Wyldhoney - A....P...L!!!!!!

Hi all,

By way of introduction, I am a 28 year old Caribbean girl who chopped off all her hair in February 2008 (can't remember the exact date).

When I did I looked like this:


I didn't know how to take care of my hair, I slept on cotton pillows, I washed and wet when I felt like it, with no rhyme or reason. My hair was tangled, dry, and matted, but I still loved my natural texture and rocked it as well as I could. People liked it, I think because wild hair has always suited my personality.

Here are some photos of my hair during the two years:







As you can see my hair didn't grow very much due to all the abuse. Plus, I didn't know how to style it dry so wash-n-gos were my only technique. Can you say shrinkage? I felt so frustrated that after two years this was all I had to show. But I knew I was never going to relax again, so I reluctantly accepted that this was as good as it was going to get. Then...I discovered this site. Hair care tips, styling guides, product advice - I was in heaven! I tossed out my shampoo and started building a regimen. Started sleeping with my satin head tie religiously every night. Started deep conditioning, carefully reading the labels on all my hair products, staying away from mineral oil and 'cones (have cautiously brought back some 'cones since my hair seems to like them). Although my hair does not like protective styling, I have been twisting for a week at a time to give my ends a break.

And...my hair has responded! I have been rewarded for my hard work with hair that is bouncing back, and growing! Now that I'm no longer losing my ends, I can see length! When I did my length check pics this morning I was shocked to find the front of my hair growing past my nose!

I'm here to continue on the path I started, the path to healthy, luxurious hair. I won't have massive volume like some of you guys on the forums because my hair is fine and thin, but I'm on my way to the best hair I can get, and that makes me happy!

Nice Hair story. Welcome to CSJ, I am a lurker but I will make the occasional comment! Glad to have you!

Welcome to Curl Street!!! Best wishes on your new journey!!

My reggie thus far is as follows:

Sundays:

Mix baking soda with cheap condish ('cone free) and cleanse hair
Rinse out thoroughly
Apply HEHH in the shower, and bathe self. Section hair into 4-6 twists in the shower and detangle. Rinse each section and retwist.
Apply DC (Garnier Fructis Sleek n Shine 3 minute mask, HEHH, Castor Oil and Coconut oil) to each section and retwist.
Tie grocery bag on my head (I use black, it's more classy) and sit under heat cap for 30 mins, or wander around the house doing chores for 3-4 hours.
Rinse thoroughly in cool water (the HEHH helps get a lot of the oil out), and use 2 tbsp of vinegar in 2 cups of water for a final rinse.
Blot with an old t-shirt and style

Styling:

Sometimes I twist up on Sundays and leave until Friday (or until they start looking really bad, this week I only made it till today, wearing a twistout this morning). I've been experimenting with twists on wet and dry (blowdried) hair, and I haven't figured out which one I like better. Wet twists shrink up more but they stay neater for longer. Dry twists give me the length but they're more frizzy. I twist my DC'd hair with Fantasia IC Olive Oil gel and seal the ends with castor or coconut oil.

Trying to get other styles under my belt...going to try bunning next, now that my hair is long enough.

Welcome to CSJ...cute pics.

welcome to Curl Street!

Welcome to CSJ!

Welcome!!!

Welcome...you are going to love it here!!!

Welcome!

Welcome!!

Welcome to curl street!

Thanks you guys!

I really want to hold myself accountable to my hair, it needs as much love as I can give.

I've already learned so much from everyone here, I just need to stay on the right path (and never sleep on a cotton pillowcase again)!

Welcome!

Okay, I am officially BORED with twisting. I've done about 6 weeks and I'm aching for some new styles.

I think I'll try bunning for a week and decide if I want to join that challenge (btw I'm also in the BAA challenge). Anyone have any tips they'd like to share on bunning?

Wet hair or dry? How do I moisturise? Is brushing the front into place with a soft brush kosher or a no-no? How do I preserve this style for a week? Basically I need Bunning 101!

I decided to give my hair a little 'out' time this weekend, since I've been so good with the protective styling.

Here are my hair plans for this weekend.

Friday night: DC, detangle, air dry and stretch (I think I'll try banding). Flat twist for a twist-out in the morning. Question It's mango season here and I've got tons of over-ripe mangos in the fridge that can't be eaten. Can I mush up one or two and add to my DC for an extra moisturising boost? Or is that crazy talk?

Saturday: twist-out with a flower for a party in the evening. Question What technique should I use for max volume and drama? I'm thinking that since my hair will be nice and oiled from the DC, then some Aloe Vera gel will be sufficient for fluffy but curly hair. Advice?

Sunday: Rinse out gel, cowash and blow out for massive afro on the 4th!! Sleep in large twists

Monday: Per my boss' request, another afro.

Tuesday: Bun for the rest of the week to give my strands a break.

What are you guys' thoughts on this schedule? Too much manipulation? Okay if I go back to my protective styling immediately afterwards?

Happy National Afro day everyone!!

Well my flat twist out was a semi-failure...when I woke up Saturday morning my twists were still wet. I aimed the blowdryer on it for a while but it still hadn't dried by the time I had to leave the house, so I took it down wet and shook it into a sort of curly 'fro. Will post some pics when I get the chance.

Daytime curly 'fro:



In the evening I was headed to a party and just threw a flower in on the side. Not what I had intended but it still looked cute.



I've just eaten lunch and am finally recovered enough to go shower and get ready for my next party. I'm planning on a HUGE afro for this beach party. I can't wait!

My bunning saga:

I decided to join oooop2's bunning challenge, so last night when I got home I rinsed out my product, cowashed with HEHH, used my moisturiser and leave-in and attempted to bun my wet hair. THIS DID NOT WORK!

My hair is too curly and unruly to stay put when wet. Additionally, I have a very short section right in the front that refuses to lay down and is too short to be captured in the scrunchy, so after half an hour of fighting I gave up and threw it into some big plaits as punishment.

When I woke up this morning I decided to try again. My hair was still slightly damp and MUCH more manageable. I spritzed with my leave-in and brushed it into place. I secured the scrunchy and gelled down the fly-away section in front. I placed another scrunchy over that, making a donut with the ends, and tied the whole mess down with a scarf.

When I arrived at work I took off the scarf and my hair was sleek and lying down, just what I wanted! This is literally my first successful bun and now that I've found out what works, I will definitely be participating in this challenge.

I'll take some pics once the coast is clear ... (posting pics at work so uncool, lol).

Your afro is so cute! Good luck on the bunning challenge. Buns have always been my saving grace and i usually keep my scarf on in the car until i reach my final destination to tie thoses resistant strand down as long as possible.

Thanks NPmoore!

I'm hoping for better hair health and increased growth with this bunning challenge. Let's see how it goes.

Last night when I got home all I did was spritz and tie it down. Sleeping was a bit challenging because the low bun at the back of my head didn't really allow for comfy sleeping on my back.

This morning I spritzed again and smoothed the fuzzies with my hands - threw on two thin headbands and tied it down again for my drive to work. I think that next time I will remove the bobby pins in the evening so that I can brush it down in the morning before I scarf up.

I'm not really feeling this, to be honest. My hair feel so...constricted I guess is the word. I'm not used to ponytails and scrunchies at all. Maybe it will take a little while to get used to it. I wish I could find a pair of Goody Spin Pins down here but alas, you can't always get what you want in a 3rd world country.

I'll be giving it the old college try for a few weeks, but ultimately if I can't keep it up I'll go back to my twisting story and try to get better with that.

P.S, I think the bun makes my face look weird! All you can see is my huge forehead and strange eyes. Dark office picture included for reference.

I love your fro!! It looks perfect, like one of those fro's from back in the day. Nice!!

Thank you, QB - I did feel quite retro when I wore it. I'll be busting it out again for special occasions, for sure.

In other news, I came home early from work because I am fighting off a 'flu. No real updates, all I did was spritz my hair with diluted HEHH and aloe vera gel, take out the bobby pins and throw a scarf on it. I feel too crappy to do anything else at all.

So I will just browse Curl St. checking out what's going on with everyone else's hair.

I love your afro! Super cute! I'd love to join the bunning challenge, but I only have enough hair for a low pony puff right now. Hopefully, at the end of the year I can get it.

Loved your Fro for the 4th!!

@CurlsGalore, @Lynnieluve, thank you for the kind words! Your fros were wicked, I'm flattered that you liked mine.

I woke up this morning feeling much better after a marathon sleep session. I also don't have to go to work until 10 this morning, so that means I have a little time to tend to my hair.

She is not doing well in this bun. This is the morning of day 3 and she feels as dry as a desert, even though I've been spritzing and oiling like my life depends on it. Maybe a bun just isn't the style for me.

I'm going to take her out, DC under a heatcap and wash n go today with a puff or something. When I come home tonight I'll try to figure out what to do with her.

After all these weeks of progress, I feel frustrated now with this setback. I'm stagnant and I no longer know what to do with my hair. I'm almost considering chopping back to twa stage - at least that was easy!!!