Flat twist out

Last wash day (Friday the 23rd), after my wash n fro, I set my hair in flat twist. Four days later, no retwisting, here's what it looks like.

Another day later, no retwisting, after showering with no shower cap and applying some coconut oil:

I'm getting more into the non-defined look. I still prefer definition from some sort of set but when my hair clouds up a bit and looks more indistinct I still think it looks cool versus thinking it looks a mess and I need to reset it. I believe spending more time looking at pictures of people with undefined styled hair has helped broaden my outlook.

When I wear my wash n fro, I'm more self conscious of how short it shrinks versus the actual texture. Next summer, I'll definitely rock that style a lot as my hair should be longer and I like how quick and carefree it is.

Blown.....

About 2 weeks ago I washed my hair in twists and gave my scalp a good rubbing. My scalp was itchy and I wanted to really get up all debris and have a fresh scalp. The downside is the dandruff and scabs that had accumulated from scratching my scalp nearly raw all came up and got caught in my naps!

I tried rinsing for an extra long time after conditioning to no avail. I realized the only way to get this crap out of my hair was with a fine tooth comb. The only way to accomplish this was stretching my hair out.

I needed to blow dry.

I'd been thinking about blowing my hair out for a few weeks. I wanted to do it in April so that I could attempt to trim my hair evenly and see what state my ends were really in.

Sally's Beauty Supply was having a 'sale' on blow dryers and I'd checked them out but didn't feel comfortable spending that kind of money. I think I'll be using it a few times a year so it wasn't worthy of a significant investment.

Since this was a sudden decision, I needed to get my hands on a dryer quickly. I had already deep conditioned with Organic Root Stimulator Replenishing Conditioner with some olive oil added. I used Beautiful Texture's leave-in for the first time then sealed it in with a dimethicone heavy heat protectant. I plaited my hair up, tied on a scarf, put on a hat and headed to Walmart to buy a blow dryer.

I chose the Remington D-1000 from Walmart for less than $20:

The process took longer than I expected bc I went through small sections at a time. I originally started on cool but I didn't have the patience for that. So I used the next setting up which felt like low heat. I could blow it on my skin without a burning sensation.

What felt like all day later, I had this:

It was not straight as if I'd used an attachment so it was still difficult to access my ends. I chose to trim since I'd blown it out. I don't think I will trim again until September unless my hair tells me otherwise. Even then, if my hair seems to be in good shape I may skip it or just do a dusting. I have since bought a comb attachment but I'm a bit weary of using it. I'm dealing with breakage right now and I don't think using the attachment will be good for the health of my ends.

I chose to set my hair in dry bantu knots using only my castor/coconut oil pomade. I had visions of hangtime and my hair blowing in the breeze due to the youtube videos of bantu knotouts on blown out hair. That was NOT my experiece. Not sure if I don't have enough hair for that effect or if my hair will not do that period. It was soft, fluffy and the hold was good overall. I didn't reset it that night, just slapped on my bonnet and my hair was fine.

What I did.....

On Friday the 23rd, I washed my hair in twists w Giovanni Deeper Moisture shampoo. My scalp was itching and I didn't want it to get out of hand like last month when I scratched until I broke the skin and had scabs.

I focused on my scalp and only ran my hands down the length of twists. I rinsed then applied the matching conditioner. I let that sit while I bathed then rinsed.

I chose not to deep condition my hair this time. I was tired and really didn't feel like it. I also needed to go by the duplexes that we are trying to get into so I unraveled the twists which were very fuzzy. the roots were not clumped at all. I applied 2 pumps of Shea Moisture's Raw Shea Restorative Conditioner. I chose not to seal with any oil bc I didn't know what my end game was going to be. I pinned either side up with a comb and left the house.

I guess I can call this look a wash n fro. Since I didn't define my texture. There was some definition but I'm not sure if it was my hair pattern or bc I washed in twists. I would try this method again.

I noticed some flaking caught in my hair due to dry scalp. Very annoying. While out my fro shrank up as it dried. By the time i came home it was 95% dry. I applied a coconut oil w rosemary oil mixture to my scalp for dryness. I haven't done that in several weeks. I left my hair like this all day while wearing a bonnet. I refreshed it before picking up my husband with a spray bottle of Aloe Vera juice, water, and a touch of olive oil.


At night before bed, I sectioned my hair, spritzed with my Aloe Vera mix, applied Beautiful Textures detangling leave-in and detangled. Then I moisturized with my Shea Moisture. I barely sealed some ends. I'm running low on my castor/coconut mixture. I set my hair in flat twist via a tutorial I watched from blakizbeautiful. I think this process took me an hour+. Tied up my hair with a satin scarf then covered w a bonnet.

I Chopped......

a while ago.

Towards the end of my transition I found that I spent less and less time thinking about my hair. The patience that I so desperately needed finally showed up. To the point that when I finally chopped off my remaining relaxed ends on November 27, 2010. I felt little more that straight exhaustion. It took a lot longer than I expected.

It was a sunday. I started at 4pm...and with a few breaks for dinner and to watch an hour long show, I finished up a little after 11pm. I was so very tired. I didn't care enough to try to document the process.

But I do have pictures. So without further ado.....

When I took the twist down, it was not hot. With some manipulation, I came up with this:

A few days later here are shots of my hair during my bday weekend:

I was very proud of my little puff. That wasn't the intended style but the ouchless band I'd use krept up into a puff configuration throughtout the day.

Big Chop Preview........

Below shows my hair about a week and a half after my BC.

Shrunken, no product. And with a few straggly relaxed ends here and there apparently.

All twisted back up:

And the resulting style from this set:

I've been keeping flat twist on the sides to disguise my scab hair.

long overdue.......

man...i just haven't had any drive to update this blog. There's been a lot going on but even before that I just couldnt find the care to update this little blog about my hair.

i'm still quite excited about it...in fact, seeing that the little ticker over on the right is at 16 days to countdown my final chop (as of 11/15/11) I'm excited and almost surprised its just a touch over 2 weeks away.

What I should have done and what is sorely overdue is recording that I did a medium chop back on 10/14/11. I cut off about 3 inches. it was a lot and quite shocking at the time. Only leaving 1-3 inches of relaxed hair thruout my head. the biggest shock came from the lost of length. i immediately disliked it and for a moment or two considered extendining my transition til I got more hair. At the time I had about 5-6 inches of hair. Accounting for shrinkage....I didnt have much hair at all.

My facial expression above, pretty much sums out up how I was feeling. I was disturbed at how short my hair was and I still had relaxed ends which meant my hair would have to be cut even shorter!

but having a month to grow accustomed to it was exactly what i needed to do and I'm sooo very glad that I did it. I feel comfortable with it now. I have a better handle on styling it and better idea of what to expect when I chop off the very last bit.

The most exciting development of having less relaxed hair is not having to twist/set my hair nightly. I can put my bonnet on and go to sleep. Get up, fluff, and my hair looks reasonably good for a solid 3-4 days in a row. At least with the bantu knot out set. i tried a twist out which was a dismal failure. the last bit of relaxed hair will not allow me to experiment with that style yet. I tried one braid out and that looked ok after I styled it a bit. It was very different pattern than a Bantu Knot out but I liked the fact that it allowed me to show more length.

I am sooo ready to be done with transitioning. I haven't been updating bc...well, I dont have anything new. My hair is no longer something that occupies most of my thoughts. Yes, I think about it every once in a while but I've rediscovered the other things I liked to obsess over.

One other thing that I've come to accept. My growth rate. It's just going to take patience. That's it. It will probably be 2 more years before I'm hyped about the length of my hair. In the meantime I'm gonna try my best to make the little bit of hair that I have look great. By being creative with styling and not getting stuck in too much of a rut, I'm sure I can accomplish that.

Still yet holding on......

10 MONTHS. I hit my milestone back on Monday.

Washed my hair yesterday and pulled out the ruler which I had not used since the first week of August. In various areas on my head I seem to be measuring at 3.5"-4".

I've been finger detangling more than comb detangling. I'm not sure yet which method is better for me.....I think fingers may be better only if I'm thorough. the last few times I've been kinda lazy so yesterday when I went to set my hair in flat twist I ran across multiple knots which slowed me down considerably. I lost hair bc my hair was drying and I'd gotten frustrated with the knots and pulled out a comb. I know I've got to be patient with my hair. I know I shouldn't comb it dry. But when I'm aggravated I forget that stuff.

I'm entertaining the idea of a trim....actually, a cut. I'm thinking of taking off half of the relaxed ends on the top layers. That's always been the longest hair since I started with an inverted bob. Thruout the summer I've haphazardly cut at this hair here and there. This time I'm thinking of cutting at least 2 inches. Possibly 3. I've got two parties this week so I'll be waiting until after those. My thoughts are to get rid of the bulk of the length to adjust to shorter hair. The added benefit would hopefully be easier detangling.

My hair has been drier and I believe that's bc I've been exercising and the sweat is killing my hair. I haven't exercised in 10 days now. Will have to get back on that tomorrow. I know there are lots of articles out there about exercising and natural hair. Unsure if I've seen anything regarding transitioning hair. Thankfully, less than 2 months left of this and then I can rinse/wash my hair as often as I want.

I feel ready. I'm not thrilled with how short my hair will be with shrinkage but I know with time it will grow.

I've started crotcheting some slouchy tams for my hair. I've been wearing them over my bantu knots while running errands versus taking my hair down everytime I leave the house. I'm making them in several colors so I can wear them with as many outfits as possible. The crotcheting is also giving me something to do aside from clean which is a great sanity saver. The only issue is my shoulder has gotten very sore from all the work so I've had to take a few days off.

I've got a liquor and dessert party tonite. I have to redo the flat twist on the back of my head bc they've gone wonky.

Until next time......