Jesus is the Reason for the Season

Jesus is the reason for the season.  This means that Christmas is for Christ (Jesus).  My family has always celebrated Christmas as Jesus' birthday but when you are a child all you think about is receiving gifts.   Christmas was "the day" that we received things that we had been wishing for all year long.  As an adult I now know the real reason for this day of celebration. Even though Jesus was probably not born on December 25 we do take that day as a day of rememberance of His birthday.

Remember above all else that Jesus wants His birthday present.  Turn your life over to Him and receive the free Salvation that He has to offer.  Your soul is all He wants as a birthday present.  Turn it over to Hm so that H may present it to His Father (God).  Once Jesus hands you over to God no one and I mean no one can pluck you from Him.  Once God has you you are his forever.  Amen

Trip to Delaware

Sooooo my son plays football for Delaware State University.  He's been there for 4 years and I have never visited the school.  So this year he said he was going to be all alone on Senior Day and he wouldn't have any family members there to walk with him.  Guess what?  We went to Delware a couple of weeks ago.  We included Ms. RosieVelt (my sister), MommaVelt (lol), my daughter and myself.

We flew to Baltimore, Maryland and drove over To Dover, Delaware.  My daughter had to go through the metal detector three times and the finally had to use the wand on her.  She has on all this jewelry and a big belt, lol.  This was Ms. Rosie's and my daughter's first time flying soooo as the plane was ascending we were the only four people hollering, lol. 

We had an awesome time in Delaware and my son has a picture showing his mother and grandmother walking him out on the field on Senior Day!!!

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That's my son hugging the football coach while the

school's president is watching. My mom and I am standing

 behind my son and the coach (see the red cap, lol)

By the way we also drove over to Washington, DC.  We saw the White House!!!  We couldn't find a park so my sister, MsRosieVelt got out and took some pictures.  It was such a great experience.  We plan on going back again real soon.  He will be graduating in the Spring of 2012 and we all have to be there to experience it.

Talk to you later....

Checking In....

I haven't been on my blog lately, shame on me!  Well I'm back!!! 

Wow, a lot has been going on lately.  I reached my one year anniversary at the end of November.  I was very excited that I was approaching my anniversary and guess what?  I forgot about it and it didn't cross my mind again until today, Decemeber 2.  I missed it :(.  Anywho my hair is beautiful and florishing.

Wow, one year of growth!!!

I blow dryed my hair about 80% dry and this was the result.  I was very shocked at how much my hair has grown!  I hadn't straightened it since I flat ironed it a few months ago.  I started to flat iron it but I had flash backs from the last time and I said "naw, I'm not gonna do it". 

Now I'm rocking twist outs.  I finally have enough hair to have a successful twist out.  Look at the results below from a fresh twist out.  My daughter claims I only take pictures of myself at work, lol.

I'm loving this natural thang....

Update, Raves and Rants

I am loving this natural thing!!!  I spend a whole lot more time on my hair now that I did when it was relaxed.  I have not found a main style for my hair but I love wash and go's.  Pretty soon I am going to have to find a style for winter.  Any suggestions???

In the picture above I'm wearing a wash and go with eco styler gel.  I slathered on the gel and slicked down my hair towards the back.  Next I got in the shower and soaked my hair with warm water and attempted to shake out as much water as I could (can you say dizzy).  I dried it off a little bit with a tee shirt to removed more water and shaked my head some more.  I really loved the defined coils that I was left with.  It took all day for this to dry. 

If you looked at the post when I flat ironed my hair you will notice in the picture that my ends looked a little notty.  My sister MsRosieVelt though that maybe there were fairy knots on my ends sooooo guess what I did?  I dusted/trimmed my ends!  Since doing this I have noticed that my ends are much curlier and don't shrink as much.

Some people like to hold onto as much length as they can get and wouldn't dare trim their ends.  Me, I have no problem trimming my ends especially if it's going to give me better results.  If you can notice in the picture above most of the ends were curly but there were kit a bit of straight ones.

More to come soon....

Thanks for Comments and Thanks to New Followers

Thanks to my recently joined followers!!!  I was suprised when I signed in to check on my blog and noticed that I have 3 new followers.  Thanks again.

Also, thanks for all of the comments that I have received on this blog.  For some reason or another I am not able to comments on your comments (go figure...).  Maybe it's me or maybe its my computer or MAYBE its Google, lol.  Thanks for the comments.  I have answered and or replied to all of the comments by email so don't think I don't care, I care a lot!!!

I love talking about natural hair.  I dusted/clipped my ends (pictures to come in a day or so).  My sister MsRosieVelt said that maybe there were fairy knots on my ends so I just did the do.  This will be discussed in my next post.

More to come this weekend.

I did it....

Look at what I did.....

I flat ironed my hair!  I bought a blow dryer and a new flat iron.  I thought it was about time that I flat iron my hair just to see how much growth I have.  I used Silk Elements MegaSilk Olive Oil Heat Protection Spray before I used the blow dryer and before I used the flat iron (just to be safe).  

I was impressed with the growth!  Afterwards I wrapped it and went to bed.  The next morning I'm like "what am I suppose to do with this hair?"  My hair was straight but was also curly at the ends which made it kind of difficult to comb through.  So I decided to go back to what I know best, my curls.  I shampooed my hair and applied my leave in conditioner.   

To my surprise the curls did not snap right back!  So decided to shingle my hair with my trusty Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel.  Slowly the curls began to reappear.  I love the results I got!  My curls are not as tight as they usually are.  My hair is hanging to the side instead of puffing up into an afro.

I don't plan on flat ironing again anytime soon.  

Until next time.... 

Results of Twist Out

The twist out was a success!!!  I have attempted a twist out on several occassions but this is the first one that I would go out of the house with.  The curls were really defined but I did take some out to early (last night) and that's why it's frizzy on the top otherwise I loved it.  I will be using the Jamaican Mango & Lime Locking Creme Wax again.

Well......

Well the wig thing lasted for about a week, lol.  I got tired of all of that hair and the pressure that it was putting on my head.  But it wasn't all the hot under the wig because I wore it mostly at work and it's always so cold in the office.

Last Saturday I did a great little style and work it for the full week.  I braided the front and did little plaits in the back.  It was cute but it was a pain to take them out.  You have to be very careful when removing plaits.  It took about 2 hours to put them in and about 3 hours to take them out so I won't be doing that again anytime soon.

I went to the store today to but some more Elastra QP Olive Oil and Mango Butter Moisturizer and I saw the Jamaican Mango & Lime Locking Creme Wax and I though hummm, why don't you give this a try?  So I bought it. 

I came home shampooed and conditioned my hair and put big braids in to stretch it.  After about 2 hours I took out the big braids and did a few smaller braids in the front and put some 2 strand twists in the back.  I applied the wax to each section of my hair and started twisting.  After I finished I knew I had used too much.  Well you live and learn!

The first few ingredents are no no's in the natural community.  The first one is Petrolatum, the second is mineral oil and then Microcrystaline wax, D&S yellow#11, (and then the good stuff) Mango Butter, Lime Extract, Virgin Coconut Oil, Chlorophyll, Green Tea Extract and Fragrance.

I think I'm going to have a great twist out tomorrow.  I will post pictures tomorrow if its successful.  Next time I will not put as much product on my twists. 

Until then.....

Protective Mode!!!

No, this is not my hair, lol.  I am going to give my hair a rest and rock this wig for a couple of months.  I'm in protective mode.

Lately I have been manipulating my hair a lot (blowout, stretching, afros, etc.) so I decided to let it rest and see how much it will grow.  Currently my natural hair is braided.  My plan is to keep it braided for a week.  Every Saturday I will take it down, wash it, condition it and put it back in its protective style.  Before braiding it back I will moisturize it with either my whipped shea butter (I made it) or the Elastra QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer.  I love the Elastra QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer.  Its one of only a few products that I have used up entirely and will have to purchase some more.  Both products are very moisturizing.

Afro, or should I say Afro puff

Check out the afro puff.  Before I put on the band my afro was hugh (in my sights).  This photo also shows some of the shrinkage I experience that day. 

The night before I washed my hair and conditioned it with my two best friends.  Afterwards I applied my whipped shea butter (I made it) and braided my hair while it was still damp.  I braided it to stretch my hair because I did not want to use heat.  In the morning I undid the braids and picked it out.  It was fully moisturized all day by the whipped shea butter. 

Look at the Fro

Look at the Fro!

My New Best Friends

Well after all of my ranting about needing different products I decided to go out an do some "me" shopping.  Look at what I found at Walgreens:

Nourishing coconut milk shampoo and conditioner.  I bought these because  they were buy one get one free and they had 50% more product for free.  So for $7.99 I think I got a pretty good deal.


I immediately went home and washed my hair!  Must I say that I really, really love these products.  I went back to Walgreens to purchase another set but all of the bonus sizes were gone so I didn't purchase anymore.

I also purchase some Elasta QP products from Walgreens.  The Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer (bonus size 80% free) was about $3.99 and the Glaze Conditioning Shining Gel (50% more) was about $3.49.  This was a very good day for me.  I love, love the Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer.  It smells yummy, kind of like mango ice cream.

I used these products to do finger coils in my hair.  It turned out pretty good.  Usually I would use gel to do these coils and like I said earlier I was looking for other products (not wet ones) to do styles with.  I think I have found that product!  My hair is shiny and it's very soft but it holds the styles perfectly.  I'm going to see how long I can rock these coils.


More to come later...

June Update

Yea, I have been natural for 7 months after transitioning for 6 months.  I am enjoying this!  Now I'm wondering if I still have a twa.  My hair is too long for wash and goes but it's not long enough for the beautiful twist outs and braid outs that I see all over You Tube.  What's a girl to do?

A friend at work asked me when was I going to straighten (flat iron) my hair.  Well I haven't really given it a thought.  If I flat iron my hair in this Florida heat it will revert back before I can make it in the office.  I really don't have any desire to straighten my hair at this time.  I love the curly locs that I have.

I still have not found the perfect curl defining product(s) for me.  Do you have any suggestions?  The Eco Styler gel really works to define my curls but I want to find something that's not so wet.  When I use the Eco Styler gel it takes a really long time to dry and I don't like walking around with a wet head.

I'm still learning and adjusting to my natural hair and I have no desire to go back to the creamy crack.

More to come...

Products That I've Used So Far

A lot of people are product junkies but I don't want to be one of those people, lol.  Over the past 6 months I have tried a few products, some of them I liked and some I hated.  I'm going to give you my opinion on some of the products I have tried.

Cantu Shea Butter -- This was the very first product I purchased while I was transitioning.  I needed something to soften up the bush.  I used it for braid out and twist outs but I didn't like the smell and it didn't go well with a lot of other products.

Jamaican Black Castor Oil -- I love, love, love this product.  I apply it to my scalp.  It softens up the hair and gives it a light sheen.  Recently I purchased a cold press castor oil and it does basically the same thing but it does not smell as good as the JBCO.

Beautiful Curls Shea Butter Curl Activating Cream -- OMG I hated the smell of this product right away but I still used it.  It cost $13 so you know I had to give it a couple of tries.  The jury is still out on this one.  I attempted to do a few twistouts with this but they didn't turn on the way I wanted it to.  I think I'm going to try this product again once my hair is longer.

Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie -- The jury is still out on this product also.  It smells ok but after a while I kinda get tired of the smell.  I use it to do twist outs and braid outs but they also come out frizzy.  I have my hair braided right now with this product.  If this braid out does not turn out right I will not use this product again until my hair gets longer.

Eco Styler Gels -- This is one of my staple products.  I love this one.  I mostly use the olive oil version but I have used the moroccan oil gel.  The only problem is I can't use a leave in condition with the gel so my solution is to co-wash when I get in from work apply my leave in conditioner and then rinse my hair in the morning.  Now the hair will be ready for me to apply the gel.

Organic Root Stimulator Lock & Twist Gel -- I love this product.  I use it to do finger coils but after a few days it starts to break down and flake.

Infusium 23 -- This is a great leave in treatment/conditioner.  I mix it with vegetable glycerine and water and spray it on my hair after washing it. 

Giovanni Smooth as Silk Deep Moisture Conditioner -- I love this product.  I use it mostly for co-washing.  It leaves you hair smooth.

Giovanni Direct Leave-In Weightless Moisture Conditioner --  I also love this product.  It is a great leave in condition and it makes my hair soft and silky feeling.  I use my tangle teezer to work it into my hair.

Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Replenshing Pak -- This is a must have deep conditioner.  I leave it in my hair for about an hour or so.  My hair is super soft when its rinsed out.

These are most of the products that I use.  I think my hair is a type 4a/4b.  I have a little patch in the front that will not curl I think it may be a 4c or something.  If you have any suggestions on products or what products work together best please let me know.  I'm still learning how to take care of my hair. 

Thanks to all of the ladies on You Tube.  Without your help a lot of us new naturals would be lost or we would still have relaxed hair.

Until next time...

Why I Decided to go Natural

I have been suffering from very bad dandruff for a long, long time.  No matter what type of shampoo  I used (believe me I have tried many) I was never able to get rid of the dandruff.  One day I came to the conclusion that my dandruff was a result of the relaxer.  You know the drill, relax the hair, burn the scalp, scalp starts healing, the scabs begin to slough off (my dandruff) and before it completely healed I would relax it again.  My scalp never had the chance to heal completely! 

I contemplated going natural for more than a year.  I would start to transition and before you know it the creamy crack was calling my name.  I was not mentally prepared and could not handle the new growth so I would relax it. 

In May 2010 everything changed!  I made it up in my mind that I was going natural!  My youngest sister has been natural for almost two years.  She gave me a lot of encouragement in the beginning and she gave me a lot more encouragement during the transitioning period.


Dandruff has had a lot to do with me going natural.  Now my dandruff is under control and I am able to wear black blouses without the worry of having white stuff on my shoulders.

It's been almost a year since I decided to go natural and I have loved just about every minute of it.  I have no intention of going back to the relaxed hair.

By the way my twin sister (we are identical) decided to go natural and she transitioned for a little while.  More information to come on her journey...

Stay tuned.

The Beginning of My Journey

All photos are copyright protected and can not be used by anyone without my permission. 

All Natural

2nd to the last hair cut.

I decided to go natural when my relaxed hair started shedding.  My hair was on my shoulders when it started falling out.  I tried cutting it to stop the shedding but it kept on falling out, ugh. My relaxed hair was dry, dull and dead looking.  It seemed as though no products worked to make my hair shine and look healthy. The last time I got it cut the girl botched the job.  My hair looked nothing like the picture I showed her!  That did it for me!  The last day I relaxed my hair was May 29, 2010.

TRANSITIONING

I transitioned for almost 6 months.  I wanted to transition for a year but it was too much of a hassle to deal with both textures (relaxed and natural).  Some of my transitioning styles included braid outs, twist outs and roller sets and since it was cold at the time I wore beenies a lot.




Braid Out



BIG CHOP

So on November 25, 2010 I took the plunge and did the big chop.  My sister did my big chop.  She has been natural on and off for a while.  She did her last big chop around 2 years ago and she does not plan on going back to the creamy crack.  After my big chop my sister put some gel on it and tried to slick down the sides but it did not work for my hair.

Well, hummm my hair, my hair, my hair.  What did I do!  My natural hair was shorter and courser than I thought.  The ends were straight and what was under the straight ends felt like barb wire.  Some people describe the straight ends as "scab hair" but I believe the ends were sraight because of the weight of the relaxed hair. 



After Big Chop



I didn't know what to do with my hair!  I watched a lot of You Tube videos trying to get some kind of idea of what to do with my TWA (teenie weenie afro). 

 

I didn't feel very confident with wearing my TWA yet because I didn't know what to do with it.  So I decided to wear wigs, heck it was still cold outside and the wigs would keep my head warm, lol.  I spent a lot of money on wigs.  I also spent a lot of money on different hair care products but it seemed as though none of them would work on my TWA.

DAY OF RECKONING

Yes!  I finally found a product that works for me, Eco Styler Gel.  Some ladies on You Tube gave raves to Eco Styler Gel so I decided to go out an buy some.  Oh what a difference it made to my hair.  I was able to enhance my curl pattern and make my twa look good.  At first I did some finger coils and later I did some finger twist.  I also did a curly afro.



Finger Coils



First Style Worn to Work

January 1, 2011 began a new year and I said "You know what, I'm going to do it".  I showed up at work with my TWA and I never wore another wig.  I got a lot of compliments on my hair.  At first I wore styles using the Eco Styler Gel then I went to the barber and got my hair shaped up and later started wearing afros.



After visiting the barber



I have come out of my shell.  A lady walked up to me one day and asked me how I got my hair like that (finger twist)  I told her how to do it.  She also asked when was the last time I combed my hair.  I told her I combed it that morning when I styled it.  She said somebody told her not to comb her hair so she had not combed it in 4 weeks.  After I picked my jaw up off of the floor I told her about the Tangle Teezer (I love my Tangle Teezer) and Eco Styler Gel so I hope she was able to get control of her hair.

I'll be back soon with more information....Stay tuned.

All photos are copyright protected and can not be used by anyone without my permission.