Sister Locks

 Hi!
I am currently on the east coast (Maryland) spending the holidays with my boyfriend and his family. I've been pretty busy, hence the hiatus from posting.

In regards to the title: no, I didn't try out the sister locks style. But this is my sister, and these are her locks. Haha!

She's a type 2 curly (wavy) with a few sections of 3 curls sprinkled throughout. Her hair is long and very thick and has the tendency to dry out easily. Because of that, it poofs out a lot, and she wanted me to try something on her hair to tame the poofiness. So, I told her we could try a braidout.

She really liked it. And though it still has a lot of volume here, it's a lot less poofy than normal. She also liked the definition she got because normally, her hair is so dry that her waves aren't very defined.

I will try to update when I have more time! =]

It's Been a Little While

Hi all! 

I've finally finished Fall Quarter of classes and today marks my second day back at home! 

I haven't posted in a while because I haven't been doing anything special with my hair. Just the usual straw set that's been lasting me 4-5 days. Don't mind my thrilled face here. Haha!

I noticed when I did this particular straw set, that I've got a good 4 inches of growth now.  By Christmas, I'll be 4 months into my transition. If i continue at this rate, I'll be at a comfortable enough length to do my mini-chop after 12 months. My goal was 16 months, but let's see how fast my hair grows.
You can see the clear differentiation in textures.

On that same note, does anyone know of any vitamins I can take that promote hair growth? 

Something else I noticed during this straw set, was that using the Cantu Shea Butter and following with the Eco Styler gel are probably going to work well to define my curls when my hair grows out. I say this because I realized my natural curls were really defined when I took the straws out after my hair had dried.

Until next time! =]


Click Here For My Straw Set Tutorial

I Broke Up With my Stylist Today

It's official! She sent me a text message asking me about scheduling a regular relaxer touch-up.
I let her know I was going natural and that was that.
No hard feelings here, she is an awesome person and I hope we DO stay in touch! =)

Happy December! =]

Twist Out Help?

So I'm still rocking the straw set. I'm telling you, it's my favorite! I wore another straw set this Thanksgiving weekend. It lasted me a full 5 days again and I'm still getting compliments and a lot of "this hair is so you." Hmm..a style closer to my natural texture is "so me?" Who'da thunk? Haha! Anyway, the straw set is quickly  becoming my staple transitioning style. =]

Anyway, I really want to try a twist out, but I CANNOT figure out how to twist my hair! The process seems simple enough, but each time I have tried it, The twists just unravel and don't stay put. Does it have to do with the fact that my ends are relaxed? Most tutorials I've seen feature girls with fully natural hair and I'm thinking the natural texture is what helps hold them in place. Does this mean I can't wear a twist out while I'm transitioning? Help!!! Are there any YouTube tutorials that have a good thorough explanation of how to set the ends of twists?  I really want to figure out the twist out!

Salvaging a Braidout Fail

On the previous post, I mentioned that I had my hair in braids and was going to take them out later. I was economical and used the clipped ends from the straws I used to do my straw set at the end of the braids so that I wouldn't have straggly ends.

However... I realized I need to stick to parting my hair down the side, because I don't like the shape of the hair when I part it down the middle. So, I had to figure out something I could do with a middle-parted braidout to salvage the work I put in last night braiding it. I ended up doing some version of a chunky flat twist with a side pony. A new style idea that I've never tried before.

This is the back:

Overall, it's just kind of...meh. I like the back, But I'm not crazy about the front. It's lopsided and uneven. It looks better than the full braidout did though.And with more practice, I think it can be really cute. Oh well, lesson learned-keep my parts off to the side, not down the center.

Another Growth Check - 3 Months

I am 3 months into my transition now, 

so here's another hair growth update on wet hair. 

It looks pretty long! However, I know that's partially because 

the relaxed ends are weighing the natural curls down.

Here's a head-on view.

It's funny how my new growth has a lot of body and volume, 

then when you hit the relaxed ends, it becomes so limp and lifeless.

I'm wearing braids right now.They'll be taken out for a braid-out  for church tonight and school tomorrow. =] Also, I just want to say thank you to my readers again! It's good to know there are people out there who are following my journey that I can network with and share ideas/advice. Thank you!

Straw Set Tutorial

I was listening to my iPod when En Vogue came on
and their album cover popped up on my screen:

Disclaimer: I do not own this image. 

Love the hair! =]

Because a few people have asked, I made a tutorial on how I do my straw set. I also included how I sleep to preserve and maintain the curls overnight. Hope this is helpful! =]