In Search of a Natural Big Sister

Hey Ladies!!

I'm new to CN and natural living. I've been relaxer free since mid-October. I've never really taken the time to get to know my hair, so the past couple of months have definitely been...lets say...different. There is sooooo much that I don't know about hair, products, styling, etc. Any and all help is greatly appreciated. BTW I'm in the Houston area...are there any Houstonians out there???

Hello!

I have been natural for almost a year, and I am still learning my own hair and what works. So maybe we can help each other. How long is your hair?

I am in Houston also! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Hey Ladyjones!

That's awesome that you're in Houston too. Are you going to the meet up on Sunday? When I was relaxed my hair was cut in layers...the bottom layer is past my shoulders. The only styles that seem to work for me now are flexi rod sets and buns. Tonight is my 3rd attempt at a braid out. I'll let you know how it turns out...wish me luck [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
I've been transitioning since mid-October.

Yes, I will be there. I have been natural for 10 months, and I really love it.When do you plan to do the big chop?

Well I'll see you there [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
I haven't settled on a date for my BC yet. It's really been on my mind lately though. I definitely can't do it myself so I need to check out some of the natural hair salons around here. This girl I go to school with has been to Uncle Funky's Daughter a couple of times...maybe I'll just let them do it. I really want my edges to fill in before I BC though.

That makes sense. Try using come castor oil from Whole Foods on your edges. Just massage a little into your hairline everynight or a couple of times a week. I have been doing that, and it has worked for me.

Girl my order of JBCO came in last week...I've been oiling my edges nightly with it. Lots of women on this site rave about the benefits of JBCO...I'm hoping to see similar results.

I'd be willing to help if you'd like. I've been natural for 4 years with very healthy hair.

Thank you so much blondie! I need all the help I can get. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] Right now I'm still trying to figure out what my hair likes...I've been testing protein sensitivity and porosity and all that stuff..but it's all still kind of confusing to me. I dc'd overnight with aohsr..evoo...and gradeseed oil. When I rinsed it out this a.m. my hair was soooo soft. I let it air dry a little then put in bantu knots (very proud of myself btw...that was my 1st attempt at knotting). I'll post pics of my knotout.

I would also need to know the following:

What is your current hair care routine?
What products do you use?
What is your hair type? (or post pics if you don't know)
What condition is your hair currently in?
What issues, if any, are you experiencing?

So here's my routine:
cowash 1x/week ...Aussie Moist (I recently ran out..thinking about trying HHTH or something from Garnier Fructis next)
Shampoo 1x/week...just started using the Aubrey organix hsr
Deep Condition 1x/week (after shampooing)...AOHSR, EVOO, Grapeseed oil, and honey (I actually DC'd overnight without the honey and when I rinsed my hair this a.m. it was really soft...guess my hair doesn't like honey as much as I thought it did)

I normally oil my scalp every other night if not every night with a mixture of JBCO, rosemary oil, and peppermint oil

After
every co-wash or shampoo I seal by oiling my scalp, then applying cantu
shea butter leave in, then coconut oil, then shea butter mixed with a
few drops of jojoba. (i really don't think my hair likes the cantu
leave in...I've been thinking about trying a liquid one)...I put bantu knots in today after rinsing out my DC...I switched up my sealing process a little....oiled scalp with JBCO mix, applied cantu leave in, then unrefined shea butter, then a couple of drops of jojoba with a drop of tea tree to seal

My hair
is a little past shoulder length. I've been transitioning since
mid-october. I wore my regular relaxed styles until mid-december...then
I did some micros. I took them out mid-feb...so I really haven't been
doing my routine very long. My edges are pretty thin...more so on the
right side than the left. I have major breakage toward the back/middle part of my head. I know that before doing the micros there was some breakage there but it seems like the breakage area doubled in size after the micros. It was my 1st time microing my own hair...turned out cute...but I guess I put too much tension on that area trying to make sure it was tight enough. I've also been dealing with breakage in the crown area. For as long as I can remember I've always had breakage in that area...caused by a number of things...including stress and the fact that I have trichotillomania (hair pulling disorder)...every time I pull from my head my fingers seem to find the same spot. Now that I'm actually aware of the disorder I've been taking steps to lessen the harshness of my episodes, but it still can sometimes be a daily struggle. When I was relaxed I could just style my hair in ways that allowed me to cover up my thinning areas, but now that I'm almost 5 months post relaxer the damaged hair doesn't just lay down and easily
cover up with the longer hair. I think this is why I've had such a difficult time finding a good transition style...other than a bun...that will work for me. My 3 previous braid out
attempts have been disastrous. I had a little bit better luck with my flexi rod set..but I was still having the same issue..it's like everything around the
breakage area will be ok but once I get to that damaged spot it just
looks like a big rough patch sticking out like a sore thumb. I'm really hoping for good results with my bantu knotout tomorrow [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I have a post similar to this under the heading "soooo I did a mini chop experiment"....so if any of this sounds familiar that's why. You helped me out over there also [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

SweeTea2011 wrote:So here's my routine:
cowash 1x/week ...Aussie Moist (I recently ran out..thinking about trying HHTH or something from Garnier Fructis next)
Shampoo 1x/week...just started using the Aubrey organix hsr
Deep Condition 1x/week (after shampooing)...AOHSR, EVOO, Grapeseed oil, and honey (I actually DC'd overnight without the honey and when I rinsed my hair this a.m. it was really soft...guess my hair doesn't like honey as much as I thought it did)

I normally oil my scalp every other night if not every night with a mixture of JBCO, rosemary oil, and peppermint oil

After
every co-wash or shampoo I seal by oiling my scalp, then applying cantu
shea butter leave in, then coconut oil, then shea butter mixed with a
few drops of jojoba. (i really don't think my hair likes the cantu
leave in...I've been thinking about trying a liquid one)...I put bantu knots in today after rinsing out my DC...I switched up my sealing process a little....oiled scalp with JBCO mix, applied cantu leave in, then unrefined shea butter, then a couple of drops of jojoba with a drop of tea tree to seal

My hair
is a little past shoulder length. I've been transitioning since
mid-october. I wore my regular relaxed styles until mid-december...then
I did some micros. I took them out mid-feb...so I really haven't been
doing my routine very long. My edges are pretty thin...more so on the
right side than the left. I have major breakage toward the back/middle part of my head. I know that before doing the micros there was some breakage there but it seems like the breakage area doubled in size after the micros. It was my 1st time microing my own hair...turned out cute...but I guess I put too much tension on that area trying to make sure it was tight enough. I've also been dealing with breakage in the crown area. For as long as I can remember I've always had breakage in that area...caused by a number of things...including stress and the fact that I have trichotillomania (hair pulling disorder)...every time I pull from my head my fingers seem to find the same spot. Now that I'm actually aware of the disorder I've been taking steps to lessen the harshness of my episodes, but it still can sometimes be a daily struggle. When I was relaxed I could just style my hair in ways that allowed me to cover up my thinning areas, but now that I'm almost 5 months post relaxer the damaged hair doesn't just lay down and easily
cover up with the longer hair. I think this is why I've had such a difficult time finding a good transition style...other than a bun...that will work for me. My 3 previous braid out
attempts have been disastrous. I had a little bit better luck with my flexi rod set..but I was still having the same issue..it's like everything around the
breakage area will be ok but once I get to that damaged spot it just
looks like a big rough patch sticking out like a sore thumb. I'm really hoping for good results with my bantu knotout tomorrow [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I have a post similar to this under the heading "soooo I did a mini chop experiment"....so if any of this sounds familiar that's why. You helped me out over there also [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I would first strongly suggest eliminating all silicone products (your conditioner, cantu leave in) silicone is like putting saran wrap on your hair, blocks the moisture.= from reaching your strands.

Also, unless you have scalp issues, you really don't need to oil your scalp. You should moisturize daily (I do it morning and night) and after spritzing you can seal using a butter or oil. Even if you do oil your scalp, every other night is too much. You could end up clogging your pores and that's a whole other issue!!

Stay with the Aubrey's Organics. You also need to clarify to get rid of the silicone build up. You need to use a silicone-free sulfate shampoo to do that.

My Honey Child has a good all natural twist out cream called Twist Out!. There's also Bee Mine, Qhemet Biologics, Oyin Handmade...a whole slew of silicone free natural hair lines out there. You would be surprised the difference quality products makes, and what the wrong ones can do!!

Thank you so much for the info Blondie...you're awesome [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

So... quick question about clarifying. I'll double check the ingredients once I get home, but I don't think the aohsr shampoo has any of the naught ingredients in it....if not, can I clarify with that or do I also need to incorporate something like an ACV rinse? As far as scalp issues go...before starting my transition and actually attempting to stick to a routine... my head was a dry flaky desert....I mean I could wash on Mon and by Tue if I even touched my head I would end up with a shoulder full of flakes. Since I've been into my routine I haven't seen a flake yet...so excited about that [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] I still itch every now and then but other than that my scalp has drastically improved. I will switch it up a bit and focus more on moisturizing as opposed to oiling and see if my scalp condition remains improved. What do you recommend as a spritz?