Before and After

Three years ago on July 4, my hair was in pitiful shape. While it wasn't subjected to chemicals, it was brittle, dry and damaged due to ye' old blow dryer and hot comb. Heat protectant? What was that? Detangling? Moisturizing? I didn't know jack! And the proof is in the pudding! Just look at that thin, frizzy hair! It would grow, but as soon as it hit my shoulders, it'd either break off or I'd burn it off. Lots of trimming back then!

July 4, 2009

I struggled along for another year with my head lookin' a mess until I got sick of straightening my hair. I remember it was a hot, humid day. I was closed up in the house with the A/C on. I'd just finished straightening one side of my hair, but when I got ready to do the other side, the first half was already starting to frizz! Seeing that my efforts to get my hair bone straight were futile, I packed up my straightening equipment and decided to wear my hair in its natural state. Almost three years later, I have this!

May 20, 2012

Now, over the years, I had worn my hair natural, but I had no idea what I was doing and there were only two companies that made natural hair products. And, those products could only be obtained via the Internet or catalog. With my decision to go natural full-time, I did my share of YouTube and blog research, but only about 10 percent of what I found actually gave me the results I wanted which prompted me to go rogue!

Most of the year, I stick to twists. On occasion, I straighten my hair a couple times a year. I deep condition with my steamer before washing my hair with shampoo every week. I oil my scalp. I only comb/brush my hair once a week. Product is only applied to my hair once a week and it has to be 100 percent natural ingredients. When I sleep, I pineapple in a stocking cap.I only style my hair once a week.

I don't worry about eating healthy, unless it's for weight control. I don't take hair vitamins. I don't cowash or oil wash. I don't trim my hair, well, maybe once every couple years. I don't spritz my hair with water unless it's my wash day. I don't use fancy or expensive ingredients in my hair products. I'm not a product junkie. I don't switch up my hair styles-I wear two basic styles all the time.

Some people are shocked by the hours I spend on my hair on my wash day, but it balances out since I don't do anything to my hair throughout the week except to fluff it up in the mornings and go. Besides, my wash day is kind of like my zen moment and I love doing my hair. I can't wait until it's time to wash it again! While I'm very pleased that my hair is the healthiest, thickest and longest it's ever been in my life (even under the bi-weekly care of a hairdresser), I'm not done. I'm aiming to just let it grow solely so my twists are a few inches past shoulder length. Perhaps when I'm older, I'll forgo my regimen and hiding my grey, and just grow me some long silver dreadlocks. Being a former dread head, though, I do realize that they come with maintenance of their own kind. 

How's it going on your own hair journey?

Dyeing, Detangling and Conditioning Product Reviews

We're past winter's halfway mark, and I can almost feel the spring and summer air nipping at my curls. Entrenched in my twists for quite a while now, I'm growing antsy for my twist- and blow-outs. So, here are a few products I'm trying out to see if they make the cut for my spring regimen!

I've been dyeing my hair for a little while now, but the store-bought dyes just ain't cuttin' it. Quite by accident, I stumbled upon eSalon, a mail-order hair dye subscription service.

After answering a series of questions, including a few about my hair type and length, I ordered and received my blue black hair dye and accessories kits. First, I will say that the shipping is super fast! While the company doesn't have wild crazy colors like pink or green, eSalon does have a wide array of natural colors, including black with a blue or violet hue.

My dye kit contained instructions and two sets of dye and developer. It also contained two pairs of rubber gloves, stain blocker, stain remover, conditioner and four of those mondo alligator clips used in salons. The accessories kit came with a handled mixing bowl, applicator brush, and a timer w/battery.

I love that my coloring kit came with separate bottles of dye and developer. The first one was for my roots and the second was a gloss for my hair. Let me just say that the quantities are so generous, I didn't even use the dye/developer for my hair. The roots bottle contained enough product to dye all of my hair. 

When all was said done, the color is deep, rich and downright gorgeous! And ALL of my grey is gone. I've never gotten such amazing results from a box...not that I'd expect to. And, the conditioner eSalon provides is the bomb! I didn't think that tiny pouch would saturate my hair, but it did and left my hair softer than any other conditioner I've ever used!

I also am still hunting for a really good detangler. I've tried Kinky Curly Knot Today, et al, but lotion-type detanglers are way too heavy for my hair. I've tried Aussie Hair Insurance, Mane 'n Tail, et all, but they don't work well enough to buy again. So, I tried this!

Pantene's Medium-Thick Hair Solutions' Detangler isn't bad, but it's not the greatest either. It definitely detangles, but it also makes my hair feel squeaky. I'll probably finish this out, but won't buy again.

I also gave Shescentit's Okra Hair Repair Reconstructor a try. Through a contest I won, I was allowed to pick any product of my choice to try. Granted they have quite a few things I'd love to try, this one grabbed me first because LUSH has an okra conditioner I've been too cheap to buy. 

This stuff smells absolutely amazing and has a nice, gelatinous texture. As with any deep conditioning product, I slapped this in my head and headed straight for my steamer. Sadly, my hair didn't feel any different, but it's not damaged either so maybe I shouldn't have expected any tangible results. Nice product, but probably wouldn't buy it...but, I will be trying their other products in the near future.