11 Ways to Have Festive Christmas Hair!

Hi all!

This is more of a fun, general hair post.

Since Christmas is around the corner, I thought I'd share this Buzzfeed article I came across a few months ago about "Festive Christmas Hair." They happened to feature me in it! I am #7!

(This photo is back from when my hair was relaxed.)

Enjoy!

11 Ways To Have Festive Christmas Hair

Would I ever walk out of my house with any of these styles? No.

But nevertheless, this post is silly and fun!

I'm Straight!

This will be a  very quick, short post!

I had my first hair straightening session since I cut off the last of the relaxer!

I think it looks a little dry and the ends don't look the best because I haven't gone into a salon to get it professionally trimmed yet. But I'm loving the length I get to play with for a few days! =)

I hope everyone has had a good weekend! 

Finger Coils & Braidouts & Straw Sets, Oh My! (Pic Heavy)

Hi all! 

Since I cut the rest of my relaxer off and finally became 100% natural, I've been experimenting with different methods and looks. This post is a quick breakdown of the ones I've tested so far.

Finger Coils

This was my first attempt at finger coils on my whole head. The method I used was to literally separate my hair and coil individual pieces of it. The only products used are the Cantu Shea Butter Leave-in Treatment and water. I think next time I'll try using gel too. Here's how it turned out:

(Excuse the Cantu Leave-in at the top right! Gotta blend that in better next time!)

VERDICT: I really like the curl definition! My main gripe about this style is that when it dries, there is mucho shrinkage. Shrinkage isn't really my enemy, but if I'm going for a stretched look, this isn't the way until my hair gets a little longer. 

Braidout

This was my first braidout ever in which I didn't have to use something to secure the ends of my braids!!! Remember when I used to have the problem of imminent unraveling!? Now I just braid my hair up and finger coil the ends and they stay put! Wooh! Just like this:

And this was the result:

Compared to how it would turn out at the very beginning of my transitioning journey:

Maaaaaajor volume difference!!
VERDICT: I like the braidout, but it's not quite my favorite look. I really haven't mastered it yet and need more practice before I'll feel comfortable wearing it out like this. Plus, there are still a few straight ends scattered about and I feel like they're very visible because, just like when I was all relaxed, the ends don't curl.

Straw Set

Of course. The go-to. It doesn't look much different from what it looked like before I cut the ends off: 

BUT, it looks VERY different from the straw sets at the beginning of my journey as well:

Yet ANOTHER dramatic change.  Uh..i think you know the verdict for this one! I love it so much more now! It looks so......."lifeless," is the word that comes to mind, in that last pic! Since I've been straw setting throughout my whole transition and this major volume change was gradual, it's still a shock to see it side-by-side every time! Lol.

Click Here For My Straw Set Tutorial

Speaking of straw-sets, I am definitely going to be doing a giveaway of a "Straw Set Kit" for one lucky blog reader. If you're transitioning, this is perfect for you. I plan to give away all of the products I used (and am still using) to create a straw set during my own long-term transition.  I need to make a video to let my YouTube subscribers in on the details and once that happens, I'll post them here as well. But, I wanted to give my loyal American readers a heads-up before then! (I am soooooo sorry to exclude international readers, but I don't have the resources to ship overseas at the moment. It's a possibility for future giveaways though!) So, be on the look out for that! 

Aaaand..speaking of YouTube, this post has inspired me to do a video montage of side-by-side comparisons of hairstyles just like this. I think that's what's next on my YT video to-do list!

Well, that's all for now!

Thank you for reading and have GREAT weekend! 

P.S. You can follow me on Instagram for more hair photos! My username is "diimpulz."
If you choose to follow, let me know that you found me through my blog! =)

My First Wash-N-Go

Hi all!

Yuck, it's Monday. -_-

Today was the first day since I cut my remaining relaxed ends off that I wore my hair out fresh from the shower! I guess it's not a 100% true Wash-n-Go (WNG) because I do have some Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In conditioning treatment and some IC Fantasia gel as well, and thennnn..I slapped  on a headband. But it's as true of a WNG in a sense that I didn't set my hair last night to wear it out today. (That's something I can't wait to experiment with though!!)

Anyway..all I can say is..shrinkage is a muthaaaa! LOL!

Here's what my hair looked like today as I wore it out:

It's a cute, short little fro....that makes me feel like my hair grows very slow! lol. 

BUT, here's what I actually have to show for these past 2 years:

HUGE difference!!! It's cetainly past my shoulders and almost down to my bra.

 Again- shrinkage is a mutha! Ha! And patience is a virtue..one that I'll need for my curls to get this long unstretched.

Here's a couple close-ups of my natural pattern:

I definitely still want to play with different methods to really make my curls pop with definition.

That's all for now! 

Have a great week!

Guess What I Did?! =D

23 months into my long-term transition, I cut my remaining relaxed ends off!!!

Eek! I needed to cut about two inches in most places and less than an inch in some spots. I really planned on waiting until September so it would be a full 24 months, but the reason I just got fed up and cut it was because I wanted to be able to throw it in a ponytail right out of the shower (which is what I did today.) I was never able to do that during my transition because my relaxed ends were always straight and brittle, unlike the rest of my hair, after I washed it. Now, they're curly like the rest of it! I'm sure there are still a few sparse straight ends in there somewhere and I'll have to keep maintenance trimming until they're all gone, but I am soooo excited to start experimenting with new products and techniques to get my curls popping! =)

Here's some photos of what it looked like right after I cut the ends off:

And here's today's high ponytail/puff: 

Thanks to everyone who stops by to read my updates! I hope I've been able to help, inspire or at least entertain someone out there through this long transition! =) My relaxed-to-natural journey has now ended and so begins my hair-growth journey!  

That's all for now!
Have a great weekend! 

Growth Update: 22 Months Post-Relaxer

Hi all!

I haven't updated in a while mostly because there hasn't been a whole lot of *new* going on with my hair. 

I'm doing my usual straw sets and caring for my hair the same way I have been the past year or so and I really haven't experimented with any others styles or methods lately. So that's the reason for the lack of recent posts. But, it's been 22 months since my last relaxer! I'm SO CLOSE to my initial two-year goal!

I've really been trying to play with my hair right after I wash it to get more familiar with my natural 

un-manipulated (is that a word? lol!) texture. 

Here's what it looks like: 

 I really need to trim some more off of the left side (pictured below) because it seems that I've left more straight ends on that side than the left. But, I do like the shape of my hair right now. 

Here's the right side. As I said, here you can hardly even see the straight pieces, whereas on the left they're much more visible:

 Here's the front view so you can see the lopsided shape I'm talking about. This is EASILY taken care of though! Just need to trim off more of the straight stuff. I'm happy regardless because my hair has definitely grown a lot! =) 

And here's what my straw set looks like at 21 months...

...and 22 months!

It gets bigger (and healthier) by the day. =)

Well, that's all for now!

Have a great week and THANK YOU for checking in! =)

Click Here For My Straw Set Tutorial

Curly Fro-hawk

Hi all!

I hope you had a wonderful Easter!!!

I experimented with my hair this weekend and finally tried my hand at a mohawk on a 5-day old straw set.

All I used were bobby pins and a mirror! lol. Then I dressed it up with a flower.

I like how it turned out, but it's definitely something I would wear out and not on an average school day.

Results:

A few other angles:

That's all for now! 

A BIG THANK YOU to my readers! =) 

Thanks for keeping up with me on my journey.

Length Check

Hi!

This week..before I started one of my straw sets, I got a huge itch for chopping off my ends.

So I cut all of the relaxer off from the bottom section of my hair. 

Before:

After (Shrunken):

After (Stretched):

There's a LOT of length there, but man, does my hair deliver a serious dose of shrinkage! lol.

When I saw how much shorter my hair was without the ends, I decided to only cut the relaxer from that bottom layer completely and just do a light trim of the rest of it. My itch and temporary curiosity were satisfied. 

Here's how this particular straw set turned out:

I actually really like how it turned out with my trim!

Anyway, for those who celebrate: happy Easter weekend!

Have a safe, fun and blessed one! 

=)

Click Here For My Straw Set Tutorial

Growth Update: Transitioning Hair, 18 Months Post-Relaxer

Hi all!

Finally a new video!

I know I haven't made one in months, and I apologize (especially to my YouTube subscribers) for that! My computer had been out of  commission forever: no audio, buggy when connecting to the internet. It was VERY difficult to make videos with it that way. Now that it's up and running again, I'm hoping the videos will be more regular like they used to be! And if there's anything YOU want to see in a future video, please let me know! =)

Anyway, this video is just a photo montage update on my transition. I am now 18 months (a year and a half!!) post-relaxer. Just 6 months away from my initial goal! =)

How far along are you guys, and how much further do you plan to go?

Enjoy! 

Mission: Curl Definition, Accomplished! =]

Hi all!

Remember this very frustrated post?

I wasn't crazy about having loose, frizzy, undefined, waves (1st photo) that frame my face and at the crown of my head, but tight, defined ringlets (2nd photo) everywhere else.

Well, I've discovered a method for defining those stubborn curls!

If I physically curl the hair around my fingers while in the shower, it helps my curls find their form and they look just the same when they dry.

LOVING the curl definition!  

I've really been trying to get a handle on how to best make my curls pop now that it's getting closer and closer to the goal date that I've set to chop my processed ends. Which, by the way, is in 6 months! =) And speaking of 6 months, I'm hoping to make another video soon! I haven't made one in that long. lol. Yeesh! 

Anyway, thanks again for checking in! =]

Have a great weekend!

Birthday Hair

Hello!

Yesterday was my birthday, and I wanted to do something different and fun with my hair. I decided on going for a modern head-to-toe version of the 1940's pin-up era.I found a tutorial  for this updo on YouTube. You can watch it by clicking here. I modified it a bit because what she did just wasn't working for me. My hair would not stay and jest kept falling apart, but I really liked the style she came up with. So, I just created my own method to get the same style. I was weary about wearing my hair to school like this, because I thought it might be a bit much, but I still did. I was going out with my boyfriend right after class anyway and shoot...it was Valentine's Day! Lol. I got a bunch of compliments on it though. My professor said it made me look like a "movie star." =) I do like the way it turned out and I'll probably use it again for special occasions. 

And here's the finished pin-up look with the outfit! =)

I hope you all had a fantastic Valentine's Day and spent it with the people you LOVE. <3

That's all for now! =)

My Top 10 Favorite YouTube Comments

This is why I have this blog and post corresponding videos. THIS is why I do this. =]

from someone excited about trying henna:

10

from another long term transitioner:

9

from a mother:

8

from a 12-year-old:

7

from another Latina with similar hair:

6

from someone about to do their first straw set:

5

from a 14-year-old struggling with styling:

4

from a "hair twin":

3

from someone searching for help transitioning:

2

from a 16-year-old with zero transitioning support:

1

I'm still earning myself and I'm so glad that sharing what I've learned is helping people. 

Even if these 10 were the only ones, the fact that they look to me for help and advice is so rewarding. 

Thank YOU! 

<3