My First Mini-Haircut

No more mullett!

I've been itching to cut my hair.  I have a problem that I've read a lot of naturals complain about so I know I'm not alone. I have several different textures of hair on my head.  My hair is very thick, course and dense in middle and then in the back it is fine, relatively loosely curled and less dense.  The back of my hair may also grow at a faster rate than the rest of my head or maybe it just retains more.  Or it may just seem that way because the curls are so much looser.  The point is it gives me a mullet look.  The back of my hair always appears to be longer than the the front.  It hangs more and doesn't shrink up as much and reaches down past the nape of my neck while the rest of hair sits just below my ears. 
Having it there gives my hair an overall longer appearance but at the expense of just looking a bit funny.  It's bugged me for awhile but like many naturals who struggle to retain length, it's hard to part with any of it.  Don't get me wrong, I do the occasional trim, but this problem I have was only going to be solved by a straight out cut that involved cutting off perfectly good healthy hair.  Also I was afraid that parting with the long hair at the nape of my neck would make it more difficult for me to put my hair into updos.  What a dilemma!
Well, I did it.  This morning, I woke up, let my hair out and just felt compelled to cut.  And I did.  An inch and a half to two inches of hair! I thought I might feel slightly distraught or regretful but it feels great.  I'm glad I did it!  It's not a drastic difference but my hair does look overall shorter.  It also looks like it has a better shape which is more important than length.  Having some shape makes for a more put together, less haphazard look.  It's worth it if you ask me.  If my nape starts to hang way past the rest of my hair again, I'll have no qualms about cutting it again in the future. 

4 Protective Natural HairStyles for a Casual Date - SimplYounique

Bump It

Another one of my "10 second throw something together so  I look decent enough to leave the house because I'm not in the mood to actually do my hair" styles.  That basically sums up what this was.  It did literally take 10 seconds and I didn't even intend to do this hairstyle, I was just looking at what I had to work with: hair that really needed to be washed, an old twist out that was just really frizzy and no longer had any definition that pretty much insisted on sticking straight up and I realized I look a little bit like Don King and I definitely can't leave the house looking this!  Next thing I knew I was "puffing" and twirling and tucking and then I said, wow, I actually look half decent.  And voila! :)
I call this hairstyle "Bump It" which seems quite fitting.

making red velvet cupcakes with my friend Jessica!

Throwback: Wiggin' It

So this would have to be at least a year ago that I decided to try a wig as a protective style and to change my look since I was getting bored or something.  At this time my hair was still at that awkward length where I couldn't do a whole lot with it.  Now, mind you, I am not a wig person or a weave person... AT ALL!  I'm just weird like that.  Anyway, I decided to open my mind and went to the hair supply store and tried on some wigs.  I decided if I was gonna get a wig it wasn't going to be long straight flowing hair, it would be a cute quirky short hair style and I was gonna rock it.  $50 later and this is what I came out with (see pic below).  It's real human hair and I was hoping it wouldn't look too much like a wig.    As soon as I got home, I had buyer's remorse.  My aversion to wigs and weaves came back super strong.  I hated it. I tried everything to make it look natural.  I even washed it and brushed the shit out it which was a mistake because it meant I couldn't return it.  Did I mention that my boyfriend hates it?  Well, when he saw it, he said it "looks like a wig" but followed it up with saying he's just not used to seeing me with straight hair.  But the look on his face said it all.

I teased it a little for a messier look because the perfectly straight smoothed look wasn't working for me but I still wasn't feeling it :(

Anyway, I never wore it outside the house.  I took a few pictures and I thought it was kinda cute in some kinda way.  The cut is a little quirky, the asymmetrical bangs are a little weird and off but I guess that's what I wanted.  Anyway, needless to say, it sitting in a drawer somewhere.  Hey, I tried!

The L.O.C. Method for Moisturizing

I have tried a lot of different methods to restore moisture to my hair when it is dry which is most of the time. My biggest battle with my hair is dryness, hands down! I find that my hair is driest after a few days before wash day because it has a lot of build up and the moisture can't seem to penetrate through my strands because of the buildup. It kind of just sits on the hair. That said, I feel like I've made some good strides with my moisturizing regimen, so I will share with you my latest addition to my moisturizing regimen.  

The L.O.C. method
I read about this from different blogs online. It's very simple and not time consuming which makes it great for me. L.O.C. stands for liquid, oil, cream. And that refers to the order in which you apply this product to your strands. The liquid in my case is plain and simple water but you can use water mixed in with aloe vera juice or whatever you choose. I do section by section as I do with everything because my hair LOVES to tangle! I apply the water with the spray bottle and let it penetrate smoothing it through from root to tip with my hands and making sure to get in between the strands.
 Then I add my oil. The oils I love are castor oil, coconut oil but any oil will do. Olive oil, jojoba oil, etc. Do the same with the oil, smoothing it through.

Lastly, add a cream based product. In my case I use my Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie (found at Target and Walgreens for about $10). The thicker and creamier the better.  The whole theory of of it is locking in moisture and this is a good way to do it. I find my hair stays moisturized longer after doing this. I usually do this before stretching my hair because after dampening my hair this much, it will shrink and tangle. So if I"m wearing my hair out, I do it right before bed and put my hair into individual large loose twists or plaits and secure it for the night.

My hair in large twists after moisturizing

Tutorial: French Roll Updo

As promised, I have made a video tutorial for my french roll updo.  It's really a simple style but best done on an old twist out that still has some definition.  The video was done on a very old twist out that had lost all it's definition and gotten to be a little bit shrunken which is the worst case scenario.  The hairstyle still works though.  Forgive my poor quality webcam but I put a lot of time into this video for you guys and I hope it is helpful.  Here is the video:

Holiday Fun!

I had a great, low-key Christmas.  I got together with family the weekend before and had my mom and sisters up for dinner at my still somewhat new digs.  I cleaned and cooked and wrapped presents and wore myself out but it was worth it.  We had dinner and took some pictures together and that was that.  The next day, Christmas Eve, I worked and afterward went to a surprise anniversary party for some friends.  Good food, drinks, good company = great time!  The  next day, Christmas, me and my love opened presents, went for a walk at the park, then hung out with friends.  It was simple and sweet. 

Everyone together, bf, me, 2 sisters, mom, nephew and his friend

my mom, the kids, my dog Chloe and my youngest sister, Meikhele

My nephew Amir goofing off in front of the cameras

My favorite picture: love my sisters

Just for fun

New Year's we got to spend with my boyfriend's family on the other coast of Florida.  I got sick with the flu (yuck!) but luckily we got some fun in.  They had their traditional New Year's Day open house get-together with good food including homemade quiche, meatballs, rice and black eyed peas, and mimosas and friends of the family came by throughout out the day to celebrate the New Year with us.  I got to meet a Jamaican comedian by the name of Tony Hendrix "Jamaican Pale-Face" who had his own TV show in Jamaica (look him up on youtube!).  How cool is that?  I've been made to watch many youtube clips from his show so I was familiar with his comedy even though I wasn't living in Jamaica at the time he was popular so I wasn't very familiar otherwise.  Anyway, below is a photo of me with him.  I wore my hair in a twist top knot with my studded headband ... easy and no fuss.

Tony Hendrix: Meeting him was so much fun!

I came back to West Palm Beach, and took some days off work to recover from the flu... it was rough!  But I'm OK now.  And just like that... the holidays are over :(

I hope you all had wonderful holidays and great memories too.  Later Naturalistas!

Hairstyles: French Roll Sideswept Updo

 Here is a new hairstyle that I came up with for work and can also be worn for formal or semi-formal events for a polished look.  You will need loose, stretched hair for this that is at least between short and mid-length.  You will need many bobby pins and some kind of styling cream.  I prefer not to use gel as my styles are usual soft and loose but you can do this same style with gel for a firmer, tighter and more slicked back look.

The pictures are pretty self explanatory but I basically sectioned off a bang at the front for my sidesweep.  I pulled the rest of the hair back and starting at the nape, rolled and tucked the hair and secured with bobby pins.  At the top, I pulled down the loose hair and tucked it under with bobby pins.  I smoothed the edges and secured the loose pieces with bobby pins.  Then I swept the bangs to the side and secured with bobby pins. 

FYI, for those of you who didn't know I have a youtube channel that I haven't posted on in a very long time.  Just one of those things that went by the way side.  Anyway, I've had a recent surge of people who subscribed and that made me feel like maybe I should put some work into maintaining it.  This hairstyle is one of the videos I plan to do as a tutorial so stay updated for those.  I will post the vids and/or links on this blog as well.  For now, I hope the photos are enough.  Thanks for being patient with me! :)