Grow It Long 2020 Challenge

[Kiaray8]

June update - So my hair is still on a average growth rate. The front grew 2 inches, middle and back grew 1.5 so the front is now 14 inches, middle is 14.5 and the back is 12.5. My hair is now the top of my bra strap. However I have noticed that I seem to have a lot of knot split ends. Does anyone have any experience with them or remedies or should I just trim? (I do plan to do that once this challenge is complete at the end of the year but I won’t be during this challenge). Plan is to bun for the next few months no gel. Hopefully I can stick to that I like having my hair down too much aha

Update on staples: Shampoo is Shea moisture Manuka honey & Mafura oil, imbue curl liberating sulphate free shampoo
Rinse out conditioner - Tresemme Moisture Rich
DCs - SM Manuka honey DC, Crece pelo & Eden body works jojoba monoi
Leave ins- S curl, kinky curly knot today
I just realised I haven’t been oiling my ends as much so I need to resume that. I usually use grapeseed oil.

 

[apple_natural]

SUMMER Check IN!!

1. NaturalShe94
2. syrk
3. apple_natural
   
4. PlanetCybertron
5. GettingKinky
6. pinkchocolatedaisy
7. BeautifulRoots
8. ckisland - big chopped
9. Nightingale
10. Mapleoats
11. Bun Mistress
12. Kiaray8
13. CurliDiva
14. Rhealthyhair
15. faithVA
16. Napturallypretty1908
17. Victorian
18. keranikki
19. nyeredzi
20. guyaneseyankee
21. alanaturelle
22. BlackRinse
23. long.hair.dont.care
24. water_n_oil
25. metro_qt
26. mayoo
27. periwinklepeach
28. HappyAtLast
29. SmilingElephant
30. TamaraShaniece
31. ms.tatiana
32. snoop
33. Prettymetty
34. curly.123
35. storm777007
36. Curls&Caramel WELCOME!

along with our Honeypot

 

[Mapleoats]

View attachment 460763 View attachment 460773 June update - So my hair is still on a average growth rate. The front grew 2 inches, middle and back grew 1.5 so the front is now 14 inches, middle is 14.5 and the back is 12.5. My hair is now the top of my bra strap. However I have noticed that I seem to have a lot of knot split ends. Does anyone have any experience with them or remedies or should I just trim? (I do plan to do that once this challenge is complete at the end of the year but I won’t be during this challenge). Plan is to bun for the next few months no gel. Hopefully I can stick to that I like having my hair down too much aha

Update on staples: Shampoo is Shea moisture Manuka honey & Mafura oil, imbue curl liberating sulphate free shampoo
Rinse out conditioner - Tresemme Moisture Rich
DCs - SM Manuka honey DC, Crece pelo & Eden body works jojoba monoi
Leave ins- S curl, kinky curly knot today
I just realised I haven’t been oiling my ends as much so I need to resume that. I usually use grapeseed oil.

Awesome progress!

Your hair seems very thick and kinky/ curly like mine. How do you manage to get it in a bun? Do you stretch first or wet buns? I would love to wear more buns but they usually give me a headache

 

[Kiaray8]

Awesome progress!

Your hair seems very thick and kinky/ curly like mine. How do you manage to get it in a bun? Do you stretch first or wet buns? I would love to wear more buns but they usually give me a headache

Thank you! It depends what look I am going for. If I want a sleek bun I will do a wash and go but once its dry it kind of reactivate the moisture so it is very easy to sleek my hair. However when I want a more fluffy look I usually do a twist out first then slick my hair back. Because my hair is thick I need to make sure I really do moisturise each section & I do make sure to work in sections when putting the bun together.

Two of my favourite youtube videos on that:

 

[alanaturelle]

Hello!! Here is my progress so far. My goal is to reach full BSL and graze MBL by December.

 

[ckisland]

Oh I forgot to update!! I big chopped again back in April! So I'm out of this challenge for this year LOL!!
Good luck ladies!!

 

[water_n_oil]

Will post an updated pic on my next wash. I've been rocking two braids as of late and just keeping it simple.

 

[nyeredzi]

I realize I don't remember if I've been measuring my hair dry or wet for this challenge. Let's just do dry-ish measurements from now on. Done on essentially dry hair, but I have to dampen and oil a little just to be able to manipulate it and stretch it for the measurement. My hair measurement comes out longer on wet hair, so let's do (mostly) dry.

Part of starting post:


So starting length was ~16". 1st quarter check in is ~17". I'm not doing a comparable update pic, because my hair was flat ironed in the starting pic and it's not now. I'm not sure when the next time I flat iron will be. But I'll do a pic of a section of hair measured, which is actually how I track my progress (or lack of) anyway.
View attachment 457363

Okay, my mid-year update. I'm around 17.5 - 18" . I think my hair is in pretty good condition. I'm going to hold off on the trim, though I do occasionally trim out knots. But my hair is pretty even, few splits, and even the knots are not terrible. I tried recently slathering the ends of my twists in flaxseed gel from Indigenous Strandz advice and I like the results so far. It does seem to keep the ends from tangling as much. Just smoothing the ends of the twists when you get to that part and covering in the gel. I also did it twirling/ rope twisting the ends, and it really helped. I washed my hair in twists and didn't detangle, just undid the ends and redid them that way with the gel and today when I went to untwist them, the result was much better in terms of ends not tangling.

Anyway, here's a picture for the update.

 

[curly.123]

My lenght check :


Yes, I got fatter


First foto was on abril 20th, as my ends was not in a good shape, the lenght was average BSL
Second photo was today 5th july and I can tell that I'm MBL and I probably can reach WL by december
Thrid photo is t-shirt measurements, it grown a lot, I cant believe it!

 

[Mapleoats]

Not an official length check but still a nice progress pic. Here’s my rollerset in March vs a rollerset from this past weekend. I’m in desperate need of a trim though

 

[ItsMeLilLucky]

Oh I forgot to update!! I big chopped again back in April! So I'm out of this challenge for this year LOL!!
Good luck ladies!!

Dang you’re just like me with the chopping hair off

 

[Mapleoats]

I brushed out my rollerset and gave myself that well needed trim and a proper length check. Side note - brushed out rollerset gave me the softest fluffiest “blow out” I’ve ever had, I could cry lol

Here’s a side by side comparison of December, April and July! My hair is slightly longer but also so much thicker now since April!!



I think by my next length check in October I should officially be grazing BSL!!

 

[CurliDiva]

I'm approx 3 inches to APL but suffering some breakage in nape area. Time to step it up and stop being lazy.

 

[apple_natural]

did i already mention that I have 11" pulled wet hair on my piece that i'm tracking. it may be a bit longer if I were to straighten it. i'm expecting to end this year at 13" and meet my goal of 15" by next year june.

i put on a bentonite clay/acv/aloe mask yesterday. deep conditioned with my macademia brand dc. i rinsed that out today and i have it in random twists that i pinned up. we dont have anywhere special to go

 

[snoop]

I haven't had a chance to install mini twists to do a comparison. I think my hair is finally starting to retain length, again.

Except for the crown area and the front. Not sure what's going on there. Does anyone have any tips for babying this area specifically? I've been wearing medium-sized twists then french braid them and tucking in the ends into a bun. Or just throwing everything into a loose bun. Should I just start wearing my twists in multiple bantu knots? (We're still in isolation over here, so I'm at home pretty much all day.)

 

[ItsMeLilLucky]

I haven't had a chance to install mini twists to do a comparison. I think my hair is finally starting to retain length, again.

Except for the crown area and the front. Not sure what's going on there. Does anyone have any tips for babying this area specifically? I've been wearing medium-sized twists then french braid them and tucking in the ends into a bun. Or just throwing everything into a loose bun. Should I just start wearing my twists in multiple bantu knots? (We're still in isolation over here, so I'm at home pretty much all day.)

Is it kinkier in those areas? Depending on your hair, it might need more attention moisture/product wise but less manipulation and vice versa. Or it could simply be tired of being in that particular style.

 

[snoop]

Is it kinkier in those areas? Depending on your hair, it might need more attention moisture/product wise but less manipulation and vice versa. Or it could simply be tired of being in that particular style.

I've recently noticed that my crown is coarser and possibly looser. I think that the front is the same texture as the rest of my hair.

I restyle my hair every 1 to 2 weeks, but I do wear my twists in either buns or braids. I will try to moisturize more and find some styles that have less tension on twists in those areas.

Thanks!

 

[ItsMeLilLucky]

@snoop No problem, I’m happy to help.

 

[Mapleoats]

My hair has been acting so weird lately. Just frizzy and undefined. I think it needs a detox. I’m either gonna do a clay mask next wash or use a mineral build up remover (ion crystal clarifying pack)

 

[ItsMeLilLucky]

Rain water makes my hair so soft. If I was thinking, I should have set a bucket out to catch some water. I set a cup out to get a little bit.

 

[apple_natural]

i haven't been using regular shampoo in a while. i used the last bit a few days ago to empty it out 1 and 2 to clean my scalp in case of build up. my hair felt like hay afterwards and im still scratching the crap out of my scalp. ... good news is that i have no more shampoo in the house! i prefer to use clay or acv or some blend. they have been working out

 

[water_n_oil]

i haven't been using regular shampoo in a while. i used the last bit a few days ago to empty it out 1 and 2 to clean my scalp in case of build up. my hair felt like hay afterwards and im still scratching the crap out of my scalp. ... good news is that i have no more shampoo in the house! i prefer to use clay or acv or some blend. they have been working out

Same here. I started using some other things again but my scalp very much prefers more basic things. I've gone back to HiBAR shampoo bar and will probably reincorporate acv rinses and Dr. Bronner's.

 

[snoop]

Same here. I started using some other things again but my scalp very much prefers more basic things. I've gone back to HiBAR shampoo bar and will probably reincorporate acv rinses and Dr. Bronner's.

I'd never heard of HiBar before so I had to look it up. Their moisturizing shampoo looks like a solid moisturizer -- those ingredients look yummy.

 

[water_n_oil]

I'd never heard of HiBar before so I had to look it up. Their moisturizing shampoo looks like a solid moisturizer -- those ingredients look yummy.

I love it. I've only used the moisturize shampoo & conditioner bars so far.

 

[Prettymetty]

I need to really detox my hair and scalp. The last couple washes I had buildup still and when I straighten my hair it just feels heavy. I’ll shampoo it Monday a few times and use a quickie conditioner just to make detangling easier.

 

[apple_natural]

took about an hour to spray my scalp {and hair while im at it} with aloe vera juice and I put some camille rose cocoa nibs and honey stuff on my scalp too. my mom gave this to me some time ago. its going to good use...

 

[NaturalShe94]

Heyy! Sorryyyyy for the super late update. I’ve been out of town the last three weeks with family.
Anywho, so I’m definitely at BCL again my hair pulled to the front is at my belly button!
Making my way to TBL but Ive gotta get a trim soon so we’ll see.

 

[Curls&Caramel]

Wow all of you have gorgeous hair! I'm super late to the party but I'm hoping to join in. My hair is a MESS. Super uneven with scraggly ends. I can't find anyone here in Japan with experience cutting black hair and I'm a hair newbie so I'm not grabbing the shears. Welcoming all suggestions.

Natural, Relaxed, Texlaxed: Relaxed. (I don't think I'm texlaxed, but my hair is thick)

Current Length: Shoulder length

Goal Length: Short term APL Forever Hair Goals: Between BSL and MBL

Plan to reach goal length: Create and stick to a healthy regimen. Reduce heat to 1-2x every 2 months. Experiment with stretching relaxers.

Regimen:
I'm pretty sure that it's all over the place. Please remember that I just started my HHJ last month.

Daily (Braid Out or Bun): LCO- As I AM liquid leave-in/Cantu Creme leave-in/Coconut oil
Daily (Straight hair): Keracare liquid leave in/Coconut oil

Weekly:
Sunday- Pre-poo with coconut oil, Shampoo with Keracare Hydrating Detangling Shampoo, DC with Keracare Humecto Creme Conditioner mixed with olive, avocado, and coconut oil, 30 minutes under heat cap, leave-ins, blow dry on cool (straight hair), air dry and braid (braid out).

Thursday- Cowash with cheapie Japanese conditioner and olive, avocado, and coconut oil.

Monthly: Haven't gotten there yet. Thinking of adding a protein like Aphogee 2 minute reconstructor

Relaxer every 8 weeks. (Used to be 5 or 6. Yeah, I know. Crazy.)

Protective Styles: Bun? Braid out is low manipulation right?

Staple Products: Keracare line, As I AM leave in. Experimenting with other creme leave-ins

Starting Pic: Hubby took the pic and I freaked when I saw how uneven my hair really is. But I gotta start somewhere I guess.

 

[NaturalShe94]

Wow all of you have gorgeous hair! I'm super late to the party but I'm hoping to join in. My hair is a MESS. Super uneven with scraggly ends. I can't find anyone here in Japan with experience cutting black hair and I'm a hair newbie so I'm not grabbing the shears. Welcoming all suggestions.

Natural, Relaxed, Texlaxed: Relaxed. (I don't think I'm texlaxed, but my hair is thick)

Current Length: Shoulder length

Goal Length: Short term APL Forever Hair Goals: Between BSL and MBL

Plan to reach goal length: Create and stick to a healthy regimen. Reduce heat to 1-2x every 2 months. Experiment with stretching relaxers.

Regimen:
I'm pretty sure that it's all over the place. Please remember that I just started my HHJ last month.

Daily (Braid Out or Bun): LCO- As I AM liquid leave-in/Cantu Creme leave-in/Coconut oil
Daily (Straight hair): Keracare liquid leave in/Coconut oil

Weekly:
Sunday- Pre-poo with coconut oil, Shampoo with Keracare Hydrating Detangling Shampoo, DC with Keracare Humecto Creme Conditioner mixed with olive, avocado, and coconut oil, 30 minutes under heat cap, leave-ins, blow dry on cool (straight hair), air dry and braid (braid out).

Thursday- Cowash with cheapie Japanese conditioner and olive, avocado, and coconut oil.

Monthly: Haven't gotten there yet. Thinking of adding a protein like Aphogee 2 minute reconstructor

Relaxer every 8 weeks. (Used to be 5 or 6. Yeah, I know. Crazy.)

Protective Styles: Bun? Braid out is low manipulation right?

Staple Products: Keracare line, As I AM leave in. Experimenting with other creme leave-ins

Starting Pic: Hubby took the pic and I freaked when I saw how uneven my hair really is. But I gotta start somewhere I guess.

A ton of the women with super long hair tend to have braid outs as go-to styles. I think they’re low manipulation and safe. I cant master a braid out to save my life so Im strictly bun life lol.

 

[Curls&Caramel]

A ton of the women with super long hair tend to have braid outs as go-to styles. I think they’re low manipulation and safe. I cant master a braid out to save my life so Im strictly bun life lol.

Your curls are to die for. No need for a braid out for you. I'm trying to get into bunning, but it requires that I air dry my hair straight. Which always leaves my damaged hair a crispy mess. Braid outs mean I can braid it up damp and for some reason my ends don't turn into sandpaper. It's FAR from perfect though. With all that moisture, my new growth brings cotton fields to mind lol.