Natural ID

So I'm going to take my new ID picture for my Driver's License in the morning...
My Hair?
I think i'm gonna fro it out!

My last ID picture was from my original, first learners permit. I was 15 then and natural too but my hair was pulled back into a banana clip (my everyday style back in HS) so you couldn't really see what my hair looked like.

I know i should be asleep but i'm thinking about how i should do my hair and makeup since this is the ID picture i will have for a while, and seeing as how i had my last one since i was 15.
Full fro or pulled back puff? idk?!?!

Im just so excited to have a new natural haired ID pic and i hope it comes out good =D

*** Update!!! This is just a quick flick i had snapped of what my hair and makeup looked like, i just hope my forehead doesn't look that huge on my ID! lol

We'll see when it comes in the mail in 2 weeks time

Length Checks and Length Goals

Just going through some length checks i've done since cutting off all of my relaxed hair...
I've cut a lot since i started growing, due to color damage but i am steady in my goals of health over length. That being said, in these past few months i have been doing search and destroys basically on a monthly basis and have had 3, quarter inch trims.
It may not sound like a lot to trim off but 2 inches is a lot to someone who only has about 3.5  inches of hair, lol!
Because i have been so busy i have definitely fallen off of my regimen bigtime, vitamins included, but i plan to go back into some type of protective styling in the next two weeks and get back on the bandwagon with my vitamins, excersize, water, and tying my head down @ night (or buying a new satin/silk pillow case).

(March 24th, 10 days after my cutting off the relaxed ends. This is inaccurate because my eyebrows were raised and on a weird angle, causing my hair to look longer than it was, but its above my eyebrows)

(May 21st)

July 17th

September 19th

Today! 

Although i have trimmed a lot i do see progress and i'm happy with it, now time to get back on track with her Majesty for the winter and see what she looks like by my birthday of 2011! 

I think i've also decided when i wanted to straighten my hair for the first time. 

I originally said for New Years but i think i will wait until 3/3/11! I think i'm going to make it my goal to go for Full Neck Length by then!

*Update! This is basically what i am going for. I personally do not want U or V shaped hair so i will be growing out the very layered portion at the bottom and leaving more layers on top and in the front.

Hair For the Week

I'm really not sure what's up with this weather! It was a beautiful weekend but now it's all rainy =( Like I mentioned before, my scalp and hair tend to act up when the weather makes unexpected changes, so I'm going to try and combat this the best way possible by wearing box braids for a bit....

I'm just showing off length here =)

*Pre-Poo with Burt's Bees Avocado Butter (1 hr)
*Shampoo with Giovanni Tea Tree Shampoo
*Conditioned with Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut
*Used Knot Today/Water mix as a leave-in
*IC Fantasia Gel to set on curlformers (to stretch my hair, I simply had no patience for magnetic rollers!)
*Sat under dryer for about an hour
*Brushed out my curls with paddle brush; divided my hair into four sections
*parted loosely and braided!

My plan is to leave these braids in two weeks at least! I will still be washing/co-washing once a week for my scalp's sake and moisturizing. Wonder what my 4th graders will be saying about my hair this week LOL.

Results From Teri's Method

So, my camera was mia for a bit so unfortunately I could not post pictures with as much details that I wanted to show. But here's what my hair looked like while my hair was still a little damp....

Up close and personal...look at how those defined curls!

I co-washed my hair with Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut, then used Herbal Essence and coconut oil to seal. My hair dried just like this. I had tons of movement and my hair and it felt super light. You see how my curls are clumped? Loved it. It was really hot yesterday so I pulled my hair into a banana clip and my curls stayed. If you haven't tried this yet and you have some sort of curl pattern, I highly recommend giving this a go. I would like to try this method with another conditioner, because Hello Hydration was a tad too greasy for my liking, but it could be because I'm terribly generous when adding conditioner to my hair.

Natural Hair-Positive Places

I intern in what most would say a "corporate" office in the Flatiron District in Manhattan during the day, and in the late afternoons I'm an after school teacher in Harlem. When I first started interning at this office a year and a half ago, I still had the frame of mind that straight hair = polished and professional. For my interview I remember I straightened my hair, and if it wasn't straight I kept my hair in braids and twists. It was around this time I started reading natural hair blogs and understanding I had options. I wore my hair big and fluffy in all types of styles and no one said anything or gave me a funny look. In fact, every so often I get compliments for my hair and occasionally someone will ask me what I how I did it. Even the three black women who have relaxed hair compliment my me. So I can safely say that this job is "natural hair positive."

As you may recall in this post, I wore my hair natural to my interview with the after school without second thought because as far as I'm concerned, this is how my hair is. There's no fixing it! I've been wearing twists, braid outs, buns, and everything in between. I am currently working with 4th graders and so the other day as I lined up the students to head to their cooking club, the girls inquired about my hair.

Miss, when you gonna get a relaxer?! M asked bluntly.
Get a relaxer? I said. Why should I get one?
Because your hair will be straight and pretty, S added smiling.
Ya'll don't like my hair like this?
No! I'm sorry to say but you would look so pretty if you straightened your hair! M said.
I snickered. I think my hair looks great the way it is. And this is how I was wearing it...

2nd day curls, held back with a banana clip!

Do you straighten it? Even if you don't get a perm, will you straighten it?
Sorry M, I like the way my hair is and I'm not gonna straighten it because you want me to. I'll do it when I feel like it.

As I was having this conversation with these girls, no older than 9 and with relaxed hair I didn't feel insulted. In fact, I was expecting it from the girls because they are at the age where they say what's on their mind and how you answer will be important. It was at that moment I also realized how confident I was with my hair. Even though natural my whole life, getting to a point where I just love myself took a while. What's even funnier about this whole situation is that I've actually been contemplating straightening my hair in the coming weeks, but now I may hold off for a bit longer!

 I now know what my seventh grade teacher felt like when she sported her curly hair and had everyone harassing her about just straightening her hair to look "pretty." I'm not interested in "converting" these girls to the natural side (quite honestly, their hairstyle choices may not be their decision) but they will be seeing a confident young woman in their classroom-curls and all! So both my jobs are natural hair-positive places because that's the environment I'm making it!

Crazy Weather! Hair Switch Up

Is it just me, or is the weather in NYC bonkers? My skin and scalp definitely respond to temperature changes before the weatherman declares anything. Today it's supposed to go up to 80-something degrees which explains why my scalp was on fire yesterday. So when I got home I had to take out my twists =( I put about 8 braids in my hair and washed my scalp with Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Threat shampoo and conditioned with Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut. It feels a lot better now, but I'm still annoyed that I had to take out my twists.

Then on a whim, I decided to try the Tightly Curly Method by Teri. Basically it's a way to define your curls with conditioner only. So I used my Herbal Essence Hello Hydration and worked it into each section of my hair and used my Denman Brush to go over each section. Then I smoothed my strands to lock in the curl. You can see Teri's directions along with a video. She also has a book out where she explains her process in more detail called Curly Like Me. I'm amazed in how well this method worked for my curls. I completely FORGOT to take pictures so I'm going to have to do it again either tonight or tomorrow just so I can show everyone how it worked for me.

Hair For the Week

I washed my hair and did a rollerset yesterday. I then brushed out the curls with a paddle brush and parted my hair in four sections. I flat twisted the front and did single twists in the back. I spritz my Knot Today/water mixture into each section and used Burts Bees Avocado Butter to seal. After I was done with each section I ran coconut oil into each section.

I'm going to be styling these twists in other ways as well so stay tuned...