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!

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! 

Hair Cut and Huge Announcement

Yesterday I posted a picture of 3-4 inches (my estimate) of cut hair on my Instagram account. The picture above is the one posted. I also sent a picture message to my best friends and they demanded to know what I had done. I know you to are dying to know what I have done. Before I share that story let me start from the beginning.

As most of you know my last relaxer was last June. What you didn't know was that after relaxing my hair I started to have regrets. My last stretch lasted 6 months and during this time I contemplated transitioning to natural hair. After finding out I was having a daughter I wanted to teach her all about growing healthy and long natural hair. I wanted her to be able to properly care for her natural hair so that if she decided to relax her hair it wouldn't be from a lack of knowledge. I then decided what better way to teach her than to show her. Later I decided this was not enough for me to make the commitment to transition. My hair was starting to break badly at the line of demarcation so at that time I felt the best thing to do was end my stretch

After texlaxing my hair I became bored with my hair and my hair journey. I found myself gravitating more towards those styles that look better with natural hair, well in my opinion anyways. After having a discussion with one of my best friends she shared with me that she had interest in going natural as well. Long story short I decided to make the commitment to transition to natural hair! I honestly didn't plan to share this information until I was a year post relaxer. I wanted to make sure I was fully committed to this journey and I am. I decided I want to do a long transition over a course of 2 years. Instead of big chopping I plan to do a couple mini chops. 

This brings me to my Instagram picture. I planned to do my first cut after my wedding in June, but now that I'm leaning more towards a sew-in, I figured the length of my hair wouldn't matter that much. I have been having the urge to cut some of my hair because I want to see what my natural texture will look like. Today after seeing some pictures on IG of beautiful natural hair of all textures I went to my bathroom and found my hair shears. I brushed my hair straight back and grabbed half my hair and cut. I then grabbed the second half and cut. After cutting I wasn't upset nor did I have any regrets. I actually felt that I am closer to reaching my ultimate goal of becoming fully natural. I actually thought "It's just hair!". My hair is a little uneven, but I am okay with that for now. I plan to do a 2 month no direct heat challenge so the next time I straighten my hair I will make sure it is even. My next mini cut will probably take place after my wedding. 

I can't believe I'm finally sharing that I am transitioning to natural hair! I hope you continue to follow me as I embark on a new hair journey. I will be sharing my ups and downs as I have been doing with my relaxed hair journey. I'll also continue to provide information on all hair types. This will not turn into a natural hair only blog. All information I have provided and will continue to provide can be applied to hair of all types.

About 3 weeks before mini chop

Post Mini chop

Texlaxed Update #2 (*Updated)

Styles for the Month of July

It has been a few weeks since I published a blog post which is very unusual for me. I'm currently going through a transitional stage in my life and it is time consuming. I will share more details in the future as things begin to unfold. In the mean time I will blog as often as I can.

I texlaxed my hair 2 weeks ago (August 14) at 15 weeks post with ORS Lye Relaxer. Texlaxing meaning to purposely under process the hair during the relaxer process. It leaves your hair with more texture and overall a more healthy option for relaxing hair. I used the Half and Half method shown by Jeni of Just Grow Already. The only difference is I parted my hair straight down the middle to have a right and left section instead of top and bottom. This method is perfect for self-relaxing and I will be using this method from here on out. It allows you to process your hair the way you desire without having under processed hair due to lack of time during application process.

This was my first time using this relaxer and I was impressed. I left the relaxer on for 13 minutes for each half and it left my hair with the perfect amount of texture. I rinsed the relaxer out and did a mid-step protein treatment with Aphogee 2 Step Reconstructor. I then shampooed 3 times with ORS neutralizing Shampoo. I DCed with ORS Replenishing Conditioner for about 30 minutes. I air-dried to about 80%.

New Growth VS Texlaxed 

I applied CON Argon Oil Strength and Shine Leave in Conditioner and GVP's Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum to my hair. I blow-dried with warm heat on high. I then applied a few drops of IC Fantasia's Heat Protectant and flat ironed my hair with my BabyLiss Pro Flat Irons. I did 1 or 2 heat passes. After flat ironing my hair I used my Tweezerman Stainless 2000 5 1/2 Shears to trim my hair. I used Feye's Method to make a blunt cut. I used the updated method which was to hold my head down slightly when putting my hair in the ponytail holder.

I trimmed about 2 inches off. After I trimmed I realized I could have trimmed about a half an inch less.

Overall, I am very pleased with my results. Since my relaxer I have washed my hair twice and have been playing around with a few styles. I completed my first successful flexi-rod set on dry hair that reverted in 2 hours due to the Alabama humidity and a gorgeous high bun that I didn't really capture well on film. I plan to do another flexi-rod set on dry hair,  a few bantu knotouts, and a few curly updo's before my next relaxer. Follow me on twitter @blutifulblaq and Instagram @blu2kizmet for faster updates!

Freshly flat ironed and trimmed

Next Day Hair

I hope you all enjoyed this update. Check out my progression tab for photos of my entire journey thus far. HHG!

*Corrected date of relaxer

Hair Regime

So I finally have a little time to share my experience from the first day of my healthy hair journey.

I used Pantene Pro V For Relaxed and Natural Hair. I sectioned my hair and added conditioner starting from the ends making my way up the shaft of my hair to the roots. My hair was very dry and sucked up the conditioner. My hair was also shedding pretty bad. I made sure my entire head was saturated with conditioner. I put a plastic cap over it and commenced to let it sit in.

The pre-pooing felt great. I could yfeel tingling in my scalp. I love that feeling b/c it usually lets me know this is a good product for my hair. I let the pre-poo sit in for 1 hour 30 mins. I got in the shower and rinsed my hair.

First I rinsed the pre-poo out in warm water. My hair was soft and felt moisturized. Then I took a quarter size amount of Ion Clarifying Shampoo and applied to my hair. B/c I'm about 9 wks post relaxer I added a dime size more. I first noticed the citrus smell. I enjoyed it. It didn't foam like I expected or I'm use to. I massaged my scalp for about 3 or 4 mins and rinsed in warm water. My hair felt very soft and clean.

I deep conditioned my hair with Helen Queen's Cholesterol. I would have preferred to use Mizani Moisturefuse but I was running low. Anyway I sectioned my hair starting from the back and saturated my hair starting from the ends working my way to the roots. I noticed my hair was pretty tangled but not as tangled as it usually is after a wash. After deep conditioning my entire head I applied a plastic cap. I don't have a hooded dryer yet so I opted to try the heated towel. I wet a face towel in hot water, put it on a plate, and popped it in the microwave for 1 min. I then took it out put it over my cap and applied another plastic cap over that. It seems to have gotten the job done. I was starting to perspire as if I was under a dryer. I let it sit for about 45 mins then I rinsed it out in cold water.

After rinsing the deep conditioner I noticed my hair was shiny and moist. It still had a few brittle points mainly being my edges b/c of my new growth. I detangled my hair and experienced a good amount of shedding. It wasn't difficult to detangler either. I sectioned and moisturized with Cantu Shea Butter Leave-in Repair Conditioning Cream. I then sealed with One 'n Only Argon Oil Treatment. I then braided my hair for my braid out.

Overall I had a good first day of my HHJ. It took a long time to complete but I know it will be well worth it in the end. I know I have to dedicate the entire morning to doing my hair. I'll probably pre-poo Friday night.

*will add pictures when I get to a computer*