Shake & Go

Since I haven't had much time lately, I've been experimenting with hairstyles that don't take much time.  I'm still perfecting it, but I finally tried the Shake & Go.  A S&G is about as easy as it gets.  First, wash and deep condition, or conditioner wash/no poo your hair.  While your hair is soaking wet, and I mean soaking wet, apply your favorite moisturizer/leave-in conditioner and curl definer.  Then shake your head up and down and side to side several times like a wet dog.  Then air dry, sit under a hooded dryer, or use a handheld hair dryer with a diffuser.  Read more about conditioner washing/no pooing here.  Read more about S&Gs here.

For my first S&G (pictured here), I pre-treated my hair with castor oil before conditioner washing (To pre-treat my hair, I put some kind of moisturizer on my hair, usually an oil, before shampooing and let it sit for awhile.  It's like a hot oil treatment.  You can use: castor oil, olive oil, jojoba oil (or Jehovah oil as ABK calls it ;-) ), or coconut oil.).  Then I applied Kinky-Curly Curling Custard and aloe vera gel in sections to define my curls and shook my head.  It's very important not to touch your hair too much after you've shaken your head, because this causes frizziness.  You also should not towel-dry your hair by rubbing the towel on your hair.  You should scrunch and blot so you won't disturb your curls.  I used a turbie twist that I bought at Sally's, which worked pretty well (see here).  It's made out of microfiber, which is more absorbent that other materials.

When I wore this style, I was getting ready to go to an outdoor hot tub get-together.  I noticed that it took my hair a really long time to air dry, which is probably not that bad when it's hot outside (and it was).  However, as the weather gets cooler, I think I'll try this with a diffuser so I won't catch the 'monia.  Here are some more pictures:

Then, when the style got old, I pulled it up into my trusty puff (this was at my dad's birthday party):

Wearing a S&G has been quite a milestone for me.  As pro-naturale as I am, I never really felt comfortable wearing my hair out unless it was in a defined style like a twistout or coily puff.  To wear your hair au naturale, it requires not just a physical transition of your hair, but also a mental transition.  I've come quite a long way from needing bone-straight hair, to needing every hair on my hairline to be in place, and now to wearing a S&G.  Next stop, blowout fro!

Congratulations LKY, now Au Naturale!

Sorry for my hiatus, guys.  My new work responsibilities have been taking up my time, but I've finally carved out some time to talk about my favorite subject--au naturale hair!  I'm very proud to announce that LKY has joined the ranks of the au naturale.  She even videotaped her BC ("big chop").  Click here to watch.

My Old Standby: The Coily Puff

One of my favorite and quickest styles to wear is my coily puff (see pictured above--MDR and I were in Nebraska for his cousin's wedding).  I try not to wear puffs too often because they can be hard on the hairline, but they sure are good in a pinch.  If any other hairstyle goes wrong, I can always pull my hair back into a puff.  I'll do this maybe a couple of times a week when my twistout gets puffy.

To achieve this look, I use an ouchless headband or two, bobbi pins, gel, some type of curling cream or gel, a boar bristle brush, and a scarf.  Instead of the ouchless band, you can also use a smaller scarf or piece of fabric.  

First, I start off with freshly washed, conditioned, and towel-dried hair.  Then, I apply a leave-in conditioner and a curling cream throughout my hair.  I normally use Kinky-Curly's Knot Today and Curling Custard.  Next, I smooth my edges with a boar bristle brush.  On the day I actually wear my puff, I smooth the edges with some gel, normally Fantasia IC Hair Polisher Styling Gel with Sparkle Lites.  In this case, I was doing my hair before I went to bed, so I didn't use any gel yet.

I put my ouchless band around my neck:

Then, I double it up by taking it around my neck again:

I put the band up to my hairline:

Then I start pushing the band back:

When I get a few inches back, I put my scarf on to help keep the hair smooth:

I keep inching the band back, then I move the scarf back, keeping everything smooth...

...until I get the puff placed how I want it:

You can adjust the band so the puff is bigger or smaller.  Once I get the band where I want it, I add bobbi pins all around the band to keep the band in place.  I hook the pin through the band, with the open ends pointing into the middle of the puff.  I also use bobbi pins to pin down any lumps outside of the puff.

I could wear the puff just like this, but I like a little more defined look.  So, at this point, I add a few squirts of Kinky-Curly Spiral Spritz to the puff.  Then, I take a small piece of hair, put a little more Curling Custard on the strand, and twirl the strand around my finger.  Starting at the root, I wrap the strand around my pointer finger, using my thumb to smooth the hair, and while working toward the end.  The motion of my finger is like I'm gesturing to say that someone is crazy.  It's kind of hard to explain.

  

I did these a little smaller, but you can use bigger sections, too.

I keep doing this until I have coiled the whole puff.  It only takes me 30-45 minutes.  When my arms get tired, I brace them on the back of whatever I'm sitting on or my knee, and that helps.

I like doing my hair like this in the summer or when I'm somewhere hot because I can wear it wet and it helps keep me cool.  The coils start out longer, and then shrink up as they dry and as the days go by.  Here's what they look like while my hair is still wet:

Here's how they looked the next day after they had dried most of the way:

At night, I take the bobbi pins and ouchless band off and wear a scarf to bed.  The next day, I add a little water, a little moisturizer, and a little gel around the edges, smooth with the boar bristle brush, and put on the ouchless band and scarf as shown above.  I normally wear the scarf in the car on my way to work or wherever I'm going.  By the time I get there, the hair is set and I have little waves on the edges.  This style can last as long as you want it to, but I normally wear for a week or two.

I wish I could say that I came up with this technique myself, but I actually learned it from AFashionSlave on Nappturality.com.  Check out her Fotki: click here (password is "nappyhair").

Another reason why I decided to go naturale: It wasn't fair!  I thought about the fact that so many other races of people could just wear their hair as it grew out of the heads.  I wondered why I had to permanently alter my hair and go through so much (scalp burns and broken off hair) just for it to be straight.  I thought, "I should be able to wash my hair and style it without worrying about my newgrowth coming through and betraying the relaxed hair I'd worked so hard to straighten."  Now, I no longer have "newgrowth," and I can work with my hair just the way it is.  How liberating!

If you found anything interesting or have any questions, please leave a comment or email me at camillerorer@hotmail.com.  Thanks for reading!

Curlformers: More Than Meets the Eye

To quote windaura on Nappturality.com: "*sings the Transformers song*  Curlformers!  Rollers in disquise!"  I thought that was pretty good.

Anyway, I finally got my Curlformers!  Curlformers are rollers that allow people of all hair types (straight and au naturale) to spiral set their hair in a quick way and with a uniform result.  Curlformers can be bought online or at certain brick-and-mortar Sally Beauty Supply stores.  The rollers come in wide, narrow, long and short combinations.  You can buy the starter kit, which includes the hook, short & wide and long & wide rollers, or you can buy the rollers and hook separately.  I bought them separately because I wanted the long & narrow rollers for a tighter curl.  Some Sallys don't carry the curlformers, so you may want to call ahead of time to save yourself some gas.  Here's the YouTube video again to refresh your memory:

So, here's how I did my first set:  First, I washed and conditioned my hair.  Then I sectioned off pieces and began alternating colors (each color curls in a certain direction).  I wet each section with a spray bottle because the YouTube girl said that the hair needs to be wet (but looking back on it, I think this may have been a bad idea, for me anyway).  I also used Miss Jessie's Baby Buttercreme and Curly Meringue (in retrospect, also probably a bad idea).

I inserted the hook through the roller, coiled the root of my hair section, and put the hair section in the hook with the hook facing up.

 Then, while holding onto the roller, I pulled the hook through.  It wasn't hard to do and it goes pretty fast.  It would have gone faster if I hadn't been watching the YouTube video and reading the Curlformers thread on Nappturality while trying to do my hair.  

ABK also informs me that I spend way too much time making my parts perfect.  She may have a point, especially since my latest thing has been making triangle (or diagonal) parts.  They're great because you can't see the parts as well as with box parts.  I think they're probably the solution to me being able to wear twists as a style before undoing them into a twistout.

See the little red rods in the front?  I ran out of rollers, so I had to use about 6 flexirods along the edges.  I sat under the dryer for 15 minutes to knock the moisture off a little, and then wore the rollers to bed.  The next day, I sat under the dryer for another 15 minutes just to make sure that they were dry all the way.  Then, I took the rollers out.  To take them out, I just straightened out the roller and slipped it off the hair.

I thought it came out pretty cute!  I am also amazed at how soft and smooth my hair felt.  However, I got in the shower after that and they puffed up quite a bit.  You can probably see that the ends were already starting to puff up even before the shower.  This is because my hair was not fully dry when I took out the rollers (which is a no-no for any style set).  Next time, I don't think I'll use the spray bottle.  I'll just work with towel-dried hair like I usually do.  Also, the Nappturality ladies have been using setting lotion and gel, like Lottabody and IC Fantasia gel, and getting a full week's worth out of the style.  So, I'll probably use some type of setting lotion next time.  The Buttercreme and Meringue may have been too soft for a spiral set.  Finally, though I've gotten out of the practice of it, I will have to make myself sit under the dryer longer, possibly until my hair is fully dry.  That will suck, but I think the results will be worth it.  I don't think the ends got dry this time because I only had the top of my head under the dryer, and I only stayed under for 15 minutes at a time.

This week's featured website is the Fotki photo album of GalaxyGirl2010.  I don't know her, nor did I ask her if I could post her album on this blog, but I think that she may be my hair twin (people on Nappturality are always trying to find someone who has hair exactly like theirs--their "hair twin"--so they can use their same products and hairstyles instead of using trial and error and wasting time and money.  Those of us with au naturale hair know how unique everyone's texture is, so they're always excited when they think they've found their hair twin).  I wasn't looking for my hair twin, but I was cruising the Curlformers thread and she happened to be on there.  What do you think?  Click here: GalaxyGirl2010

Another reason why I decided to go naturale:  Natural hair is beautiful!  Before I decided to go naturale, I was looking for pictures of twist extensions because I wanted to give my hair a rest.  I did a Google search for "natural hairstyles."  The search results turned up several sites of natural coils, curls, twists, and waves.  The more I looked, the more I realized that maybe, instead of getting weave, I could wear my hair au naturale.  I researched styles and techniques for caring for natural hair.  I decided to transition out of my relaxer, and the rest is history! 

Thanks for reading!  Leave a comment if you've found anything interesting.

Oh, and shout out to MDR for taking some of the pictures!  Love you, boo!

How do you do that?: The Curly Twistout

I love getting compliments (who doesn't?), especially on my hair.  I get the most attention when I wear a fresh twistout.  Usually after a compliment people ask, "How do you get your hair to do that?"  I normally give people the short and quick version: "I just twist it with gel, let it dry, and take it down."  By now, you know me well  enough to know that there is a little more to it (and a lot more products! LOL).  Here's how I do my twistouts:

First, I start out with freshly shampooed and deep conditioned hair.  Here's what mine looks like after shampooing and conditioning and before detangling (note: my hair color doesn't really look like this--the flash on my camera is bringing out all these different shades, depending on the light):

 

 

Here's what it looks like after detangling:

 

 

Ok, you know I love y'all to be showing my hair undone all willy nilly on the Internet!  But it's for educational purposes, so I'm willing to expose my vulnerable self.

As an aside, the Goody's add + shine infused with jojoba oil brush (the one with the $1 off coupon) really detangles well.  Make sure you get this exact brush because the bristles are flexible, soft and don't have balls on the ends.  This is probably what makes it work so well on naturale hair.

Ok, back to the twistout.  Next, I section off rows of hair starting at the nape of the neck and twist two sections of hair together.  I use dab of a moisturizer and a holding product before twisting the section.  I made bigger sections for bigger waves this time.  I make to the two pieces that I twist together the same length and thickness so that I don't have to redistribute hair as I twist.  That way, when I take the twist down, I can just insert my finger at the root and pull it down to the ends.  It also makes the hair more defined (which is the point of a twistout).  I twist as much as possible to the ends, then I twirl the ends around my finger to make a coil.

  

I put Qhemet Biologics Tea Tree and Grapeseed Pomade on my scalp, which is turning out to be great on my flaky scalp.   In these pictures, I used some Kemi Oyl products.  The products look white because they haven't completely absorbed into my hair yet.  It will disappear--I promise!

The Kemi Oyl gel was just ok.  Pros: it made my hair really shiny and it the twistout stayed defined for the longest length of time ever--2 weeks.  Cons--my hair was totally not touchable.  It made my hair sticky, which is embarrassing when people want to touch your hair (which they will!), and gross when you have your hand in your hair playing with it all day (which you will!).  This is otherwise known as "Hand-in-Fro Disease" (HIF).

Here's what the twists look like when they're finished (see, I told you the products would disappear!):

 

You all out there with thicker hair will probably love to wear your hair like this for a week or two before taking the twists down for a twistout.  However, I feel like my hair is not full enough, especially with bigger twists.  Thin hair + bigger twists + full face = not cute (on me anyway).  

It gets better once I take the twists down, but I've found the best solution for a full twistout.  After I'm done with the twists and while my hair is still damp, I set the twists on sponge rollers:

  

Then I go to sleep with a bonnet over the rollers.  In the morning, I sit under a hooded dryer for 15 minutes just to make sure the twists are completely dry.  Here's what the twists look like after I take the rollers out:

 

Then I take the twists down.  As I mentioned above, I stick my finger between the strands and pull down through the ends, keeping the two strands in tact.  Then I dab a little IC Fantasia Gel on my edges, smooth them with my fine-toothed comb (only about an inch up the hairline), and put a folded up scarf on to set the edges and make them smooth.  I wear the scarf on my way to work.

 

 

 

 

Here's the same thing, but I used Miss Jessie's Baby Buttercreme and Curly Meringue.  My hair is not quite as shiny and the twistout lasted about a week.  However, my hair was very touchable!

 

 

 

That's my every day hairstyle!  When it gets fuzzy, I pull it up into a puff.  I guess I'll have to do a post on puffs later.

A neat website to check out is Miss Jessie's: http://www.missjessies.com/.  They have some pretty good tutorials for hairstyles, including the twistout: http://www.missjessies.com/twist101.htm

Another reason why I decided to go naturale: I wanted healthier hair.  I was so tired of trying to grow my hair long, getting it to a decent length, and it breaking off.  My hair is thin, so straight hair was flat to my head.  Now my hair is healthy and full with no breakage!

Here's a picture of me with my hair relaxed.  I hope SCE, ABK and LKY will forgive me for posting this without their permission!

Here's a picture showing the length of my hair stretched out.  Isn't it amazing how much natural hair shrinks?