July Healthy Hair Goals

I'm a few days late with my hair goals for July, but better late than never! As I stated in my previous post, I'm on a mission to get my natural kinks in curls to its optimum state of healthy! When trying to reach and major goals it is important to break it down into smaller subsections or goals. Below I will be sharing my July 2016 goals.

Ø  Wash hair at least 1x a week

Ø  Deep condition 1x a week (with heat at least every other week)

Ø  Try 3 different styles

Ø  Apply castor to bald spot at least 1x a day and massage for 5 minutes

Ø  (Yup I have a bald spot and will share more on this soon)

Ø  Oil scalp at least 2x a week

My goals this month a pretty basic. I wanted to make sure my goals were simply and achievable. If I do too much too soon I'm setting myself up for failure. These are goals that will work for my lifestyle. Make sure that your goals work for you.  Let me know in the comment section below what a few of your hair goals are this month!

Back Again??

I can't believe it's been over a year and a half since my last post! So much has happened in my life and so much has happened with my hair!! Read below to find out what I have been up to and what is going on with my hair. 

Life Update:

During the last year and a half, I have been adjusting to married life and life with 2 very busy children. I've been learning how to care for my daughter's hair which is a totally different texture and density than mine. I've recently decided to take her to a salon and get her hair braided every 3 weeks. My daughter is extremely tender headed and caring for her hair can be overwhelming for us both. I do plan to learn how to braid so I can start braiding her hair on my own. In the meantime, going to the salon has been working for us. I don't have to style her hair daily and her hair is continuing to thrive. Also during this time, I started a new job and moved. The move was unexpected and stressful! Recently I have made another career move and I'm in the process of relocating to another state. So far this relocation process has been much smoother! I'm looking forward to what the future holds for my family and I. 

Hair Update: 

I have become extremely lazy with caring for my hair. I stopped deep conditioning weekly, moisturizing and sealing like I should, and even trying new styles. I've completely stopped oiling my scalp, pre-pooing, and doing hot oil treatments. Because of this my hair is not as healthy as it should be and I know I'm not retaining the length that I could be. Recently it has been more dry than normal and I have been experiencing hair loss. The hair loss was due more to stress than lack of caring for my hair. My hair just isn't as healthy as I would like it to be. 

I've decided to rededicate myself to my healthy hair journey. I plan to use this blog to share my journey with others as well as use as a reference for myself. I feel that when I was actively blogging in the past, it forced me to be accountable and consistent with my journey. So I'm back like I have never left! In the future I will be sharing product reviews, wash day routines, style attempts, my daughter's "hair journey" and much more! So stay tuned to all of the great things I have in store!

Wash Day (Last Week)

FYI: This post was written last week after my wash day. I didn't get around to publishing the post until today. 

This wash day went very smoothly. My main focus was moisture. Since becoming fully natural in January I have been having a hard time trying to maintain moisture in my hair. Being able to maintain moisture seems to be a very common battle amongst new naturals. After a couple months of trial and error I think I may be close to finding my solution, but first let me share the steps to my wash day. 

1. I decided to pre-poo with coconut oil for about 30 minutes with saran wrap and a plastic cap. This was my first time pre-pooing in a very long time.  I think I will be adding this to my regimen because it definitely contributes to moisture.
2. Cowashed once with Shea Moisture Mango and Carrot Extra Nourishing Shampoo from the kids collection. I used this simply because it was the only other shampoo I have at home is a VERY stripping and drying Ion Clarifying shampoo. The Shea Moisture Shampoo is the one I use on my daughter's head and thus I used it to remove any product build up I may have had from my wash and go last week. I then followed up with a lather of Tresseme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner. Did I tell you all how much I love the Tresseme Naturals Conditioner?!!
3.  Next I deep conditioned with L'Oréal Total Repair 5 Damage Erasing Balm overnight with a Saran Wrap and Plastic Cap (total about 20 hours). I finger detangled with this conditioner in my hair under running water.  My hair was amazingly soft afterwards.
4. I t-shirt dried for about 5 minutes and then added my leave in conditioner by As I Am. I then sectioned my hair and did a protective style using  Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream and sealed with Jamaican Black Castor Oil.

Here I am 24 hours later and my hair is very moisturized. To keep this style up over the week I worse a bonnet overnight and retwisted/rebraided 2 days later. I find that there are a few products in my stash that keeps my hair amazingly soft and moisturized:

• Tresemme Naturals Nourshing Conditioner
• As I Am Leave In
• Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream
• Castor Oil

 I also realized that pre-pooing with an oil is a must along with moisturizing and sealing every 2-3 days. I don't find it necessary to moisturize and seal my hair daily. I also plan to make my own spritz using Aloe Vera Juice.

New Year, New Hair (My Transition/ "Big" Chop

I have been wanting to cut off my relaxed ends for so long!!! You guys have no idea how I struggled not to cut off those relaxed ends. My main reason for not cutting was because I wanted my hair to be a certain length before cutting. Well I made the decision some time in November that I would be completely natural by January 3, 2015. I decided to big chop my own hair and completed 25% before realizing I could not distinguish between my natural hair and my texlaxed ends. I guess I left more texture in my hair than I thought during my texlaxing days.

First chop vs Second Chop

I decided to that going to a salon would probably be best. I went online and found a natural hair stylist one and a half hours away. For some reason I have not had success finding a stylist in my area  so I was willing to travel to see a stylist. Well this stylist ended up canceling on me the morning of my appointment. I felt this was very unprofessional since I had made the appointment with her personally 2 days prior AND she knew how far I was traveling for this appointment. I think her work is phenomenal, but she will not be getting my business.

My Hair after Transition Chop, but before 2nd Co-Wash

After that fell through I decided to just do it myself. If I were to cut some of my natural hair in the process, it was a risk I would take. I co-washed my hair with Pantene Pro V Truly Natural Co-Wash Cleansing Conditioner. I jumped out the shower and with my hair soaking wet, added some Tresseme Moisture Rich Conditioner, and began cutting off those relaxed ends. It took me approximately 1 hour to big chop.  After I chopped off the relaxed ends I jumped back in the shower and co-washed. I then deep conditioned with an oldie, but goodie Creme of Nature Argon Oil Conditioner. I then styled my hair in a twist out using the As I Am product line. I will be doing a review on this line very soon! By the next morning my hair had not dried completely and twist out was a fail. I just put it in a puff and it actually turned out well. Below are the pictures of my natural hair. I'm so excited to embark on this new hair journey and share it all with you!

All Natural!

Rebuilding My Regimen

I know you have heard many transitioners or naturals talk about how their hair and its needs have changed over time. I can now attest to this. Products that use to work for my hair no longer work or don't work as well. Techniques that use to work are also no longer valid.

Here is an example: I use to wash my hair in one big section. As I got further into my transition I realized this method did not work as well for me. I experienced more breakage and tangles with this method. I learned quickly that I had to change my technique of detangling my hair to sectioning my hair into 2-4 sections depending on my hair's current state.

Because of changes in the state of my hair I realized I needed to rebuild my regimen. Figuring out what your regimen will be can be quite complicated if you make it. So many questions may run through your mind. How often should I wash my hair? What products do I use? Should my regimen change with the seasons? The truth of the matter is that you may not always know the answer to these questions right away. It may take some trial and error to discover what works for your hair. Your regimen could and should change over time. Keep in mind your should be consistent with your regimen to have a fair evaluation of what works for your hair and what does not. Remember no two head of hair is alike and what works for someone else may not work for you.

Some key components and steps that should be the basis of every hair regimen (in my opinion) include:

• Cleanser (shampoo or co-wash)
• Deep Condition
• Leave in conditioner
• Moisturizer
• Sealant (Butter or Oil)

Some things that you may want to include in your regimen, but may not be necessary for everyone includes:

• Pre-poo or pre shampoo treatment
• Hot oil treatment
• Tea rinse
• ACV Rinse
• Henna
• Clear rinse
• Steam treatment
• etc.

For my regimen I have had time to discover what works for me and so my regimen was created. These are the steps that will almost always be completed on my wash days:

1. Co-wash every two weeks. Clarifying my hair will replace a co-wash at least 1x a month.
2. Tea rinse at least 2x a month to reduce shedding
3. Deep condition either before or after co-wash/shampoo. When using a clarifying shampoo I will always deep condition after washing. When deep conditioning before I co-wash, I will follow up with a conditioner rinse. Conditioner rinse is referring to a 3-5 minute conditioning treatment to put moisture back into my hair.
4. Apply a leave in leave-in and possibly follow up with moisturizer (Note: My leave in may also be my moisturizer).
5. Apply a sealant which will more than likely be an oil.
6. Style as desired.

A few things that I may incorporate whenever I feel necessary will be clear rinses, pre-poo treatments, hot oil treatments, and oil rinses. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions about my new regimen let me know. Again, thanks for following my journey! 

Guess Who's Back......

I know I have been MIA for a VERY long time! Life just got in the way. I had to learn how to balance being a mother to two active children, working full-time as a registered nurse, being a wife, and still making time for myself. Exhausted doesn't even begin to explain how I have been. Along with being busy, I honestly just lost interest in my hair journey. During my relaxed hair journey I focused a lot on health AND length. Seeing my length goals obtained helped motivate me to keep going with my journey. While transitioning the frequent cuts trims made it difficult for me to see the progress my hair was making and thus I became bored.

 I've decided to come out of my hiatus and recommit to my healthy hair journey. I miss trying new styles and being interactive with you all. I also noticed that I was more accountable for my hair when I was joining challenges and interacting with other hair bloggers. I honestly miss obsessing over taking care of my hair.

I'm going to cut straight to the chase and answer the question you all want to know: What is going on with your hair? At this moment I'm protective styling with box braids. I have had these in for exactly 2 weeks. I went to an African Hair braiding shop in my area to get them done. I'm not sure how long I will keep them in, maybe 6-8 weeks. I do not have a regimen yet. I'm still researching dry shampoos and seeing if I want to implement that into my regimen while in box braids. Have you ever tried dry shampoo? Share your experience with me along with what brand(s) you recommend!

Front view of my braids (about 3 days old)

Back view hours after they were done

As far as my natural (non-weave)  hair, I believe I have about 3-4 more inches of texlaxed hair before I'm fully natural. I did notice heat damage at the top of my head where I had a leave out from my sew-in in June. I plan to grow that out and slowly trim the damaged areas. I will be sharing my products and regimen in a later post. I have a transitioning/big chop date in mind and I will be sharing it once I commit to it. 

Straight hair after a trim in late September. 

I look forward to continuing to share my journey with you! I'm back and more motivated than every to reach my goal to long healthy hair! With that being said, welcome back to Blutiful Blaq Hair! I'm back.......

p.s. I have been keeping up with many of your blogs via Bloglovin'. Even though I don't always comment, I do read them. 

Sexy Saturdays

I have decided it is time I recommit myself to the gym! During my pregnancy I let fitness take a back seat to everything else going on in my life. I convinced myself that this was the last time I could partake in eating whatever I wanted without worrying about weight gain. Sadly those bad eating habits have continued long after the birth of my daughter and has now caught up to me. I'm now struggling to get rid of these last few baby pounds. I also noticed my energy level is not as high as it could be. I will be starting a series on my blog called "Sexy Saturdays". This section will be dedicated to fitness. I know people usually share their journey for "Fitness Fridays" but I wanted to share my results at the end of the week.

I plan to share my monthly goals and weekly progress towards those goals. I may even share some recipes. If there is anything in particular you'd like me to share please let me know.

When planning my goals I want to make sure they are realistic. I don't want to overwhelm myself or discourage myself by setting too many goals. Below are my goals for the remainder of March through April.

1. Go to the gym 3 times a week for at least 30 mins.
2. Take stairs at work instead of elevator. The only exception is when I first get to work due to time and how I enter the building.
3. Limit myself to 1 soda a week. I plan to scale back until I'm down to an occasional soda by the end of the year.

What are your fitness goals?