Second complete rod-set: Another success?!

Maybe…..just maybe.

I am one of those naturals that has ZERO patience when it comes to styling my hair. Or rather, trying new styles. My hair is long-ish and my limbs tired-ish, so if I find myself getting frustrated, I tend to just give up.

But not this time.

I stuck with it, even with the elastic parts snapping hardly against my cold, wet and stiff fingers. That ish HURT! LOL!

My arsenal:

-xtra small, small, medium-ish and medium rods. (hey…. y’all get what I’m saying :P )

-PM The conditioner & IC w/Sparklites (for color-treated hair….I like it better than the clear)

-Table-top hooded dryer

-Rat-tail comb

-Butterfly clips

Directions:

After washing and conditioning hair, I applied the PM Conditioner moderately to each section of hair. I sectioned my hair into maybe 6 sections(held up and apart with butterfly clips), using the rat-tail to section off each piece.

I then applied a little bit of gel to my fingers, smoothing over each piece being rolled onto each rod, wrapped/rolled hair around rod and secured. I continued this throughout my entire head; using smaller rods in the front and larger ones in the middle and back.

After set, I sprayed hair with a little bit of water to reactivate the gel and sat under the dryer for 2 hours. I have a lot of hair, so the length made it harder to dry.

Once dry, I gently removed rods and attempted to separate. I thought my hair would frizz up completely but it didn’t. But with those stubborn pieces, I just let them be. Hence the varying curl sizes in the back. lol

The end result:

Not tooooo shabby. Next time, I'll pay for someone to do it for me. :P

Natural Urbanista

USVI Birthday Vacation(oh and some stuff about my hair)

It's been entirely TOO LONG since my last post. I will get better....I promise.

As many of you may or may not know, I spent about 5 days for my birthday in the Virgin Islands; my first foray off of the mainland. And actually, my first REAL vacay in my adult years(I guess turning 30 served as my motivation). I had THE best time, so my departure from St. John was bittersweet. For anyone who has visited the island, you'll understand what I mean. But the great thing is I can always go back..... and I will. Next time, for a week or two.

I wasn't a beach person til this trip. I avoided it like the plague(blame it on my non-existent beach body). Now I'm a beach snob. I shall NOT set foot in water that isn't a pretty as the water I submerged myself in while swimming(well, technically laying) in the waters off of Honeymoon beach.



I mean seriously....can you blame me? :P

Okay, back to my hair. I had blown out my hair days prior to leaving and for the first few days; wore a Corinne Baily Rae inspired 'do.



By the time I took this pic, my hair was already expanding. Humidity AND wind, y'all. lolAnd about 2o mins later, it was pulled back into a massive puff. And I mean massive. Sorry, no pics of that. If only I could've photographed folks' expressions! :)

I eventually wanted to swim and pulled the hair in a single braid(which surprisingly stayed put), and did my thing. I tried to take some of my staples(Elucence MBC and shampoo, moisturizer, etc), and managed to make my little 3oz bottles work, but what I wasn't expecting was how HARD the water was. My hair felt HORRIBLE. Even with cowashing everyday. So needless to say, I did a major DT when I came home using One 'n Only Argan Oil Hydrating Mask(which I LOVE, btw....review coming soon!). I'm not sure if that salt water did my hair any good, as it supposedly is great for the hair, but when I DT'ed my hair, it was like butta.

I also found myself tiring of fighting with my hair(it just wouldn't stay DOWN) and pulled back into a wrap. Oh, and you know my hair FINALLY cooperated on the day of my departure, right? Figures. LOL!



So even with my temperamental hair, I had a wonderful time. The food, the CONDO I stayed in, the people, and just the beautiful and unspoiled nature of the island, which is like 60% national park.....perfect. So, if you've NEVER been there.....go. Oh and some advice:

• Don't decide to buy toiletries there. You will be set back quite a bit of green(my travel buddy learned their lesson, lol).
• Slather on that sunscreen!!! I didn't put on enough and I got sunburned. Hurt.like.HELL. And the peeling is SO not sexy.
• Spend your first day just walking around. You'll discover little gems on your excursions.
• If you can, rent a place with a full kitchen and make your own breakfast and lunch. Dinners are typically more expensive, but if you're only really spend on dinner, it balances out. Woody's is great for breakfast(massive pancakes...yum)! and Banana Deck had some of the best tasting food. Ate there THREE times!!
• Be courteous and say, "Good morning, afternoon, etc." Don't just say hello. Pleasantries will get you far better service with native islanders.
• And if you're used to hustle and bustle....get UNused to it down there. It's chill-paced. No one's rushing to do anything, so you'll need to readjust your 'tude and just ENJOY yourself! :)

Natural Urbanista

Goody Spin Pins....Where have you been all of my life?

Dramatic? Maybe. But I can't believe I let my doubt in these pins keep me from trying them out. Maybe I thought the close to $7 bucks was too expensive(I'm cheap, y'all), considering I didn't know if they'd work. The commercials always showed some loose wavies or straight-haired women.

If you all haven't noticed....my hair isn't naturally straight. :P

But the curiosity got the best of me and I purchased them. My hair is in twists, which is my normal style since it involves minimal manipulation and I can stretch it out to multiples styles over a two week span(should I so choose). So I thought, if these things can hold 75+ twists, I'm sold.

So while walking around(not in a mirror), I proceeded to twist my hair into a bun and then twisted the pins into my hair. It was rather easy, which surprised me, but what surprised me MORE was that my hair stayed put. No movement. Nice, firm hold. I can't even get that with a ponytail holder and 15 bobby pins! And it's not uncomfortable. Even as I'm typing this, my hair is in a bun.

Below is my first attempt at using the pins. Not bad, right? :)



And they were easy to remove. So yes, I'm sold. If you haven't tried them, go do it. It makes bunning SO much easier.

Who needs a WnG when my twist-outs look like THIS!

And on unraveled, sweaty, week-old twists at that? :) I love natural hair. :P *no flash used*









After wearing my twists for just slightly over a week, I decided last night to take them out so I can do an overnight DT, and of course it looked nice. ALWAYS looks nice when I'm getting ready to wash it. LOL!

For that week, I only used Elasta QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer and Kemi Oyl Conditioning Spray to treat my ends and scalp. Also used the Kemi spray to protect my hair while running out in the harsh sun.

[Semi] Protective Style....Rewind

Another cool option to try out when you want a different look is wrapping two-strand/twisted hair around sm-mediumish perm rods. I think this can also replace bantu-knots, should you not want to do those as they can be uncomfortable(and sometimes cause headaches). You're still twisting the hair in the direction of the twist itself, so the end result is similar(not exact, but similar), but a bit more polished.

For this style I did the following:

• I washed and conditioned my hair, using a lighter leave in as to minimize drying time(PM The Conditioner).
• Hair was sectioned off and then sectioned off again to put my hair in two-strand twists and I wrapped each twist around the perm rod immediately after twisting.
• I wrapped those twists in the direction of the twist to create a more uniform and consistent look.
• I used Fantasia IC Gel (for color treated hair since it seems a bit more nourishing) on these twists.
• After complete, I sat under a hooded dryer for about 2o-30 minutes since my hair was partially dry by the time I was complete.
• I did not remove the rods right away because sometimes there are twists that are still wet. I actually slept in them overnight to ensure they were dry w/o sitting under dry heat again. I don't necessarily recommend that since it was uncomfortable.
  
• The next morning, I unwrapped and unraveled my hair, applied a little oil, fluffed and went on my way.

Looking back, I could've done much more with my hair with this style, but just pulled it back w/an elastic headband.

The results are pictured below. It was very fluffy and movable....if that makes sense. I had a lot of movement and the curls stayed nice for about 3-4 days before starting to look a little less polished. ;)


Hair after removing rods:





Hair after unraveling twists:

"Natural" Hair Weaves...Yay or Nay?

With the influx of ladies going from relaxed to natural, there are many others who prefer the short-term look of "natural" looking hair without the commitment.

Does anyone see the irony in that?

There are also many others who ARE natural who may not have the volume and use natural-looking weaves to add a bit more to what they have, or as a protective style. I actually have no problems with that, as I've seen some GORGEOUS weaves(e.g. Solange's new 'fro). But what I SO have a problem with are the HORRENDOUS looking Boozoo the clown, multicolored, likely to catch on fire if you light a match near it, weaves. Maybe I'm being a bit melodramatic, but you've seen them.....and I know I'm not the ONLY person who finds themselves just staring at them and thinking, "wtF is that thing on her head?!" LOL!

Below are examples of what I consider the "good" looking "natural" weaves, although the last one isn't my fave. Pics are from Khamit Kinks website.







So how do you all feel about the "natural" weaves? Would you rock one? HAVE you rocked one?