Caring For My Mini Twists.

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Hey!

So, I've had my twists in for a week and a day now and I thought I should just talk about what I'm doing with it.

People tend to neglect their hair once it's in a protective style like this especially when done with extensions. I do not have extensions in. This is because they believe that they don't have to do as much as they would normally do to their hair and as the name says, it's protective.

Mini twists are protective, but in order for them to actually be a good protective style, they have to be properly cared for. They have to be moisturised and it's best for them to be stretched.

I moisturise my twists every morning and evening with my new homemade product (which I love to bits). I'm not putting its recipe up because I plan on selling the product in the near future. I usually use the products on my twists after a shower (with my twists held up) or after running damp hands through my hair. I can use the product without doing any of those though. So, I work it in in a "praying" motion - moving my hands downwards with the twists between my palms. This keeps the hair in a pretty good shape. Remember, moisture is like one of the main keys to healthy hair growth.

I stretched my twists immediately after they were installed because my hair got reverted at the salon. I held all the twists together at the top of my head with a metal-free ponytail holder and secured the sides bobby pins so all my twists are properly stretched. I had my hair up like that till Monday. Now, I take it down at day time and style it in a low ponytail, do twist outs on my twists, do a tuck, roll and pin, et cetera, BUT every night, my hair goes back up to keep in stretched.

Many of us dread wash 'n' goes or simply just wearing our hair out in afros or puffs. Why? Tangles. Due to the elements our hair shrinks and because of the fact that our curls curl up without thinking 'bout the curl beside it, our hair tangles and excessive tangling can lead to huge knots that have to be cut out or simply just breakage. We keep our hair stretched usually to reduce the amount of tangles we get. So, by keeping your twists stretched at all times, you are preventing the hair twisted up from tangling and being a horror to take down.

I haven't washed my twists yet, but I might some day soon. I have washed my hair with twists in (With extensions) before so I'll tell you how I did that 'cause that'll be the same way I'll do it. I lightly braid sections of my twists and secure the ends of the braids with pony tail holders or rubber bands (rubber bands only if I have extensions in that are longer than my hair length). I dilute some shampoo mixed with olive oil and a bit of a conditioner with water in a bottle and shake it all up then get some of it on my fingers and work it on my scalp. I leave it on for about a minute and rinse out thoroughly then get conditioner in my hands and scrunch it into the braids I created. I leave it in for a few minutes then rinse it out. Use an old cotton shirt to scrunch out excess water and leave my hair in the braids till it dries fully (or till it's at least 80% dry). Gotta keep your scalp clean and be able to breath and let out its sebum.

Okay! So, that's it for now. I'll talk more about my twists after I take them down (dunno when that's going to happen).

~Samantha

Hair Crush: Yara Shahidi

You know her, you love her, she's Yara Shahidi!

Oh my days, isn't she so cute!

She was in Imagine That and Salt, if you were wondering where you might've seen her.

I love her hair. It's so beautiful!

Okay! So, to achieve this look, ensure your hair is properly detangled and stretchedpart your hair making something like the top three blades of a fan or one of those kiddies wind mills (make sure the parts are curved), the third one being just beside the middle of your hair. Next, make random, but neat sections in the hair and make medium-sized box braids throughout your head of hair, but only braiding about an inch of your hair (make sure you don't cover up those three parts you made earlier). After that, work some shea butter, or a light gel into your hair (or just spritz your hair lightly with some water (don't spray enough to make your hair revert) and wrap the hair that was left out (the rest of the braided hair) round flex rods. Once your hair is dry or has fully set (about an hour or two), take down the flexi rods. Move your hair so it lies in a way that it flows downwards towards your back and at the front, hold the hair after the first and second blades you created and about one or two behind them in a small pony tail holder wrapping a thin piece of braided hair round it or just old it off with a piece of braided hair (forget the ponytail holder) and then hold off a few on the opposite side of your hair (after the third braid). Make sure your hair still flows down towards your back (and not your face).

Slick down your edges and.....

.....Voila! that's it!