Changing My Atttude Towards My Natural Hair Journey

I have know been on  this journey for..well technically going on 5 years since I have been attempting to go natural since then. But for this try, which I would like to think is my last i'm going on 10 months. It will be official on the 27th of this month and it will be 4 months since my umpteenth big chop; official in two days (February 8th). My hair is doing well. I'm retaining most of my monthly hair growth and it's healthy. But I'm tired.

I am tired of the rigorous upkeep and honestly? I'm starting to believe it's really not so necessary to do all that I have been. It's not necessary to wash 3 times a week. It's not necessary to be wondering what treatment i'm supposed to do this weekend to keep my hair in tip top condition. Well at least to me, I don't think all of this is necessary or would like to believe so. I am on a quest to find a more simple regimen. One that will keep my hair happy and not take a million hours out of each week to attain the lengths I desire. So, I am going on a protective style journey.

Yes, I the person who used to hate protective styles and find it hard to keep any sort of PS in my hair, am going on a protective styling journey. Hearing myself say that almost makes me want to laugh. I never thought I would ever hear myself say that. Most of all I never thought I would hear myself say that in all honesty and surety. But it is so.

My aim is to just keep my hair out of the way for the rest of the year. Maybe it can come out to play every once in awhile. Maybe for a few days? But not for long. I will utilize what scientists and people who don't want their lovely hair gave us- wigs/weaves/ braids..the works. All while washing my hair and treating it whenever I feel like. Yup you heard me- " whenever I feel like. LOL.

My view right now is that attaining long, healthy, natural hair is not so much about constantly cleansing, conditioning, moisturizing and detangling it. But lessening manipulation and allowing it to do.. basically what it does. Grow!! Of course I am not saying do not do all of the above,. I would be crazy to do such a thing. But  I think concentrating on doing these things with such a frequency as I have been can sometimes do more harm than good.  Concentrate more on giving the hair time to itself.

I have noticed that there are so many people out there who do everything that is right for their hair including protective styles. BUT they are detangling and retwisting every few days or doing a braidout/twistout every to every other day. Then they wonder why they are not retaining length. Manipulation. Less manipulation = more growth and that's what I am heading for.

Ofcourse not every one is length obsessed like myself. lol. So if you are perfectly fine with where your hair is and would just like to enjoy your hair in it's current state or at a slow to average retention pace then there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. On the other hand if your like me  and would like to see your hair get somewhere it has never been before, like to your  butt maybe? in record time Lol! Then constant manipulation is probably not the way to go.

My hair is in canerows right now and under a scarf. I have been wearing it like this since last week and no I do not look like a grandma. It's actually quite cute. I will probably in a weave or something of the sort soon. Wish me luck on my journey :)

I promise to update with pictures as soon as I can. My netbook has crashed which makes things a bit complicated. But soon m y lovelies :)

<3 LATERZ <3

Wigging It Out-This Months Protective Style

This blog is all about me trying to grow my natural hair long to it's full potential according to genetics, hence the name. But growing natural hair out can be a very tricky thing with single strand knots, tangles, split ends, and breakage thrown into the mix. Because of this, protective styles will be the most suggested to those who are trying to find ways to grow their hair to long natural lengths and I am on that train. Choo! choo! LOL

So far I have tried twists, flat twists, braids with my own hair and with yarn. Now I am trying out..a wig! All of the other styles I have tried require me to manipulate it in some way to make it presentable whenever I'm heading out. So this time I wanted to try one that would allow me the ease of looking good without manipulating my hair at all, excepting on wash days. Which are really just 2 days out of the week. I have gotten too used to my weekly washes and have no intention of changing that unless I get a revelation at the point that my hair starts getting much longer. 

I made the wig myself and I call her Ms. Chynn, because of what I have been hearing since wearing her. Words such as "You like a likkle Chiney" and "It makes you look sorta Asian" were enough to make the name fitting. Haha!

I really didn't do anything fancy, it's just a wig cap with some tracks glued on and then cut to how I wanted it. I did a little amateur shoot wearing her. Here she is;

Now you know a girl is just having fun right? So this is  no perfect shots-just me and Ms. Chynn. I hope to keep her for the rest of this month, unless she starts looking real untidy, because there is no way I will be doing that look for Christmas. Well I am off to my jobby now. Have to pay the bills, so; have a great hump day!! 

<3 LATERZ <3

The Curly Girl Collective’s Curl Crush Event in NYC | Black Girl with Long Hair

This natural hair meet up looks like it was a total blast!! It's whenever I see these things that I wish I could just fly up for the evEnts and then hop on a plane and find myself back home. But of course, it never is that easy *shake my head* Not to dispair though, Jamaica is slowly but surely getting on the meet-up train. I missed two so far, thanks to finding out two late on both occasions. But never again I say!

On another note, check out The Curly Girl Collective’s Curl Crush Event in NYC | Black Girl with Long Hair the pictures are amazing! Some real beautiful natural ladies were gracing the building with their auras; chatting, exchanging tips, playing games and just having a happy time.

<3 LATERZ <3

My finger coils are on their  last. But I'm making it work, not bad though seeing that I washed them on Wednesday.

Just Checking In

It's been a little while since I have been here and that is because I really have not been doing much to my hair. I did do my first henna treatment last weekend. But I only remembered to take pictures after the henna was gone out of the dish and in my hair,lol and honestly I was not feeling in the best of moods either. Oh by the way, Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving if you did celebrate it. In Jamaica we don't.

Apart from rocking my itsy-bitsy-teenie-weeny-afro, I did some twistrows and I am currently wearing finger coils!! Yay!! My first finger coils(overly excited ). Luckily I took pics to record and show you.

By now you should now that my favourite place to do my hair is in front of a good comedy like "Big Bang Theory" or "Three and a Half Men"...these were done while watching the latter. lol. I brought my spray bottle with water, coconut oil and shea butter mix into the living room. While doing them the sequence was water, coconut oil then shea butter which makes it easy to twist the hair with little to no breakage. 

These I think could grow on me. Took me a long time to do them, but that will hopefully change with practice. It would be easy to do on someone else. Just a bit tricky and uncomfortable to on my own head. I also used  water, shea butter and coconut oil to achieve this style and I am contemplating doing it for awhile as my low manipulation style.

*UPDATE*

I have decided that I will use the full Gro Aut Line as my staples along with honey and olive for deep moisture and henna / mayo and avocado for protein. One of my goals is to simplify my regimen and this would be a great step toward doing so. I am deep in love with Gro Aut products and the results it has been giving me. So I see absolutely no reason why I wouldn't want to just stick to their products. 

<3 LATERZ <3

My Big Chop Rollercoaster

I call it a roller coaster due to the constant ups, downs and deep corners that have made themselves present since the occurrence of  my Big Chop. It didn't even give me a few days to just be in bliss before it got rolling. It started in the same moments as my BC...

I decided to do my BC when I realized that managing the two textures during wash days was beginning to become very frustrating for me and I was confident in my decision, I need not mention the excitement that came with it. I sat down in the chair with my boyfriend behind me holding a pair of Goody hair scissors. He was about to get rid of those straight boring ends that had been with me for just about 6 months since my last natural hair break down; the day the fairy knots laughed at my lack of moisturizing and sealing knowledge. I was happy, because this time I would be going into my natural journey with a wealth of knowledge  to not let the past mistakes be my future mistakes to come. But half way through my chop I was crying and I really could not pin point why. Was it joy? Was it anger at going back to extremely short hair? or was it just the fear of what havoc my significant other may be wreaking on my hair? Maybe it was a mixture of both and up to this day I am still not sure. But it was just a little over a month ago and even if I never figure out the reasons why, I will be perfectly fine not knowing.

After the deed was done and irreversible, I walked myself to the mirror and with red, watery eyes, looked at what was now my crowning glory.  It was a short, fuzzy TWA and I was not sure how I felt apart from relieved. Relieved at the fact that my somewhat short struggle with the curly and the straight was now over and I could give my natural hair all the loving it needed without being distracted by another texture.

For the next few days I would stare in the mirror continuously, trying to see something else but a shapely cross dresser with breast implants. I began wearing eyeliner and mascara around the house, just to ensure that whenever I looked in the mirror I would see remnants of the girl I was before. I did not look like a boy in any way and according to others I was beautiful with my cut. But at the time I could not believe those words and saw nothing but the cross dresser in the Mirror. Eventually that began to change and I became the bold and the beautiful; wearing my TWA out with accessories and feeling sooo pretty..until some pharmacy cashier I knew who was also a natural asked me in patois ' What the hell is wrong with you?" and that confidence died. After that, I wore a hat or a scarf wrap whenever I went on the road just so that no one could see it and by the third week or so I was in yarn braids. The girl in the mirror was back. I felt pretty because the braids allowed me to have a "normal" length of "hair" on my head and no one was talking down to my hair.

Now that the braids are out, I am okay. I see me; Chadonnae Blackburne, in the mirror, Big Chop and all. It hardly looks any different or any longer than when I did it last month. It has grown mind you, but the inch really doesn't make it that much longer. What has changed is my attitude. I am awesome with my hair as it is. Whether they think so or not...and honestly? Since my attitude has changed, they seem to think I am awesome too. But the roller coaster still remains.

I know I am attractive with my haircut, I know I don't look like a boy. But now my insecurity lies with shrinkage. I don't always like the fact that my hair is 4 inches but shrinks to one. I don't always like the fact that my hair is now heading toward my shoulders but appears to barely reach my neck. My roller coaster still goes on. I will just embrace the journey... because with all this..I still love my natural hair.

<3 LATERZ <3

Cute Accessory Combo on Big Chop

I'm going to dinner soon and this is my accessory combo for the day. Cute!! :)

 Not sure what I am going to wear with it yet. But I will be sure to match my clothes and earrings  with the hair accessories..talk about dressing backwards right?