Awww cute!

I finally got to take another pic with her! Last pics i had of us togeher we were still in HS!

Natural Hair Sensitivity

I'm not really natural hair militant, until of course someone offends me personally. But there's a big difference between being personally attacked and someone's personal preference. I heard about Method Man apparently disliking natural hair (or the way it's worn, something to that effect) and while I personally wasn't offended by his comments I did notice that some naturals were--and I completely understand why. I started thinking more about it and wondered if those of us who rock our natural hair are too sensitive. I think yes but for very good reason. I don't think I need to reiterate the complicated history people of color have with hair, and while it's so awesome to see women embracing it, it's still being thought of as a fad, as if this storm is going to be over. In my New York (probably Harlem) accent, nah homie.

Hair for me was tied into my self-esteem, which is much better these days. So now I don't really care how others perceive me through my hair. At the office I work in, there's this guy who constantly comments on my hair: Changed it up again today I see, I'm convinced you change your hair everyday and uh oh pony tail! These comments are more annoying then they are offensive but I do wonder why he's so interested in making comments about my hair. Is it bad that my hair seems to change everyday (which it doesn't, it's weekly) does he see me as someone who can't commit to things? In the end, who gives a shit?

And then, there's how we are wearing our natural hair. Afros aren't appropriate (allegedly), short hair makes you "look like a boy"and protective styles like braids can make you look child-like. But this is our hair, and I thought one of the points of being natural is that you're not conforming, we're being ourselves. I really do not believe in certain natural hair looks being appropriate or not because that is subjective, it's personal preference and should not get in the way of our journey. Some people assume that when you're hair is done (like my family) it's in braids or twists. Others believe you're fancy when your hair is straight. In other words, the individual rocking natural hair is the one who sets the tone for themselves. We have to accept it for ourselves, and can't wait for validation from others, especially those who have no understanding of what natural haired folks of color go through. YOU have to accept your hair. And then perhaps we can be a little less sensitive because no one should be allowed to take confidence away from you.

I just braided my hair in preparation for a braid out. But while playing with it some more I thought, I could possibly go out with these possibly child-like braids...

I just used some bobby-pins to tuck my braids in. Perhaps this isn't everyone's preference and this might not be "done up enough" for the likes of Method Man, but I'm okay with it. Please keep your head up naturals, and feel free to let me know the sort of convos you have about natural hair sensitivity.

Hair this past week...

I've been so busy this past week but I will say this has been a pretty good hair week for me =) I'm starting to realize how much my hair is growing now and how much my hair loves twists and twist outs, i think doing styles around twists and twist outs really help me to retain length. I soooo can't wait to see what my hair is going to look like this summer! OKay, enough length obsessing, lol.

So i went to the Karen's Body Beautiful meet up this past Friday in BK and it was beautiful! Since i knew i would be going, after i prepooed on wednesday, i put my hair into some flat twist to wear until i untwisted on Friday. 

Unfortunately i got there late so i missed a lot of mixing and mingling but there was gorgeous hair galore! This was like the only pic i got :( See Karen's huge afro all the way over there! Lovin it!!!

This is how i wore my hair (Curly Film chick told me to wear tha fro-hawk so i did =)

I wore the fro-hawk hairstyle yesterday as well, and today to switch it up a little i came up with this!:

I guess i will refer to this as the "Pin-Down" method.

 I used about 14-15 bobby pins in total since  my hair isn't long enough to be pulled over to the side and i tried to stick them in equi-distant from each other so it would look like a style. Personally i love it and the fact that my hair is getting back to a more versatile, stylable length!!!

I love side parts!

Playing with puffs while pre-pooing!

I decided to pre-poo my hair today with some Alma oil, so i added a little water mixed with conditoner and proceedeed to apply the oil to my hair. I loved the way my hair was looking and feeling so shiny and silky, and took this as a perfect moment for some play time for me and my hair!
*TWA ladies! When you have extra time on your wash days, that may be the perfect time to play with your hair and do a little experimenting! Conditioners, oils, and creams make the hair soft and easily pliable for play time.
Okay, confession: I REALLY want Thugnificent Afro puffs! You know, these:

Lol, dont laugh at me! His puffs are awesome!!! So anyways, i started to see if my hair could make into two and i got this:

Pretty cute right! I don't care if it looks like a baby hairstyle, i might just rock those little puffs! I decided to try bigger puffs, and got this!!!:

I loved the way the 2 puffs came out so i actually plan to do a twist out just to try doing 2 puffs soon! 

More pics under the jump of my little puffs and me just having fun takin pics in my sunglasses since i still had the "just woke up" face, lol.

What do you wanna try with your next hair playtime?

New Hair Goals

In thinking about what to do with my hair, I noticed that I'm always learning something new about it. In 2010 I learned that my hair and scalp thrives on being cleansed with high quality, moisturizing shampoos. I also notice that I have to adjust my regimen according to weather changes because my hair and skin react differently. I've also been pretty good with length retention and haven't experienced much breakage. But what I need to really work on in 2011 is taking care of my ends. I'm thinking of growing all this hair of mine to mid-back length simply so that I can rock really long braids ^___^

Since the trim I got when SP straightened my hair,  I've been paying special attention to them as I freakishly check to make sure that my hair isn't drying and breaking--especially because I have colored strands. I know that there will always be some wear and tare to hair but here are some things to keep in mind to minimize/prevent splits and breakage:

- moisture
- low manipulation
- handling my hair gently
- continuing washing my hair in sections
- strengthening treatments (not entirely sure what those will be yet though!)

I had a wash day this past weekend where I used bentonite clay, air dried in braids and then twisted my hair up. I haven't really been in much of a mood to style my hair (which was definitely a win when I was rocking it straight--easy routine) so I just put in some twists all over my head and have been wearing them pulled back in a ponytail like so

I've been spritzing my hair with a homemade mixture of aloe vera juice, conditioner, water and some coconut oil daily and then I keep it moving. With the really busy schedule I've been keeping lately, low maintenance hair has been awesome!

TWA Twist-out Fro-hawk

So i tried a new product which i will  review later called Noodle Head Curling Creme. Whenever i buy a new styling product i am always anxious to try it out, so of course i went for the trusty twist-out and decided to frohawk it because i didnt like the way the sides were hanging.

I loved the outcome and so did everyone else! It could have lasted me a few days but the little girls i babysit were loving it too so their little hands were in it and made it frizzy :( oh well.. lol

TWA Trial and Error

Hello TWA ladies and gentle-guys!
I've been thinking about everything TWA while sort of obsessing about growing my hair out...
Looking back at all the mistakes I've made and regrets I have, I'm here to tell you ladies to save yourself the headache!!!  Now if you're rockin' and loving having a TWA and are thinking of or are maintaining a TWA this may not pertain to you, but if you have a TWA and are dreaming of waist-length hair, listen up!

Trial and Error ladies!!! (and gents =)
So yes, as a newly natural, most of the things you do at first will be trial and error because you will be learning a whole new texture, products and procedures. It is totally normal for something to go wrong during these beginning stages, but everything doesn't have to go completely wrong when there is a world of information out there available... well maybe not a world, but we do have our own natural hair world!
My point? Do your research first!!!


Thinking about getting COLOR?
Look for naturals who have also colored their hair. If you want to know the long term effects of color, try finding someone who has been coloring for a while and look at their hair with the color over time. Compare it to their natural (uncolored) hair if you can. Look at the naturals who were colored and then chopped the color off, the colored hair broke off or they decided to grow it out. See what their reasoning's and regimens were and of course take it with a grain of salt because every one's hair is different. This may give you a whole new perspective on color and if you even still want to color your TWA.

Thinking about getting a chemical service?
BKT? Texturizer? Relaxer even? (Color included)
Trust me, I know how hard it is to have a TWA with it sometimes being so boring and having few options. I myself have been tempted by the perm box girl's perfect hair or just walking down the aisle with all the hair dye options... sometimes it's hard to look away but you may just have to tell yourself no!

You don't to touch fire to know that it's hot, and you don't have to put yourself through uneccessary headaches either by making the wrong choices with your hair. Setbacks suck so avoid them :)

Overly Curly?

I made mention in a post not too long ago about how I felt about my cosmetology school textbooks referring to our hair as "overly curly." I just don't like that because to me, it makes it seem like something is wrong with our hair; Like it's too curly. I just don't get what that's suppossed to mean. I needed to study for an exam and remembered I had the disc that came with the curriculum. When I found this clip, I had to show you what I mean! In the whole clip they're describing curls and curl patterns, why does our hair have to be mentioned with a negative tone? No one reffers to Asian hair as 'overly straight.'

Is it just me? What do you think? I'm really interested in hearing how other people feel about this.

Healthy Body: Green Tea

I've mentioned that I'm being more health conscious then I ever have been on my own and I think I'm starting to feel the benefits now. I no longer eat meat (much to the dismay of my pops who can't imagine such a meal without goat or lamb) which means I could be missing certain things in a balanced diet such as protein. So I've been paying more attention to what I'm consuming and what I'm putting in my body because I want to be healthy. I believe a combination of things--not one miracle food/vitamin--is what makes a good diet. And the key is being consistent--over time you'll see the results.

Lately I've been consuming a daily cup of green tea, (although it is suggested to drink about 3 cups a day for full benefits). I grew up drinking it because my family is HUGE on all sorts of herbs and teas to drink. Once I reached "puberty" my grandmother required that I try to have a cup of green tea every day, sweetened with organic honey (not sugar) and decaffeinated. Occasionally I also added lemon juice to it. I personally drink my tea without anything but it's mostly because I'm drinking it at work and all they have is sugar. So why green tea?

- helps with metabolism, and weight loss
- contains epigallocatechil gallate, an antioxidant that hinders cancer cell growth
- cleanses the body of toxins
- fights bacteria
*Source


I'm going to try and drink the tea 3 times daily, once in the morning (like I've been doing) once in the mid-afternoon, and then another before or after dinner. I found this article on WebMD discussing what the science community is saying about green tea and why they are finding it useful. Remember that healthy hair starts from within the body so if you're on that journey be sure to drink some tea!

My Buns

I'm starting to feel the "itchy" on my scalp. I've had my hair straight for one week and while I've been enjoying it, I'm ready to wash and do something else to it. And with lack of camera charger (!!!) all I can really give you is this and hope you can see what I did...

I've been doing buns folks, simply using an ouchless band and bobby pins. I made a ponytail then pull different pieces of hair around my ouchless band to create this side bun. I wanted to see if I could make a full bun without using a donut and so far so good. I love it!

Allow Us To Re-Introduce

We see you new followers! Thanks for joining the blog, and of course major shout outs to those who have been hanging with us for a bit. Want to know why named our blog Your Africa is Showing! Check the about this blog for the story...

For those who are lurking/new to the blog, we (as in SP Styles and Curly Film Chick) are two natural 20-somethings based in New York City. SP Styles rocks a TWA and is also an actual hair stylist who loves all things hair, fashion, and make-up. She's all over the YAIS youtube channel with her helpful tips for the newly natural folks. Curly Film Chick has lots o' hair and is learning how to style and retain the length of hair. She's been natural her whole life but is just now getting the hang of her tresses and embracing it and is learning to balance her life--health wise--in conjunction with natural hair. For more info on us, click the above tabs with our names.

Expect to see posts not only about natural hair, but on our interests and lifestyles for the 20-something urbanistas. Have any questions/comments/concerns? email us at yais.nyc@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter at YAISnyc!

Feel free to introduce yourselves to us in the comments (especially you lurkers!) and link us up to your blogs/fokti if you have any!

Happy Reading!

*SP Styles & Curly Film Chick*

Straight Natural!

Hey everyone! It's been a minute since I showed pics or talked about how my hair has been, mostly because I cannot locate the charger to my camera #annoyed. Currently my hair is straight and it was actually done by SP herself the day after she flat-ironed her TWA. (note: I had a braided/twisted updo before which I'll post once I find the charger!) Here are the products used:

*pre-poo with Burts Bees Avocado Butter
*shampoo with YES To Carrots!
*DC and detangled with Herbal Essence Hello Hydration
*Added Vatika coconut, lemon, and alma oil
*Blow dry (with comb attatchment) using CHI 44 Iron Guard (heat protector spray)
*Flat-ironed with Chi Silk Fusion


And here are pics of the process...

Straightened and Styled

I decided to style my hair today but instead of doing the Mohawk i decided to style my hair the way i was wearing it before i decided to go natural and start transitioning in weaves. Since people seem to like celebrity comparisons, as I change my hair a lot and some one always has their idea of who they felt like i copied, i would say it's something like the Halle Berry Boomerang cut, but a little longer in the back and on the sides.
I  made a video of me flat ironing/styling my hair so as soon as i get it edited i will post it up :) In the meantime, here go some pics of the outcome. I have to say I'm pretty impressed with how straight my hair got and how easily it styled. Not that i didn't think it would get straight, but it just looks so perfect! lol Anyhooo... On to the pics... lol

 More pics under the jump =D

Flatironed Natural TWA

 Step 1. Co-washed and  Finger Detangled using HEHH
 Step 2. Applied Vatika coconut oil, CHI 44 Iron Guard Heat   protector spray, and CHI Silk Infusion
 Step 3. Sectioned and Blowdryed
Step 4. Added more CHI Silk Infusion and Flatironed
Step 5. Silk wrapped
Step 6. Trimmed

There is nothing wrong with a natural girl wanting to rock the straight look every once in a while, but if your ends are bent out of shape, it's gonna show. In my opinion, if i'm gonna wear straight hair, i dont want afro ends taking away from the silky flatironed look. Afro Ends? Just me referring to the way split ends look on straight natural hair. I silkwrapped my hair (wrapping the hair and then wrapping taughtly with Saran wrap) and sat under the dryer for about 10 minutes to see if i could get my ends to straighten out a little more... i wanted to make sure that i wouldnt be trimming too much. My hair grew quite a bit since my second chop and i do love the shape it's growing into.

More under the jump :)