Something Old is New(Again)

Ok, so last Thursday, I got my semi-annual blowout and trim.  Apparently, my hair has grown about 2-3 inches since March.  Not too, shabby, huh?  Although it's a little fun to have a different style for a while, I feel weird having straight hair after going natural.  Like I'm not quite myself anymroe. 

Twistout

Twists

I love twist outs! They are great for extending the life of your double-strand twists as well as avoiding boredom! Twist outs can be easily molded into puffs or ponys, and they're a great way to create a more defined looking Afro or to showcase your hair's length (you worked hard to grow it, now show it!).  Twisting is a common way to stretch our hair and this can provide you with more styling options and allows you to play with the texture of your hair.
I frequently wear my twists for a week or two, then untwist them and wear a twist out for a week.  If you are concerned about hair hygiene, you can wash your hair with your twists in before taking them out for the twist out.  Untwisting is fairly simple and straight forward.  I coat my hands in some kind of hair butter or oil to avoid causing frizziness and then rotate the twist in the opposite direction that it's twisted and slide my finger in between the two "ropes" of hair.  Occasionally, I have to careful undo the end of the twist if my strands are a little tangles, and I carefully separate the twists around my hairline, because I do a flat braided twist, similar to a cornrow along the hairline. 

The Twist-out: My favorite hairstyle

Twists

Twist-out (literally, twists that have been taken out)

Southern Comfort-Keeping it soft and juicy

It has been hellaciously hot here in VA!  As much as I have roasted, I know my hair has suffered similarly.  While you don't have to worry about dryness in the summer as much as you do in the winter, you should still maintain a moisture regimen to encourage healthy strands.  My standard routine is to wash my hair once a week (every two weeks in the winter), load it up w/conditioner (right now I'm using Aussie Moist as my leave-in), and then seal w/an oil ( I'm using sweet almond oil since it is light and has a nice smell).  After styling, particularly for long-term styles, such as twists, I spray my hair with either a Dove Glossing mist that is basically Jheri Curl spray with a much better smell (water and glycerin are the main ingredients) or a homemade concoction of leftover bottled water (I hate to waste), a conditioner that won't dry flaky (ex: Yes to Cucumbers, Herbal Essences Dangerously Straight, or Aussie Moist), and a little oil (coconut oil, almond oil, vitamin E oil, etc.).  I make it so that the mixture is about 3-4 parts water, 1 part conditioner, 1/2 part oil.  For example, 3/4 cup of water, 1/4 cup of conditioner, and 1/8 cup oil if the parts are 1/4 cups.  this is a great recipe to practice your mixtress skills on or to use up leftover bits of products. 

Easy-peasy beautiful detangling!

Denman and Goody make several similar brushes that are excellent for detangling.  I use a Denman D4 brush or a similarly made, but slightly wider-set Goody brush to detangle my hair after washing.  I got my Denman brush from Sally's for about $10 and I later found a great Goody version for $5 at Rite Aid.  I usually switch off depending on what I'm doing to my hair or which brush is clean-I usually clean my brushes after washing my hair, but every now and then my ADD acts up.  I usually defer to my Goody brush because my hair has grown and the teeth are wider set.  The best thing about these brushes is that they do the work of several detangling combs (when I first went natural, I was developing quite a set of guns trying to detangle Cirrus with a comb). 

Tips for using a Denman or Goody brush:

• Choose one based on the thickness of your hair.  My Denman looks like the white one in the middle, but it is black.  I have very thick hair, which I have determined to be mostly 4A/4B and some 3C curls in the back.  It's not the absolute thickest, but it's definitely Cabbage Patch Hair, not Barbie hair. 
• NEVER dry-brush your hair.  It is safe to use these brushes to detangle and style your hair, as long as your hair is damp to dripping.  Also use at least a handful (I use about 4) of conditioner or styling aid such as gel to allow it to glide through your hair. 
• Start at the ends and work your way up to the roots.  If you notice tangles or knots, add more product (I use conditioner and I almost never use any gel in my hair).

Happy styling!

Natural Love

AFRO LOVE

Today's message is simple. I love afros.  I love my own, I love little baby afros, I love big, loud-ass afros, and I love  YOUR afro!  Do you?  Show an afro some love today, even if it's just your own!  Part of the natural journey is learning to accept what grows out of your own head and learning not to have afro envy.  I'm still working on the afro envy-I would love to wake up with Leela James' hair!  I'm learning to be patient with my own rate of hair growth and have learned to appreciate my own curl pattern. 

Love yourself and love your hair!

Fro-spiration

I was looking for some inspiration and I found this picture and thought I'd share! 

Beautiful!!

Hopefully, with all of this tender loving care that I give my hair, Cirrus will grow to this size by next year!