Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Mini Twists (uPdAtE :( )

My plan was to keep my mini twists in for 4 weeks, but my mum thinks my hair would start to lock so she insists on me taking them out this weekend and redoing them (plus dad hates mini twists). ANYWAYS, my mini twists are doing good, still looking presentable. I had dry hair for a while which I've successfully defeated without taking out my twists. So, Friday night, I'm taking my hair out, deep conditioning with a homemade banana and honey DC and well, yeah!
So, see you later (I need to get to my next class :P)

Sunday, February 26, 2012

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

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Week 2: 2nd review (Organics Lock & Twist Gel)

Okay, so I've had mini twists in for about  a week now. I washed my hair (with the twists in, this morning - I'll talk about that in a different post) and then well...Anyways, to the point (I need to get to the point quickly nowadays), so far, the Organics Lock&Twist Gel, which I'll start calling OLTG now, has been pretty good. It has helped to keep my hair looking neat, the fly-aways down, frizz to a minimum and it does make my hair moist.
The stuff it's in says, "Combines Moisture & Hold  for Lock and Twists," in front and "Great Hold, Super Moist, and No Flakes," at the back. I must say, this product does what it says. Well, for me, that is.
Okay! So, how do I get it on my twists and how do I tame frizz and fly aways if I see them or get them or whatever:

1. I get some OLTG on my hand, rub my palms together and then in a scrunching motion, move down bits of my hair (random sections).

2. Once I've done that to majority of my hair, I repeat the scrunching thing without any product on my hands then I shake my hair out.

3. I hold my hair up with two banding hair bands (hair bands used for banding - which I haven't done yet). I hold my hair up in two. I section my twists in 2 unequal parts across my head '----' this way not '|' this way. I hold the top half with one band and the bottom half with the other making sure my ends are held under then I tie a scarf (a 100% polyester one) over my hair. I place the scarf round the frontal area of my head, hold the two ends and then criss-cross them behind my head and then tie them in front then tie them into a bow and tuck in the ends.

4. By morning, I usually leave the scarf on (if it's still on my head by morning which 90% of the time, it isn't, but if it isn't, I get a little water, oil or just olive oil and really little OLTG over the frontal half of my hair) and shower without getting the scarf or my hair wet. Then I go down, have some breakfast and remove the scarf just before I leave my house.

Results: Frizz-free, fly-away-free, neat looking, good-looking mini twists :) Works for me!


Okay! buildup. Depending on what else you put in your hair, you should get little to no buildup caused by this product.

Do you apply your OLTG to wet or dry hair?
Both, actually. When I got home on Friday, around 5pm, my hair was still wet from when I swam from 2:40pm till 3:40pm. I didn't really care, though. Plus, I had thoroughly rinsed out my hair even though the pool didn't have chlorine in it (had an alternative). Anyways, I got some OLTG to it because it looked a bit, un-neat after the swim.
Also, I have gotten wet hands on my hair several times (water = moisture) and then gotten the gel on.
I've just gotten the gel on on dry hair too.


Will you continue using this product?
Err....yeah!

By the way, how long are you keeping your mini twists in?
4 weeks in total. I have just 3 weeks left. Hopefully, by proper care and the help of my OLTG, my twists should last that long. I would've said and maybe longer, but by then, I'll be taking out these twists to avoid them locking and also because I have to redo them for a little something called bootcamp :)

Cheerio!
~Sam

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COMING SOON---->
WEEK 3: TRYING OUT THE ORGANICS LOCK&TWIST GEL ON A WEEK OLD MINI TWISTS! :)


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Thursday, February 16, 2012

New Hair Regimen


New Hair Regimen (16/02/12)

·         Take down hairstyle on Fridays (or band it)
·         Deep condition on Friday Nights (with avocados as often as possible – avoid dry hair)
·         Co-wash or cleanse with homemade no-poo cleanser on Saturday (when showering)
·         Detangle thoroughly during wash
o   Get some olive oil or shea butter into the hair if the next step isn’t possible to do on that day (for some reason) or
o   Mix up some bottled water with olive oil, homemade rosemary oil and possibly canola oil. Pour into a spray bottle and spritz/spray onto hair.
·         Baggy with olive oil after washing till about to get out of the house + air dry (or go to to the salon):
o   If just heading to the grocery store, tie a scarf or two (or a put a bonnet on and tie a scarf) over the plastic bag.
o   If going to a close friend’s house, do the same as for just going to the grocery store.
o   If going to the salon, do the same or if you’re not sure the person that normally works on your hair is around, take off the plastic bag in the car near the salon.
o   And so on…
·         Mini twist hair (avoiding braiding my hair for about a month or two)
·         Get some Organics Lock&Twist Gel onto mini twists once at home and air dry.
·         Hold up end of hair (esp. at the back) with a ponytail holder or elastic band to prevent brushing on shirts.
·         Sleep on a satin pillowcase, with a sating bonnet on, (or for now, in my case, with a pillow and pillow case wrapped with old satin PJs or tie on a pair of old satin PJs on my hair)
·         Get some olive oil or shea butter onto hair every evening with twists in.
·         Use the twist&lock gel when needed (but if not needed more than once a week, don’t use more than once a week)
·         Check for possible buildup (though not expected) every weekend.
o   If there is buildup or scalp is dirty, clean with homemade no-poo cleanser, then condition and so on (but don’t baggy or don’t baggy for more than 30 minutes if twists are still in to avoid them coming out). Get some Lock&Twist Gel on hair after either conditioning or baggying.
·         If there’s no buildup, band hair securely and deep condition then co-wash if the DC needs washing out (baggy if possible).

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Products: Avoiding commercial products as much as possible
ü Cleanser: homemade
ü Conditioner: homemade
ü Deep Conditioner: varies, but homemade too
ü Leave-in conditioner: homemade
ü Oils: Extra Virgin Olive Oil, homemade rosemary oil, canola oil
ü Butters: 100% natural, unrefined Shea Butter (gotten straight from local sellers in Africa, by my grandmother)
ü Gel: Organics Lock&Twist Gel
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Go to styles
ü Mini Twists (two strand)
ü African Threading
(No more braiding (flat braiding, box braiding and so on…) for me)

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Things to avoid
ü For now, protein (esp. eggs).
ü The usual-s, silicones, sulphates, parabens (looking for a better gel, by the way. The gel I currently use has Methylparaben in it – not thrilled about that), petrolatum, petroleum, mineral oil, sodium chloride, alcohol (maybe apart from Cetyl Alcohol), heat and the others already known (but I’m basically making my own products, so I don’t need to worry about these because they’re not going in my homemade things).

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Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Week 1: Intro and 1st review (Organics Lock & Twist Gel)

Hi :)

I have been wanting to post on here, but well, I had a horrible 'h'experience (someone said something quite upsetting about my hair - I was going to vent on here, but changed my mind). Also, my laptop got seized 4 days ago (got it back yesterday - don't ask).
Okay! so, I've been doing a bit of research on the Organics Lock&Twist Gel. Today, I was out at a supermarket with my parents and I saw it at the hair section. I picked it up, found my parents and dropped it in the trolley. My dad was like, "all the things you're putting on your hair'll make it fall out someday," by the way, looking at my table right now (with my hair stuff on it), I have a John Frieda Heat Protections thingy that I bought last summer, but didn't use till last month, I also have my Organic Tea Tree Gro (leave-in conditioner. I should review this!), the Lock&Twist Gel I just got today and everything else is natural! (Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Shea Butter, Homemade Rosemary Oil....) In the bathroom, I have my conditioner, but it's like basically finished (added a bit of water to the bottle), and in my walk-in closet (which is full of things that need to be unpacked), I have my shampoo (which I have been avoiding for a really long time now), Vitals Olive Oil Leave-In Conditioner (never buying it again, by the way), and the rest is natural, palm oil, honey (in a closed up jar).... I haven't used the Vitals thingy and shampoo in only God knows how long, so..yeah, I basically just use natural and organic things on my hair (I got the Lock&Twist Gel to have something to review and because I wanted to try it out and see if it'll work for me for like emergency/rush reasons).

OKAY! TO THE POINT, SAMMY!
This review is going to be like a stretchy thingy. It's going to last for about 4-5 weeks.

Week 1, starting today:
My hair has been suffering from the chlorine in a pool, I've tried so many things including baggying for a whole day, but my hair just won't feel as lovely as it did before I swam (and I did prep my hair before swimming so, I don't know what's going on, plus my dad complained that the chlorine was hurting his eyes). *sigh*
I bought a bottle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil today. I haven't used it on my hair in MONTHS! We ran out and I knew my mum won't pay for a bottle of it for me if I'm going to use it on my hair (so, I went shopping with dad :) ). When I got home, I took my satin PJs and scarf off my hair (I found old satin PJ bottoms and I haven't found the time to cut it up into a scarf or bonnet so, I just tie it on and tie a scarf over it). So, I took the PJ and scarf off my hair and went to my bathroom where I ran water (from the shower) over my hair till I was pretty sure it was rinsed out well and finger detangled then I  went back to my room with a towel round my neck and shirt (but not my hair!), I shook off some of the water and then got some olive oil into my hair. Afterwards, I got a tad bit more than a 50p (coin) of the Organics Lock&Twist Gel into my hands, rubbed it together and tried getting it over my whole hair (yeah, yeah, it's gonna be kinda light on it and it didn't get 'everywhere'). 
Now, it's been quite a long time since I did all that and my hair feels good. Definitely not crunchy! Hearing of crunchy hair and touching crunchy and dry hair due to gels, put me off ever trying gels out on my hair esp. after I started my natural journey. The only gel that has ever touched my hair (that I remember) is aloe vera gel (straight from the leaf) and I've always been kinda scared when using it so I always have an oil or shea butter on my hair before using it.
For now, I'm loving the results, the semi-defined curls and kinks and so on...


Summary:
Curl definition: Semi = curls aren't very noticeably defined, but they do look defined, in a way. Just not that much.


Feel: SOOO NOT crunchy! My hair feels moist (or should I say moisturised?), good too and it doesn't really feel how some people's hair feels after they get gel on it (or how I'm used to their hair feeling) which is dry, crunchy, flakey... No. This gel makes my hair feel good.


Would I try it again?: I'm the kind of person who if I get negative results on the first day, that day is going to be the last day, but I got good results today, which is the first day, so, I'm going to try this product out again.


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COMING SOON---->
WEEK 2: TRYING OUT THE ORGANICS LOCK&TWIST GEL ON MINI TWISTS! :)


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p.s I am so hoping and praying I get good results during week 2, plus, I'm hoping my hair doesn't start to dread if I keep the mini twists in for over 2 weeks (or a week). I think dreadlocks and sisterlocks (or sistertwists) are pretty cool, but I just can't manage or handle my hair like that, plus, my parents hate it and well, my dad's Nigerian and you know Nigerian parents (well, most of them, esp. my grandmother), they think dreadlocks and sisterlocks are pretty unruly and make people look like they're crazy (*sigh*). I think it's cool, but well, I just love my hair out like this (braided or in twists too).


Talk to you later.