Friday, January 22, 2010

A trip down memory lane...

Wow, it's hard to believe that on February 28, 2010 it will be my 1 year anniversary as being 100% natural. I cut the last of my relaxed ends off (about a half an inch) and haven't looked back since. I've had such a journey with growth, products trials and errors, styling frustration, getting used to the new texture, and people's as well as my own reaction to my hair. It's amazing the difference a year makes. I started this journey wearing micro braids at the end of 2007/beginning of 2008 after a botched perm. Boy was my hair destroyed! It was dry, brittle and just destroyed. Now my hair is full and much stronger. So I've decided to post pics as a walk down memory lane and on Feb. 28, 2010 I will post my comparison pics. I can't wait to see the difference!!
Micro braids 2008

First Twist Out 100% Natural June 2009

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Hair Sticks and Barrettes

Today I received my first shipment of a hair stick and barrette from Mehandi. They are made of water buffalo horn and are completely seamless. I am so excited and so in love with these sticks. The designs are beautifully hand carved and they hold my thick kinky curly hair perfectly well. I've played with these sticks all morning and I am totally in love with them. They can be dressed up or down and just look plain awesome. I will definitely be ordering more and build an awesome collection. Pics are below!

Ciao,

KinkyShea




Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Vitamin Routine Change...


Ok, so I haven't seen much benefit of taking a multivitamin plus 2000 mg of Biotin and 2000mcg of MSM. I've been on this routine for about 2 months now and haven't noticed much of a difference. So I've gone back to GNC's Hair, Skin and Nails (which has 3000mg of Biotin and 100mcg of MSM) added another 1000 mg of Biotin and 2000mcg of MSM and an Iron supplement (to combat my anemia). I started this program today and hopefully I will notice some results.



Ciao,

KinkyShea

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Henna Mix w/ Safflower Oil Results

This morning I did a henna treatment with henna mixed with lemon juice an 1/4 cup of safflower oil. I let the mixture set on my hair for a little over 4 hours rinsed out with Giovanni Smooth As Silk Deep Moisture Conditioner and used JCWDC as a deep conditioner for an hour. After I massaged my scalp with Wild Growth Hair Oil and applied my leave in conditioner mix with the light version of the WGHO. The results???

1. When I rinsed out the henna I noticed immediately how easy it was to rinse. In the past it took several applications of conditioner to get the henna rinsed. This time I only had to apply conditioner twice and rinsed. There was still some henna in the hair but when I rinsed after d/c it was all gone.

2. My hair didn't feel dry or brittle after rinsing. However it looks as though my hair did get darker. Not sure how or what caused this but I don't mind it. I also noticed little springs of curls at the ends of my twists. My hair felt pretty good.

3. After the deep conditioning and leave in my hair looks and feels awesome. No dry, crunchy, brittleness. My twists feel soft and moisturized. There is even some shine creeping in.


Final Judgement: Looks like safflower oil is a definite go for my henna treatments. I'll be using this again and again. I'm glad I came up with the idea!

Saturday, January 16, 2010

The Mixtress is In...




It's henna time! I always get excited when it's time to put henna in my hair. I've done this quite a few times now with different mixes. I've done a henna and indigo combo, a henna mixed with lemon juice, henna mixed with green tea, and tonight I'm going to try a new mix. I've always noticed that when I rinse my hair from henna and do a deep conditioning my hair feels stiff and crunchy. Well since lemon juice can be very drying (it's highly acidic) I decided to try adding a little something to add moisture. So I've decided to mix the henna with lemon juice (until it looks like pudding) and then add 1/4 cup of safflower oil and mixed extra well. I'm going to let it sit over night and apply when I wake in the morning. I have already co washed my hair in prep for the treatment.

So why safflower oil? Because, safflower oil is an emollient. What is an emollient? An emollient is wax like, lubricating, thickening ingredient that can prevent water loss and have a softening and smoothing effect on skin and hair. So if lemon juice is drying on the hair then the emollient will help prevent the water loss and help soften and smooth the hair. Now why am I mixing the henna with lemon juice? The acidity level of the lemon juice helps release the dye of the henna which gives the coppery red coloring when applied to the skin. The mixture needs to set over night or for about 4-5 hours to get proper dye release. The dye from the henna adds a unique coloring quality to the hair. The greatest thing about it is that it's all natural, hypoallergenic, and the best part of all...no two heads will look the same after a henna treatment. For women with black hair sometimes the hair will look darker and in some it will impart a red/auburn tint to it (sort of like taking a red crayon and coloring on black construction paper). For some the henna dye is clearly visible, where as others you'll only be able to see it in certain lighting (like the sun).

So why use henna in the first place? Henna actually thickens the hair strand and helps to strengthen the hair. So with repeated use the hair becomes thicker and stronger. Henna can also help with hair growth. Because the hair is stronger there is less breakage. In natural African American kinky curly hair henna can also help loosen the curl pattern which I love. Henna is one of my favorite things to use on my hair as I absolutely love it. My hair has changed dramatically due to it.

So tomorrow after leaving henna on for about 4 hours I will do a 1 hour deep conditioning treatment with Jessicurl's Weekly Deep Treatment, which is rich in yummy ingredients for hair. I am super excited to see how this will turn out. Oh and by the way, my hair is still in twists and I will be applying the henna with the twists in my hair. I may have to re twist after but we'll see. I will post my results tomorrow night!


Ciao,


KinkyShea

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

CurlyZebra





Ok, I just checked the mail and I finally got my CurlyZebra.com hat! It's pictured above! I love this hat. It's especially made for curly hair. The inside is satin lined which eliminates friction and breakage. It doesn't try out the hair and helps minimize static. It's super cute and super warm and it was only $25 with shipping included. I've been looking for a winter hat for so long that was safe for curly hair. The site makes hats for adults and children in different styles and colors. I think every curly should have one of these to protect against the harsh winter air as well as be wonderfully stylish. The only downside to this site is that it took about two weeks for the hat to arrive and there is no faster shipping options, but it was worth the wait.


http://www.curlyzebra.com/
ciao,
KinkyShea

Routine Update...

Ok for about two weeks now I have been wearing my hair in medium sized twists and wearing up do's just about everyday. I re twist once a week and deep condition twice a week, with a henna treatment thrown in here and there. I also added Wild Growth Hair Oil to the routine as well, more for moisture than anything else. So this is what's happening thus far. When I re twisted my hair on Sunday there was a significantly less hair in the comb which means less breakage. My hair is nice and moist thanks in part to the WGHO and conditioner/oil mix. Styling my hair in the morning is super quick and easy, which I love as I am up 4 out of 5 work days at 3 am. Plus, wearing up dos (loosely) keeps the hair from rubbing against any clothing and getting snagged. I love the ease of twists. I haven't noticed any growth yet but the fact that there is less hair in the comb after a week of not combing makes me pretty excited as I'm keeping more hair on my head. So so far so good. No complaints. I'll probably keep this up for the rest of the month and on into March. Thus far, thumbs up!


Ciao,

KinkyShea

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Wild Growth Hair Oil


My curiosity finally got the best of me. The other day while browsing around in Sally's, I picked up my usual bottle of Wild Growth Hair Oil Light Moisturizer and out of curiosity I picked up the original formula. I've read tons of reviews about this product, almost all of which positive with the exception of the smell. So, I thought I'd give it a try. At the very least it could help moisturize my hair. So I got home and opened up the bottle and most of the reviews were right. This product does smell like beef jerky! The oil was thick and a dark honey color. So I massaged a few drops into my scalp and added some to my actual hair. The smell was awful. So I had to follow it up with my conditioner, water, and oil mixture which thankfully has a few drops of peppermint oil for fragrance. The peppermint oil pretty much knocked out the smell. I didn't really notice much difference in my hair at this time.

This morning I washed my hair and did the same routine with the hair oil and leave-in mixture. I untwisted and re twisted my hair and noticed that my hair felt much softer. Softer than it had ever felt before. For a few minutes I just stood there touching my hair. It felt great. Eventually I re-twisted my hair and styled.

So conclusion? So far so good I'm liking this product. The product does smell but it's pretty easy to cover up. So I'll keep using and see what happens. Even if I don't get the hair growth at least I'll get the softness.

Ciao,

KinkyShea

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Keep It Simple, Baby!!



OK, I will admit. I am totally paranoid about winter breakage and damage especially living in the harsh New Hampshire winter environment. The high winds on some days don't help either. I've had slow but great progress thus far with my hair and I want to keep it that way. Protective styling is the way to go and low manipulation. Sunday, after deep conditioning I put my hair in several two strand twists and during the week I sleep with my silk scarf and pillow case with the strands in. I pin my hair up during the day for protective styling. I plan to deep condition twice a week and co-wash twice a week as well and restyling once a week. I plan to keep using my conditioner, oil, and water mix as a leave in and to add moisture. I will keep my vitamin regimen and my exercising at 5 days a week. I plan to do this "Keeping it simple" technique for the entire month of January and see how well my hair grows.
Ciao- KinkyShea
P.S: These pics were taken after being at work since 0430 and an hour and a half workout. Not bad, eh?

Twists in Up-do


Length Check with Twists


Top of Head




Back View

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Jessicurl Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment


Ok, so I've been looking at this product for months now and reading the reviews. Finally, earlier this week I took the plunge and purchased my very own jar of Jessicurl Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment. So how did this work on my 4a/4B hair? Well let's find out.

Let's start with the ingredients list.

Ingredients: Water infused with Lemongrass, Nettle, Burdock, Kelp, Marshmallow Root, Horsetail, Basil, Bay Leaf, Oregano, Rosemary, Peppermint, Sage and Thyme, Behentrimonium Methosulfate and Ceteral Alcohol, Shea Butter, Avocado Oil, Cocoa Butter, Lecithin, Aloe Vera Powder, Diazolidinyl Urea (and) Iodopropynyl Butylcorbamate, Fragrance.


What I did: Co-Washed with Giovanni's Smooth as Silk Deep Moisture Conditioner. Applied JC Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment to damp hair. Applied processing cap and left in over night. In the morning rinsed and styled in two strand twists.


Results: Wow. This conditioner not only felt great going on it felt great after rinsing. It was thick and creamy and my hair sucked it right up. My hair was soft and felt great after rinsing. No crunchy hardness or stiff felling here. My new growth was beautifully curled and as soft as the rest of my hair. Oh and the scent was great too. I ordered the Island Fantasy scent. This is definitely a keeper and I will be ordering more.

Friday, January 1, 2010

Hair Idol




Every naturally curly girl (or non curly girl for that matter) has a hair idol. For a long time Diana Ross was my hair idol but the more I learned about my hair and it's texture the more I started looking to women with a hair type more similar to mine. Needless to say I've found a new hair idol and she is the beautifully natural Erykah Badu. Not only is she amazingly talented, I cannot say enough about her hair. It's got length volume and kinks and curls galore. I absolutely adore the way she rocks her fabulous mane. Hair envy? Damn straight! I hope to sport a mane like hers (or at least something close). Rock on Erykah! My hair resolution/goal for the new year is volume, volume, volume! Did I mention volume?? We'll see what happens...

Ciao,

KinkyShea

New Year, New Blog



Happy New Year! In honor of the new year and my upcoming 1 year anniversary of being 100% natural I've decided to start a blog. I've chosen to blog about my experiences and adventures in caring for my natural hair so that I may not only share in my experiences but track my progress as well. I will be posting reviews on products, styles,hair tools, a few books, as well as sharing in some of my favorite blogs, websites, and communities.

Now allow me to introduce myself.

My name is KinkySheaPT and I am a 4A/4B textured natural curly. I am a military wife and certified personal trainer currently living in New England. I have been 100% natural since February 2009, with my last relaxer in the summer of 2006. I used braids to transition and finally started living with my natural hair last year. I am still learning the do's and don'ts of natural hair. I've learned about summer routines, deep conditioning, regular moisturizing, etc. As you will see I am still very much a work in progress. So what's my current routine? Well thanks to a fellow curly, a Natural Big Sister if you will, I've found a routine to help keep moisture in my hair in this harsh New England winter air. My current routine (complete with product list) is as follows:

Co-wash (washing hair with conditioner): twice a week with Giovanni Smooth As Silk Deep Moisture Conditioner.

Leave-in/Moisturizer: Herbal Essences Color Me Happy, mixed with filtered tap water (for fluidity), and Wild Growth Hair Oil Light Moisturizer.

Henna: 100 mg mixed with Green tea and lemon juice twice month.

Style: Usually flat twists, with the leave-in. I use the twist-and-curls occasionally.

Tools: Wooden wide tooth comb (from The Body Shop) for styling and to detangle and a Denman 31 Brush (rarely used).

As every natural knows part of taking care of natural hair is taking care of the inside as well as the outside. A good diet, exercise, and a regular vitamin routine goes a long way. As a personal trainer, I've got the good diet and exercise down. The vitamin routine I'm still tweaking. Here is my current routine:

Vitamins: One A Day Women's Weight Smart Advantage, 2000mg of Biotin and 2000 mg of MSM. So far so good. I've been doing this for the last two months and my new growth has been coming in much softer and the curl pattern is looser (could also be from the Henna as well).

Deep Conditioner: Deep conditioning is very important for natural hair (especially in the winter). Earlier this week, I ordered a jar of Jessicurl's Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment. I've never tried this product before and have read great reviews on this. I'm eager to try it tomorrow and will post my results. Hopefully, I will fall in love with it like everyone else. We shall see...

Ciao,
KinkyShea