~*~*The Newly Natural Thread*~*~

^^ thank you its a loc chain...and i got it from peaceimagesjewelry.com, i think shes sold out of them, but shes so nice, if you ask her about them she may make one for you. :)
 
did a blowout today and OMG shrinkage was definitely getting the best of me my hair is so long! going to try a braid out or twist out today. Hopefully I can get banded hair this stretched...
 
twatombl
In Maryland there is a natural hair store that stock a lot of products and they offer sample, rare opportunity with that one, most pf the products i brought. There is a thread you can search for in the exchange forum, it call hate it dump on me, or just start a thread wanted and name it. There is alot of friendly ladies that will share.

Thank you so much! For about the first 2 years natural I was using the same products, the ones that everyone is familiar with ie KCCC, Cantu Shea Butter, Audrey Organics. I'm not sure if those products weren't enough as my hair got fuller and longer or if my texture changed but since last summer it seems everything I try works the first time then....:nono: I got tired of buying full sizes and not liking them so I have been on a mission to test sample sizes until I find one worth buying in full and that actually works for me!

I never thought about the exchange threads, I actually have a few products I would be happy to pass along!
 
I'm really liking my new regimen and I hope that when I straighten my hair next month it proves that my hair is liking it a lot as well! I thought I would post the products that I use on a weekly basis and I would love to see what you guys are using as well!

Shampoo- Aussie Moist
Cowash conditioner- Aussie Moist
Leave in- Herbal Essences LTR Conditioner (not the leave-in)
Protein Conditioner- ApHogee 2 minute
Deep Conditioner- Suave Humectant
Oil mix- hemp, black castor, and olive

I also do a cassia treatment once a month. It's so nice to be able to find all of my staple products in Target or Whole Foods, ( I do have to order the black castor oil though) and throughout the week all I use on my hair is conditioner and oil. Maybe simple really is best.
 
I did my hair in a beehive braid on Tuesday and plan to keep it in for 4-6 weeks.
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I did something a little different and cornrowed my nape separately. Hopefully, this will help with retention in that area. Next time, I'll try to make it smaller.
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I've been wearing R&B Kim. I cut bangs to cover my fo'head.
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Muffins posted her review of Kim on YT recently. She's wearing the intended way, with a part. I'm going to try and follow her method for making the wig hairline look more natural.

I saw 2 gorgeous heads of natural hair today within a block of each other while running an errand. They both were wearing twistouts or braidouts that fell to between sl-apl, so their hair was probably at least bsl.
 
Just stopping by to show my support:waytogo: and to say I can't wait to be one of you guys! Just 2 1/2 more inches to go :yep:
lml0827 I Loo forward to you coming over to the natural side!

Hola yall! hope all is well, i missed my 5 month anniversary date which was the 13th of April. I am still in these mini twists and i am ready to take them out so that i can wash it and do a twist out, which is a fave style of mine. I will be geting a weave installed hopefully soon within the nect couple of weeks.

my finger is injured and i need to take these twists out soon because every now n again i have to pull them apart from the roots because thats where they seem to like to loc at first. o_O. But hopefully i can do it this weekend coming up, it will be 4 weeks which is enough for me. i trimmed about a 1/4 in becasue the ends were so dry n had ssk.

my twists are shrunken completely which is fine, it has more weight to it now. i am still looking for more styles to try on mini twists but i think i will only do them mayb 4 times out the year, its too time consuming for me and i cant keep them in no more than 4 weeks at a time.

im also considering putting my yarn braids back in, since it lasted 2 months and it looked like locks, AND everybody keeps asking me if im going to loc my hair, so i might give em what they want during the summer. lol

HHG!!!
@zkhittycurls Your ends look good in the pic you posted. :yep: Happy belated 5 month annivesary. Hope your finger gets better soon! I woke up to a swollen pinky last week. While it didn't hinder my normal hair-do'ing, it was just so utterly absurd and I didn't remember injuring it. :lol:
 
Wow, I can't believe we are in the middle of April already. Time is just flying by. I haven't posted much over the last month so I figured it was time to check in.

So much has happened over the past month and I am so surprised that my hair hasn't been an issue. I got a new job and moved all in a month and am actually very proud of myself and my hair. I've been cowashing pretty much everyday and trying to d/c at least once a week.

I got really bored with all the puffs that I decided it was time to henna and maybe try something new. So, I took a shot at mini twists. They didn't come out to bad.

You guys keep up that great progress. I makes me so happy to see all the beautiful heads of hair.

Anyways....I took some pics along the way

1st pic: How I wore my hair for my interview on 3/9/11
2nd pic: job interview 3/9/11
3rd pic: some random puff (sorry about it being sideways)
4th & 5th pic: twists that I did today 4/17/11
 

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My TWA Regimen

I'm a natural newbie who BC'd on April 1, 2011.

My post-relaxer transitioning is a bit hard to explain especially since going natural was an impromptu decision for me right after a sew-in. But to put it simply, majority of my hair (crown to back) has 4 months of new growth and the front only has 2 months of new growth. :nono:

I've been relaxing my hair for over 13 years and haven't been natural since a child (and even then it was always pressed with hot combs).

Current length: 2 and 1/2 inches in the back & 1 inch in the front
My Goal is to let it grow as long as it can!

It's hard for me and others to assess my curl pattern just yet. I've been told either 4b or 4a, but right now, I'm leaning toward 4B. I don't know much about strand size, density and all that. But my hair has very tight, teeny tiny curls that some may refer to as "naps." :grin:

Products:
SHEA MOISTURE: Restorative Conditioner, Curl & Style Milk, & Curl Enhancing Smoothie
GIOVANNI: Tea Tree Conditioner, Smooth As Silk Conditioner
KINKY CURLY: Knot Today, Curl Custard, & Spiral Spritz (Serum)
ECO-STYLER OLIVE OIL GEL
BAKING SODA in place of shampoo.
OILS (in a spray bottle): Olive Oil, Sesame Oil, Tea Tree Oil, Peppermint Oil, Vegetable Glycerin

Regimen:
I cowash every other day with my Giovanni conditioners. I can't use the cheaper products like Suave Naturals or TreSemme Naturals because they dry my hair out and make my already acne-prone face break out.

I wrap my hair in a T-Shirt instead of towels to dry.

Instead of shampoo, every two weeks, I lather my hair with Giovanni Tea Tree Conditioner, then massage my scalp with baking soda to get rid of product build up. Rinse then deep condition with Giovanni Smooth As Silk and letting it sit for a couple of hours or so (sometimes sitting under a dryer for 30 minutes).

I use the above deep conditioning regimen at least twice a week.

I use Shea Moisture's Restorative Conditioner as a leave-in since the product allows you to use it as a washout or leave-in.

I always wear headbands whether I let my curls just set or if I wear an afro. To slick the front, I use Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel (on the front only up to the head band).

If I let my curls just set, I use my Kinky Curly Knot Today & Curl Custard for the best curl definition then pull and separate them after they dry. On the second & 3rd day, I use the Kinky Curly Spiral Spritz to spruce up the style.

If I rock a 'fro, I use my Shea Moisture Style Milk & Curl Enhancing Smoothie then use a pic to comb the hair out and pat it with my palms evenly. On the second & 3rd day, I spray with water and repeat.

If I wear a wig (which I just purchased as a "protective style" to keep me from touching my hair--which has become a bad habit -- and I mean for hours and hours...), I coat my hair with my oil concoction and my Shea Moisture Restorative Conditioner. As soon as I get home, I remove the wig and spray my hair with water and apply more Shea Moisture Restorative Conditioner.
 
bride91501 Thank you! Girl, I was doin' the Cabbage Patch when my daughter showed me the pic, LOL! I know you are as excited as I am about the 1-yr anniversary that is fast approaching, can't wait to see where I am then, :grin:.
 
bride91501 Thank you! Girl, I was doin' the Cabbage Patch when my daughter showed me the pic, LOL! I know you are as excited as I am about the 1-yr anniversary that is fast approaching, can't wait to see where I am then, :grin:.

Not the cabbage patch tho?! LOL

My 1 year is May 31/June 1, so I'll be looking for your update thread a couple days after mine :)
 
So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?

I'm just kinda playing it by ear. I'd like to wear my hair straight maybe 6-7 times a year. I'd like to make at least APL or BSL (straightened) and I think I can reach those goals and still straighten 6-7 times a year.

My hair is pretty strong and moisturized right now and my regimen seems to be working. But just when I thought it was safe... lately i've been seeing SSK's so that is the big obstacle right now. I just started seeing them more and more after cutting off the very last of my relaxed ends. I need to do a search and find some tips on how to prevent them.
 
So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?

Great question. My goal is WL. I've never had hair longer than my neck in my life, so even typing that takes some getting used to, but I'm getting better at it LOL.

I'm learning that I have combination strands- the ones around the perimeter of my hair, front and back, are fine, and they increase in size toward my crown (where they're very coarse). Because of this, I don't think I'm one of those naturals who can flat iron frequently without eventual damage. Lucky for me I'm not a fan of stick straight hair anyway, so it works out. I'll probably only flat iron my whole head for length checks once/year.

I do, however, LOVE how my hair looks blown out, and will probably do this 3-4x per year. I only do it on cool/warm heat and only after a PT, overnight DC and with a heat protectant. My hair has reverted just fine the 2x I've done it so far & I haven't had any damage.

Do you guys think 3-4x per year will be ok?
 
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So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?

My goal is MBL and I believe that I would have to avoid heat as much as possible to get there with healthy hair and not having to do many trims. I say this because I recently did a blow out for a job interview (I wore a bun) and I suffered from slight heat damage, mind you I used heat protectant and I didn't have the blow-dryer directly on my hair. I can imagine what frequent heat or more than 2-3xs a year would do to my hair.
 
I just realized how much i really dont care about putting my hair in a ponytail. I mean I would like to eventually... :look: I'm just not obsessed with it like I was when I was transitioning. I wanted to transition until I could put my hair in ponytail but I didnt make it of course, but I love my hair! I guess I'm just now really seeing the potential my natural hair has that I didnt see when I was transitioning.
 
So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?
QUOTE]

I want WSL hair stretched so I can wear a long twistout or long plait. Afterwards, it can grow as long as it wants. :rolleyes: I have not been using any heat and wear protective styles 100% of the time.
 
I will probably aim for BSL and stop there. I just want my twists to rest on my shoulders and then I'll be satisfied. I'm working wit a monsta' playa!
 
So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?
QUOTE]

I want WSL hair stretched so I can wear a long twistout or long plait. Afterwards, it can grow as long as it wants. :rolleyes: I have not been using any heat and wear protective styles 100% of the time.

I'm the same. I avoid heat at all costs. My ultimate goal though is WL stretched and MAYBE HL is my shrinkage is a beast.
 
I think I finally qualify to post in this thread as I cut my relaxed ends this weekend.

NikkiQ, I didn't know you chop already!
 
So I was looking at Sera's fotki for the 100th time (lol). Just wondering what is everyone's length goals? And do you think u will have to avoid heat (like Sera does) to reach them?

APL or BSL at the most. I don't think I could handle my hair if it was any longer.
 
Great question. My goal is WL. I've never had hair longer than my neck in my life, so even typing that takes some getting used to, but I'm getting better at it LOL.

I'm learning that I have combination strands- the ones around the perimeter of my hair, front and back, are fine, and they increase in size toward my crown (where they're very coarse). Because of this, I don't think I'm one of those naturals who can flat iron frequently without eventual damage. Lucky for me I'm not a fan of stick straight hair anyway, so it works out. I'll probably only flat iron my whole head for length checks once/year.

I do, however, LOVE how my hair looks blown out, and will probably do this 3-4x per year. I only do it on cool/warm heat and only after a PT, overnight DC and with a heat protectant. My hair has reverted just fine the 2x I've done it so far & I haven't had any damage.

Do you guys think 3-4x per year will be ok?

3 to 4 times a year just doing blow out doesn't sound like much to me. But I'm a former heat addict, tho:lol:
 
Okay, I really want to try a style on my natural hair (I'm still in half wigs 100% of the time now). Next shampoo I am straightening for my one year progress check. But the wash after that, I will attempt a twist out. I tried it when I was transitioning and it was a mess with those straight ends, and my hair was sooo dry and rough back then. So I want to revisit it and see what happens.
 
I may attempt to flat iron my hair this weekend for Easter but I need to figure out a technique that will keep my hair from reverting too quickly. Any tips ladies?

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