All Twisted Up: wash day @ 5 weeks post relaxer.

Today's wash day was very easy and enjoyable! 

What I did:

• Skipping my usual oil pre-poo, I instead deep conditioned on dry hair with Creme of Nature Argan Oil Intensive Conditioning Treatment with my heat cap for one hour. After my hair cooled down I rinsed in the shower.
• Using my trusted Motions Lavish Conditioning shampoo, I cleansed my hair once and rinsed with cold water.
• After air-drying with the T shirt method, I applied some African Pride Olive Miracle Anti-Breakage Moisturizing Lotion (see above photo) from root to tip, detangled, then proceeded to twist medium sections of hair. I lost very little hair today! Might have been due to my conditioning on dry hair :)

I have to say that the African Pride Moisturizing Lotion is fantastic for my new growth as it always leaves it extremely soft, moist, and flattens my poofy roots. Although it's a lotion, the consistency is light, quite watery and not too greasy to apply, which makes it perfect for my hair. It also helped to keep my twists from unravelling.

Both the Creme of Nature Conditioner and the African Pride moisturizer worked well for my hair- leaving it very easy to manipulate. I was able to easily finger-part my hair, plus, I had almost zero tangles!  Although in my opinion the Argan Oil Conditioner is nothing extraordinary, it's a nice weekly moisturizing treatment. 

I hope it works this well on 7 week post hair!

I really want my twists to stay intact for at least 2-3 days as they are a great low manipulation style. For classes, I plan to put them in a ponytail, bun, or some kind of twisted updo until I'm ready to take them down. The great thing about twists is that I can access my new growth and make sure that its thoroughly moisturized throughout the week. Hope they won't unravel during the night!

Have you ever done two-strand twists on relaxed hair?

~Hatter

Hatter Snap: 1st Fishtail Braid

This was my first attempt at the "fishtail braid". I found a really good tutorial on youtube and decided to try it out, since I was feeling a bit bored with my hair. 

The braid isn't perfect since it's my first try, so I'm definitely going to practice styling it just right. :)

This braid is much easier to create than it looks! It just takes a bit of practice to get used to twisting the hair.

Loose fishtail braid :)

In the picture above, I removed the hair elastic at the nape of my neck, then gently pulled on my hair to loosen the braid a bit. I think that when my hair grows out longer this style will be much cuter.

Love!

~Hatter

Airdrying: T-shirt method changed my whole experience!

Shout out to Fancy Flair Lady for sharing her experience with the T-shirt method!

Today I washed and deep conditioned my hair, and instead of my usual rollerset I decided to air dry.

Now, before I tried the T-shirt method I did not like airdrying. My hair would become puffy, slightly rough and very dry.

However, about two weeks ago Ms Fancy Flair Lady posted her wash day in which she simply used a T-shirt to absorb excess water from her hair after washing it. I remember watching a video by Sunshine of hairlista.com with the same method, but because she did not show how her hair looked after drying, I wasn't motivated to try the method at the time. However, seeing a recent post spurred me to try it out for myself.

Today was actually the second time I tried it, and I used the same old, 100% cotton T-shirt and wrapped it around my hair, leaving it to soak up the moisture for about half an hour.

My results?

My hair was soooo soft and fluffy! I honestly thought the ladies who praised the T-shirt method over-exaggerated, but trust me they did not! My hair cuticles were flat and smooth, and my hair was incredibly soft, even before adding my moisturizer. Anndd my hair mooooovesss! *swishes hair back and forth* Before, my airdryed hair was always stiff and dry and did not have the movement and fluffiness I'm experiencing.

I think the major difference between using a towel and a T-shirt is that the smooth cotton texture of my shirt did not ruffle or raise my cuticles like the rough, abrasive texture of most towels. The T-shirt allowed my cuticles to stay closed and lock in my hair's moisture.

My hair after moisturizing and de-tangling. 

This method is definitely a good alternative for weekly rollersetting for me as it gets my hair smooth without using any heat at all. I think my results are almost as good as rollersetting! My hair also dries faster and I'm not restricted to sitting under a dryer for an hour waiting for my hair to dry.


T-shirt method, you are here to stay!

Have you tried the T-shirt method?

Ta ta!
~Hatter

Playing Hairdresser

University girls are on a budget, and that budget doesn't always include the weekly or bi-monthly trip to the hairdresser for a wash and set.

My sister has been learning to deal with this fact by washing and conditioning her hair herself, and then having me rollerset her hair.

That means this Hatter has been the default hairdresser for both me and my sister! lol

Here are some pictures of the rollerset that, yes, I did on my sister's hair!

Front view of the rollerset

Side view of the rollerset

It didn't come out too bad, if I may say so myself!

Maybe I can harness my hairdressing skills and start a business on my hall! 

haha a Hatter can dream =) ...but seriously, who knows?

Goodnight folks.

~Hatter

Hatter Snap: Braidout Bun

Yesterday's braidout bun.

I slept with my hair in two braids, then in the morning I finger-combed my hair into a top bun. Even though I got really loose waves, I loved the volume I was able to achieve, especially as my hair was just relaxed on Saturday. =)

Protective styling to longer, stronger hair.

Have a happy day peeps.
~Hatter

Seems like everyone's doing the Big Chop!

Jill Scott

Last night on tumblr I saw this photo of (the beautiful) actress Jill Scott with......a Teenie Weenie Afro!!

That's not all...

...Look! More celebs with natural hair!
 

 

Viola Davis

You may recognize this actress, Viola Davis, who's starred in movies such as Doubt, The Help, Date Night and has guest-starred in Law and Order.

The before picture:

Sidenote: Now this lady hasn't always worn the most attractive wigs/weaves, (especially in her movies!) but this is one of the better hairstyles I've seen her worn.

Now we can't forget Solange, Beyonce's sister, who also transitioned to natural hair.

Solange Knowles

 

I wonder how many more African women in the spotlight are considering the Big Chop?

 

 

I was a bit surprised, but not shocked, at seeing Jill Scott's new hair 'do as so many women today are taking the plunge and going natural. 

What did shock me, however, was the sudden realization of how far the natural trend has reached.

Apart from celebrites, many normal, every-day girls and women are doing the Big Chop, or otherwise transitioning to natural.

All over popular hair sites (in fact, all over the internet!) like hairlista, blogspot, longhaircareforum and kiss there is a growing abundance of information about embracing and caring for natural hair. This has obviously inspired many girls and women alike to transition from their relaxed hair to their natural texture.

(source)

 

Can we say that there has been a revolution in the hair world? Certainly a major change is occurring, one which I appreciate and monitor with growing interest. Even in my sixth form college, this year at least three girls of my acquiantance took the plunge and did the Big Chop. With such social pressure to "go natural" I too was tempted to renounce my straigtened hair.

Natural hair, in all its textures, is beautiful. Its the hair God made us with! No one should feel inferior to another because of her curl pattern, or lack of thereof!

On the other hand, relaxed hair is beautiful too! Like natural hair, when it is adequately loved and nourished it thrives and can not only look healthy,but be healthy too.

For the present I can say that I still love and appreciate my straight hair, and I'm determined to reach my health and length goals. However, from the new surge in information and support for naturalistas, I can definitely see myself transitioning to natural hair in the future.

I think its important that if and when any lady decides to transition, she clearly knows her reasons for doing so, not just to follow a trend or "fit it". Without sacrificing the required time and effort natural hair can be the end of some women's natural journey!


Some naturalistas who inspire me:

All women with type 4C hair!

I personally have a natural texture somewhere along the lines of 4C, allowing me to rock a pretty awesome afro when I decide to return to natural hair. :)

Mae (naturalchica.com)

Laila-Jean (youtube.com/user/fusionofcultures)

Janelle Monae :)

What more can I say about this lady?? She's a bad-*ss singer, rocks amazing natural pompadours and her names is Janelle! Like meeeeee

 

Any thoughts on the Big Chop movement? How has it affected you? I hope this post was interesting/helpful!

'Tis all for the (not so) natural, (but happy!)
~Hatter

 

 

 

My inspirations: Hair journey

Here are some of the major sources for my hair-spiration, tutorials and indispensible information about caring for relaxed (and natural!) hair.

1. Youtube

• ulovemegz

If you read some of my previous posts you would have realized how much I love Megan's videos! She was my very first youtube hair-spiration who motivated me to start my own hair journey.  

• FusionofCultures

I found out about this cute chic from reading loveyourtresses.com. Laila-Jean transitioned from relaxed to natural hair and is now rocking a head-full of beautiful curls! I always admire ladies who are able to take great care of their natural tresses, making amazing looking natural hair the newest envy on the block. ;)

2. justgrowalready.com




Jen! What more can I say? Besides reading every one of her posts and scouring her blog several times a week, I use Jen as a real hair-spiration for what I want my hair to look like some day! She's transitioning from relaxed to telaxed hair and so far she's almost middle-back length. Every post about her journey is informative and, okay, I admit it, I'm a bit addicted to her site!

3. longing4length.com




Ms Ebony, like Jen, is a seasoned lady on her hair journey and likewise inspires me very much. She has hosted many hair challenges (like the Six Month Rollerset) and recently debuted her first e-book! Check out her website, you won't regret it. =)

4. relaxedhairhealth.blogspot.com

Ahhhh, Nadege. May I say she is the top of the top of hair-spiration? Her blog was the first I found that I thought was the key to healthy, long relaxed hair. lol Nadege is always on the look-out to discover better and better products for her hair and blogs about her progress. Jen and Nadege's blog definitely top my list of best hair blogs.

5. hairlista.com

Yup! A great forum site to ask, discuss and receive answers on all and anything hair related. Reminds me of longhaircareforum.com but honestly I prefer hairlista! Like LHCF, you must have an account to access the forum and create a profile. However, the set-up is easy and I recommend any serious hairlista to sign up for the site to expand her knowledge of hair care (both natural and relaxed). Are you a hairlista like me? Check out my hairlista page here.

6. naturalchica.com

The best natural hair care site I've found so far! Like I said before, I admire natural-haired ladies and I can see myself transitioning back to natural hair in the future. After searching youtube I came across Mae's channel, which linked to her site naturalchica.com. Interested in transitioning, caring for natural hair, or, (like me) just love to look at gorgeous hair? haha this is the site for you. Mae also provides tons of great info from hair doctors and other professionals about natural hair care.

I hope these sites inspire you as they inspired me!
Are any of these sites among your favourites? Did I miss any?

Happy hair day!
~Hatter

Relaxer stretch: 8 weeks post!

Good Thursday morning! =) Who's enjoying this lovely day like I am?

This week marks my eighth week post relaxer. So far my new growth is continuing to behave nicely! =)
I'm still wondering if I'm experienced decreased growth rate because at this point on my previous stretches I would be pulling my hair out! loool

Some styles that have gotten me through the stretch include buns, bantu knot-outs (still need practice), braids and braid-outs. Low manipulation is key to managing my hair at this point...and staying sane.

On Tuesday I washed (and rollerset!) my hair. I'm pleased to report that the breakage I experienced last week seems to have stopped. (Good ole' ORS Replenishing Conditioner! =D) My shedding also seems to have reduced over the past couple weeks. I find it a bit ironic since many ladies experience more shedding the deeper they are in a relaxer stretch. Here are some pictures of the hair I would lose on wash days:

Wash day: shed and broken hair at 4 weeks post.

Wash day: 7 weeks post

Wash day: 8 weeks post

Its possible that I'm at the end of a heavy shedding cycle. In the first photo, the ball of hair is much denser than the hair I've lost at 7 and 8 weeks post. Its such a relief not to see the heavy, dreaded hair ball every week!

I've been trying my best to keep my hair moisturized, especially my ends. Last night I made a high, giant pincurl and tied my hair down with a satin scarf. Just to make sure the moisture was locked in, I covered that with a satin bonnet. This morning I unwrapped and my hair was nice and moist!
That's all for now folks!

Happy hurrr-day!
~Hatter

First attempt of the Saran wrap/silk method

Today was wash day! My mother was so kind as to wash, condition and rollerset my hair for me so I really didn't have much work to do this time =)

After taking out the rollers I decided to put that new box of plastic wrap to use, and here's what ensued:

I looked craazyy I know.
Next, I used a blowdryer over the plastic wrap for five minutes.

Above are the results! Overall I'm quite happy with it as it's my first try. Next time I'm going to try wrapping my hair tighter, especially in the middle which still had some waves from the rollerset. My hair isn't as shiny as I wanted and I know it's because my momma skimped on the shine gloss and oil! *shakes fist*

My hair did come out waaay smoother and silker than just rollersetting under my Gold and Hot dryer, and for that I'm beaming like a cheshire cat =D

There's a first for everything!

~Hatter

The Vintage & Pin-Up Girl Look

Last night I was randomly searching youtube when I came across some fantastic videos by user thecherrydollface. She did a hair tutorial of a 1950's look: curly and verrry cute. Look at her hair! Gosh I am in love with that red/pink colour =)

I just love the big, soft curls she made. Pincurling them while they cool is supposed to help the curls "set", I think. This look was created using a curling iron, but when I try it I think I'll use rollers. I don't think flexi-rods might give me the kind of curl I need...but who knows?

Also! Who wouldn't fall in love with this pin-up girl look?! x.x

I need to buy a bandana...stat!

Arggg. I can't wait to try these looks!

Hatter~