No More Braids... :( & :)

Why is it that when my hair is out I want braids, but then when my hair is braided I miss my curls.  We are so peculiar #human nature. 

I had to say good-bye to my braids.  My new growth just made me antsy to see my new length.  Wow.  I'm really impressed.  Now I just keep thinking to myself..."rentention...rentention."  I still do not want to BC, but I am going to trim my relaxed ends substantially (about 2 inches) because I do not want to lose my length drastically, but I also do not want to jeopardize the healthy natural hair and new growth that I have attained.  Who knows I may just go ahead and BC, but I'm not feeling it right now (pre-trim).

Because I have gained a substantial amount of new growth and chemical-free hair I am going to be creating a regimen for my hair.  I will update my blog with that info as well.  There are so many successful ladies on the YT discussing natural hair so I do not at this time feel like I have anything 'new' or pertinent to say about my hair that isn't already being said, or hasn't already been said by someone else.  But the moment I do think of something you can bet I will upload videos on YT. 

It has been over a month since my last post, before this one, so I have a lot of making up to do.  I wore my braids for 8 weeks (2 months) and besides a few style variation, and a cut the last 2 weeks of wearing them I really didn't have anything to post that I felt would be insightful or worth sharing.  But that should change now that the braids are gone and I'll probably not be wearing them again for a while.

I'm almost ready to start advertising my blog, because school is wrapping up in the next three weeks--yes, I'm so excited. YAY!!!  Hey, it's only up from here.  I'm pumped. 

Later!
 

I Whip My Hair!!

Yes!  I'm wearing braids again.  Yes, I did them myself.  They are more filled in than last time, smaller, and Instead of using the full length of the hair, I cut the hair in half, so they aren't waist length, but still have great length (bra strap length).

Here are some pics:

Yes!  I'm loving these braids!

Protective Styles Galore!

I'm still transitioning so wearing my hair down is not an option that I have very often, or for very long when I can actually wear it down in a twist out or similar style.  Here are some of the protective styles I've been wearing in my hair. 

I loved this bun!  I got this style from MsRosieVelt on the YT

This style was inspired by SimplYounique

 Most of my protective styles include two strand twists and flat twists.  I cannot cornrow.  I'm trying to learn, but right now I cannot.  Also, I know I threw mad shade at my hair net in an earlier post, but that net is a life saver.  I just wet my hair, add gel, slick back--which create waves and curls on the front, sides, and back, pin dow the hair that will be under the net, and add my net.  Pretty simple, yet very presentable: LIFESAVER!  I'm telling you!

A Good Twist Out Gone Bad...Then Reformed.

I thought my twist out was really cute when I first took it down.  I left the house for a few hours and returned.  Finally having the time to take a pic this is what I captured: 

At the time I thought it was cute, so I dressed for work and during a bathroom break noticed this in the mirror:

Same look?  Well, I was not feeling it anymore. But hope is never lost because I keep bobbie and hair pins on me at ALL times.  I didn't have a lot of time to perfect the look (bathroom break) but I like it much better than the pic above.

Feel free to follow, and comment with tips, ideas, whatever.  I"m off to work.  Later! : )

Curl Type Update, Length Check, Post Braids Style, Etc, Etc.

So I took those braids out that night...and ended up with this:

 

It all looks natural, no?  ((I know it's messy, but I loved this 'fro!'))



Oh, how I missed my hair.
 Thanks to the BRX spray my hair was nice and soft, and conditioned.  It was very easy to detangle my hair after removing the braids, which took a few hours.  I took a few breaks to complete other tasks I had around my room.

After I washed it, OMG, I am so tenderheaded.  I immediately thought, "how am I going to handle being fully natural?"  Saying it hurt to detangle my hair is an understatement.  I sprayed some of the sheen spray onto my hair, hoping for some relief and it worked a bit.  This is a few days old twist out.   (Don't judge me.  I finished taking my braids out at about 2 or 3 AM and I was sleepy so this half-hearted twistout was better than nada!)

Know what?  I'm not going to post the pic...not suitable.  Sorry peeps.

Aint-e-way.  I really enjoyed Mothers' Day at home with my family, especially my wonderful mother.  What I did to my hair was co-wash and detangle it and do another twist out...hey, I procrastinated because I didn't know if I wanted to twist my hair up with extension, rod it, or what...so by 3 AM the twist out was an obvious solution.  Oh, I forgot to mention I trimmed my own ends, and nearly 'trimmed' the back of my hair right to new growth length---the very thing I tried to avoid, but oh well...Needless to say I was very careful trimming the rest of my hair.  This is the twist out that I wore for Mothers' Day:

Ignore the silly kool-aid smile, just note the hair.  Thx!
















Then the twist out got old and I just pulled it back and wore a thick hair net, pinned toghtly.  I even got asked where I found the tight fitting hair net...does that count as a compliment?  Probably not.  ((Yes, I have a pic.))

But then of course that only worked for a few days.  I started to feel a little bummy so I buckled down early one morning and came up with this little diddy.  One minute I like it, the next I don't...then I do all over again.  I know one thing, I'm keeping this style until it expires.  By the way, I'm totally loving it today.

The back is just twisted up into the bang.  ((Like upside down, slanted cornrows, but twisted.))

OK, so length check:  My last length check was February 13, 2011: Here's the Happs!

I also need to update my curl texture from the same post.  I figured my curl type was 3c, 4b then, but I can see definite spiral, not zig-zag so at this time I update my curl pattern to 3c, 4a.  This is subject to change because the curl pattern is easier to detect as the hair obtains length.  My curls are tight, but they are definitely spiral, and my hair is very thick, as you can see.  I love my kinky curls!!!

Handful, unstretched

Handful, Streched

Section, Unstretched

Section, Stretched

Twist, Unstretched

Twist, Stretched

So, well that's all for now!  Til next time...

**This post was drafted on 05/16/11**

It's Time To Say Buh-Bye!

Ok, so here's a final picture of my braids because they will be gone in the next 48 hours.  I will miss them.

I can't deny the fact that the new growth is just making them look dated...these braids are near expiration.  I cherish them because I did them myself, but *sigh* I will braid my hair up again, one day.  Plus, I'll make them look even better, and improve upon what I did this time.

Update, and BRX Braid & Extension Sheen Spray

I'm still wearing my braids.  I'm still loving them, my new growth is amazing.  New growth also means that these braids days are numbered.  : (.  I'm going to miss them, and how easy it has been getting ready in the morning, but truth be told I miss my hair!  I want to see the actual difference in my natural texture's length compared to before the braids.  Then I will really be able to decide whether I want to BC or keep transitioning. 
It's getting hot!!!  Today the temperature is at 77 degrees, with a little"April Shower" mixed in.  Easter Sunday the temperature was a wopping 83 degrees.  And in SC it gets much hotter than that in the summertime.  Whew!!!  So I guess that's another pro for a BC.  We shall see.

I ran out of my Sulfur 8 Braid Spray.  I searched the hair stores, Wal-Marts, and Family Dollar.  I stopped there because I honestly didn't know where else to look.  NO LUCK.  Frustrated and feeling defeated I 'settled' for African Royale BRX Braid & Extension Sheen Spray.  Well, I am glad that I settled for this spray.  It is conditioning like the Sulfur 8 spray.  It also works to soften the hair and soothe itching and dry scalp.  While I'm partial to the Sulfur 8 spray, I'm liking the African ROyale BRX Sheen Spray almost as much. 

Peace and Blessings!!