Protecting the Ends II

I've fallen in love with two strand twists !! My hair feels more moisturized than ever! I put my hair in twists on Thursday and left them in until Saturday afternoon. On Saturday, I took out my twists, which was a breeze. My hair is still quite defined and today is Monday. I'm planning on redoing my twists on Wednesday or Thursday night. It's wonderful to have found a protective style that works for my hair at it's current length. Additionally, my morning routine is über quick now. It took me about 1.5 hours to twist all my hair, but for me it's worth it in the long run. This week, I'll probably leave the twists in longer, at least 4 -5 days.

When my hair was in twists, at night I put the twists in 3 sections and put on a satin scarf. When I took my untwisted my hair, at night, I pull them together or made two sections. I really feel this style works well to keep my ends hydrated. Hopefully, this will help me on my goal to reach APL (stretched) by my 2 year mark (Mar 2013).

How long do you keep your twists in? Do you think twists assist in length retention?

Keeping Hair (esp. ends) moisturized

I wash my hair twice per week. There's nothing like the first day when I wash and deep condition my hair, it's always super soft and shiny. As days pass, it tends to get dryer and slightly rougher. To keep my hair soft and shiny past day 1 hair, here are some tips that work for me:

After washing hair and conditioning or deep conditioning sessions, I put in a moisturizing leave in, seal my hair with my oil of choice, paying close attention to the ends of my strands. Style as desired.

Sounds familiar and easy enough to do right? That's because it is. The part of my routine that left me scratching my head was the night routine. I'd ask myself -- How do I keep my natural hair styled so I don't have to manipulate it too much or wash it again the next day? Well, I feel as though I've finally found some answers to this question and have a consistent night time routine.

I either place my hair in mini pineapples, lightly spritz them with water and rub a little EVOO or argan oil on my ends, put on a satin scarf and call it a day. Another method I discovered, which I'm liking a lot is to lightly spritzy my hair, place my hair in four large plaits or loose braids (two on the side, two in the back), rub oil on my ends and put on a satin scarf. The second method is really versatile, because it allows you to stretch your hair. The next day, I can either wear my hair in a braid/plait out or pull it back into a little puff. I find when I braid my damp hair, it maintains moisture and keeps my hair's cuticles slicked down, which equals less frizz. I think I'll be doing more of option 2 as my hair grows longer.

What is your night routine?

xoxo

Cones

For the first time since becoming natural I used a conditioner with a cone! My hair feels amazing! My ends feel just as smooth as my roots for once. This really makes me rethink some of my hair practices. The product is Nivea Nutri Cashmere conditioner. In addition to dimethicone, it also has rice protein. I'm on my way out to enjoy the sunshine, but a review on this product will be coming up soon.
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I purchased Nivea's Nutri Cashmere conditioner the other day. It had cones and a bunch of other ingredients that wouldn't make the "natural list", however, something was calling me towards it. It could have been the word cashmere, the pretty bottle and more importantly the decent price. For whatever reason, I threw caution to the wind, ran to the cashier and used it the same night I purchased it.

First here is what it claims to do:

• Gives dry hair a cashmere feeling and moisturizes it, without weighing it down.
• Makes it easier to detangle hair.

I've only used it once, but my initial opinion is that it delivers all of the above points.

So here's my personal take on the product:

Rating scale: 1 horrible - 5 wonderful 
Consistency - 5
The conditioner has a medium, creamy consistency. It's not too thin and runny nor too thick and clumpy.

Smell - 3
It smells really clean, kind of like dryer sheets. This is not necessarily a bad thing, I just prefer fruity or herbal scents.

Slip - 5
My tangles melted immediately, right after applying the conditioner, it made detangling a breeze.

Conditioning properties - 5
My hair is still really soft and my curls pop more than usual after using this conditioner.

Overall rating - 5
This one is a keeper, I can deal with the smell. My hair felt like cashmere after using this.

xoxo

Protecting the Ends in the Summer

At 8 months I transitioned chopped. Back then, maintaining healthy, moisturized hair was super easy. Now at 14 months, keeping my hair moisturized involves more work than before. To whip my ends into shape and to prevent becoming dry and brittle, I've stepped up my routine. I implemented 3 nightly deep conditioning treatments:
Prepoo once per week, the night before I plan on shampooing. I generally apply coconut oil on dry hair, concentrating on the ends. I then put on a plastic cap and leave it on overnight.

Once per week I do a dry deep treatment. On days when I plan on cowashing, I apply conditioner to dry hair, concentrating on my ends. I then put on a satin cap and leave it on overnight. The next morning I wet my hair and detangle. The tangles seem to melt away.

Once per week I do a deep conditioner overnight on damp hair.

3xs per week may be a bit extreme, however I'm sleeping during all treatments, so it's not so demanding. I'm already seeing remarkable results, my ends are much softer and tangle less. We live in a warm and dry environment, thus it's important that I adapt my routine to fit the elements. I feel like I'm on my way to healthier summer hair with this new regimen!

Another measure I take is sealing my ends with an oil that penetrates the hair shaft. Every night I place a small amount of oil on my ends before going to sleep, when I'm not doing a conditioning treatment. The oils that work really well for me are: argan, olive, kukui and my whipped shea butter mixture (cocao butter, shea, argan and monoi).

Finally, I've purchased a couple of cute summer hats and baseball caps to protect my hair during peak hours (12 -3). This is especially vital if I plan on spending a day at the beach.

Is your hair summer ready? What products and routines do you use to maintain healthy hair during the summer heat?

xoxo

Before and After

BEFORE

AFTER

No, there is no mistake in the caption of the above pictures. See what happened was, last week, I wanted to flat-iron my hair. I did, but on the same day, I also washed it and pulled it back (see AFTER). My hair started our like my BEFORE pic and finished looking like my AFTER.

Before I describe the process, I'll start by saying this is what I did wrong/did not do and will definitely do differently, when I decide to flat-iron in the future:

pre-poo
deep conditioner 
chase method
do the process on a day where I have no obligations
use a better flat-iron

So as you can see, I was off to a great start!

I started off by shampooing then doing a short intense deep-conditioning treatment with Kérastase Oleo Relax line. My hair felt soft, in my opinion, so I proceeded to apply my leave in and heat protectants on wet detangled hair. I sectioned my hair and then blow dried each section. As I reached the ends of my hair, the comb often got stuck. I thought it was due to tangles, but then realized my ends were dry and brittle. I decided to give myself and trim, hell almost a cut! No need for me to hold on to dead ends!

Next, I pulled out my generic Baby Bliss titanium flat iron and continued to flat-iron small sections of hair. My results were okay, but my hair felt dry. Half-way through the process, I realized, I didn't have time to finish my entire head, as I had an obligation in the afternoon. Anyway, I was neither happy with the way my hair looked nor felt. In the heat of the moment, I decided to just wash my hair and pull it back. I have to admit in the shower I kept worrying the curls would never return, they did and I'm happy I listened to my conscience.

This experience taught me the importance of deep conditioning. I won't flat-iron my hair again for a while. I went swimming in a pool the day before I flat-ironed--- I was crazy to even to attempt it, I know!

For the moment, I'm implementing more prepoos (1xs per week) and deep conditioning sessions (2 xs per week) into my routine. My ends were in pretty bad shape, so I make sure I seal them with oil. I also oil my ends lightly every night before going to sleep.




Have you flat-ironed your natural hair, what was your experience? Any tips? Any recommendations for a good, affordable flat-iron?

XOXO