How do I get shine on my new twa?

Hi!

I did the bc on March 1st and am so happy. I was a little scared at first but really didn't want to deal with the two textures, only officially transitioned for 1 month, last relaxer was in December 09.

So, now a have a twa. I've been cowashing with Giovanni's Smooth as Silk and I just bought Kinky Curly Curling Custard and Knot today to style my twa. My hair is very thick, the KCCC does define the curls but my hair looks dry. I'd love to have some shine. I bought the gloss, but I don't know how to use it when my hair dries without causing my twa to frizz.

Any advice???

Thanks!

Hey girl- Congrats on your BC!! I am newly natural myself I BC'd on Feb. 1,2010 and if you look at my threadsn history dryness i believe is what i complain about the most. lol. I thnk unfortunately- dryness is one of the issues newly naturals have to face. What
Ive learned is since our hair is tightly curled, it needs much more than a glosser to not be dry. Alot of the naturals on youtube and this site talk about layering in order to keep your hair moisturized. What I have been doing is I stopped using shampoos with sulfates, cones, and stopped using any hair porducts with parbens, mineral oil and petroleum, So ive been co-washing my hair (washing with conditioner), deep conditioing with my fav conditioner plus 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and coconut oil- leaving my conditioner on my head for at least 30 minutes witrh a conditioning cap on, then rinsing it out with cool water. here comes the layering. Basically you need 3 elements: A water based leave in, an oil of your choice, and a creamy sealer.After much trial and error this is what this is what I have come up with: When my hair is still damp ive been applying giovannis direct leave in- not to much tho bc it takes work to work in and it can be greasy seriouly use like a drop. water is giovannis leave ins first ingredient. Then I use either coconut oil, or olive oil- rub that in, then lastly ive been using a shea butter mix that i made that i whipped with shea butter, africas best oil and olive oil and coconut oil in it. I added oils to the shea butter to make it lighter bc i have realized that shea butter by itself is very heavy and it weighs my hair down. My hair likes it- but only when it is whipped with oils. Anyway long explaination but i hope this helps [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Congrats!! Just so you know, the smooth as silk may be too protein heavy to cowash with. It's also too expensive for a cowash, lol. Try something cheaper like Suave Naturals or V05. Many natural shave great results cowashing with those. Also, as Blackdoll83 said, make sure you seal with oil or butters. All the products she mentioned are great.

Thanks Blackdoll and Erica! I'm going to give your suggestions a try.

Oh and I'm so excited to see that the coop I shop at has Giovanni's for about $4 [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] Of course I had already bought it at it's regular price someplace else [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

But I'll try the Suave and VO5 and see if it works out better.

I'm still trying to figure out what works best for my hair.

I too had this same problem when bc'd.. ... Check out the convo in General..... Can A Sistah Get Some Sheen and see all of the great advice/tips that I received from some of the ladies here.

I fnally found out what works for me after being natural for 6 months (actually today....you'll see my pics). It's definitely about experimenting with different products. Hopefuly it won't take you 6 months to find what works for you.

Good Luck.

Hi i just BC'd yesterday! My husband was so supportive he cut my hair for me. I got up this morning it is is extremely dry. not sure what to do at all.

@ lady dre congrats on your BC [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]


@Ella Momi you should go to Mahogany Curls youtube page she had a vid on what to expect with your twa and she talk about dryness, maybe this would help

Congrats on your BC! As a new bc-er myself I have to agree with Blackdoll. Layering your products is the key to moisturized hair. Your natural hair is very different from your relaxed hair and requires a different technique in order to stay moisturized. I'm still trying to figure out the best combinations of products myself, but today I think I got it right. I used a generous amount of Kinky Curly Knot Today as my leave-in and then I applied castor oil which helps to seal in the moisture and give the hair a great shine. I brushed my hair back and tied on my scarf. I took off my scarf a few minutes ago and my hair was so soft and shiny! I hope that you find the right products to work for you...let us know when you do.

After my bc in february I watched a few videos on youtube that talked about dryness and this is what has been helping me. Cowash with suave coconut conditioner, while hair is still wet use a little sleek & shine by garnier leave in, apply a little olive oil and when I want that curly look I use a little smooth & shine aloe curl activator gel. At night I moisturize with some hot six oil.

This routine has worked for me for the past few weeks. Recently I made a whipped shea mixture using olive oil & hot six and I must say the shine lasted all day.

Congrats on your BC. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

@EllaMommie - Congrats on the BC!! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I am almost 1 month post BC (2-24-10). My TWA stays pretty moisturized to be honest. My routine is to either wet my hair in the shower or spritz w/plain H2O each morning. Then I apply Oyin Honey Hemp or TIGI Bed Head Moisture Maniac. Next, I apply a little EVOO and then my gel of choice which right now is HE Set Me Up. I have used Ecostyler gel also.
In the evening when I get home, I spritz my hair w/plain H2O again. About every other day I add a tiny amount of moisturizer.

This seems to be working for me. I think the water is the big helper for me.

Good luck!

Congrats on your BC! Coconut oil & shea butter work wonders for me in the shine department.

I get my shine from a curly pudding recipe I concocted (found on Curly Nikki).

I spray my hair every morning with VO5 moisture milk condish/water/Castor oil mix

Apply a small amount of the pudding and I have sheen all day, hair stays soft and my curls pop.