Bantu Knot Success!

Finally! Last night I co-washed, air dried and set my hair with bantu knots. This morning, my hair looked pretty good! I have received a lot of compliments from my co-workers, and my man, which is rare.

Again, I co-washed with V05, applied Salerm 21 leave-in, my aloe vera juice mix and some Hawaiian Silky 14-in-1. After my hair dried, I applied more Hawaiian Silky, some Silk Elements Mousse, and sealed my ends with KeraCare Essential Oils. I did 3 bantu knots- one on each side and one in the back. I usually do 6 or 7, but I've realized that doing fewer knots makes my hair look so much thicker. I was worried when I went to bed about the one knot in the back, but when I woke up, it looked great. I just put a little oil on my ends and some serum on my hair for shine. I still need to work on getting the top of my hair smooth, but I'm happy with the results overall.

My edges look a little better today than yesterday too. I did the scarf method on my edges while it dried. I didn't use the aloe vera gel; instead I used Paul Mitchell Foaming Pomade. My hair stylist used to use it to slick my hair down when it was short. It worked okay, but I'm still looking for something better. The good thing is that my hair covers most of my edges today. I still have some Elasta QP Glaze at home, so I'll try that tonight. If that doesn't work, I'll have to go shopping for something. I forgot to take a picture, but I'll try to take one later tonight.

I also need to do something about these gray platinum hairs sprouting up around my edges. I had been using the Adore black rinse, but it has started to dry my hair out. Plus, after a while black rinses become permanent in my hair, so I don't want to do them as often. I've been seriously considering henna, but I'm going to wait until after my next relaxer.

Update: I took a picture when I got home from work:

Air Drying

It's has been hot as hades lately. I washed and rollerset my hair on Saturday, but by Tuesday, it was so nasty from all the sweating I did over the weekend, I had to wash it. I used to be very cold-natured, but ever since I got pregnant last year, my body temperature is about 10 degrees higher. I thought I would balance back out after having the baby, but nope. Anyway, I had to wash my hair last night. I co-washed with V05. When I got out of the shower, I applied a little Salerm 21 leave-in, and sprayed my new aloe vera juice-glycerin-water mix (thanks Traycee). I put a little Hawaiian Silky 14-in-1 on my ends. I then put some aloe vera gel to my edges, put a scarf just around my edges, and let my hair airdry.

Because it was 200 degrees outside, my hair didn't take long to dry at all. I couldn't believe how soft and moist my hair was! I didn't want to do a braidout or bantu knot out because I'm still new to these styles, and I never know what I'm going to get. I wasn't trying to go to work looking crazy. So I put a little moisturizer in my hair, sealed my ends with oil, put my hair in a bun and went to bed. This morning, my hair was rough! My ends were good though- probably from the oil and from tucking them in. I just put some more moisturizer on my hair and put it in a side bun. I would have liked my hair and my edges to be smoother. The aloe vera gel isn't cutting it on my edges, so I'll have to try a better gel. Also, for my hair, I probably should have kept smoothing my hair down like Sunshyne does. But at least I know I can airdry! I may co-wash again and try the bantu knots. Worst thing that can happen is that I have to put my hair up in a bun, right?

Mega Care Grape Seed Oil

I have written about how much I love grape seed oil a few times on here. I have to admit though, that the oil I use is not 100% grape seed oil. I use the Mega Care brand, which has other oils in it. I love this stuff! It keeps my hair really smooth- even if my hair gets frizzy from the weather or something, I apply a little of this to my hair and it's smooth again! The best part is that it only cost me 99 cents at my local beauty supply store. AND, I've been on this same bottle for almost 2 years. A little goes a long way. I seal with it almost every day, and for my last wash, I added a few drops to my conditioner. I may buy 100% grape seed oil one day, but for now, I'm sticking with this. Here's what it looks like. Sorry for the bad picture- I took it with my phone, and the bottle is a little grimy. I did say that I've had it for 2 years!


Ingredients: Grape seed oil, sweet almond oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, castor oil, wheat germ oil, tocopherol (vitamin e), fragrance

All of these oils are really good. My hair usually loves anything with sunflower oil. I've also seen Mega Care shea butter oil, carrot oil, olive oil and tea tree oil. I tried the shea butter oil and wasn't that impressed with it on my hair, but it's pretty good for my skin.

Product Reflection

I don’t know what is going on with my hair right now, but I. don’t. like. it. I’m sure a lot of it has to do with the post partum shedding earlier this year. It just feels thin to me. It’s also been harder to keep it moisturized lately. I’m starting to re-evaluate some of my products. I haven’t been trying a lot of different products, but I do feel like I need to go back to what has worked for me in the past and stick with those products:

Pre-poo: I’ve been pre-pooing lately with either just vatika oil, or the Jason’s conditioner, which I don’t like, but wanted to use it up. I should just toss it, because it’s not good as a pre-poo either. I used to use Organix conditioner, so since it’s on sale at CVS this week, I’ll get some and use that to pre-poo later this week.

Shampoo: For my last couple of washes, I’ve been using Hair One for color treated hair with jojoba. I find that products for color treated hair do well for me even though I don’t have color. Also, the other kind of Hair One was the olive oil formula, and my hair doesn’t like olive oil. I’m going to stick with the Hair One for a few more weeks, because I do think it’s better than using shampoo for me.

Leave-in: I used to be able to tell a distinct difference when applying my leave-in, but it hasn’t been happening lately. The Giovanni Direct Leave-in formula has changed, but I thought it was better once I started diluting it with water. I just don’t have that same feeling anymore. I used Infusium 23 leave-in this weekend, and I had instant slip, my hair detangled super easily and my hair felt stronger and moisturized after I took my rollers out. I think this will be a consistent part of my regimen.

Deep conditioner: I still really like the ORS Replenishing conditioner. This weekend I mixed in some of my grapeseed oil mix and I loved how it made my hair feel. I will continue to add a few drops of oil to my conditioners.

Protein: I’ve been slacking on the protein ever since I got rid of my Aphogee 2 minute treatment—it wasn’t doing anything for my hair. Not using enough protein is probably the source of my problems. This weekend I used the Ion protein pack (it was 99 cents at Sallys). It helped a little, but nothing makes my hair strong like mayonnaise, so I’ll be doing a mayo treatment in a couple of weeks.

Moisturizer: I just remembered that I’m 6 weeks post relaxer, and my hair usually changes around this time, and I need to increase my moisture level. Also, I have a lot more new growth than usual, so I definitely need to use more moisturizer. I’m going to start applying castor oil to my scalp twice a week.

I recently bought some aloe vera juice and glycerin, so I will experiment on incorporating them into my regimen.

As far as styling goes, I’m getting better at the bantu knots. I actually went out- to a social function- with them this weekend. My hair looks a lot thicker when it’s textured like this, so I’m going to try do more of them this summer and maybe even try them during the week. Besides, it’s too hot to sit under the dryer with rollers every week!

7/1/10 Update: After writing this, I went home and took action. I oiled my scalp with castor oil and moisturized my ends with some B&B Oil. I think I used a little too much castor oil, but my hair was so much happier regardless of that. I usually only use the B&B Oil Moisturizer when I'm past 6 weeks post relaxer. My hair loves it. Ever since then, my hair has felt and looked much better. I will clarify this weekend because maybe I just have too much product in my hair.

Summer Protective Styles

I saw these styles on realsimple.com. I think they're all great summer protective styles. I wear the first style a lot around the house, but I think I'll wear it when I go out on the weekends too, even though my bf doesn't like it! The second style is cute and reminds me to get some nice headbands. The third style is great for a casual look or with a nice dress. It's also a little like bantu knots, so you could have a wavy style the next day.

Bantu Knots 2.0

Thanks to Traycee, I tried Silk Elements Designing Silk Mousse for my bantu knot out this weekend. This is what I did:

1. Co-washed with V05 Moisture Milks
2. Applied Salerm 21 leave-in, some serum and a dime-sized amount of Aussie conditioner to my hair
3. Put a scarf on my edges and air dried for about an hour
4. Applied Silk Elements Designing Silk Mousse to my hair and did 5 bantu knots. I also put some KeraCare Essential Oils on the ends
5. In the morning my hair was still a little damp so I sat under the dryer for about 15 minutes

My hair definitely had more waves, and they kept all day. It actually looked like a braid out. My ends were not straight at all, which is what I wanted. Overall, I was pleased. The only thing I did not like was that my hair wasn't as smooth as I wished. I think I need to do only 4 knots, and I also either need to let my hair air dry completely before the knots, or do the knots immediately and sit under the dryer. I think sitting under the dryer will make my hair smoother.

June 2010 Hair Update

I haven't been posting recently, mainly because nothing new is going on with my hair. I've just been trying to keep it as moisturized as possible, and deep conditioning to get my thickness back- I lost a lot from postpartum shedding.

I have also been experimenting with bantu knots and braidouts. I've decided to concentrate on the bantu knots. Braidouts take too much time and I feel like it's too much manipulation on my fine strands. I have been doing the bantu knots on the weekends, before I wash my hair. I'm not ready to risk it by wearing the style during the week when I have to work. So, I usually like how they come out, but the waves don't last- maybe I need some kind of product that will help them hold? The only product I used was Hawaiian Silky 14-in-1 on my dry hair. Yesterday, I thought my hair was too curly, but after spending 10 minutes outside, parts of my hair were straight again. I also think my ends are too straight, so I need to work on getting the ends a little more curly. Here's how I looked as soon as I took the knots out:




I tried a black tea rinse last week. I want to do it one more time before I have a definitive opinion!