Ok, I Changed Things Up

After watching some more youtube videos about hair maintenance and box braiding, I decided to take down my braids, wash my hair, and braid my hair again. I decided this at 10:30 PM Saturday night knowing I had to get up for Sunday morning service at 8 AM.  But I was determined.

Old Box Braids from last Wednesday

One of my weakest areas.

Yep, pretty bad...

Braids taken down and ready for a wash (ACV rinse) and conditioning

Freshly washed and conditioned hair.

2 AM, box braids completed!

One of the longest areas of my head. Never was this long when relaxed...

Braids flat twisted on each sides.

Braids protected underneath a very wide crocheted headband

I also use this underneath my wig to allow my hair to breathe

All done! Ready for bed.

I decided to redo my braids because first of all, my hair felt grimy. I think it is because of the honey I used in my spritz. Therefore, I decided to make a new batch of my daily spritz MINUS the honey. I will see how this batch will go.

When I washed my hair, I used two cups of water with 2 tablespoons of ACV. I saturated my hair with the mixture and divided my hair into 6 sections for detangling instead of just trying to attack my head all at once, which can lead to extra hair breakage. For each section, I used my Herbal Essence Hello Hydration conditioner. After applying the conditioner, I also applied some olive oil on top of that to add some extra slip to my hair. This is my first time doing so but I will tell you that it made a HUGE difference in the detangling process. I took my wide toothed comb to work through the section from end to root, which I had to make a conscious awareness that I was actually doing that. I caught myself trying to comb from root to end but realized quickly that that wasn't going to work. After using the wide toothed comb through a section, I took my goodies demman brush (the one with the plastic bristles that are widely spaced and have little beads at the ends) and worked through the section to make sure I get any tangled and loose hairs out my hair. After this, I twisted the section in a single twist and moved on to the other sections.

When I was done, I had 6 detangled twists on my hair. I rinsed my hair out and spritzed my hair with the new mixture. Then I proceeded to braid my hair. I used shea butter on each section to seal in the moisture from the spritz before braiding my hair. After I finished my braids, I flat twisted them on each sides and covered them underneath the crocheted headband.

I plan on keeping these in for at least two weeks. I am tired of braiding and rebraiding. I am satisfied with this set and will be making sure to moisturize my hair before bed each night.

I decided that instead of washing my hair every other week, I will be washing it every Saturday night. I think after all the daily spritzing, it will be best to do it this way so build up won't accumulate on my hair as much.

I think I am going to look into buying a better brush to detangle with. Also, I need to locate my butterfly clips. I believe I will be able to section my hair better by using those.

Well, that is it. So glad I got some pictures up!

Box Braid Challenge--April 2010

I got a new laptop...a netbook actually so I can hopefully update my blogs a little more often.  Anyway, this particular post is about my hair.

My hair has been pretty neglected for a long time now.  It is time for a change. I have been natural ever since February 2004, and I have YET to embrace my hair like I should.  I know I am not my hair, but my hair is a part of this vessel God has given me so it is my responsibility to take care of it as well.

So I have been doing some research on nappturality.com and lurked the forums for information on products I can experiment on my hair.  If I am to restore my hair back to a healthy, fuller, and longer state, it is imperative I find out what my hair needs.

After doing a little bit of searching around on the homemade products thread, I went to buy the following:

Organic Virgin Coconut Oil (Unrefined)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Honey
Vegetable Glycerin
Distilled Water
Pure Almond Extract (for fragrance)

Here are the products I already have on hand:
Castor Oil
Shea Butter
Safflower Oil
Rosemary EO (essential oil)
Lavender EO 
Peppermint EO
Apple Cider Vinegar (my replacement for shampoo)

The only commercial products I have in my possession are:
Herbal Essence Totally Twisted Conditioner
Herbal Essence Hello Hydration Conditioner
Garnier Fructis Triple Action Conditioner (with shea, avocado, and olive oils)

(I am debating whether or not I will continue to use this three products. I am still researching what ingredients are bad for natural hair. But these are some products I have read from curlynikki.com that other natural haired women are using. So once again, I don't know the fate of these products just yet).

So yesterday, I mixed some olive oil, castor oil, honey, shea butter, almond extract, peppermint EO, and distilled water in a spray bottle to create a daily spritz for my hair. Today, I added some vegetable glycerin ($9 at Whole Foods...wow!) and after spraying it on my hair tonight, I noticed a difference in the softness of my braids.  They really felt moisturized. This made me feel good. I even sprayed a little on Zakiah's hair after her bath. Her hair felt soft too.  Yeah!

Lets back this up!   I didn't even mention anything specifics about my hair challenge. SOOOO, my goal is to establish a healthy regime to help my hair grow fuller. I am not so concerned about length because my hair grows at a pretty good rate as long as I keep my hands out of it and don't get scissor happy (I am notorious for cutting over 2 inches off at a time).  I figured what would be best for now is to braid my hair in box braids and wear my wig in order to keep my hands out of my hair. I actually started off with big braids about 2 weeks ago and ended up rebraiding my hair Wednesday night into smaller sections/braids.  I don't really remember exactly when I started my braids so for the sake of setting an official challenge date, I will say I started my challenge on

April 1, 2010

I plan on doing this challenge for at least six months (October 1, 2010). By the end of the challenge, I am expecting to have grown at least 2.5 to 3 inches of hair from now (I need to take a before picture even though I am dreading it because my hair is no way cute).  I am excited because this is my first challenge. I even hopped on the bandwagon with others doing the 6 month challenge on nappturality.com. I am hoping to do a monthly update on my progress either by a blog post or video.

The hair regimen I am hoping to follow is:
Spritz my hair (daily before bed)
ACV rinse (every 2nd and 4th Saturday)
Rebraid my hair (every four weeks)

Simple, huh?  Well that is how I like it for now until I learn more about deep conditioning, co washes, and baking soda clarifying.  I really want to keep things low maintenance.

Oh, and I plan on drinking AT LEAST 8 cups of water every day. So far, so good! I met that goal ever since I started recording on my calendar (since April 1st).

As far as my wig, I am only wearing it when I go out or have a tendency to put my hand in my hair.  Other than that, I allow my braids to breathe.  Underneath my wig, I wear this really wide crotchet headband to protect my hair from the wig and to allow some breathing room.

Hmm, I think this is it for now. I need to remember to post a before picture as a reference point for my challenge.