APL 2012 Challenge

[BrownSkin89]

Mjon912 Thank you for the encouragement. I do take growth aids .

I'm slowly accepting the fact that I'm may be a slow grower. Look I still can't say it and I've been on the board for 5 years. I DO like the suggestion of sticking around for another term.

Classmates I'll say it here if September is as bad as June was, I WILL drop out.

Fight the good fight!!

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[MeowMix]

NikkiQ & BrownSkin89. Thank you so much. Kind words can do wonders. I know its just hair but yesterday I was feeling a little discouraged.

 

[KiWiStyle]

Picture time!! Still not there yet unfortunately =[

Sent by me from my Android phone.Boom

You're getting close!! I think we may get there at the same time...pictures coming in just a little bit. I think September for sure.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[livinthevida]

I've been almost a month without heat! YAY! I plan on getting my hair flatironed this wknd...when my curls fall, I will post pics. I know, I know I already graduated, but just with a pull test.....I want to do a full pic.

@livinthevida I haven't purchased my OCO yet, but I do have some WGHO on hand. I'm prepooing right now with WGHO, honey, grapessed oil and a few drops of peppermint oil.

jprayze congratulatons on using no heat! Here I am thinking of adding a hair dryer to my reggie and its Summer here in the Northeast!!! go figure!!! You know me I'd like to keep my goals pretty simple I'm planning to use a dryer on its cool setting. Originally I thought of using a warm setting then cool towards the end yet my hair is completely dry when I rollerset. All I do is add the OCO to from ear to ends and quick rollers throughout. I'll continue to keep it simple with rollersetting using new mesh rollers and dry on cool setting. I am SO VERY HAPPY with my hair and scalp these past 6 months especially TODAY!!! entering my 6 month HHJ I am going to finally purchase a hair dryer likely one of the models I posted here in our thread

Y'all have no idea how GOOD it feels for my hair to be this UGLY right now!! God I've missed my hair!
Sent by me from my Android phone.Boom

NikkiQ your hair looks great! Look how thick your celies are compared to just a few months ago! WOWZER!!!

Picture time!! Still not there yet unfortunately =[
Sent by me from my Android phone.Boom

Plus I've always thought you were APL even recently! You're right on the APL line! If you're not APL yet then I'm far from it Besides even if you're APL we'll keep you right here to the very end!

@Mjon912 My hair does too. Some people complain of over manipulation but I find that after rollersetting, less hair comes out when I try to style. And my ends stay sleeker and nicer.

I agree Mjon912 & lovebug10! Rollersetting is the bomb diggity! Easy to do on any day and I like that it keeps with the curls of my naturally curly hair!

NO NO NO NO NO! Can't hold the class back. Guess I'll have to drop out. Ladies, I don't know WHAT I was thinking.

Here are the excuses:
1. I guess it's because I keep my hair in braids alot and never really see it out.
2. I've got that ONE piece that close to APL; so my whole head must be there.
3. My sides might get to APL before the back?
3. I'm just trifflin.

I've been trying to fool myself all morning but I seem to be stuck @ shoulder. There is NO way I'll get to APL by December. I will be lurking and rooting for y'all. GO TEAM APL 2012

MeowMix you'll reach APL! Just think of my journey I started about shoulder length January 2012 and now here I am at APL! I only used 1 product, a set of rollers, and amazing advice from the ladies here on our APL Challenge. You'll soon reach APL and beyond!

Beautiful pictures LilMissSunshine5 & TheNDofUO!

 

[livinthevida]

It's Length Check Day!!!! WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!!!

Ladies here are my length check pictures!!! :
1. the first one is a pull test with one strand (look how flexible I am!! )
2. the second one is a pull test with a bit more hair
3. the third one is my hair when soaking wet
4. the last one is my hair air dried and brushed with my new Denman 9-Row Hair Brush
​

 

[lovebug10]

Okay I will take a pic tonight... I forgot to do it this morning when I put my hair in a bun. However, I'm really worried about my ends. My longes ends get lots of love but I recently cut my hair myself. It looks even but when you touch it you can see that my crown is way shorter than the rest. I did it that way because I didn't want to be EL/NL to even everything out so I only cut out the damaged areas and evened the bottom a bit.

Now I'm looking at my crown and the ends are all messed up again. My longest SL ends aren't bad and only need a teensy dusting but I think i May have to cut around .5 to 1.5 inches in different areas of my crown. I've been bunning but I'm not too consistent with my scarf at night or M&S (I know shame on me). I had alot of shedding/ breakage and that mostly stopped with the aphogee 2 step I did the other day. There's a few broken hairs but I think that I probably need to start giving my hair consistent love & those will stop (hopefully).

But anyways, what do I do about this crown area. I know I need to "baby" it but how do I do that? Also I used to be a faithful wrapper every night and I think that led to the shorter hairs there. I stopped wrapping but I don't have a good way of tying up my hair at night. I tried satin pillow curlers but those leave super tight curls in my hair and it all poofs up when I try to comb it out to bun. I didn't like cross wrapping but I'm willing to give it another shot. Any ideas?

Also sorry for the long post. I promise to make it up with pictures later

 

[lovebug10]

It's Length Check Day!!!! WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!!!

Ladies here are my length check pictures!!! :
1. the first one is a pull test with one strand (look how flexible I am!! )
2. the second one is a pull test with a bit more hair
3. the third one is my hair when soaking wet
4. the last one is my hair air dried and brushed with my new Denman 9-Row Hair Brush
​

You're way past APL!! on your way to BSL!!

 

[livinthevida]

You're way past APL!! on your way to BSL!!

Thank You lovebug10! With how my hair looks today I am surprised how much it has grown since January 2012. Now I see why we hold off until we have our length checks I really couldn't tell how long it grew even with rollersetting. My very first sign of hair growth was likely in March when I realized how strong and thick my hair felt, I then upgraded to a new Denman brush and that had to be the best sign of all! Until I started running out of rollers

 

[Mjon912]

Yup I'm going to go ahead and claim APL...I guess my hair needed to flatten out and since i textlax, rollerset and dont flat iron it took a couple nights of wrapping for it to lay flat...woohoo =)

 

[MrsJaiDiva]

Here's my Length Check for June! This is my hair fresh out the shower. I can see I'm about 2" from full APL. So, definitely need to take my vits every night, and stay consistent. Oh, and stay Far away from that ghatdamned Denman brush.



Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[Guinan]

My hair day is 2morrow! Since I am getting a wet set Aka rollerset, I can't do a length check but I will do a pull test.

 

[lovebug10]

Here's my Length Check for June! This is my hair fresh out the shower. I can see I'm about 2" from full APL. So, definitely need to take my vits every night, and stay consistent. Oh, and stay Far away from that ghatdamned Denman brush.

View attachment 157253

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

MrsJaiDiva Woot Woot! You're almost there. quick question though... I just bought a new Denman (The boar bristle with the nylon quills) and I have one of the ones with the 9 rows in the red rubber base. with the Is there a reason why you dont like yours? I would hate to stop using mine but if its gonna limit my growth then I rather just throw it away. Btw I'm relaxed and only use it to flatten/ smooth my hair for buns.

 

[MrsJaiDiva]

MrsJaiDiva Woot Woot! You're almost there. quick question though... I just bought a new Denman (The boar bristle with the nylon quills) and I have one of the ones with the 9 rows in the red rubber base. with the Is there a reason why you dont like yours? I would hate to stop using mine but if its gonna limit my growth then I rather just throw it away. Btw I'm relaxed and only use it to flatten/ smooth my hair for buns.

I think it's just my hair that hates it. My hair gets super tangly (it's curly, and I don't wash it in sections...even though that would make my life easier), and while the Denman does a great job of detangling...it also does a great job of thinning my hair out and splitting my ends. I think if I were relaxed it would be fine, but my natural hair says No Tankya!

 

[livinthevida]

Ladies here is an added comparison of my hair when completely wet and semi-damp These pictures are comparing between January 2012 and June 2012 (semi-damp) and March 2012 to June 2012 (wet)! I'll return in a few minutes to post my new reggie using Wild Growth Hair Oil (WGHO) via Amazon beginning tomorrow July 1, 2012!

Similar to using the Organic Coconut Oil (OCO) I'll apply WGHO the same way from ears to ends on dry hair when roller setting and use right before I work out while wearing my conditioning cap

 

[afroette]

NikkiQ, you're like me. we both have armpits that are too far from our necks!

livinthevida, i hope you're claiming APL! Congrats!

 

[MeowMix]

livinthevida Thank you for the kind words and sharing your journey. With all this encouragement, I think my hair has grown 1cm today BTW, your hair...GORGEOUS.

 

[longfroinghair]

yep yep I'm still in XD I'll be blow drying and flat ironing as straight as I possibly can next weekend. But I am such a slow grower without my vitamins. I had to stop them last 2 months ago because they gave me serious acne :O now my skin is clearing but my hair is not anywhere near as strong. I got no clue what to do

 

[livinthevida]

Ladies as you can see in today's Length Check!!!! using a conditioning cap and Organic Coconut Oil (OCO) has really helped to improve my scalp and jumpstart my natural hair growth! I am upgrading my reggie to try a new hair oil - Wild Growth Hair Oil (WGHO) - for the next 3 months until our next length check September 30, 2012. OCO has worked so well through today that I am keeping with another oil until September The only other update I may do soon is incorporating my new mesh rollers and hair dryer to a morning routine!

Here is my updated hair regimen beginning July 1, 2012:

Daily (Monday - Saturday)
1. massage Wild Growth Hair Oil (WGHO) onto scalp and apply from ears to ends
2. wear Evolve Conditioning Cap as I workout (I like to wear my hair out under cap no bobby pins or hair ties)
3. cool rinse hair
4. let hair naturally air dry
5. roller set hair with Satin Foam Rollers

Weekly (Sunday only!)
1. divide hair into 4 sections
2. apply Macadamia Oil Deep Repair Mask to each section from crown to ends
3. wear Evolve Conditioning Cap and leave Mask in hair for at least 20 minutes (slather it on pretty good!)
4. warm rinse and let hair naturally air dry
5. roller set hair with Satin Foam Rollers

 

[livinthevida]

livinthevida Thank you for the kind words and sharing your journey. With all this encouragement, I think my hair has grown 1cm today BTW, your hair...GORGEOUS.

Thank You MeowMix! WOW! 1cm already!!! Now THAT's the kind hair growth we like to hear

 

[livinthevida]

NikkiQ, you're like me. we both have armpits that are too far from our necks!

livinthevida, i hope you're claiming APL! Congrats!

Thank You afroette! I am claiming it if all you ladies say so! Yet I am hanging out here until the end of our challenge consider me Vida Ninja from this point on!

Plus I am 5' 9" so my armpit looks a bit awkward compared to where my neck begins and ends its kind of lower there but this hair will reach it soon! My ultimate goal is to have my hair fall naturally when completely dry (after a rollerset) at waist length

 

[NikkiQ]

livinthevida claim it woman!!!

 

[KiWiStyle]

Not much growth so far, I am really missing my Nioxin pill. I air dried my hair so I couldn't completely straighten my roots, I think I got less than one inch in 11 weeks. I am going to have to bite the bullet and cut a few inches to where my nape ends do I won't have see thru ends. Otherwise I will never be able to wear my hair down. On a good note, I did a fabulous updo that I just love using my small banana clip! These things are magical!!




View attachment 157275



View attachment 157289




View attachment 157277




View attachment 157279



View attachment 157281



View attachment 157283

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[livinthevida]

Not much growth so far, I am really missing my Nioxin pill. I air dried my hair so I couldn't completely straighten my roots, I think I got less than one inch in 11 weeks. I am going to have to bite the bullet and cut a few inches to where my nape ends do I won't have see thru ends. Otherwise I will never be able to wear my hair down. On a good note, I did a fabulous updo that I just love using my small banana clip! These things are magical!!

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

Beautiful hair @KiWiStyle! I love that updo & flower! Great style!

 

[livinthevida]

yep yep I'm still in XD I'll be blow drying and flat ironing as straight as I possibly can next weekend. But I am such a slow grower without my vitamins. I had to stop them last 2 months ago because they gave me serious acne :O now my skin is clearing but my hair is not anywhere near as strong. I got no clue what to do

longfroinghair maybe we can help here! How is your current reggie coming along? once you start on rollersetting I think you'll love it! It took me sometime to learn how to rollerset yet with practice you will have great results. Here are 2 YouTubers I've watched since January 2012!! They each of have a different way yet show well how to do a roller set on dry hair:

Natural Hair: Roller Setting Straight Natural Hair
I like how MahoganyCurls roller set on dry hair and carefully took her time to detangle the ends before rollersetting. You can skip to 8:30 in the video to view her results!
Roller Setting Natural Hair
HealthyHairJourney only uses 1 product line in her videos and her website. This is where I started to consider using a single product when starting my HHJ. Her motto is "Be sure that the hair is completely dry to avoid frizz". After reading Features of the Month here on LHCF I finally decided to keep with one product and see how the results were after a few months :wink2: You can skip to 5:25 in the video to view her results!

 

[mami2010]

Hey, ladies I'm loving the updates. I don't think I will make the update today, my husband deciding we are doing painting today, my hair is locked up tight so no paint will get on it. I will update you ladies tomorrow if possibly late tonight.

 

[livinthevida]

livinthevida claim it woman!!!

NikkiQ I'm claiming it!!!

BUT I'm still hanging out here as Vida Ninja until December 31, 2012 to Congratulate you and all the ladies who reach their APL Goals! Plus I have no idea where to go next???? Our Challenge is the first and only one I've joined at LHCF

Let's see, I'll start to browse the threads to where I'll land next!

 

[KiWiStyle]

Beautiful hair @KiWiStyle! I love that updo & flower! Great style!

livinthevida,
Thank you. I'm going to have to learn to do curly sets too because my hair straight down is a hot mess. I'm not brave enough to cut the thin ends off yet...may in 2013.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[NikkiQ]

I think after my shower I'm going to flat iron just a little piece in the back and take a pic so I can compare it to a flat iron job at the end of the year

Trying to stay positive right now. APL when I pull in the front, but not in the back. oy vey!

 

[livinthevida]

livinthevida,
Thank you. I'm going to have to learn to do curly sets too because my hair straight down is a hot mess. I'm not brave enough to cut the thin ends off yet...may in 2013.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

KiWiStyle I think you're ends look good they are nice, smooth, and soft too! NaturalfienD shared this link on Black Hair Science it's a very informative site and even has an article on When thinning hair near the ends is normal. Scroll the page to the section Solutions and Prevention where she offers a remedy for thickening ends: "My remedy for thickening ends is going on a very low heat regimen, no direct heat more than twice per month. You really want to focus on the last two to three inches of hair and keeping them moisturized and protected at all times." :wink2:

 

[KiWiStyle]

KiWiStyle I think you're ends look good they are nice, smooth, and soft too! NaturalfienD shared this link on Black Hair Science it's a very informative site and even has an article on When thinning hair near the ends is normal. Scroll the page to the section Solutions and Prevention where she offers a remedy for thickening ends: "My remedy for thickening ends is going on a very low heat regimen, no direct heat more than twice per month. You really want to focus on the last two to three inches of hair and keeping them moisturized and protected at all times." :wink2:

livinthevida,

Thanks for that but my ends really are thin. They only look nice when gathered, like in the ponytail or pulled to the center. As for no heat, i only use direct heat no more than 5 times per year. My nape is the problem. For many years, it was over processed, dry and broken. it's just now showing signs of significant growth but It'll never catch up to the rest of my hair. See the picture below:

View attachment 157295

My nape is just SL while the other hairs are almost APL. I will eventually have to cut it.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF