So, have you met a Natural Hair Nazi? (Or are you a budding one?)
Add Comment Here are a couple of videos from the preceeding week. I learned that I can't quite manage my loose hair very well yet - lol! First the hair frizzed up and shrunk. Then the puff I made still produced A LOT of knots! Not to worry, I will be experimenting with aloe vera based sprays well before Summer so I can rock my fro, braid-outs and twist outs! Enjoy! Now for a review of the conditioner in the Curly Kinky range! 
#1. PJ-ism PJ stands for Product Junkie. It simply describes the slippery slope of becoming so obsessed with finding "the right product" that you accumulate too many that are barely used. A lot of these may even be poorly performing products that you heard some good reviews about and thought you would try out. There is nothing intrinsically wrong about trying out new products. The issue arises when there is no real thought behind why a product may work well for you (or not). Products with similar ingredients tend to have the same kind of effect. However, you can't argue that you NEED 5 of the same type of product! Beware of letting your wallet feel the effect of this easy obsession. Wean yourself by restricting purchases to once a month and only buying sample sizes of new products. #2. BandwagonsYou will see many of these on YouTube and hair forums. These can be quite motivating when you are new to the journey. However, not every hair product or technique is good for transitioning heads of hair. Some heavy products just make your relaxed ends limp and stick together and others just make your new growth beg for more moisture. Bandwagons targeted at naturals should be viewed with caution too as only 'some' of your hair is in that state. The safest bet is to watch one cycle of whatever challenge it is from the sidelines, see the results then decide about joining the next. #3. Hair Typing Hair typing can be useful for a natural to see what type of extra care needs to be given to her head of hair. However, a transitioner is not in the position to properly judge their hair type. Why? Simply, because you have relaxed ends affecting the way your new growth looks. You cannot truly tell your hair type until all the relaxed ends are cut off. There are other reasons why hair typing is not as helpful on one's journey: namely curl-obsession and divisive feelings between fellow naturals. #4. Heat StylingSome transitioners try to straighten their new growth to help blend the textures. They may have done this before when they were waiting between relaxer treatments. When you are embarking on a natural journey, this can easily lead to heat damage: natural texture alterations with the heat. This can be as little as a bit of a stretch to the curl/coil pattern and as bad as sections of new growth that don't revert back to a coil pattern. What's the point of transitioning to end up with hair you can't wear as an afro or other textured style. I couldn't leave you hanging for too long! Here it is, ladies and gents! She hides it so well! Enjoy! 
Crochet braids
Not every transitioner really KNOWS just what they are getting themselves into when they decide to go natural. I know I thought very hard before I decided. In fact, the year leading up to the decision is included in that time of contemplation. However, even the most prepared may find themselves caught out at the following hurdles. See if you have encountered any of these. Your hair was never "that bad" with a relaxerBy this, I mean ladies with well-maintained relaxed or coloured hair. Your hair grew long and may even have been quite thick with the chemicals in tow. So you may not feel the need to "put up with" the extra thickness of your natural hair. You may not want to take the time to "tame the beast" each styling session. If this is you, re-evaluate why you are transitioning and find more reasons to keep yourself motivated. Examples include - Discovering you own texture. Being you. Free of chemicals. Family/Friend NegativityOkay, we never said they would throw you a party to celebrate your decision. And we never said some people wouldn't feel like your impending transition chop is a ticking bomb above them. You need to understand their perspective too. This is how they have seen you all your life. The change will take time for them. Don't take any of their misguided and misjudged attempts at swaying you from your decision affect you too deeply. Bottom line is, it's your hair. If you like the end result, who cares what anyone else thinks. Just don't phrase it like that out loud....lol! "When are you getting your hair done?"This is a phrase I heard many a time. And to consider that the lady giving me this has a TWA until her early twenties! It's funny how quickly people become used to the status-quo of relaxed hair. Just smile and keep it moving. Now, people touch my hair and are surprised by "how soft it is" and "how versatile it is". You are the best example for them so just keep your cool and keep looking good. This is not a license to go out with un-styled (unkempt) hair. That is never cute! Not being down with "shrinkage"If you are still hung up on seeing length, you may not be able to finish this transition. Or worse, you may finish it, only to return to the chemicals again in a few months. If this is you, you may not be ready for the natural stage of your hair journey. If you still want to be natural, you may want to research using heat sparingly to show your length. By sparingly, I mean once every few months. This way, you satisfy that part of you that wants to see length. You could also try heat-free ways to stretch your hair before styling. Check out this post on "Shrinkage" for more details. Here are videos on Curlformers and African Braiding - two styles that stretched my hair wonderfully! Improper /Incomplete ResearchCount the cost before you set sail. You need to be able to make the round trip. I printed off several pages of information on any new product or technique and gave each one a few weeks of trial before accepting or discarding them. This is what you must be prepared for in your transition. Furthermore, your hair will change as the transition lengthens. You will find that certain products won't work as well anymore. Neither will certain techniques (my most shocking was needing to detangle in the shower). Be ready to roll with the punches and always run back to the drawing board - hair forums- for more information whenever you hit a wall. What have your transitioning stumblingblocks been? 
More Co-washingI tried the other methods of cleansing my hair during my transition. I had already abandoned shampooing before the transition, however, I went back to it to try out new products as the transition grew close to an end. What a mistake! I had to really work hard to get the moisture BACK into my hair. For me, co-washing was IT! Sure, Clay treatments are great for clarifying but I still would follow with a moisture-boosting co-wash! More Deep ConditioningI was downright lazy (sometimes) when it came to deep conditioning as the transition lengthened. I started with weekly deep conditions. Then fell into the bi-weekly sessions. I even remember buying a table-top steamer for the purpose of Deep Conditioning more frequently. Did it happen? Nope. I just sacrificed deep conditioning for keeping certain hairstyles going for longer. However, in the last year, when I was wearing two-strand twists with my OWN HAIR, I really had no excuse not to do this more regularly. And still, two weeks usually went by before the sit down. And the steamer was usually out of sight..... More Detangling SessionsHere, I will be honest. There were times I would go for a month or two without detangling. Sure, I was wearing a protective style like braids or twists at the time. However, it just made my hair feel 'Alien' to me when it came time to detangle! I needed the regular practice to really learn how to keep the breakage to a minimum during these sessions. Secondly, I wish I knew I could switch up my detangling method, By this, I mean that I was trying to detangle damp hair post-wash when my hair got to a stage where the majority of natural hair to relaxed ends meant shower detangling was now the right way. Again, I would have seen this sooner if I didn't put off detangling for so long. More product swapsThat way, I would have realized sooner what became obvious later. My transitioning hair was changing. It went from having mainly relaxed and texlaxed ends to having more transitioning hair than anything else. Obviously, the products that worked before soon became a joke to my new growth! No more silicone-filled conditioner bliss. No more light leave-in conditioners (did not make a dent in my hair). Definitely needed a lot more moisture in my products! More heat-free stylingI initially used heat to do length checks until I realized that this practice was just breaking my ends. Once bitten, twice shy. I moved on to try protective styling. Imagine my surprise when I found that the African Braiding Method was great for stretching my hair, as are Curlformers! I wish I had jumped on the heat-free styling much earlier! What have your changed in your regimen during your transition? #1. Braids/Twists
I initially started doing these with extensions and graduated to doing them on my own hair. Box braids are a wonderful style for growing out your hair before the transition chop. Twists with or without extensions allow you to have your hair in a ponytail or bun and still take care of your hair. Video tutorial here! The main thing is to ensure you moisturize your hair really well. A water-based spray is a good daily move. And wrap your hair with a satin scarf at night. Above all, rock it like Solange! #2. Roller-sets/ Straw-sets
These are styles you can do with or without heat being applied to your hair. This will help you to blend your new growth with your relaxed ends. Roller-sets take quite a bit of practice to do by yourself but you can still pamper yourself with the occasional salon visit for these. Video tutorial! Straw-sets give a more shrunken curly style to get your friends and family more used to you with curly, springy hair! #3. Buns and Updos
Okay, these were my main stay for the first year of my transition. They are so easy to do and you can hide a multitude of fluffy hair days! Just spray with a water -based moisturizer, smooth back with a bit of gel and you're good to go! Video tutorial (sock-bun) here! #4. Wigs
Long hair, short hair, curly hair, straight hair... you can achieve any look in seconds! These are the ultimate protective style. You can be very realistic with these and you are still able to see your hair every evening. Half-wigs allow you to blend your hair with the wig even better. Remember to wear a good wig cap and keep moisturizing your hair every day! Video tutorial here! #5. Braid-outs/Twist-outs
Again, these blend your new growth with your relaxed hair and gets people used to seeing you with thicker, bigger hair! Enjoy! Video tutorial! Newly Natural | 3 Months Post- length check + Twist out 
Finally playing in my hair! For this twist out, I used Shea Moisture's Restorative Conditioner and coconut oil to set it and took down with a shea butter mix I made a while ago (coconut oil and olive oil in it). Click below for more pictures and to watch the videos. Enjoy! Hair today | First twist-out - FAIL!  So I decided after seeing Laila-Jean's fierce twist-out on Sunday - at the Hairitage Event - that I would start wearing my hair out. I had those twists in place for a few days but daily spritzing with water and aloe vera juice meant my twists were still not 100% dry. I couldn't wait, I separated and fluffed and went out for the day. Needless to day, my hair did shrink up as the day went on. I didn't mind though! It was nice to know my hair could defy gravity! Here are some more pictures for you, ladies and gents! Enjoy! Big Chop Time | You've waited long enough! | LolasCurls
 Some call me hair-obsessed..
I'm just a hair enthusiast! From hair inspiration to product reviews: this is the place! Subscribe below! Email lolascurls@gmail.com Photography: I do not own the copyright of the all the pictures. I will post links to the source. CategoriesAll   Hair length chart |
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