10Things

*I'm a sucky blogger- we've established that. But, I'm thankful for all of you who continue to support me and follow the blog. Here are some things I've been wanting to share that I've learned about my hair over the past year.

10 Things I Learned About My Natural Hair in 2010

1. 1) My hair does not like to be washed as often as I thought. Every 2 weeks is sufficient.
2. 2) My hair does not like gels.
3. 3) Or Carol's Daughter. But, wait- we already knew that.
4. 4) The key to maintaining my hair is to twist it every night before bed.
5. 5) This does not mean reapplying more product each night. A heavy buttercreme is sufficient to last for 2-3days (tops). I just need to do some quick twist, tie it up, and go to sleep. My mom came up with this regiment and she doesn't even have natural hair!
6. 6) That being said, I don't have to put product in my hair every single day if I'm using the right product to begin with.
7. 7) For me- that product has turned out to be Miss Jessie's Curly Buttercreme. And buying an 8oz jar during *BOGO* month allows me to get another jar for free. 8+8=16oz for 8oz price whopie! Should last most of 2011.
8. 8) Just because other naturals preach not to use it because of the petrolatum does not mean it will not work for my hair.
9. 9) By using Miss Jessie's every other day, and twisting every night, my hair is moist, stylish, and I don't experience problems with greasy buildup
10. 10) My kinky, coarse, extremely dry, 4b hair can be manageable

Here's to 2011

Hair Update

Twist out with Miss Jessie's Curly Buttercream. Had a birthday party to go to in Atlanta this past weekend so I twisted my hair all up on Friday, and let loose Saturday! Loved loved loved the results! My hair is starting to shed more so I'm excited to run across some Black Friday deals to try something out.

Dry Hair

My hair is so dry! The cold air is really taking a toll on my hair. I can apply Miss Jessie's Curly Buttercreme in the morning with Jane Carter Solution Revitalizing Hair Spray, and by 6pm my hair is completely dry and brittle. I've also tried Jane Carter Solution Nourish and Shine- which doesn't absolutely nothing for my type 4 hair. Like, it literally sits on top of my hair. Carol's Daughter makes my hair say yuck and feel all greasy. Sigh, shea butter doesn't really moisturize my hair either. I feel like everything is just "sitting" on top of my hair. Olive oil, aloe vera gel, kinky curly, oyin, the list of wasted money continues. Here we go again...

An Observation & Miss Jessie's Super Sweetback Treatment

Today was wash day. I washed one time with Suave Coconut Shampoo and then applied Miss Jessie's Super Sweetback Treatment. I got the 2oz sample size, and let's just say my hair feels ahmazing! I mean Ahhhhhmazing. I absolutely love her treatments. Rapid Recovery was always good to me as well. But, this stuff. I have NEVER been able to detangle my hair as easily as I have with this new treatment. The comb was gliding through my hair like buttah! The consistency out of the jar was a bit stiff, and the smell was kind of odd at first. I read online that it smells like cotton candy, but it doesn't smell like that in the jar if that makes any sense. It didn't take much for my super thick and coarse hair, and then it did smell a little bit like cotton candy, but not in a heavy way. That was always my complaint with Oyin, it's way too sweet and sticky smelling for me (and I love sweet smells). Now, Miss Jessie's claims it will elongate your curls, enhance the definition, etc... From one treatment I do not have elongated curls- I still have a twa- and as far as definition-I really had a more stretched out fro. So, I guess it counts for something. But, most of all, my hair feels great. And, that works for me.

An observation- I think the problem with my hair the 1st time I was natural was that I used heat periodically, and I probably had some heat damage. Another observation- I read on bglh advice to a newbie natural to just enjoy your twa and not get so hung up on trying to do styles your hair isn't long enough for yet. I took this advice. All last week, I just sprayed my hair with Jane Carter Solution Hair Revitalizer spray or whatever it's called, fluffed my hair, and threw on a stylish headband. I must say it was a great accessory to my outfits and I got a lot of compliments on how pretty my hair was. And I can't complain that it only took me 2min tops to "do my hair." And it's a look I would be comfortable wearing to the District Attorney's office this summer. Every other day, I applied Miss Jessie's Curly Buttercream to my hair for moisture. By yesterday, I noticed that my hair was super dry however. I'm trying to stretch my washes to every two weeks. But, I may do a co-wash and deep conditioner once a week and see if it boosts my moisture levels. I'm also drinking my green monster shakes and trying to up the ante on water. That's where the real moisture will come in I'm sure.

It's not as easy as you think

Hello Ladies! Good news is here! But, first:

I received this comment from the Lovely L. Michelle

L. Michelle said...

I've been reading your blog for a very long time...hoping, wishing that you would one day come to the realization that hair is hair. You don't need validation from ANYONE but YOURSELF!
I work in a very conservative office. VERY VERY VERY conservative office. The HIGHEST Office in the State of Texas and my co-workers LOVE my hair. My boss...a highly elected official in Texas has commented on my hair smelling good... I have come to learn that people that are negative about natural hair are often ignorant individuals and I treat them as such. I advise you to do the same. If it's your boss...file a claim...it's called discrimination. You know this already.

October 5, 2010 12:39 PM

To address this very quickly. *Disclaimer this is not legal advice* You cannot just file a discrimination claim. The system is set up in such a way to prevent the overwhelmingly frivolous lawsuits people would file if they could claim discrimination over any and everything. Which would burden the courts, ruin people's reputation, and cause overuse of limited judicial resources. You have to have an agency find your claim to be worth merit before you can even mention discrimination. So, it's not as easy as people think to show cause that they're being discriminated against for race, gender, let alone HAIR. And yes, I know that already. Soooooo I'm kinda rolling my eyes just a bit b/c if it were as easy to say hair is just hair, I don't think we'd have the natural hair movement that we have today, the powerful hold hair has on young black girls in being accepted, and we sure wouldn't have Chris Rock's movie Good Hair now would we? I can only speak for me and how I was teased as having "nigger hair" "buckwheat hair" and the list goes on. Now, I was pretty popular in high school as captain of cheerleading squad, but even for a pretty girl, hair was never just hair. Cultures all over the world, and society really puts emphasis on hair, and long straight hair at that. I just think the point of everything is undermined to just say hair is hair.

The good news? I got an internship offer at one of the TOP FIVE District Attorney's Offices in America!!! I cannot believe it! Out of 1000 applications and they only hire 40ppl! Whoop whoop!!

Some Real Talk

Last night, bf and I had a really deep and interesting conversation. I was browsing various natural hair blogs online while he watched football. All the sudden he looked over at me and was like, why don't you leave your hair alone and just let it be natural. I was kinda surprised he was watching me fawn over beautiful fros I wish I had lol. Then, I explained to him, my hair won't look like any of the pics I was looking at (all type 3b-4a). So, he wanted to see pics of what my hair would look like if I let it grow out natural. With just about each pic I showed him, he complimented the hairstyle, and actually liked the type 4b hair. I was surprised he thought it was pretty. I don't know why I don't think it's as pretty as he does. Considering it's what I have and all. Then I gave the excuse how natural hair isn't professional enough in such a conservative field as law and he didn't buy it! And, bf is a middle class white guy from the south, so if he thinks natural hair is professional that's saying something. Then he asked me to promise him something. I asked what. He asked me to promise him to leave my natural hair alone (as in don't relax it). That really touched me. My bf just wants the real me. Not that what he says validates me or anything- he didn't want me to cut off all my hair and I did anyways. But, the natural me isn't ugly- not that I thought it was, but it's just me. I felt kinda sad for relaxing it this summer when he really urged me not to. I think I partly did it b/c everyone told me not to and to just "leave my hair alone." I felt helpless and hopeless. My hair is always dry, unmanageable, and I think unkempt looking! But, I'm going to try again. There's an amazing natural hair support system out there and bf even recommended I tap into it more when I'm feeling like I can't cope with natural hair. It's great having a support system like him encouraging me to do these things!

Kinky Curly Results

After bc'ing yesterday I decided I would try to use kinky curly knot today and curling custard again. I know I know I hate it right? Well, not this time! I washed and conditioned with nioxin and then applied knot today to dripping wet hair. Then I applied kccc by mixing a dime size amount with water to my twa in sections. I have 4a/b hair and REALLY made sure my hair was dripping wet. When sections began to dry I rewet my hair with a spray water bottle throughout the day. Please tell me my natural hair is way cuter than anything else I've had! I for sure know it is!!!