Mini Twist (wash, maintain....A-Z)

So, I've had mini twists for a week now and I'm keeping them in for 3 more weeks (a total of 4 weeks).
Okay! So here are the basics:

Deep Conditioning (DC):  This is most definitely possible with your twists in. I think it's easier and safer to DC with oils like coconut oil, however, I've only DCed with an avocado-mayo-honey DC with my mini twists in. had like 4 sections of my mini twists separated. I had a ball of yarn nearby. So, I got the DC mix onto my mini twists in semi scrunching motions moving down my twists and not rubbing, smoothing or whatever. When I was done with a section, I sorta African threaded it leaving a lot of space between rolls and then I rolled the remainder of the yarn, that was cut out for that section, round the root area of the minitwists so it was sorta like a bantu knot. I did that for each section to prevent my twists unravelling. Next, I put a plastic cap on then tied a scarf over it, I then rolled some yarn round the bottom of the scarf (the bit close to my forehead) and tied it then I tied a piece of scrap material like another scarf round those then I tied a bigger scarf round those to keep it secure, trap in body heat, get a better DC effect and so on.

Wash: I don't use shampoo (CG). However, I didn't co-wash today, because I had an inkling about my homemade conditioner/co-wash. I need to change a lot of things in it as some of them don't work well with my hair and some other things. So, I washed my hair with my homemade Herbal Hair Cleanser (you can request a copy of my recipe. I like this cleanser. I love it's smell, what it does, it's ingredients....). I used my overhead shower (fixed shower) for this. I first turned it on and took the yarn off one section then I slid my fingers under that section and let the water run through then I did the semi-scrunching motion thing and then I rinsed out that section carefully, but thoroughly (don't want my hair smelling like bad food). I did that for all sections then I rinsed my mini twists as a whole to make sure my whole hair was thoroughly rinsed out. Next, I got my homemade herbal hair cleanser (I'll call it HHHC now) onto my hair and scalp. Worked a lil magic (gently and carefully cleaning my scalp even though there was no buildup and also doing a bit of the scrunching thing to the twists. After that, I turned the water back on and rinsed out my hair well.
I'm going to try washing with a sock cap next time to see how it works out.

Drying: I don't use heat on my hair (air dry). So, I also don't use normal towels on my hair, I only use shirts on it for now (need to find a good microfibre towel). However, I didn't use a shirt on my twists, I just let them be, like totally dry by themselves.

Moisture: I got a towel round my shoulder (note that I did this right after washing my hair, my hair wasn't even a tad bit dry) then I got some olive oil, homemade rosemary oil and some shea butter onto the twists in a semi-scrunching motion moving downwards (from roots to ends). I used the EVOO first then the rosemary oil next and finally, the shea butter, to lock in the moisture.

Styling: I'm in a really weird school lol. It's a good school, I might add, but when it comes to hair, and some other things, really weird. I say this because unless you're a full white, you have to get your hair braided or twisted, 'out' styles aren't allowed, your hair must go backwards (*cough* *cough* receding hairline, traction alopecia cause-r), many styles aren't allowed and braided extensions are banned. So... yeah. All I do is section my hair unevenly in 2 ( in this --> direction) then I used banding hair bands to hold each section and tuck in the ends to prevent them from brushing on my shirts or neck. This style actually looks pretty cute on me :) though really simple.

Sleep: I sleep with a scarf tied round my twists (without taking out the style) and I sleep on a pillow wrapped with satin PJ bottoms (haven't found a satin pillow case yet).

Maintenance (frizz, fly-aways, set style...): Now, I use a product (that's not homemade, for now). I use my OLTG (I mentioned in my last post that I'll start calling it that instead of, "Organics Lock&Twist Gel"). If needed, though usually not, I take off the bands on my hair and scrunch some OLTG onto my twists in random sections, if I don't need to take out the band, I'll just get some OLTG on the front bit of my hair then tie a scarf over it. I do this once I get home from school and keep the scarf on till I leave for school the next day, Trust me, this works in making you hair frizz-free, fly-away free and keeping the style you choose to keep your hair in, in place. It just might help with giving a good "out" look too :)

Stretching: I don't really need to do this, but banding your mini twists work or you can wrap you mini twists round your head using bobby pins like you might have with relaxed hair and tie a scarf over it (sleep with the scarf on or with the bands in, take them out in the morning and..voila!)

What else do you need to know? Comment and let me know, okay? It's like 1:11AM here now so, I've got to catch some zzzs for now.

Hope everything above helps somebody (or people)
~Sam

Itching During Transition (this is normal, but here's a way to like stop the itching and let the hair still do what it has to do)

Hello everybody!

It's 3:33 AM and I'm like wondering what I'm still doing up lol 


Anyways, itching during transition. Many people have complained about that. I thought it was abnormal when I had to deal with that initially, but from watching my brother closely (lol) I believe that it's normal. Okay! how on earth is itching normal? Has Sammy finally cracked? lol :


Let's say you had a relaxer, your hair's like super straight after the relaxer, so, your scalp's used to that. Usually, after like 6 weeks, you retouch/re-relax your hair so, your head and scalp are still fully accustomed to straight hair. Also, the pores (should I call them that) on your scalp are like tiny dot like things and like curls try to push out of them. This causes like really tiny bumps (like micro-bumps) on your scalp, you may or may not have noticed this. So, your hair starts to itch as the curl tries coming out. If you have dry hair or for some reason, your hair is dry (maybe due to the elements (weather) or something), this'll add to it. But, do not be afraid, I have a couple of things to say about this and how you can stop/minimise the itching:


Someone, who I'd call BDR, instead of her real name said:

"I'm about 5 months in and my scalp itches so badly. I do my own weaves about once a week because I cannot stand the site of the two textures of my hair. Flat irons don't look good because my hair is so dry and everything else just looks BAD! so I'm keeping weave until I get further along in the process. Question: are there any products that I can use once a week on my scalp and hair that will eliminate the dry scalp AND dry hair, that aren't costly, while I'm wearing weave and transitioning? Because I'm really about to give up"

Here are what some people said to her in an attempt to help:

"Maybe you're putting the weave in too tight? I don't know much when it comes to weaves, but I know that is the case when my braids are too tight. If I were you, I would add moisture in every step of my hair care routine(shampooing, conditioning, detangling, and leave-in)...like oils (jojoba, grapeseed, coconut oil, avocado oil, castor oil, and all that good stuff). These oils are not expensive(If I can afford them, anyone can..lol.) And, a little goes a long way with these oils, so they can last you a while. 
I'm in no way telling you to go out and purchase all of the oils I mentioned. Do a little research on them, and see which oils will benefit your hair. You may also want to look into a good creamy and moisturizing leave in(giovanni direct leave-in, shea moisture, etc). These are just my suggestions to you." 

 "I don't have a weave, and I itch uncontrollably too. Dandruff shampoo helps some, but not for long. :/. Very annoying."

(So, don't go wasting your money stocking up on dandruff shampoos!)

"At the beginning of my transition I use to get really bad itching in my scalp. I started doing weekly hot oil treatments with either jojoba oil or coconut oil. So far my dry/itchy scalp issues have been reduced. Using a mild shampoo or shampoo bar also helps keep your scalp/hair retain moisture and remain clean."

(Just so you know, I do not advice people to use shampoo bars. Shampoos, maybe, but a shampoo bar, no. I believe it dries out the hair more than you'll actually notice, it strips of all essential oils, clogs the pores...)

"For the itchy scalp olive oil works nicely and for the dry hair deep conditioning is very important. I personally deep condition once a week and if my hair gets dry throughout the week I will co-wash."

"I agree with those that said oil. My scalp itched so bad at one point and I found that using oil worked. What I do is right after I wash I take a combo of oils (olive, jojoba, coconut, castor) in a color applicator bottle (Sally's) and apply it to my scalp." 

"Depending on how light the oil is I would deem it okay to use after you wash your hair. With heavy oils I usually apply oil to my scalp and hair massage it in then. Leave on for an hour or two. Then like always I wash with a sulfate free shampoo twice to wash excess oil out." 

*Yeah, they have given advice that I'll say are okay and can help minimising (please take note of my...err....notes in bold brackets). So...I've told you what people were saying, but, what was I saying? Here it is (said on two different days):

"I'm transitioning too, I'm about 8 months in and my hair started itching this week and I honestly detest it. I researched on natural things I can use to stop the itching and one that worked for me for two days was lemon juice and olive oil. So, all I did was squeeze out the juice of half a lemon, add some olive oil to it and a few drops of water (for extra moisture), then I got it into parts of my hair, my hair stopped itching a few minutes after. I applied it mainly to the part of my hair that itched the most and that part hasn't itched since then. Another thing I did was to apply quite a bit of DAX Tea Tree Butter too. These helped a lot. I didn't really need to buy anything 'cause these were already in the house, but I believe none of the items I listed above should cost a lot of money."

(I said this a long time ago. I am like way past 8 months of transition. Also, I cancelled out the stuff about DAX Tea Trea Butter because it contains some ingredients now that I do not advice people to use on their hair. Also, it gives just short term results)

"Gaaah! Why didn't I share this earlier!I hope this works for you just how it did for me!

ROSEMARY OIL! Your hair is itchy, you get some rosemary oil onto those itchy bits and by the next day, voila! itching stops! It also stops dandruff that quick too. Isn't that great? I really like it now, but I don't use it as often as I use olive oil.Anyways, I make my own rosemary oil so I'm sure it's 100% natural (I like using 100% natural things...healthy). The first time I made rosemary oil, I put some dried rosemary into a clear bowl, I then added a bit of water to it and a drop of olive oil (covered the bowl) then I kept it by a window to get at least 2 days of sunshine then voila! I had oil in the bowl and it didn't look like the water, rosemary thingy it did the day I made it. Nowadays, I don't bother adding drops of olive oil to it. I just get the rosemary and water, leave it by a window for at least 2 days of sunlight and voila! My mum has asked me to make some rosemary oil for her because it works wonders with itchy scalp and it prevents dandruff.Also, a good way you can use rosemary oil is by getting it into your hair (don't bother if the leaves get in too, they'll fall come out later) and then getting some 100% natural shea butter into your hair too. You can mix them together and get it in all at once, but when I use SB too, I get the RO in first then the SB.
Hope this works for you too! "

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Rosemary oil is still at the top of my list for the best thing to stop this itchy scalp issue. My mum likes me making some rosemary oil for her because when she has itchy scalp, it stops it within minutes and her scalp doesn't itch again for a really long time (I'm not talking about minutes, hours, or days, I'm talking about longer than that). My hair loves rosemary oil, I might add.
Okay! so, something else about rosemary oil: it is an essential oil, it prevents and stops dandruff and it also stimulates/promotes natural hair growth. Seriously, that is like totally true. I can make a lengthy review of rosemary oil if you want me to (and you know, I can type some pretty lengthy things).


Hope this helps you!
God bless,
~Sam


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Help

I hope this helps somebody. Okay! So, I'm going to call the other person here, "Masuhr," instead of her real name, okay? Here we go:

Masuhr:

hey i wanted to ask you a few questions, you seem to really have this whole amazing natural thing working really good and i really admire you for it . im still working out different things with my hair and was wondering if you can help me? would be great  

Samantha:  

Sure, I can help you 
So, what exactly do you need my help with?

Masuhr: 

i was wondering how do you define your curls? i here lots of curlies saying stuff bout gel, i dont think i really want to use it, so i was wondering how you define em? second what do you do about fizz? i dont mind a bit, it comes with being curly but somtimes it does get rather bad, so how do you deal with that? thanx alot i really admire you 

(Aaawee, that made my day. Just reading the "I really admire you," bit because like, I admire so many people, including the person I'm calling 'Masuhr,' I think they've got this whole curly thing under control, but instead, they think they don't and I don't so...oh well, that comment still made my day :) ) 


Samantha:

Well...I use aloe vera gel for both. All I do is take out the gel from a fresh aloe vera leaf, put it in a bowl and add some oils to it. Also, to combat frizz, you can use some rosemary oil on your hair.Both aloe vera and rosemary oil work wonders for me.

(Yeah, yeah, I know she said she didn't want gels, but hey! at this point, only very few people I knew knew that you could put aloe vera gel straight from the plant onto your hair so... :) )


Samantha:

A little addition to my reply:
You might want to get some shea butter into your hair before using the aloe vera gel, just so you're sure it won't dry up your hair. Also, the oils I put in my aloe vera gel are olive oil, rosemary oil and canola oil (also, I put about a teaspoon of water in it too). All this prevents your hair from possibly getting dry or crunchy.I have never had my hair dry or crunchy from aloe vera gel because I've never used it without doing the above. Even the first time I used it, just because of the word gel, I did that because I didn't want the possible chance of dry and/or crunchy hair.

Masuhr:

well ive made my own rosemary oil, by infusing EVOO with it, i like in germany right now, (for the next two weeks!) and ive never seen shea butter here before, so i might have to use somthing else in place of that, thank for the tips  when im back in Australia, im going to try that out, we got tons of aleo plants 

Samantha: 

kk, hope it works for you like it did for me 
Oh! and have fun in Germany!

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Okay, so there's more, but it really doesn't have much to do with this, plus it's really short, so I took it out. I hope this helps someone and I hope my side comments between some of the posts didn't annoy anyone :) 

~Sam 


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Toddler Troubles

I hope putting this up here would help someone. Okay! so I'm going to call the other person here, 'dragongirl' instead of her real name, okay? Here we go:




DragonGirl: 

I waited my whole life to have a daughter and in 2008 my prayers were answered with the birth of our daughter Aaliyah Rose. She is one of the most beautiful, little girls I've ever seen and has the diva attitude to boot! The only problem we have is that her hair didn't come with an instruction manual. Her hair is extremely kinky and dry. We've spent tons of money on all kinds of products to tame her mane with little success. I've spent hours on the internet trying to find advice on how to deal with mixed race hair. Of course, everyone has their own advice and preferred products. Most of them that we've tried have ended up in the trash. I prefer to keep her hair as natural as possible and avoid harsh chemicals . I've even taken her to a professional salon and was dissapointed with the results. We are a military family and live in Oahu, Hawaii. The weather is very wet and humid, which adds to the problem. I would love to have some serious expert advice on how to handle my princess' hair. I'm so tired of the tears everytime we have to wash and brush it out. Thanks..... Samantha:  This is what my parents went through with me. Working on my hair was always a lot of work then when the day was humid (which was quite often), gosh! my hair was.... you can guess. I'm 14 now, I've taken over the job of working on my hair, and so far, everyone's telling me I'm doing an amazing job. Even at a salon, people asked for my secret. Anyways, I want my hair to be as natural as possible so I cut down on the products I use. I did actually change my hair products. Right now, the main bought products I use are shampoo and conditioner. I get some oil and moisture into my hair using natural oils like olive oil and rosemary oil. I've had great results with this. Deep conditioning seems to make my hair look a bit tamer nowadays. Maybe it's because I deep condition over night (sleep with it on) and I deep condition with food (mayonnaise, eggs, shea butter, EVOO, Rosemary oil, bananas (hard to wash out)...) not DC products. As a kid, I had really full, thick and totally unmanageable hair. Here are mistakes my parents made with my hair (so you don't make those mistakes with your daughter's), they pulled at my hair to detangle and comb it, they used blow dryers in my hair, they bought hair products that weren't for my hair type, oh! they relaxed my hair (I disliked that, I do have mainly natural hair now, transitioning. I have a bit of processed hair at the tips which I'll snip of in bout a month or two), they also washed my hair every week with shampoo and held it tight with things. Also, they cut my hair at some point. Since I've taken over managing my hair, I have stopped washing my hair with shampoo every week. I wash with conditioner only every week or once every 2 weeks, I wash with shampoo once a month. I oil my hair daily with EV olive oil and if my scalp feels itchy for some reason, I get some homemade rosemary oil into my hair. Rosemary oil seems to stop the itching in a couple of hours for me and it did help someone with dandruff. It also helps make the hair not so dry and it helps with growing out hair quickly. I use John Frieda Frizz-Ease Curl Around Style-Activating conditioner in my hair. I don't use it daily. I use it as a washing conditioner and also, nowadays, I use it to weigh down my hair and also to keep it styled. I never comb my hair dry. I believe that the more my hair is combed dry, the more my hair gets frizzy when it's humid and also, I believe it damages the hair cuticles and elasticity. Another thing is, I don't use heat on my hair. No blow driers, no diffusers, not curling irons or straighteners. This has helped my hair A LOT too. Now that I'm growing out my hair naturally, the hair type that seems to be growing out looks 3c/4a (/4b/4c) (http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTn2lzMU0aOweL0w4PHxJI4CWaITW_evAOTg7sdcv3y8dHrBRRd&t=1). It is really dry normally and it takes over an hour to detangle. One thing for sure that I do with my hair the most is to keep it braided or in twists or bantu knots. I braid my hair with extensions and leave it in for 2 weeks (without the extensions, I'll have to redo the braiding within a week). With braiding, my hair does get a bit tamer and also, I don't need to fuss over it often. Hope I could help. Oh! and good luck working on your daughters hair. Mixed race hair is hard to manage, I can say that from personal experience. Keep on trying and look up some things on naturallycurly.com and soon, you'll be working on your daughters hair like a pro (everything'll be done with ease!) :) (*Gosh! I type a lot lol) DragonGirl: Thank You so much for your input! So far everything that you've advised seems logical and I'll look forward to trying it! I've never used any kind of heat or straightener on my little one's hair. Not sure that I ever will. She's so beautiful with her curls! She's still too young to sleep overnight with any conditioning treatment on her hair, but I will attempt to try it while she's awake! Thanks so much for the hope and I'll definitively try to EVOO to help keep her hair extra moisturized!  Samantha: Glad I could help :) ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> Okay! So, I hope this helps someone. Oh! and yes, I'm the 'Samantha' mentioned there. You can tell because I type a lot. I don't know how I do it, I just can't stop (here I go again! lol :) ) ~Sam ><> ><> ><> ><> ><>

Ask Sam!

Hey everyone!

So, the 'Ask Sam' thingy where you can ask me anything (mostly hair related)  is up. All your questions would be answered on here (repeated questions by different people would be answered just via email. If not, there would be many of the same questions and answers, so I hope you understand).

Okay! So, how to send your questions! :)
Go to the 'Contact' page (right under the 'SammyWithTheBigHair' banner) and you can contact me via any of the options there, it's your choice. Also, you can send your questions by just replying below.

I hope that through this, I'll be able to help many people.
God bless,
~Sam