THANK YOU

Since my last post about transitioning, I have gotten quite a few extremely encouraging messages and comments.  I just want to thank all of you for your support and encouragement.  Thank you for the links, and resources and the product recommendations, and just making the effort to connect with me.  Thank you for telling me that you follow me and get inspiration/information/encouragement/etc. from me. I am truly humbled.  One reader has been so generous with her advice and resources, that I tear up every time I get a message from her, because she has taken time out of her day to think about me and help me.

I've had this blog for 4 years, and I knew some people read it, but I had no idea how much I've been able to help others.  I originally started this blog to track my own healthy hair journey, and my heart feels full to know that I have helped others do the same.  Honestly, I'm not the best blogger out there.  I don't have challenges or giveaways or polls, but I do really appreciate all of my readers and the great advice and support you give me.  I  know for sure that I have gotten more from you than you have gotten from me.  Even one comment from one of my posts can turn my attitude to positive and make my day better.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I will try to do more to give back to you, I promise!

Something Has to Change

Over the past 6 months, I've seriously considered transitioning to natural.  Between my getting older, and my hair getting longer, I just don't like how thin my hair looks, even when it's in a healthy state.  Even when my stylist using a mild relaxer, my hair just comes out too straight for my taste.  Maybe I'll try self-texlaxing in about a month, when I'm at least 12 weeks post relaxer, but I really want to stretch it out and figure out how to manage my new growth.  I've had a relaxer since I was 13, and I would like to see what my real texture is like.  I'm sure it's changed, AND since I wasn't properly conditioning my hair when I was younger, I don't know if I ever knew what my texture was.  All I know is that I cannot and will not continue to abuse my hair with a bone straight relaxer.  My mother, her sister, and my aunts on my father's side have all said that their hair just couldn't take relaxers at some point.

The other night I talked to my girlfriend who has been natural for quite a while now. She wears weaves mostly, but lets her natural hair out every couple of months or so.  She is really encouraging, even if I don't want to wear my natural hair the way she wears hers.  I know that this will be a new journey for me- physically and mentally.  I also know that I'll probably have to start over with most of my products and tools.  On one hand, I'm scared and worried, but on the other hand, I know that if I take care of my hair properly and listen to what it needs, I will have such a better head of hair.  Also, even though I only go to the salon for relaxers and trims, I would save so much money and time being a complete DIYer.  I hate going to the salon. I am hardly ever happy with how my hair looks after I leave, and I feel like I'm wasting precious time when I could be doing other things.

March 2012 Hair Update

After the gym on Monday, I had to wash my hair.  The weather was unseasonably warm, so that and zumba class kicking my butt made my hair a mess. Also, I put a black rinse in it a few days prior, and every time I touched my head, my hand had turned black!  I didn't rollerset my hair, though. It was hot in my house, it was late, and I just didn't feel like doing it.  So I airdried using the scarf method.  When I woke up, my hair was still a little damp, but my edges were laid down, so I wore a low side bun to work, which I thought looked cute.

Tuesday night, I decided to put about 6 bantu knots in my hair over night. When I woke up Wednesday and took the knots out, my hair looked okay. Not great, but I thought it looked okay for me to wear it out for the day.  I put on a pretty dress and some make-up to make me feel a little better.  It was a little windy, and by the time I got to work, my waves had loosened up a bit. By the end of the day, I looked a mess.  When I got home, I put my hair in a bun and went to the gym.  After the gym, I knew I had to wet my hair and do something else.  I deep conditioned on dry hair for about 45 minutes with a mixture of Lustrasilk Shea Butter Mango Cholesterol Conditioner and jojoba, almond and olive oils.  I washed it out with Hair One's Argan Oil Cleansing Conditioner.  This was the first time I used the Argan Oil formula (for curly hair), and I like it SO much better than the Jojoba one I had been using.  I don't know, maybe the deep conditioner complimented it. When I got out of the shower, my hair was so moist and shiny.  I towel dried, and applied Matrix Daily Leave-In Tonic & Infusium 23 leave-in and let it air dry for a little while.  When it was about 60% dry, I blow dried my hair on a low setting and flat ironed using Organix Coconut Anti-Breakage Serum as a protectant.  I cross-wrapped my hair and went to bed.  I'm pretty pleased with my how my hair came out, considering I don't feel like I have the blow drying/flat ironing thing down!

I'm still loving my moisturizer and my leave in, and my edges are doing really well without me having to put a lot of gel or other gunk on them.  I love, love, love the egg protein treatment, which I've been doing at least every other week.  I'm also thinking about re-visiting henna.  We'll see...

Product Review: Organic Root Stimulator HAIRepair Anti-Breakage Strength Creme

I received a sample of the Organic Root Stimulator (ORS) HAIRepair Intense Moisture Creme and the Anti-Breakage Creme in the mail a few weeks ago.  I used the ORS Moisturizing Hair lotion for a short time, and I still use it on my son's hair.  The lotion didn't do much for me, but I decided to try the cremes from this new HAIRepair line from ORS since I hadn't found a good moisturizer I could use consistently.  I thought this might be a good product to try, especially since I've been experiencing some breakage.

Product Description
Helps moisturize and strengthen weak and damaged hair.  Formulated with a blend of bamboo extract, shea butter, and other essential ingredients that have been known to help reduce breakage and dryness in natural and relaxed hair.  With continued use, hair will appear stronger with a beautiful, healthy-looking shine.

• Formulated With A Blend Of Bamboo Extract And Shea Butter
• Moisturizes And Conditions Weak And Damaged Hair
• Helps Reduce Breakage And Dryness In Hair
• For Healthy Looking Hair

Ingredients

Aqua (Water), C12-15 Alkyl, Benzoate, Isopropyl Palmitate, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 60, PEG-150 Stearate Cetyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, PEG-20 Hydrogenated Lanolin, PEG-40 Stearate, Sodium Cetearyl Sulfate, Cyclomethicone, PEG-25 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Butryospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Prunues Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Bamboo (Bambusa Vulgaris) Extract, Dimethicone Methionine, Tocopheryl Acetate, Zea Mays (Corn) Oil, BHA, BHT, Triethanoamine, Carbomer, DMDM Hydantoin, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Parfum (Fragrance), Benzyl Benzoate, Geraniol, Lilal, d-Limonene, CI 19140 (Yellow #5), CI 15985 (Yellow #6)

Directions

Use daily or as often as needed. Apply a small amount to the scalp and massage.  Comb through for even distribution from root to end.  May also be applied directly to ends for added protection.

My Experience

I tried the Intense Moisture Creme sample first, and it didn't do much for my hair.   A couple of days later, I tried the Anti-Breakage Creme after I washed my hair and took my rollers out.  I applied a small amount to each section of hair, and I could tell that it immediately moisturized my hair.  I can hardly ever get my roots to a moisture level I want, but using this product has kept my entire strand moist and shiny.  I've also been struggling with my hair looking dull, and this moisturizer made my hair shine, even when I don't have a fresh black rinse to help.  This moisturizer is much different than the ORS Hair Lotion.  I don't like how the Lotion seems to sit on my hair, while the Anti-Breakage Creme feels like it id penetrating my.  I also don't like the way my hands feel after using the Lotion.  With the Anti-Breakage Creme, my hands do get a little oily, but they don't feel sticky or "greazy" like the Lotion does.  This moisturizer also doesn't weigh my hair down.  At all.

I've been using this moisturizer for 2 weeks, at least once a day, and I love it.  It is the best moisturizer I have used in a very long time.  I still seal with oil, but I'm not sure I need to.  My breakage has decreased dramatically, and my hair is even feeling stronger.  I went to my local beauty supply store and purchased a regular sized jar for $4.99, which I think is a steal!

New Products for 2012

It's no secret that I have NOT been happy with my hair lately, so I've been trying some new products to give my hair what it needs to get back on track.  I want to use them consistently a little while longer before I do full reviews:

Aubrey Organics GPB Conditioner
Matrix Biolage Daily Leave-in Tonic
ORS HAIRepair Anti-Breakage Strength Creme

I used all three of these products for my last wash, and so far I'm loving how moisturized and strong my hair is.