Review of Month 2 - The Good, The Bad, and The Frizz

Hey everyone!!

Yesterday was my 2 month anniversary.  I decided to commemorate the occasion by looking a hot ass mess.  LMAO  Not really, but yeah... It's been wild lately. They are making their own decisions about what is going to occur and I'm pretty much just along for the ride. And you know what?  I wouldn't have it any other way!!



So let's start with the good:

Isn't it pretty!! lol

• My hair has finally started to bud. (LOL at the "finally" like I've been at this for so long, but that's how it feels.)  I molest my hair on a daily basis looking for changes.  A couple of weeks ago, I started to feel a couple of tiny hard knots along my braids, but when I looked at those braids in the mirror I couldn't see anything.  Then all of a sudden one day, I had a lump in the middle of my braid.
• My routine or lack thereof. I wash when I feel my hair or scalp needs it, so about twice a week. I braid it up if I'm feeling fancy, if not I pretty much just rinse in the morning and throw a headband on.  I LOVE IT!!

Now let's talk about the bad:

•  Creeping locks!!  I wouldn't necessarily call it bad, but it's damn sure inconvenient.  I always read about people "popping" their locks on Nappturality. It seemed like something that happened at later stages so I really didn't pay it too much attention.  I'm trying to focus on what I'm currently dealing with and not worry about what's around the corner.  However, my hair doesn't care about my schedule... they have started merging NOW! lol So basically after every shampoo, I go through my roots and make sure none of them are hugging. :) It doesn't take long and it doesn't hurt, but I just thought I'd have more time before that became an issue. Thinking back, I'm not sure why I assumed that. My hair has always loved to tangle together, thus my contempt for detangling.
• Slippage - that braid in the back that I took down and rebraided? Came apart again... and this time it invited its neighbor to the party lol.  I refuse to stress about them, so I just finger-latch them when they get too loose. I'm pretty sure my bedtime ponytails are the culprit, but I just can't see myself giving those up.  So I'll deal with the slippage until it starts locking. *shrug*

I saved the best for last... let's talk about THE FRIZZ:

• I am fully aware that this probably isn't a lot of frizz and that it's going to get way worse, but I honestly wake up every morning and just stare. O_o  My hair is frizzy!  It's not just the swollen puffy ends that are looking crazy, the frizz and poof has now started traveling up the braids. I know that this is the first stage to my hair locking and seriously... yay! But DAMN! One thing that has definitely helped me was my prior loose hair journey.  That experience made me not really focus on the days my hair looked bad because I knew where I was going. And I find myself drawing on that inner strength. I don't care how it looks... I know where I'm going to end up so it's all worth it.

98% of my ends look like this now.

Frizzy, poofy, crazy... and I love each one!

That's all for my journey in 2011!!  I'm so excited to see what 2012 has in store for me and my hair.
 Til the next time, keep it nappy y'all!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

Hello all,

I'm nearing my 2 month anniversary!!  Expect that update in about 2 weeks.

My hair is doing pretty good.  I'm getting more and more comfortable with it as days go by.

I'm just dropping in to show you all how I've been wearing my hair in these beginning stages.

Before                                                 After

 I pretty much live in braidouts. It took me a while to figure out a technique that would give me my preferred look until I realized that I should just cornrow them the same way I did my loose hair. Love how it looks and it's pretty much my day to day look.

  

I had an event at my office a couple of weeks ago and wanted to try out an updo.  This is what I came up with.  I liked it... but those bobby pins were killing my scalp! LOL

At night, I usually toss my hair up in a loose ponytail and put on a satin bonnet.  I'm trying to stay on top of keeping my hair covered to stop lint.










 
So that's it for now!  See you after Christmas! Enjoy your holidays everyone and be blessed.

*flips locks* Deuces!!

One Month Review! Lessons Learned

Hello all,

I have passed the one month mark.  Technically, I'm at one month and a few days now, but I've been busy and unable to update.

Here's what I have learned so far:

1. Shrinkage will come.   Only a few braids shrunk up after my first couple of rinses and washes so I was skeptical about when the rest of my hair was going to catch on.  One day I looked up and realized that my hair was about the length of my wash and goes. :)  So patience is definitely a virtue.
2. Rules are optional.  I spent my first 2 weeks following all of the rules I had studied prior to getting the braids installed.  I didn't use any conditioner, I didn't style my hair... I basically left it alone.  Around week 3 I came to the conclusion that this is MY journey, so I'm going to do it MY way.  I conditioned my hair on my one month anniversary and nothing bad happened. I wore it up in a bun a couple of days ago... it's all still there. This is not to say that the advice you learn while researching isn't important, but you have to figure out what's going to work for you and what you're comfortable with.
3. Frizz is king. My hair was frizzing like crazy after my first wash, so I've had some time to get used to it and I'm passed the point of it bothering me. My braidouts cover it pretty well, so *shrug* It's just not that big of a deal to me yet. On the other hand...
4. New growth is!  I thought I would be one of those fabulous women who semi-freeform and don't worry about their roots.  I mean the scalpy look was driving me crazy so the opposite should be my fav right? WRONG!  LOL For some reason I prefer them to look manicured.  Again... *shrug* this may change but for now I'll be on a 5 Week retightening schedule. I have already finished my 1st retightening, I'll be doing a post on that and its results later this week.
5. There will be days that you just aren't feeling it! Before I came to tentative terms with my frizz, there were a couple of days that I just wasn't at all happy with how my hair was looking.  So... I went on youtube, learned how to do a hair wrap, and kept it moving.  I think that if you're really in locking for the long term, you're going to have "bad hair" days.  My best advice is keep it moving! :)
6. Find someone who is also beginning to lock!  I was lucky enough to come in contact with several women on Nappturality who started around the same time I did.  We have been able to form a group there to commiserate on our experiences.  We all started with different ways (twists, coils, braids, extensions) and I'm excited to see the different ways our hair develops.  These women are going through it with me, so if I have a day that I'm feeling like I look a hot mess, they understand and encourage. I never would have walked out of my front door with the hair wrap on without their support! If you would like to join our group, please feel free. Virtual Lock Buddies

Going forward, I will only be doing hair reviews once a month, but I'll still be updating frequently with hairstyles I've tried or products I'm using.  I'll also be launching a Youtube Channel to accompany this blog, so that's something to keep an eye out for.

I'll leave you with pics of my progress so far:

Back - See what I mean about shrinkage? lol

It's getting thicker!!

That's all for now, until next time... Keep it nappy!!

*Flips hair* Deuces!!