Thinking out loud Thursday - TOLT *1*

I thought it would be cool to start a kind of weekly ongoing blog series. Thinking out loud because sometimes things come to mind and they may not be enough to actually write an entire post about. So I will simply create a post every week and collect all of my thoughts into a single random post. 

Sort of like the various random thoughts threads on LHCF. Heres my first set of random thoughts...

Thinking out loud

Hair

• I want to start doing ACV and honey rinses again.
• I have yet to try Aubrey Organics products. I think I actually might if I can find them sold locally.
• Its weird that out of all the growth aids I have tried only sulfur oil actually works.
• I dont think I have ever gotten a full inch a month on sulfur oil though...
• I will probably be starting back on my vits next week. They definitely make a world of a difference with my overall health. Not just with the hair.
• I suck at taking good progress pics of my hair
• French braids(cornrows) and flat twists are going to be my go to styles until the end of the year!
• Most definitely hopping on the tea and coffee rinse bandwagon!
• Make Coffee Oil ASAP!!

Everything Else

• Boy dogs are completely obsessed with me. Whenever I visit my aunts dog sleeps in the bed all cuddled up like hes my man, lol, tries to sit in my lap like hes small, and attack kisses me every chance he gets. He has been madly in love with me since the day we met. Hes huge and obnoxious but I love him and so do the babies.
• My boys have been sick for the past week. ),: No fun...
• I love the fact that I can schedule for things to be posted instead of posting a bunch at once or waiting to space them out. I tend to forget when I do that.

Reflections of a Natural Hair Junkie - Past, Present, and Future

I was reading this thread on LHCF and it kinda go me thinking about how different everything was when I first started my Natural hair growth journey.

I didn't like growing up and not knowing how to take care of my hair. I searched and read everything I possibly could pertaining to proper hair care. The first site that I found that was actually helpful to me was GrowAfroHairLong.com. Link in the side bar. Her crown and glory method was everything back then! I followed it to a T and used it to transition. 2x!

I still do a set of braids or kinky twists at least once a year since 2002 or so.

I then stumbled onto LHCF I believe in 2005 and that was it!

I was a little obsessed with the site, spending hours and hours each day reading and researching and reading some more. Printing out tips and techniques to the point that I had a nice thick booklet full of threads and posts, that I ended up creating a very complex yet simple regimen from.

I researched all the different products that people used and from there became a serious Product Junkie. My cabinet was filled 3 shelves deep with nothing but hair products and tools! People would come to my house just to kidnap things, I guess they figured since I had so much that I wouldn't notice if something went missing... Oh, I noticed!!

The amount of time I spent then on my hair was crazy. The entire weekend was dedicated to my deep conditioning regimen.
I would pre-poo with some suave mixed with honey and evoo for at least 2 hours. Then I would shampoo really well followed by an overnight deep condition with whatever I was using at the time.
The next day I would rinse and style. Usually the style would take me a few hours to do.

Now, I wish I had the energy or motivation to spend so much time on my hair. Its really bad that I am not into my hair as much as I was before. The main reason for that being my hair has not been the same since Mirena.

Since I have started on the vits over the past few months I do have some serious halo hair or as I like to call it baby hair syndrome. Basically I have a TON of baby hairs growing in! Despite the current setback I have going on now I do still see that there is hope for my hair!!

One day, in the near future, it will be just as glorious as it was BM. (before mirena) lol

I have been taking care of it, I have been cowashing every 1-2 days, I have been DCing somewhat regularly.

I feel like I need to step it up! I need to do more and at the same time keep it just as simple as before. I need to give her some serious pampering and attention!! I also need to put her away, because a watched  pot never boils!

I said I wasn't going to do french braids (cornrows) but I'm going to cave. I need a style that I can redo every week. A style that will not put too much tension on my roots or my ends. A style that I don't have to touch aside from spraying a little moisturizer on everyday.

I am determined to overcome all of the setbacks I have had over the past few years. I am determined to get my hair to my ideal length and thickness!

My focus now will no longer be on the length of my hair.

My focus, My goal will be on nourishing those baby hairs so that they grow long and strong! My goal will be to have those full healthy ends I once had. Thick hair from root to tip.

I project that I may be a good 8-10 months away for my goal length of MBL. So from then on I plan on trimming every month or so until the hair thickens up and fills in. I remember being at a point where I had absolutely no breakage. I need to get back to that magical place. Protein & moisture balance is the key.

With health, length and thickness will come. I need to remember that. I love my hair. I love the journey. The time it takes can be frustrating but at the same time it is very rewarding to achieve the goal of something you have spent so much time on.

Checklist for Full and Healthy Edges, Crown, & Ends

I decided to create a checklist of all the requirements I need to fulfill over the next year.

Firstly, I am going to post my overall rules. Then each rule for each section of my hair. To clarify, the "Crown" will refer to any part of the hair that is not the edges or ends of hair... Does that make sense?

I have stated a few of these already, and much of this may be common knowledge. However, I just wanted to put everything in a single coherent post minus all my rambling.. lol

My current length goals are to make it back to BSL by the end of the year or by Feb 2013, and then make it to MBL by June of 2013.

Hair Rules

• No Heat until the end of 2013.
• No BKT, if I do, only 1-2x a year. 
• Thicken up the ends with frequent trimming and S&D missions.
• Deep condition 1-2x each week.
• Do regular Clear Rinses, Henna, and Protein Treatments again. Rinses & Henna 1x a month. Aphogee 2 step every 3-4 months.
• Start to do regular Tea, Coffee, Honey, and ACV rinses.

Edges

• No more ponytails until edges grow out long and thick enough to fit into holder without gel & pulling too tight.
• Cut combs out of lace wig and use bobby pins to hold down instead. This way I wont be putting stress on only those areas every day I wear it.
• Keep moisturized and oiled with castor oil or one of my mixes.

Crown

• Watch how I comb and brush the hair. Be as cautious and gentle as possible to avoid any breakage.
• Keep braided up(depending on style) to avoid any excessive tangling.
• Moisturize and seal daily.
• Allow to dry completely and quickly when daily cowashing.

Ends

• Moisturize and seal daily.
• Watch my protein moisture balance.
• Trim once every 1-2 weeks so the ends will even out as they grow out.
• Detangle with the utmost care to avoid any breakage.
• Keep ends protected. No "out" styles until goals are reached.

Tea and Coffee Rinses

I was doing a little reading on LHCF and was very intrigued by everyone doing tea and coffee rinses. Reading a little more and beginning what would become hours of research, I learned that the caffeine in tea and coffee is wonderful at promoting hair growth!

This has been around for a minute so it may not be anything new to you but the fact that I have not read up on this at all appalls me! How could I have not known about this?? I knew about the benefits for the skin and I actually made a really nice facial moisturizer for my acne prone skin with green tea a little while ago.

Here I was thinking that ladies were doing this for color or some other effect that didn't really interest me. Silly me... As you may know by now from reading my blog, I am a Growth Aid Junkie!!

I mean, I have tried maybe every single growth aid there is! From Vitamins, to Sulfur, to MegaTek, to MN, I think I may have tried them all! Or almost all.. I'm quick to hop on a bandwagon. lol

The fact that this is Coffee and Tea we are talking about here is probably the best part. I said in a previous post that I will not be using any more growth aids... Well I guess I lied.. I'll have to rephrase that...

I wont be using MN or MegaTek again.. At least not for a long time. lol

I think I just might start off doing coffee rinses on each wash day or filling up a spray bottle and spritzing my scalp every day or so.

Since there are studies that show caffeine helps to reduce shedding, this should help to reduce the shedding I have experienced recently. (if its still there)

I am still in my 2 strand twists. They are a week old. I plan on taking them down in the next few days and doing a flat twist style. I have been cowashing my twists every day faithfully and they are looking well. Frizzy but well.

I did a good trim off the ends of each twist to get rid of some of the unevenness and will most likely do another trim again very soon.

I am excited about caffeine though! I am a big coffee in the morning or I cant function type of girl... lol

I am going to attempt to become better at taking pictures regularly so that I can actually document if it helps or not. ;)

Ciao!

Minitwists & Progress!!! Or lack thereof...

Last night I did a set of minis. They started off as braids but as I got increasingly frustrated with the way it looked they then somehow morphed into mini twists!

I did a quick measurement before I started on my hair.

The front measured at 14", so I basically am at the same length as I was in April. Ok.. I can deal with that...

The middle was about the same, just a little thinned out.

The back was a little all over the place. There were a few short pieces, a few long pieces, and everything in between... When I combed it all together it measured at 13.5"

Interesting....

Heres a shot kinda showing what I am talking about. Around the perimeter, back and front, I have these pieces with nice roots and ends which taper off into nothingness. I'm going to end up clipping all of that  off, no real reason to hold on to them.

Heres a shot of the back. The bottom 3 rows are braided and from there, the rest is all twisted. Dont mind the messiness, I do my hair without a mirror. I dont really care about perfect parts, but it would be much better for it all to have that brick layer pattern. Notice how large the parts are and how thin the braids are. Ughh...

 These 2 shots just basically show the way the hair has thinned. These are more so towards the middle.

 Here is the final product right after I finished. I like to twist dry and cowash when I'm done so they hang nicely and the ends curl up. The bottom 2 pics are after cowashing, as well as the pic at the top of the post.

I'll wear these for a little while, until I get tired. Obviously, because they are twisted up there is a little shrinkage, but detangled and stretched I am about an inch above BSL according to this bra which is a tiny bit low on me. I am exactly at BSB otherwise, so that is what I will claim.

Goal wise, I did make my goals for this year. Hopefully the hair does not continue to fall out and I will be back at BSL by the end of this year. My goal for MBL will obviously have to be pushed back a few months.

For my challenges, I want to continue both the Protective Style challenge, as well as the No Heat challenge into 2013.

I am thinking a 6 month of Protective Styles and No Heat until the end of the year.

My main goal from now into 2013 will be to thicken my hair back up. No growth aids and also I will be making my own products. No more commercial products aside from suave and a few deep conditioners. Making my own products is so much fun and I really appreciate the work and knowledge that goes into making something and then making it better.

So those are my goals for next year..

• No Heat
• Protective styles
• Thicken the hair back up(again..)
• Make and use only my own products for hair and body