naturally full of protein will require more moisture, while your relaxed ends, whose protein bonds have been altered will require more protein.

Tip 2. WHERE LOW MANIPULATION or PROTECTIVE STYLES!!!

This is my personal downfall! I know at 12-16 weeks post I can probably get away with flat ironing my hair and wearing it straight...but for me to complete that feat at 16 weeks and beyond without experiencing some breakage is probably possible, but I just have yet to find the technique to do so, soooo about 20-24 weeks, I begin planning for a relaxer. The less you manipulate your hair the lower your chances of receiving breakage at the line of demarcation.

Tip 3. DETANGLE IN THE SHOWER.

Its soo much easier...PERIOD!!! TRUST ME!!!!

Tip 4.

 I would say DC weekly...that does help with moisture, however that contradicts the low manipulation, having to wash (or cowash) your hair weekly. After 20 weeks, I begin stretching my wash/DC days to biweekly, just to further limit the manipulation. Soooo I will just say incorporate more deep conditioning than once a month, it helps add moisture and flexibility in your tresses.

Well those are my top 4! I was trying to think of another to make a TOP 5...but in my personal experience I think this is the best that I have lol. Feel free to drop your advice, tips or questions in the comment section & as always

THANKS FOR READING!!!

Cold Hard Truth About The Journey; The Hair Journey.

Sorry it's been awhile since I've updated! I kind of fell into a hair funk, hair boredom. Which a revelation about the truth of our hair journeys is what spun the birth of this blog post. 

We know their are hundreds of rules out there! The don't dos, the do dos, & all that lies in between. Typically I use direct heat on my hair once a month, I've tried to stretch that out to only on special occasions, well at this point in my life the special occasions are far & few in between. That would seem like a good thing right? Less heat use! Well for me that SUCKS! Lol my hair simply air dries stupidly, no matter what method I try... This is what I end up with 

A relaxed hairfro!!! That makes styling it more difficult & bc it has SOOO much texture if I ever want a sleek look, heat has to be involved. So trying to go heatless & bunning, got me bored with my hair! I was beginning to become lazy, not wearing my bonnet while sleeping, using gel on my edges & a brush to sleek it down. I wasn't M&S'ing... So I decided to straighten it & once again fall in love with my hair. The truth is, starting my hair journey I depended heavily on Wigging for protective styles. Not being able to do that now & not having a variety of styles to choose from I get bored & lazy. So my revelation was "Right now, refraining from heat usage is not ideal for my hhj". I have to do what is best for me!! There is no reason to feel caged in or imprisoned by your hair & all the rules that apply. 

So what I use heat once a month, still my hair has thrived 

 So what if I don't retain the MAXIMUM length for the year, so what if I don't reach BSL by the end if the Summer. The most important thing is being happy & comfortable with my own hair.  So far this year I have straightened my hair & worn it straight for two weeks, most of which time it remains in a protective style, I only wear my hair down if I'm out & about. Then for two weeks I do heatless low manipulation & protective styles & that has worked for me. What doesn't work is.....trying to focus so much on following one rule that you end up breaking all if the others.  So that's my two cents for the week!!

Don't try to mimic anyone else's regimen.

Don't beat yourself up if you can't apply EVERY rule in the book!

& most importantly... Enjoy & have fun during this journey...you'll reach your destination whether you take the freeway or scenic route :-)