Knots and matting hell!

Hey there everybody. I have had the wash day from hell this past Saturday. My hair is behaving itself now, but trust me, my weekend was NO fun. Except for Sunday evening, which included a live show of Trevor Noah.

Twists still looking cute

Twists reaching expiration date. I got bored AND a  lot of growth, so they didn't look neat anymore. 

As y'all know, I had twists installed at the end of April and on Friday I decided that their expiration date has arrived. So I got home, grabbed my coconut oil, water spritzer, Tresseme Naturals conditioner, a pair of scissors and a plastic bag for all the synthetic hair that I'm going to remove. Friends have been informed that I am unavailable for any Friday night shenanigans and I mad myself comfy in front of the TV. Good thing that the Friday night TV line up doesn't suck - Intelligence, Almost Human and the grandaddy of good tv - Game of Thrones.

I began taking out the twists one by one and once I've removed about 4-6, I would concentrate on detangling that section of hair, using the coconut oil and conditioner and water and then twist it up before moving on to the next section. I don't know what happened - the last time I removed twists the process went rather smoothly and I lost very little hair, whereas this time I lost a hairball the size of a golfball. Murphy decided that my house was a good place to visit - SO MANY KNOTS, SO MUCH MATTING!!! I have no idea where I screwed up as my process was the same as last time...

In any event, I spent the whole night trying to be as gentle as possible, after Game of Thrones I even watched Penny Dreadful (I still don't know if I like this show...opinions out there?) and then I dove into my DVD collections and watched Thelma &Louise and Titanic, all whilst trying to get all the twists out and not cause unnecessary breakage. I finally passed out at 5 in the morning on Saturday, STILL not done, but after ELEVEN hours, I could not keep my eyes open anymore.

The Saturday morning I woke up at 10 o'clock, after about 5 hours of sleep and dove back into my hair. i FINALLY had everything out at noon, and ONLY because my bestie rocked and helped me with the ones at my crown.

See the look of frustration and sadness??!! All twists out, hair mostly detangled, about to receive its prepoo.  So much matting!! Blegh!

Although I made a point of detangling small sections of hair, I could not get all the knots out. So I decided to to prepoo with the rest of the coconut oil and the conditioner in the hope that it would soften the knots so that I can have an easier time getting rid of them.  Prepoo lasted a good 2 hours.

I then shampooed with Tresemme Naturals Shampoo. It may be low in sulfates but it lathers beautifully, without being stripping. I then instant conditioned with the Tresemme Naturals Conditioner and then proceeded to DC with ORS HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner, for a good 90 minutes. I then proceeded to rollerset, and proceeded to lose ANOTHER mini golf ball worth of hair! (Que TEARS of frustration) Being 23 weeks post relaxer is not an effing joke, this I tell y'all! And this is despite being gentle, using my most trustworthy products!

I got myself some faux curlformers and when my hair was halfway dry in my regular rollers I decided I'm in the mood for real curls. It was my very first attempt at using curl formers, and the installation process wasn't too bad. After putting them all in, I left it to airdry completely. The packs I bought didn't have enough long curlformers to I struggled a little bit with my ends. I might try it again, but I need to buy another pack so that I have enough long ones.

End sticking out at places where the formers weren't long enough for my hair. 

The roots are PUFF CITY!!  

Curls immediately after removal. 

SO not impressed with those straight ends sticking out...

Some nice curls, some seriously wonky ones!

I had a date the Sunday evening - Trevor Noah live at the National Theatre, so I thought the curls would be the perfect kind of cute. Unfortunately the curls fell and so I ended up pinning them up into a 50's style pinup with a couple of tendrils around my face.

Curls pinned back, looking good. 

Come Monday and I am NOT happy with my hair. So, I suck it up, and go to the salon. There they detangle my hair and lo and behold, MORE KNOTS!! They were so gentle though, it was awesome. Had me hair washed and deep conditioned with HEAT (that only happens at the salon, I don't own a dryer), rollerset and then blown out straight. 

Almost 24 weeks post and swanging!

I lost very little hair at the salon and today I'm sitting on 3 day old straight hair which is STILL soft and feels strong and moisturised. I'm 24 weeks post, the longest stretch of my life!! And I have decided to see what happens on my next wash day when I'm on the DIY train again. If the new growth kills my soul, then next week I will be doing a touch up. If it doesn't, then I might just keep stretching and I have no conceivable goal regarding how long I want to stretch. I'm just gonna see what happens. Hey, I might end up also transitioning. Or I'm gonna relax my hair next week! Who knows? The beauty of this being a JOURNEY. 

I trust everyone else had a better DIY wash day than mine. It's almost the weekend, I'm looking forward to a much needed rest, so let's strap in everyone!

Back in twists

Hi there everyone.

Last we spoke I told y'all that I'm going home to my folks to have a bit of a rest, and boy, did I!! I got in a good 8-9 hours of sleep every night, I had NO social responsibilities and I lazed in front of the television like a person only does when you're on a lazy holiday.

Whilst I was home I squeezed in a wash day in preparation of having twists installed and long term protective styling for the next 4-6 weeks.

1. Prepoo using my D&L Anti-Breakage Healing Treatment on my dry hair, taking a LOT of care considering that I was working with a two day old braid out. My mother gave me a little bit of a side eye, very much not understanding this thing of putting conditioner on dry hair before it was cleansed. I just smiled and carried on, sitting with my prepoo for about 30 minutes. 
2. I then jumped in the shower (YAY, a shower!!) and shampooed using ORS Aloe Shampoo. It really is a detangling shampoo! I love it. It also cleanses properly without stripping. 
3. I then used my Elvive Triple Resist Conditioner as smoothing conditioner before applying ORS Replenishing Conditioner as my DC. My mum wanted us to go into town later so I knew I can't take TOO long with my wash day process. And with being 18 weeks post, every step takes a little longer anyway. So I ended deep conditioning for 15 minutes with my hair covered in a plastic cap and standing underneath the steaming hot shower. 
4. I REALLY like ORS products - my hair felt SO soft, yet very strong. I think that I have this moisture/protein balance thing pretty much down, although I will never stop being vigilant about it. I then applied my leave in's of Avon 3D Rescue Treatment and MoroccanOil Treatment before roller setting. 
5. I let my hair air dry in the rollers before taking them out and lightly flat ironing my roots, using only one quick pass. I then spent the rest of the time in a ponytail as the wind was wreaking a little bit of havoc in my home town. 

I proceeded to moisturise and seal every night, preparing my hair for the intense manipulation that comes with having twists installed. On Tuesday I found myself at the salon, 4 packs of Darling braiding hair in hand and sat down for the long haul. Because my hair was stretched and well moisturised and I prepped with protein on my wash day the process went okay. Although I had to remind the braiding ladies to treat my scalp like that of a five year old. I walked out 3 hours later and N$ 300 (about 30 US Dollars) poorer. The residual mild tightness only lasted about 12 hours and today, 2 days after them installed the twists are comfy and I am chilled. Of course I got myself a good braid spray that is very moisturising with which I give my scalp and hair a good spritz in the evenings before bed. I still sleep with a satin scarf and I plan to wash my hair at least once a week. 

I'm planning to wear the twists for 4-6 weeks. If I manage a full 6 weeks then I would be 24 weeks post upon removal of the twists, which would be my longest stretch EVER!! Depending on how I feel at that time, I will then either touch up or continue to protective style through out winter. But, let me not count my chickens before they hatch. 

What do y'all do to assist in stretching longer? What are your go to long term protective styles? What are your staples on wash days? My staple brand is definitely ORS, no doubt. What's yours?

Have a great Thursday everybody, and happy growing!

Untwisted, touched up and truly entering summer!

Hello there everybody. Yep, it's been a while. Partly because I have had a CRAZY week, changing jobs, being between jobs (yes, at the same time), moving out of my old office, preparing for a friend's wedding, taking out my twists - lots going on.

My last weekend in braids/twists

Okay,  I can tell you the following - I definitely retained all my growth whilst wearing my twists/braids, and will do it again. However, my nape experienced some MAJOR damage. My next stint with braids or any long term protective style I will keep my nape out and not put them in braids.

The nape damage as clear as day pre touch up

 For the next few months I am going to BABY my nape. I removed my braids myself, using a crap load of coconut oil as I removed each braid so as to enable to have shed hair simply slide out and to minimize hair loss. Except for the breakage around the nape,I lost very little hair during this process.

Hair lost during removal process

 
Although I have had transitioning thoughts I realized that I am not ready and thus this week prepped my hair for a touch up at 18 weeks post - LONGEST STRETCH EVER!

18 weeks post dry texture shot, hair was stretched via rollersetting during prep wash

My wash day prepping for my touch up I did a LONG prepoo using a cholesterol mask and coconut oil to fortify my hair full of protein. I then shampooed using Tressemme Moisturizing Shampoo, instant conditioned with Tressemme Thermal Protect Conditioner and deep conditioned with ORS Replenishing Conditioner, also for an uber long time. I then used my leave ins of TCB Bone Strait, Avon Moisture IQ treatment and a little coconut oil and rollerset. My hair felt strong and soft but I did notice quite a bit of demarcation breakage. Long stretches are NOT for me, I just realized AGAIN. I let my hair airdry in the rollers and then just wrapped it before bed, using my lovely Amla Legend 1001 Oils Wrap Cream.

Last night I started prepping my hair for the relaxer to come by massaging my hair and scalp with coconut oil. This morning I grabbed my box kit of ORS Olive Oil No Lye Relaxer for Girls and based my scalp completely with the enclosed protective gel. I then covered my hair with the enclosed protective pre-treatment (yes, I love this kit!!) and then started applying the mixed relaxer. I self relaxed ALL by myself this time, no help. My usual helper became a mom again and that new born is taking up all of her time. After the maximum time allowed my scalp still did not tingle or burn in the slightest, but I went to go rinse anyway. I am deathly scared of over processing and the resultant damage. I did a mild mid protein step using my ORS Replenishing Conditioner and then started neutralizing. I must have shampooed my hair 6-7 times before the lather was white, but rather the resulting back ache than insufficiently neutralized hair! I am a paranoid relaxed head! I then deep conditioned for almost an hour with the enclosed conditioning pack, which is awesome! I love it, my hair felt SO soft, the conditioner simply SUNK in. After rinsing I applied my leave ins and roller set, letting my hair airdry in the rollers. The result - silky, shiny, straight hair.

No heat used.

 

 

 

Relaxed scalp texture shot

Nape damage as seen post touch up

I shall grace you with a length check pic soon. I wish to first clarify and chelate my hair and then of course yank out the straightener to have the most accurate measurement. But I am confident that if I keep babying my hair I should be at least close to APL by 31 December 2013! Confidence is key people!!

I am going to go back to basics, be as careful and obsessive as I was when I started my journey, as if my hair is still in that dismal state. THAT way I should be able to UP my retention and to ensure that the breakage I experienced does not result in a set back. The weather is HOT and a little more humid this side of the world now, so I am thinking of incorporating some glycerin and grape seed oil in my moisturizing and sealing of my hair and of incorporating cowashing more often, especially as I'm going to get my lazy ass a personal trainer to give my swift kick I the behind on a daily basis regarding my workouts. Workouts and hot weather and sweat equals more regular washing which means co-washing and a VERY gentle hand. I am NOT going to have any of my journeys suffer now.

In the meantime have a great Friday y'all!! And an awesome weekend!

A short update

Hi there everybody. Sorry for the quiet the past couple of weeks, but being twisted up and all hair has become quite simple hairwise.

In other news though - I resigned from my job and will be starting with a brand new company the 1st of October!! I am uber excited! Of course, it means a couple of late nights working to tie up my loose ends at the office, but that's a good thing.

Secondly, right now I've got the freaking flu and I feel all nasal and congested and horrible! I won't wish this upon my worst enemy! Yes, not even on the douchebag ex, lol.

Thirdly - y'all remember my Motions relaxer review? Well, it seems somebody from the company had a glance at it and they contacted me to exactly find out what I did not like about their product. I am quite impressed with their diligence. I still won't use their relaxer again, but maybe I'll try out some of their other products. When I do I will keep y'all updated.

And lastly, it seems as if my hair actually grows faster than I thought. This is week 4 of me being in twists and those twists are slowly turning into box braids as I neaten it up. A lot of new growth is showing at the base of each twist, which does not look neat. So every night I sit and rebraid a few (around 6-10) since I don't know how to retwist them. I gently loosen the twist, detangle that little section of hair using my very slippy TCB Bone Strait leave in, apply Amla Legend 1001 oil wrap cream as a moisturizer and then rebraid. I see practically NO breakage and this way I'm getting rid of shed hair intermittently so that when the day comes that I take down ALL of the twists/braids, detangling and getting out all the shed hair will be a breeze. I also love the feeling of my new growth, and I think that I may have been mistaken, that I might actually have 3c hair and not 4a, as I have believed all my life. Apart from that my basic regiment regarding my braids is one step - braid spray, braid spray, braid spray! It's such a moisturizing spray that I can see myself using it on my hair after the braids are out as a leave in and/or moisturizer. I spritz it on at least twice a day, and at night I then cover my hair with a satin scarf and go to bed. See - simplified hair life.

How's everybody else doing this week? Have a good Thursday, the weekend's almost here!

August goals revisited and September goals

Winter is over! It is spring time! Time to quickly review my August goals and see what September has in store for me.

1. Moisturize and Seal every day - win! With the new Amla Legend 1001 Oils Cream it was a cinch. I really like this product!

2. Dust ends  - win! I took off very little but even just that light dusting already made a difference in the appearance of my hair and ends.

3. Co-wash at least once a week - almost. I co washed thrice during the month of August and my hair's moisture/protein balance truly felt on point before I went to have it twisted up.

4. Protective styling at least 4 days a week - win!

5. Go back to basics on wash day - win!

6. Drink a minimum of 2 liters of water a day - win!

7. Go to gym at least 4 days a week - big fail!! I made it to gym a grand total of four times for the entire month! I have a relatively valid excuse though - my blood pressure was through the roof, I was so dizzy that just walking across a room was a mission. It's under control now so I trust that during September I'll see the inside of the gym more often.

8. Focus on cardio - well, win, sort of. The times I did go to gym I did exactly that.

9. Limit calorie intake to 1200 - basically a win, except for a couple of days that I went out to dinner with friends or family.

10. Limit carb intake to two days a week - fail :-( I really need to start distancing myself from egg salad sandwiches!

11. Get a multivitamin and drink it daily - fail.

12. Sauna/steam room once a week - epic fail.

And there you have it. Mostly a win on the hair front, a big old flop on the health side. I'm not very happy with myself but I'll just try to do better this coming month.

SEPTEMBER GOALS:

As I told y'all I had twists installed last week, and I'm planning to keep the twists for about 8 weeks. It might be a little shorter than that since I'm already feeling one or two twists wanting to slip out, but we'll see how it goes. So, here's my goals for this month, and thus also my idea of a braid/twist regimen:

1. Moisturize roots, scalp and hair daily with spritz or braidspray.

2. Give myself scalp massages with coconut oil at least every other day.

3. Wash my roots and scalp once a week with diluted shampoo. I'm actually considering getting a dry shampoo for in between freshness.

4. Sleep with satin scarf as usual.

5. Find cute styles to wear my twists in.

6. GO TO DAMN GYM 3-4 times a week.

I'm keeping it simpler this month, thanks to the twists. What are your goals for the first month of spring? (that is of course if you live in the Southern Hemisphere, lol)

Have a cooking Monday!

I'm twisted!!!

Hello everybody!

So, I bit the bullet! I got braids! Well, actually twists. But what's in a name right?! I'm quite excited about it and I think I look cute. So no major post from me today, just a headsup. So, what do y'all think??

Have an awesome Friday y'all!!!