Quirky Curls

Lessons Learned 2010

2011-01-02T15:36:00.000-06:00

For several years I have had a sort of abusive relationship with my strands.. I colored, cut and used insane amounts of heat on my hair... For the past several months, I have been contemplating what I needed to do with my hair to make sure that it retained length. By experimenting with different products and techniques, I have learned that my hair is protein sensitive, needs to be moisturized every other day, and retains length when left alone. (This I learned from the several months where I worked two jobs and didn't have the time to do my hair). However, the most important thing that I have learned thus far is that hair is NOT a living organism..The follicle is, but the hair is not. So in order to maintain health and length, I must preserve my hair..This has proved to be a challenge because I do not like to wear protective styles at all, with the exception of mini twists of course..

Anywho, I have said all of this to say that I am going to simplify my regime and my life in general. I've accumulated a lot of products lately and I am on a mission to get rid of them.. I have a couple bottles/jars
of products that I do not use and I will be giving them away within the next week or so.

In addition to that, I will also start an ayurvedic regime (details to follow) I've joined the MoptopMavens Hair Challenge and I want to see how my hair behaves with an Ayurvedic regime. As it type, I am sitting with an Ayurvedic Yougurt conditioner in my hair. I have no idea how my hair will feel one rinsed, but if they feel anything like my hands feel right now, this could be a good thing.

Stay tuned..

No Wash N Go's For Me...

2011-01-02T14:18:00.000-06:00

I really like the shape and curl definition of the wash-n-go in the above pic but I wasn't to fond of the maintenance involved with the process.. The main reason that I steer clear from the wash and go is because of the daily re-wetting.. I'm medium maintenance, so when it comes to my hair, I really don't want to have to have to deal with the fuss of dripping hair, hair gels and the drying time that wash- n- go's provide.. I'd rather stick to braid/three strand twist outs as they offer maximum texture and little manipulation to maintain..

FYI- That picture was taken in July of 2008

Braidout Tips and Tricks

2011-01-02T14:13:00.001-06:00

My staple style of 2010 were braidouts. I love the definition and volume that I achieve with this style and for that reason I wear braidouts weely. Lately, I have been trying to perfect my technique and I've realized that in order to get super-defined results I must follow a few simple rules:

* Braid hair in medium sized braids (more definition, braid-outs last longer)
* Twist the last inch or so of hair- just in case you have different textures, like I do, twisting the ends adds uniformity to the braid-out and allows easier takedown
* Braid hair tightly, as this helps with definition -( Just don't braid so tight that it causes pain or stress on the scalp/hairline)
* Don't use too much product - Shea butter for moisture/sealing and setting foam to set - Too much of either can cause flat hair
*Don't "borrow" hair - Divide each section into three strands equal in length - If one section is shorter it's best to start twisting rather than borrow hair, doing so can cause frizz when unraveling

Twist Out and Shout!!!

2010-11-21T23:01:00.000-06:00

I normally avoid twist outs because my past experience has been that I get zero definition with them. The roots are usually super defined and the ends of my hair are wavy/straight. While parusing the MopTop Maven's blog I read that if you let your twist "set" for a couple days, as opposed to overnight one is more likely to yield better results. It also just so happens that the week that I came accross that tip, Summyr1988 posted a Video on YouTube with instructions on how to do a stretched twist out. Needless to say, I was amped about giving the Stretched Twist Out another go. I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. My twist out was way more defined than I could ever imagine and it was stretched as well. Check out the pictures below:

FYI- My twists were set on hair that was 80% dry. I washed, conditioned, and detangled my hair late one Saturday evening. I combed it into a low ponytail to "stretch" the hair. The following morning I twisted my hair and then braided the twists. I did not take my hair down until Wednesday morning. Also, I did not use any products on my hair other than my whipped shea butter mixture... See this Video for pictorial of the process.

Mini Twist

2010-09-19T21:30:00.000-05:00

Dry Braid Out

2010-09-19T21:29:00.000-05:00

I Washed My Mini Twist...

2010-06-23T22:22:00.000-05:00

Today I decided that I needed to wash my hair..My scalp flaked up something terrible and itched like nobody's business. My initial plan was to not wash my mini twist at all and possibly re-do every two weeks. But, then reality set in and I realized that I wasn't going to redo my hair every two weeks (not worth the time) and my scalp and face would not appreciate the lack of cleanliness. So with that being said, today I decided that I needed to give my scalp some TLC... I braided my hair in 10-15 small braids, wet my scalp, and applied dandruff shampoo to my scalp and let it sit for about 20 minutes or so.. I rinsed in the shower, and washed and conditioned once more..I washed in braids to reduce the risk of shrinkage. I will take pictures of the outcome in the morning..

Nightly Routine

2010-06-15T10:34:00.000-05:00

Every night before I go to bed I braid my twist into approximately 11 braids.. (see above pic) Depending upon how tired I am I will apply my shea butter mixture to the ends and proceed to braid.. I then cover my hair with my silk scarf/satin bonnet and call it a night... In the morning, I take the braids a loose, spritz the ends ONLY with my coconut oil, glycerin and water mixture and keep it moving. The below picture illustrates what my hair looks like after I'm done.

Side Swept Mini Twist.....

2010-06-13T01:07:00.000-05:00

So today is day three of my mini-twist... They are definitely holding up nicely..and despite what I said in the previous post in regard to not liking the curly look of the twists- I must say that my mind has changed...Today I wet the ends to "activate" the curl and during the day I wore my hair free and loose. Because I would be going out this evening I wanted a funkier look and I achieved this by doing side swept hair. There was no rhyme or reason to the way that I twisted and pinned. I just grabbed hair, twisted backward and upward, and pinned as I went along... To maintain the stretch of the twist, and to reduce frizz, I have decided that I will braid my hair in eleven braids every night.. So far so good..

See Photo Collage Here

Mini Twist Reloaded....

2010-06-11T22:23:00.000-05:00

After four days of wearing my mini-twist I decided to take them down... and start them over again from scratch.... My mistake with my first set was that I blew my hair dry first, which caused the straight looser curls to become super straight upon blow drying my hair.After a couple days of wearing them I realized that the front portion was unraveling and I knew that I needed to start over to achieve the longevity that I was shooting for...This time I decided to skip the blow drying and twist in smaller sections. So I proceeded to wash, condition and plop. Once my hair was about 80% dry, I proceeded to twist with my SweetPeace Whipped Shea (coming soon). Six hours, and several snack breaks later, I had curly mini twist..I don't necessarily like the fact that the curly mini twist don't show as much length as the first set, but I love that a simple braid out will stretch the twist. I will definitely be posting pics of the multiple styles I will do with my twists... The plan is to keep them in for 30 days..We shall see if that happens:)

Check Out My Mini Twist...

2010-06-08T09:14:00.000-05:00

I decided on a whim yesterday that I was going to do a protective style..Mini twists, to be exact.. I washed, conditioned, blow dried with a comb attachment and Voila! Six hours later I have mini twist that I love... My goal is to keep them in for at least two weeks. We'll see how that works out!! I will post pics of all of the style variations that I will be wearing with my mini twist..

Shampoo- Paul Mitchell's - The Wash
Conditioner - Herbal Essence's - Totally Twisted
Moisturizer - SweetPeace Prouducts - Shea Fusion (Launching Soon)

3 Strand Twist Results

2010-06-08T09:09:00.001-05:00

I like!!! The shrinkage was serious; however, the definition that I achieved was well worth it...

Products used = SweetPeace Products Shea Fusion - (On Sale Soon)

3 Strand Twist

2010-05-22T16:47:00.000-05:00

For whatever odd reason my hair does not respond to two strand twist. I get slightly wavy roots and semi-straight ends EVERY time..So, I just stopped doing twistouts and stuck to braidouts..Recently, I started to get bored with braidouts so I decided to revisit twistouts. I knew that in order to get results I would have to alter my technique so I decided to learn how to do three strand twists. It took a couple of Youtube videos and hours of practice but alas I have finally mastered the three strand twist. I will be wearing the actually twists for two days and I will take them down on Sunday.. I will post pictures of the actual takedown results Sunday night..One caveat to the 3 strand twist is that this is not the style for someone who is weary of shrinkage.. The actual twisting causes the hair to wind up like rope and shrink a little more than two strand twist would. The end result is super-defined coils, that are well worth the shrinkage that they cause...

My Regimen

2010-05-15T13:23:00.000-05:00

Because I like simplicity, and I hate the feeling of hair laden with product I have given up on my product junkie ways. I found that none of those products did anything spectacular to my hair so I decided to go the "au naturel" route. I've found that the only products that have had a profound affect on my hair were shea butter, coconut oil, and olive oil, so my Weekly Regimen is as follows:

1)Detangle - Section hair in 4-6 sections and saturate hair with olive oil. By section, detangle hair from ends to root with a wide tooth comb. After detangling, braid each section so that it does not interfere with the detangling process..Repeat steps until your whole head is detangled and braided. If you like, you can leave the olive oil in for a while to fully saturate the strands, but I like to wash immediately after detangling..

2) Wash - I'm not to particular about my shampoo usage. However, they must not have any Laureth/Lauryl sulfates and I consider it plus if makes my scalp tingle. If my scalp is particularly dry I will us Jason's Dandruff Shampoo (Whole Foods) or Kiehl's Herbal Shampoo and Scalp Treatment for Dandruff Control which does have sulfates (Neiman Marcus). I wash my hair once with the braids in and I concentrate first on the scalp. Then I wash it a second time, removing the braids this time, I concentrate on the rest of the hair and making sure the olive oil is removed.

3)Conditioner - After washing I saturate my hair with Herbal Essences totally twisted and put my head under running water for a second or two (to add more slip). With a shower comb, or my fingers, I detangle once again. Then I cover my hair with a shower cap and scarf and let it sit for no more than 30 minutes. Then I rinse.It's been my personal experience that this conditioner works best with heat(i.e body heat, soft cap dryer) which is why I cover my hair during this process.

4) Style - After rinsing my hair completely of the conditioner, I lightly oil my scalp with coconut oil. ( I use a color applicator bottle to apply the coconut oil) Because I like stretched styles I will a) do a ponytail rollerset and sit under the dryer or b) Create a low ponytail and cover with a scarf and allow to air dry overnight. From there I will apply my moisturizer of choice,(SweetPeace Products -Shea Fusion-Launching Soon) and if I want more hold I will apply a Foam Wrap lotion (Elasta QP Feels Like Silk) to my dry hair and proceed with a braidout.

My Hair Story

2010-05-15T09:49:00.000-05:00

My natural hair story is probably a little different than most. When I was 14 my mother decided that it was best that the whole family stop using relaxers and go natural. I had no say so whatsoever in my natural journey and to be quite honest I was very disinterested in the whole process. I was even more upset when she decided the summer before my freshman year of high school, that she was going to cut my hair into a TWA and restrict the use of extensions...As soon as I grew enough hair to braid, I started to experiment with cornrows, two strand twists, and sometimes a combination of both. Within a year the weave restriction was lifted and I graduated to full head weaves. I saw an abundance of growth during this time and within two years I had retained a lot of length so I decided that I would straighten again, with heat, for the first time in two years. I was hooked to heat from then on. I decided that I wanted straight hair again and I relentlessly straightened several times a week with high levels of heat. Eventually all the length that I had retained, disappeared slowly but surely...not only was the length declining so was the overall thickness of my hair, but at the time I was only interested in straight hair and not healthy hair.. In December 2008, I noticed that my hair was thinner and shorter than it had ever been, and I decided to get a trim at a Paul Mitchell beauty school(huge mistake). The trim turned into a cut that resembled a modern day mullet that looked especially silly when I wore it natural.(I had to wear updo's everyday to hide the bad cut) From that day forth I decided that I was on a mission to restore the health of my hair... After using minimal heat to allow the mullet to grow out I saw major progress in the overall health of my hair and I will continue to use low heat maintenance techniques as a part of my regimen. I'll track the progress on this blog as an update to myself and others that may happen to read..