How To Do a Fishtail Braid

For years, I've wanted to learn how to do a fishtail braid like this:

And today, watching this Youtube video, I learned how! I swear, Youtube is amazing!! Watch, learn, & enjoy a new way to rock a braid!

Here's another video!

I'm back!!

I know I've been MIA for over a month! A lot has happened! I went on a little family vacation to DC with my family, got sick with Tonsillitis, then shingles, and now I'm all better! During our DC vacation, I wore my hair straight (which went pretty good since it was hot & I'm transitioning).

While I was sick, taking care of my hair was put on the back burner and I had a little damage from not doing my nightly routine & not wrapping my hair up. So once I got well, I braided my hair up. I just finished my hair 9.19.11 and here's picture of it. It took me about 12 hours to do my hair & roughly 6 packs of hair. These braids are kind of heavy, so wearing them down is a must. I absolutely love the length!

I'm transitioning!

I was going to keep up with my newly relaxed hair, but I decided that I loved and missed my curly fro so much more. My hair goal now is to grow my natural curls all the way out to about shoulder length or longer, then cut my relaxed ends off. I will probably wear braids & a weave for most of this transitioning stage to ensure that I have little to no breakage.

I'm currently about 10 weeks post relaxer, I just took some cornrows out that I had in for 2 weeks. I washed, deep conditioned, blow dried and flat ironed my hair today. I will be deep conditioning my hair twice a month unless I have braids in.

I miss my fro...

It's been 2 months since I relaxed my hair and today (all of a sudden) I completely miss my natural hair. I just braided it up yesterday, and now I miss my luscious, cotton soft big ass afro. With all the new growth I have, I may just grow it out again..

I haven't decided yet, but I know I want my fro back as of today.

Product Review: SheaMoisture Deep Treatment Masque

I have had this product in my collection for over 3 months and I have only used it maybe 3 times. It is one of the best deep conditioners I have ever used. The only bad thing about it in my opinion is the smell. It has a very strong yeasty smell that I do not like, I'm not sure if it's the sea kelp or the argan oil. Outside of that, this is by far one of the best moisturizing deep conditioners I have ever had the pleasure of using. I use this after I shampoo and condition my hair & throw a plastic shower cap on for about 30 minutes or longer. Check you local Target or Walgreen's for the SheaMoisture line.

My hair goals & current regimen

My current regimen is kind of random at the moment. Here's a break down of what I'm currently doing to get closer to my hair goal, which is bra strap length.

1. Co-wash my hair once a week. I use shampoo whenever my hair has too much product in it.
2. Use a heat appliances once a week, which may include a blow dryer, curling iron, and flat iron.
3. Moisturize and seal my hair every night.
4. Massage my scalp nightly after I finish sealing my ends.
5. Dust my ends every 2.5 weeks or so.
6. Relax my hair every 6 months.

I have decided that I would relax my hair every 6 months. Right now I'm 6 weeks post, and I'm thinking about relaxing my new growth sooner than Nov. 28th. I'm thinking about incorporating the bagging method once I get my end trimmed this weekend.

How to wear your hair to a interview.

Since I'm looking for a job a lot these days, I needed to know how I should wear my hair when I go on interviews... Of course, Google is always your friend.. Here's a link that I liked/agreed with.

http://www.bellasugar.com/How--Job-Interview-Hair-Makeup-1083269

Btw, you should always wear a low ponytail if your hair is long enough with the ends tucked or pulled into a bun.

My Hair Website

I'm not sure if I posted about my website showcasing my skills, but here's a direct link.

http://www.hairbyebony.webs.com

ENJOY!!!!

How to get those Kim Kardashian curls.

I'm not a complete fan of Kim K. but I love her hair almost every single time I see her. And whoever is doing her hair is doing an awesome job! So here's a video of how to get those famous Kim K. curls. ENJOY!

How I Deep Condition My Hair.

Today I'm going to wash my hair & do a deep conditioning since I'm trying to gain a significant amount of length before I relax my hair again (I'm going to do that sometime in November). First you need a good, thick, moisturizing conditioner. I personally love any version of Cholesterol or African Pride's mayo conditioners.

What I normally do when deep conditioning is wash my hair once with my shampoo (Herbal Essences Hello Hydration), wash it again with the conditioner, and then apply the deep conditioner on heavy. I put a shower cap over it and sit under a warm dryer for about 30 minutes. This helps your hair to absorb as much conditioner as possible. Once the 30 minutes are up, I rinse it out with warm water and to seal my cuticles, I use cold water the last minute or so. After that I continue on with styling, which can be a roller set or blow dry. Make sure that if you are going to use another heat appliance (blow dryer, flat iron, curling iron) that you apply a heat protectant before each appliance. Not using a heat protector is just defeating the purpose of deep conditioning.

Here's a video of someone deep conditioning their hair. Enjoy!

My Bangs!!

Since I was younger, I always loved bangs. And now that I'm relaxed, I wanted some again.... And today I took the plunge after watching a couple Youtube vids of girls cutting their own bangs. I knew I could do it, I've cut my hair many times before. Anyway, here's some pics (befores & afters). I apologize for the crappy quality of the pics, I took them on my Blackberry.

First pic is just a random pic I took yesterday, Second is just how long my bang area was, Third is after I finished cutting before I bumped my new bangs, Last is the final look.

Shampoo: Silent Killer!!

I have never really been a fan of shampoo.. And being 2.5 weeks post relaxer, I finally realized why my hair wasn't as soft as it should have been. I just washed & did a flexirod set on my hair (6.13.11) using only conditioner and my hair was back to it's normal silkiness.

When I first used the shampoo & conditioner 1 week after my relaxer (Herbal Essence Hello Hydration), I noticed my hair was hard & kinda stiff. The 2nd week I used the same shampoo & conditioner and attempted a roller set and again, my hair was hard & stiff even with some setting lotion. This last wash I just used conditioner and my hair was so soft & manageable. I know a lot of natural hair wearers don't use shampoo daily, and I never used it daily either. I would shampoo my hair about once or twice a month.. My hair loves conditioner!!

Now I know someone reading this is probably wondering "Does the conditioner clean like the shampoo?", "Is safe to just use conditioner?", "What are the effects of using only conditioner?". And my response to those questions are: Yes, the conditioner cleans just as well as the shampoo. The conditioner adds moisture back into your hair without stripping it away like most shampoos are made to do. The effects of using just using conditioner are that your hair will be very moisturized, soft, and clean.

Just try using shampoo possibly once a month, your hair will thank you!

Hair mishap.

Today I wanted to wash & roller wrap my hair but I didn't have enough setting foam. I ended up doing a regular roller set. Halfway through I had to leave & only a small portion of my hair was dry.

When I got home I blew my roots out with my blow dryer & round brush to get them as smooth as possible. Instead of just letting my hair be after that, I wrapped it & attempted to do a silk wrap(saran wrap). 15 minutes later & my hair was the same. To get my hair to my desired sleekness, I curled it with my big curling iron.

The issue with all of this was the amount of heat I used. I'm seriously trying to not use heat more than once a week which would be only when I washed my hair. Now I will say, I did use a heat protectant before each heated tool was used. I'll be updating my hair growth in another 3.5 weeks.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Moisturizing & Sealing Your Hair.

Since I'm newly relaxed & a previous natural hair wearer, I recently just found out about moisturizing and sealing your hair. The process is very simple. First you need something that is a moisturizer like Wave Nouveou Moisturizing Lotion, Care Free Curl Gold Activator Lotion (Both are made of glycerine & water mostly), SheaMoisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie, Elasta QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter moisturizer. Next you need some type of oil to seal your ends. Most people use some type of Essential Oil (natural oils) like extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, safflower oil.

First you apply the moisturizer to your hair working from your ends up to your scalp. Then you follow that with the oil. Make sure you apply to your edges & nape area since that is where you get the most breakage. I found a couple Youtube vids that I liked which show you how to do this on your relaxed or natural hair. ENJOY!

I did it!!!

Flat ironed after relaxer

5.27.11, I relaxed my hair. And I totally love it!!! I honestly expected to miss my fro & curls, but I am in total love of my bouncy wrap.
I used a Organics Olive Oil No-Lye relaxer for girls. Then I blow dried & flat ironed it (With heat protectant). It didn't get as straight as I wanted to so I went back thru it 5/28 with my big 1 inch curling iron.
Here's the end results! The first pic is of it blow dried. The second is of it flat ironed.

Blow dried after relaxer

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

I've decided......

To relax my hair. It took me a couple days & some serious consideration, but I'm doing it this weekend. My mother isn't too happy about it because she loves & would "kill for hair like yours".
I've been natural for about 9 years off & on and it's definitely time for a change. I haven't came up with a real regime for my relaxed hair but I know deep conditioning, roller sets, and low heat are going to be my top 3 on that list. I'm thinking about recording it, just so a virgin relaxer can be seen on Youtube. (After searching several times, there are none! Just hella touch-ups). But if I don't record it (with the help of my sister), I'll just do some before & after shots.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

BANGS!

Last night, watching the Reunion of Love & Hip Hop I noticed 1 big hair mistake on the stage. Normally, everyone looks like this:

Last night, Somaya committed hair sin! BAD BANGS!

Somaya's bangs are all wrong! She should of taken a little advice from Emily (the right), even Mama Jones (on the left) bangs were nice. I'm not sure if Somaya's bangs are pinned up to give her that 50s pinup girl look or if they are cut just like this. Her bangs during the whole season were cute. (see below)

Here's a couple BANG to DOs!

CUTE!!

Even the long, swoop bang is a must. Perfect for when growing bangs out.

Zooey Dechanel is the BANG QUEEN!

Now to some BANG DON'Ts!!

These bangs are too short for her face, exposing too much forehead.

It looks like her wig is falling off. Just terrible.

There is a such thing as your bangs being "too heavy".

I'm not sure if its just how her hair was styled, but these bangs are terrible.

Now if you're like me, cutting your own hair is an option. If you're more of a salon girl, make sure you find someone that can give you the perfect bangs for your face & everyday life.

Kinky Twists Update.

After re-doing my edges for the last time about 3 days ago, I decided to take my twists out(5/8). I was tired of rebraiding my edges. I have seen a significant amount of new growth.
Now I'm trying to decide on what to do with my hair. I'm thinking about relaxing my hair or doing a sew in weave or another set of braids (cornrows or box braids). I've been natural for the past 4 yrs and I kind of want to give the relaxed look a try again. I'll update once I decide on what I want to do.



Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Update on Kinky Twists

It has been 16 days since I first installed them. I have been keeping them moisturized with 2 mixtures of Africa's Best Braid Sheen Spray with Conditioner, distilled water, & glycerine and another mixture of distilled water, olive oil, & glycerine.
The first mixture is sprayed on 2 or 3 times a day. I use the 2nd mixture when I feel like my scalp needs to be cleansed.
I have seen a dramatic amount of new growth, so I'm currently in the process of re-doing all the braids over. I hope to get another 4 or 5 weeks with these in. (The pic was taken 5/1/11 in a Popeye's)


Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Kinky Twists

I absolutely love this protective hairstyle. They are light weight, versatile, & very cute (as pictured below).
I installed them on 4/16, took about 6hrs (no breaks), and I plan on keeping them in for about 4 weeks. Well I'm praying to keep them in for 4 weeks only because I never keep anything in for that long & it's only been a week and my new growth is visible.
I have been keeping them moisturized with a mixture of braid spray, glycerine, & distilled water. I spritz my hair with the mixture at least twice a day, once in the morning & before bed. I plan to continue this, also to redo the braids when they are becoming too loose. I'll be updating when I take them out.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Product Review: SheaMoisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie

I can't remember exactly who suggested this line of products to me but I finally went out & got some because Walgreens was having a 'Buy 1, Get 1 free' sale.
This price is $9.99 & up to $12.99 for the products in the line. I was kind of like "I'm not paying that much for something that may not work for my hair" but that Walgreens sale changed my mind.
I love the smell & texture of the CES. Its silky yet thick like a custard. My hair loved it too. I washed my hair like normal & did a twist out using only this product on my wet hair. I let it air dry and my hair came out moisturized and well defined curls/twists.
I told my sister how much I liked it & she wanted me to pick her up some since the prices for it start at $12.99 in NY.. After going to two different Walgreens, I couldn't find any. So I'm letting her use my jar on my trip to NY.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

I'm Back!!

OMG! I'm slipping so much with the daily blogging like I promised!!! But I will be posting something new this week (A couple product reviews & maybe a Q & A post).

I have been thinking about changing my hair regime recently. I think I'm going to incorporate some type of braids for a couple weeks (more than likely will be days!! I can't go too long with the same hair style). I'm thinking kinky twists because they look good even when they are old & need to be re-done.

I've been watching a lot of youtube videos trying to get a style to wear for my birthday & I have yet to find something that I like... So hopefully I'll either come up with something or find something since my birthday is on the 13th.

Mizani Hair Products

I have never used anything by them because for one, they are hella expensive. Shampoo & conditioners range in the prices of $15/bottle. I ran into an old friend's girlfriend & she recommended a couple things by them, so I shall try them in the near future.


Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Flat Twists

I love wearing my hair like this.. So I found a video of someone doing their flat twists on freshly washed hair. (I only picked it because I love her hair length & the song she tagged to it)

Then I found another video of another woman who was taking out & styling her hair after the flat twists. And I love how her hair came out.. I wish my hair would look the same but my ends are atrocious! 

Product Review: got2b CrazySleek hot smooth FLAT IRON & BLOW DRY LOTION

This is my go to product for when I'm straightening my natural hair. I also use this on my relaxed clients hair. This bottle runs about $5.99 normally (according to Walgreens.com). On the back of the bottle, the directions read as: Remove lock from the sprayer. Spray on towel-dried hair, distribute evenly. Blow-dry completely, then flat iron.

When I use this product, I follow those directions but since I'm natural I take it a bit further. I apply it to my towel dried hair, blow dry my hair in 4 sections (I squirt about a quarter sized glob on my hand, then on my hair while still wet.), and while my flat iron is heating up I add a little bit more to my ends. Doing my hair this way allows me to prolong the sleek look for a couple more days.

The product smells good, is very light & not waxy. It is by far one of the best NON- alcohol heat protectants I have ever used. I will & have been using this every single time I decide to put heat on my hair. So should you!

My Hair Regime

It would only make sense if I posted how I'm taking care of my hair these days.. I will say that NOW (as of 1/1/11), I decided that I would take super good care of my hair & come up with a hair schedule/regime.

Currently, I have been washing my hair with shampoo & conditioner (I use to be a co-wash girl, but some skin issues have changed that for me.) I've been using Suave Professionals Damage Care Shampoo & Suave Professionals Humectant Conditioner. I added some olive oil into the conditioner to give it a little more ump. Also, I detangle my  hair with the conditioner in using my Denman brush & a wide tooth comb.

While my hair is dripping wet, I apply either Elasta QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter moisturizer or B&B Mayonnaise & Honey. I just like how both of those products smell and how they add just enough shine & moisture to my hair. (I'll be doing product reviews soon!)

To protect my ends, I gently detangle my hair using a wide tooth comb. Recently, I've been loving the big curl look, so I do about 6 or 8 flat twists around my head (I'll post pics later!). Depending on what time I wash my hair, I'll sit under the dryer. If I'm tired I'll just put my satin bonnet on & go to bed.

The next day, I make sure my hair is 100% dry before I take the twists out. Fluffing my hair up to look fuller gives me the exact look I'm going for. To keep the style up, I re-twist my hair up every night using a mixture of conditioner & water in a spray bottle & shea butter to seal the ends. Here's a pic of my hair tonight.. Tomorrow is my wash day.






I try to wash my hair once a week, but since its been so cold I've been trying to push it to once every 2 weeks. I'm also trying to decide if I want to "hide" my hair for a while, using a sew in weave or braids.

My Realization of Why Chemical Processes Go Wrong...

Good day people.. Yesterday my mom & I went to Barnes & Nobles which gave me some time to scan thru some of the black hair magazines (there were roughly 3 or 4 there).. As I'm looking at all these books I see beautiful hair and I was just thinking to myself, all black women could be walking around here with gorgeous hair if they knew what to do to it and learn how to care for it. Then as we were leaving, I was still thinking about hair care and what people do wrong.. I know that I'm one of them but I came to these conclusions:

1. Relaxers: Yes, you can relax your hair without causing damage; it's all in how you apply it. If it is a virgin relaxer (meaning you have hair that has never had any relaxer on it previously), only then do you comb the relaxer all the way to the end of the hair shaft. Too many times have I seen or heard women overlapping the relaxer on previously relaxed hair, which causes breakage most times or over processed hair.
2. The Frequency of relaxing: I know it is said that you are supposed to relax your hair every 6 - 8 weeks. Now I've thought about the actual growth of most peoples' hair is about a quarter of an inch to half an inch a month, relaxing hair at any of those lengths (in my opinion) is too soon! Now possibly within a entire month you get about 2 inches of new growth, then I could see relaxing your hair. But at half an inch, even 1 inch; I would tell my client that they don't need a relaxer, just a good deep conditioning and I would flat iron the hair. Call me crazy but I think the less you relax the healthier your hair appears.(When I was relaxing my hair before, I would go about 4 - 6 months w/o relaxing my new growth and I had a lot with close to NO breakage.)
3. Strength of relaxer used: I have never, ever, ever had a super strength relaxer touch my hair, a family member's hair, or a client’s hair unless that is what they wanted to use. I would never suggest a super for anyone!! Now some people would disagree but a super is too strong in my opinion. But then again I guess people like hair that lays flat down, with no body!
4. A good hair care regime: After getting a relaxer, you can't just go into braids or not caring for your hair properly. You hair is super fragile now. I personally would wear my hair in ponytails (when I was relaxed) but after abusing my hair with rubber bands, I noticed major breakage in the back of my head, so I stopped wearing them as much and would wear my hair out. I loved the look of a fresh wrap or a roller set. So my top 3 hair styles would be a roller set (which can transition into a wrap), a wrap, and a rod set (it gives off a curly look and lasts for weeks!).

I hope this helps someone who has relaxed hair see where the damage is coming from and try some of my suggestions!! If you have questions please leave a comment!! I will try to answer all questions as soon as I get them!

Weave: A friend, not a enemy.

Living in this Northern Mid Atlantic/Southern state, I see weave no-nos all the time. Multi-colored, horribly trimmed and raggedy ones. Yesterday, I saw a 2 toned skunk weave: all black with 2 WHITE tracks to highlight her bangs. Talk about bad?! I gagged.

Weave To Dos:
1. Buy quality, human hair weave. Those synthetic blends LOOK fake. The point of a weave is to make people think its all you!

2. Buy hair this is close to your natural hair color. If you can’t find that color, dye it the same color as yours. Since its human hair, it won’t hurt the hair.

3. Pick hair this is just like your natural hair texture. It helps with it looking believable & blending (if that is the technique you are going to use).

4. Finding the right technique: This should maybe be #1 but anyhow, there are several weave techniques you can choose from.
- The full weave where none of your natural hair is out.
- The partial weave where hair alone your hairline & maybe hair for a part is left out to cover & blend with the weave.
- Braidless method. I honestly don’t know how this is done.
- Glue in/Bonded is where hair glue is put on the tracks and bonded throughout your natural hair to give it a fuller look.
- Quick weave: you can protect your hair with a stocking cap and glue tracks to it.
- Hard wrap is when your natural hair is wrapped with gel and the tracks are glued to the wrap.

5. Picking the right stylist. Now everyone & their mama these days say that they do the best weaves ever! Yeah, probably so for some. The rest, yeah right. Talk to friends, people on the street, the chick @ your job claiming she’s half Native American & Dominican but you know she’s all black. A good ‘Weave-ologist’ will have clients out there speaking the real about what he or she can do with some weave. Make sure whoever you pick has photos of their work & not just photos of themselves rocking weave.

With these tips, enjoy Weavedom.

Research. Research. Research!

To make this blog great, I'm researching ways to help my followers find their best hair way. Google is a great way to search for new hairstyles, stylists, or even video help of how to do your own hair. I'm just going to give you some great SEARCH words/phrases  & some websites you can visit to possibly help you find exactly what you're looking for.

If you're in search of a website where you can interact with others going thru the same thing as you, search HAIR FORUMS.

You could get more specific and search for HAIR WEAVES, BLACK HAIRSTYLES, BLACK HAIR, NATURAL HAIRSTYLES, HAIR WEAVES FOR BLACK WOMEN.

Here's a list of sights I visit at times:
BlackHairMedia Forum
Nappturality.com
MopTopMaven
LongHairCare Forum

Youtube Channels I love!:
PrettyDimples01 (She does some of the cutest natural hairstyles)
Reniecedotcom (She's a great stylist & her website is just magical, full of weave wonderment)
MsChanda (Great weave tutorials)
ThomasAdrianna (She does weaves & braids on her own hair. Great tutorials)

My Hair Journey

Over the past 5 years, my hair has changed so much. In high school, I was always stretching my relaxer. I would relax my hair maybe 2 times a year & by the summer time I was natural. After graduating, I was 100% relaxed & damaged. Then I went back natural for the first official time. The first time natural was great. I was loving my hair's natural curls..... Then I started hair school, January of 2008 & the girls there thought it would be good if I relaxed my hair so I could do more with it. I fell for it & relaxed my hair and hated every bit of it. I had to quit hair school because of financial issues & decided to start fresh with my hair again. I cut almost all of my hair off. In about a year, I gained all my length back with braids & it was healthier than ever. Since then, I have been natural & loving everything about it from the wash & go styles to some braided styles. I will say that I haven't been taking care of my hair like I should & it shows in my strands. Stress & lack of care has taken a toll and now I'm trying to get my luscious curls back again.

As of right now, I'm back to baby-ing my hair. I just cut about an inch of split ends & knots off earlier this week. Just with that trim, I can see that my hair is bouncing back like it should be. I'll be updating my hair status every month or so. Maybe I'll post pics of my styles and create some type of regime to healthy hair.

1st Official Hair Blog

Hello all!!!

This is my first official blog! I'm so excited right now. Anyway, thanks for checking me out. Please stay glued to me, I will be sharing (hopefully daily) my thoughts about hair, advice on hair, and just HAIR!

Hair is my passion, I've been doing hair since I was about 13 years old, and it comes to me like second nature. I'll share my experiences with my own hair, doing other peoples' hair, and the importance of GOOD hair care!

Thanks again & God Bless!