My Hair Update

So I thought I'd give you guys an update on my hair and how it's coming along.  Well, it's going overall well.  I'm retaining length that I'm overall happy with but I have a few challenges.  I'll go into those first, and tell you about my triumphs and milestones last.

Challenge # 1:  Styling
Yes, I have yet to figure out the styling part and it's very very frustrating.  I can never seem to re-create the same look twice.  I'll use a certain product and a certain technique for my twist outs and have great results and I'm "Aha!  I think I finally got it.  I found the formula and I'm sticking with it!".  Next week, I do the exact same thing and the result is a HOT MESS!!  This has happened to me many times.  I don't attribute it too much to changes in humidity etc because it'll be like a week apart and no drastic changes in the weather that I can feel but still...  I've done small twists, large twists, this product, that product, the results are always a crapshoot. My hair is thick and course extremely extremely prone to frizz and shrinkage which always work against me.  Case in point just recently I used Jane Carter solution Wrap and Roll setting lotion to do large twists on dry hair.  The result was soft fluffy shiny hair.  I tried it again a week later, the result was frizzy, poofy, dry looking (although it didn't feel all that dry) hair.  Argh!

Challenge # 2:  Detangling
Every time I hear or feel one of my strands snap it makes me cringe...literally.  This is why I hate wash day.  I have yet to find the perfect detangling technique (I don't think there is one).  I wet detangle in the shower with as much efficiency as possible but it's still a chore.  I don't have time to go through every single hair to check if there is a bulb at the end to see what percentage of the hair left in my comb is shed hair vs. broken hair but I choose to trust that it's almost all shed hair.  I do what I can to keep my hair from shrinking and re-tangling after I have detangled and I use my moisturizing deep conditioner.  But inevitably when it comes time to style my hair and as I'm going through doing my twists, I can feel/hear strands snapping, I find several knots which I do my best to unknot but most times end up cutting out, it drives me crazy!  I've tried it all.  I've run out of Shea Moisture leave-in and I"m gonna try to find another leave in with maximal slip and moisture to try to prevent this from happening.  Other than that I'm not sure what to do.

Challenge #3: My Edges

This has really helped me with styling my edges

There is not much to say about this one.  As gentle as I am with my hair, I still have breakage around the hairline in the front and sides.  There really is no way to style your hair (unless you wear it out all the time which is even more detrimental) without putting some kind of tension on the edges and apparently mine can't  tolerate even the least bit of manipulation or tension.  I try not to feel discouraged and keep on keeping on.

That's it for my challenges.  Now my triumphs!

Triumph #1:  Length Rentention

Bun with flat twist in front

I have been retaining some good length, I'm just about at shoulder level now. I can do cool things with my hair like a bun with a headband or flat twists in the front or even a french roll.  The plethora of styles that are now becoming available to me are exciting and I look forward to more opportunities for creativity.

Triumph # 2: Moisture
I seem to have figured out how to keep my hair moisturized and the products that do it for me.  My hair is usually very soft and touchable when it's out (which isn't really much these days) and even while it's in twists I'm on point with my moisturize and seal game.  I have also been seeing less single strand knots in my hair which I attribute to keeping my  hair stretched and moisturized

Triumph #3:  Confidence
Well I'm still working on this one honestly but I've seen improvements.  I'm more confident wearing my natural hair sometimes in a big ol 'fro out and about the looks I certainly get.  I've become more accepting of my texture (which is not what is traditionally considered "good hair").  I've made peace with it all.  I love that it's so thick and voluminous and I'm excited for it to get even bigger!