The Not So Secret SECRET to Growing Long Coily Hair

As I write this post, my first thought is DAMN. Why did it take me 3 years to figure out my healthy hair regimen? I've logged lots of "experiment" time, and can finally say that I've got it. What do I got? A good regimen (products and technique) that works great for my coily hair. That's absolutely key to maintaining length while you grow.

TRANSITIONING HAIR 2010

MY HAIR REGIMEN 2012/2013

PRODUCTS: I KEEP IT REAL SIMPLE. I STAY AWAY FROM COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS. IF YOU'VE FOUND YOUR PRODUCTS AND THEY WORK FOR YOU, THEN IT'S REAL IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO STICK WITH IT. BUT, IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH DRY HAIR, PLEASE CONSIDER ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF CLEANSING.

LOVES WATER: Will rinse as needed whenever I want.

HATES SHAMPOO: Will cleanse with my tried and true Amla. I figured out to only use shampoo (or vinegar mix) when I need to get products off that the Amla can not remove (ie. silicons, synthetic plastics that coat the hair).

LOVES A DEEP CONDITIONING: 1x week, I deep condition with Mayo OR Bananas, mixed with honey, olive oil, and avocado. If I feel I don't need the protein, I will skip the mayo (it has eggs). Styling after deep conditioning treatments becomes easy. I am able to "part" and manipulate my hair without my ends ripping (y'all know that ripping sound that sometimes happens when we go to separate the hair into sections). If the hair is truly moisturized (and not already split or broken), the ends will separate without ripping. They will slide right apart.

LEAVE IN: Water. After that deep conditioning, I don't tend to need a leave in.

SEALER: Any oil on my vanity table (olive oil, avocado oil, hemp seed oil). I order oils from a company called old time soap co. They've got everything there (butters, etc). Plus, the customer service is phenomenal.

BIG CHOP DAY! OCTOBER 2010

 DETANGLING: Loves to be finger detangled with oil/conditioner combo during a pre-poo. This gets rid of all of the shed hairs and checks for knots. This is followed by a quick pass through of a seamless wide tooth comb, and then finally with my favorite ever Goody Gel Cushion Paddle Brush. I start from the ends and work my way slowly up to the roots while my hair is coated in oil/conditioner and under running water. MINIMAL BREAKAGE.

STYLING: My favorite style ever............2 strand twists (it's no secret LOL). I work out a lot, and the two strand twists let me wash and go without having to constantly detangle or worry about knotting. While wearing my favorite style ever, I do not use shampoo. I co wash (mostly with As I AM co-wash). I typically keep 2 Strand twists in for 3-4 weeks and take down is drama free. 

Otherwise, you can catch me in wash-n-go's on a hot Summer day. Low manipulation styling includes Wash n Go's, Braidouts, Twist Outs, Bunning, and more. What makes a good low manipulation styling is that the style is kept for at least 5-7 days without combing, brushing, or too much movement for breakage to occur. Do I do protective styling? Not on purpose LOL! (I do love me some buns :O)

• TRIMMING: Only as needed. I dust whenever I see anything odd (thinned out, stringy, see through, split). I do not rip out knots--I cut them out so that I can leave my ends intact and "clean" once the knot is gone. I don't get many split ends. I think it's because of the low manipulation styling, and the deep conditioning treatments.                                                   

• SCARVES, BONNETS, PILLOWCASES: Satin, silky type. Cotton takes all of my moisture off overnight. This is a must-have for me. It may be another reason why I don't have to re-apply leave-in conditioner during the week after my deep conditioning treatment.

• HEAT & I: I don't use heat often. I sometimes flat iron my hair (about 4x year). Not because I'm against it, but because I love to air dry my hair. My hair responds well when I air dry it. The water "sets" my hair, and my style lasts all week or more! Heated styles are a pain to babysit (gotta avoid water, can't sweat, stay away from steam, can't be free). That's my story on heat. Also, proceed with caution. Heat can be damaging. Constant heat will require more trimming of the ends also. 
• EXERCISE: Lots of cardio to stimulate the circulation and get things growing. Want to see my simple workout routine?                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
• So Long Story Short, my regimen is pretty simple. Pre Poo, Cleanse as Needed. Deep Condition. Use oils. Keep products natural and to a minimum to avoid build-up. Detangle based on your hair's needs. Use heat sparingly. Air Dry. Low Manipulation Styling. Trim as Needed.  Have Fun!                                                                                                                    

• 

  
  

MARCH 2012  4'' BELOW ARM PIT LENGTH

BUT OF ALL OF THESE TIPS, THERE'S ONE MAIN HABIT THAT I ATTRIBUTE LENGTH RETENTION TO..... 

THE COILY HAIRED ANSWER TO LONG LENGTHS

LOVE THE CURLS YOU'RE IN...

 Over the last 3 years, the one thing that is constant, is my love for coils. I love all of the coils that I spot in the streets, at the grocery store, at the mall..I check them all out. 

Because of this love of all things coily, I mostly like to wear my hair in it's natural state....coily. I don't often apply heat. Mostly I air dry. This is healthy. Healthy hair care will pretty much ensure length retention. Coincidentally, healthy hair care starts with..........loving the curls that you're in. 

Loving the curls that you're in means always wanting to wear your curls. At which point, flat ironing becomes just another occasional style option, not a constant texture that needs to be achieved. Loving the curls that you're in will lead to healthy hair, and the length will follow.
 

[Source]

[Source]

 

LOVE THE CURLS YOU'RE IN...

 LOVE THE CURLS YOU'RE IN...

[Source]

Exercise & Fitness With Coily Hair: Tips & Tricks

COILY HAIR AND EXERCISE: WEIGHT MANGEMENT & HAIR

I vaguely recall the issue of relaxed hair and water. It was a big NO NO! Sucked, because I have a pool. I waited until the weekend to swim. I waited until the weekend to sweat. That only gives me 2 days (which narrowed down to 1 day--not even consistently). That doesn't play well on the body. That spells out a sedentary life.

Now I know better. Even if I was relaxed, I would incorporate wash n go's in there somewhere. That would work best if I only tex-laxed (not relaxed bone straight). I would recommend that to everyone considering to relax their hair. 

How this relates to my unprocessed hair is as follows: For my workout schedule (5x week) of intense cardio that brings with it much sweat, the following is noted:

I love to wear two strand twists (big or small). They allow me to wet my hair as needed. I just don't add any shampoo to it. I co-wash as needed. Problem solved. I can stretch my hair in the evening, and wear it down or bunned or whatever in the morning. 

Braids are a Great Long Lasting Texture for Exercise

When I'm not in 2 strand twists, I can wear my hair loose, and not be afraid to wet it. EVER. Keeping my hair well conditioned allows me the freedom to wet my hair as I please, and not be concerned about dry/tangled/ashy looking hair. Quick textures for loose hair that has been sweat up:

• Braidout
• Twistout
• Bunned up
• Plus More to be discovered!

If you're wearing a wash n go, just pin up your hair (LOOSELY) with a big scrunchy, so as not to disturb (stretch) the coil pattern. Wear a headband to catch the sweat. If you don't plan to rinse the hair, this style can be preserved. 

Moisturized  Braidout Resilience after a WORKOUT


Whatever your hair styling choice, do know that the health and strength of your body trumps all of the hairstyles in the world. I have deemed two strand twists to be my official workout hair texture. It's easily co-washed or rinsed, and then styled. Braids are great too! A quick on-the-go styling is what is needed for freedom to get healthy.

Shorter length hair may pose some creativity. Most importantly, again, well conditioned hair can overcome most styling woe's due to it's elasticity, shine, curl definition, style compliance, and I can go on. Moisture, moisture, moisture. I'm not speaking of leave-in's per se. Proper, effective deep conditioning is a "must". I deep condition weekly for all week effective styling assistance.

Just a quick rave about a topic well deserved.


As Aways,


Stay Beautiful Dahlin'                      ------------tia

Saturday Coily Hair Quick Cleanse & Condition Routine

SATURDAY WASH DAY WITH EASE

Air Drying in Four Plaits

After about 2 weeks of not detangling Dimple's hair, this Saturday became her temporary hair day (it's usually Sunday evening). She couldn't go to church in the morning with this dry, brittle, tangled, uncooperative hair. I mean, she could, but we both wouldn't be too happy about it. As I type this, I've already pre-poo'd her hair with a diluted Conditioner (Trader Joe's Nourish Spa). I love that conditioner for it's detangling/slip properties--and the ingredients are the best! Unfortunately, there's not a Trader Joe's store by me--so I have to order it online. After I detangle each section, I'm twisting up her hair (usually ends up being about 10 two strand twists) so that it won't tangle back up.

From Four Plaits to Approx. 12 Smaller Plaits

After I detangle her hair during the pre-poo with diluted conditioner, I put her in the shower and shampoo (if needed). Since it's been around 2 weeks since I last did anything sensible to her hair, I decided to shampoo this time around. I may only rinse off a little of the pre-poo before I apply the dime sized shampoo to each section. I will usually take down each section in order to shampoo it. I just don't feel like I can "get up in there" when her hair is still in twists. Plus, it's really not that much more work for me.

Easy Stretch on Wash Day

After the shampoo, if her hair feels dry, then I will use a deep conditioning product, then place each section into a bantu knot. I will put on a shower cap, and let her finish up her shower. Once she's done showering, I  rinse out the deep conditioner and make 4 plaits from the loosened two strand twists. While she's getting dressed, her hair is air drying in the two strand twists. To help it along, I will use a microfiber towel and blot off the extra water.

I can leave her hair like this until tomorrow morning for a braidout with a LITTLE stretch--or I can make her air dried 4 plaits into about 16-20 plaits for some LONG stretch action (that's what I ended up doing).

This is a pretty simple regimen/routine that eliminates lengthy hair wash days and gets rid of lots of tears from detangling. You can't go wrong with that. As I sit here typing this, I can't help but to compare how much easier Dimple's hair is to about 10 years ago with T's hair drama. The only difference here is that I'm now educated about how to care for coily hair. That makes all the difference in the world.

Just a quick post to share from start to finish our 2 hour Saturday hair day (from pre-poo/detangle, includes shower, and ends with detangling and styling).

PICTURES OF HER FINAL STYLING

 

To view a Step By Step of this Style

Newly Transitioning Hair with Breakage: Building a Regimen

• Hi I have been watching your videos on YouTube! I am trying to put together a regimen for my hair, I am relaxed. Neck length, last relaxer was September. I have notice new growth in the front but none in the back.
  
  I try to co wash twice a week.
  I always deep condition when I use shampoo which is once a week.
  
  Here are the products I use: mane n tail shampoo and conditioner ( just bought those last week), herbal essence hello hydration and long term relationship,
  salon care cholesterol from sally's.
  I use garnier fructus leave in and hello hydration.
  My oils are peppermint, evoo, evco, and Castor oil. I also use pure glycerin and vitamin e.
  I have been taking one a day vitamins and 5000 grams of biotin.  
  
  I put my hair in pony tails 24/7. I use heat maybe once every two weeks. A couple days ago I noticed the hair in the back getting shorter and idk why. I need help, my last trim was when I got my perm. 

Hey Beautiful! Congrats on your transitioning! Your hair is growing. Don't worry about that part. Sounds like your ends are breaking. Your hair may be dry even though you deep condition weekly. Watch out with that glycerin during the winter/fall seasons. Especially if you're somewhere that there isn't any humidity or water in the air for it to pull from. It can dry your hair out. You use glycerin, and also there is glycerin content in some of the products you mentioned. I don't use commercial products (herbal essence, mane n tail, etc). They are not made for coily hair--or relaxed hair that stays notoriously dry. Use what you have (no waste). Add some oils to your shampoo or apply oil to your hair before you shampoo (and dilute your shampoo). Co-Washing is great. QUESTION: Do you have a hard time detangling?

Wow--is that a lot of Biotin? I haven't researched supplements (sorry), so I'm unsure of their effects. You're young--your hair is growing, just gotta not watch it (watched pot never boils) LOL!

A POSSIBLE REGIMEN:

1.  Pre-poo (conditioner/oil mix) and detangle with wide tooth comb. 
2.  Shampoo with sulphate shampoo to get all of the drying ingredients off of your hair. Once all cones are removed from the hair, begin using a non-sulfate shampoo, one that can add moisture. I love to use Amla for cleansing.
3.  Deep condition (all natural yogurt/honey/olive oil) Keep on for 1 hour minimum. 
4.  Rinse and condition with an all natural conditioner (or one that doesn't have cones).
5. What leave in do you use? Use one without cones (or product that can build up).
6. Seal with your favorite oil
7. Styling: Create 1 texture (for example: twists/braids with perm rod rollers at the ends), and put it in a style that will last you at least 1 week until next wash day. This will serve as low manipulation, with equals minimal breakage (and length retention). 

Deep Conditioning on Transitioning Hair is KEY to Moisture Retention

Transitioning Hair Requires a Consistent, Healthy Hair Regimen

Avoid Breakage with a Style that Will last you All Week

This could possibly serve as a base regimen for you, and allow you to watch how your hair responds to each step, and then tweak it as you go. Everyone's hair will respond differently to a regimen (for so many different reasons). I think this may be a good regimen for most, because it is a regimen that I used to "baby" breaking hair back to fullness and strength. It took me about 9 months to configure this regimen (after trial and error and some hair loss). I hope this can help you avoid the frustrations that we endured.

---Beautifully Yours


                                                                                                                   -----------tia

HOW TO AVOID BREAKAGE: TAKING DOWN 2 STRAND TWISTS

In a previous post, I wrote about the things I do to keep my hair moisturized and pliable while wearing two strand twists for over 3 weeks. The twists, and then the twist out can both create the environment for knotted ends, matted roots, and basically a tangled nightmare. After having a ball with my two strand twists, I also expect to retain the length that I gained. This means that I have to be careful not to rip my ends when I go to take them down. MOST IMPORTANT: DON'T WET YOUR HAIR UNTIL ALL TWISTS ARE TAKEN DOWN AND KNOTS ARE REMOVED.

• The preparation gets my hair ready for the detangling. Preparation such as: softening with oils and conditioners, removing shed hairs while finger detangling all play in important role in safely getting rid of all traces of the twists.

• Ideally, when taking down two strand twists, they can each be taken down in sections. The idea is to take them down in some kind of order, so as not to miss any twists. Once the hair is wet, any twists that are still there, can and will probably knot up with the loose hair. Also, because two strand twists are difficult to take down while wet--it's best to try to untwist each and every twist before starting the wash process. Truth be told, I never have a few hours in a row just to take down each one. The take down process usually takes me about 2 days (an hour here, an hour there).

• While unraveling each twist, it's always a good idea to run your thumb and pointer fingers down the shaft of the hair from the roots to the ends a few times. This will help further untwist the hair, and will also remove shed hairs. 

• Any knots that are not able to be resolved by finger detangling---will need to be cut off. YIKES--so you definitely don't want too many knots. If the knots are not cut out before the hair gets wet, this can result in breakage, which results in thinning ends--which requires trimming. All knots are ideally gone before the hair gets wet and any detangling tools are used. Lots of times, the detangling tool will just rip the knot out.

• Finger combing before using any tools will help avoid any ripping during the take down process. It's best to finger detangle with conditioner on the hair. While finger detangling each section, be sure to feel for knots, any matting or anything else that the comb or brush will be sure to rip and cause damage to. 

• Using a seamless wide tooth comb after finger detangling is one safe option to complete the take-down. This is like a 2nd step to the detangling process. Start at the ends and work slowly upwards with the comb.

• After the seamless wide comb, I use my Goody Finish Gel Paddle Brush to complete my detangling. Before I even use this tool, all knots, matting, tangles and problem areas would have already been taken care of. I use my goody finish brush while in the shower under running water with conditioner saturated on my hair. All of my detangling is done with conditioner and oils on my hair.

This is the full process that I take to safely take down and detangle my hair after wearing two strand twists on a long term basis. Doing this helps me to avoid ripping and breakage, which are the types of damage that later require cutting or trimming due to thinning ends.

Well Moisturized 2 Strand Twists: Co-Washed Only During 3 Week Wear

The first year that I was all natural, I did many long term twists. I suffered some damage due to trial and error. Mistakes that I made: Washing my hair with shampoo while wearing two strand twists. My hair would immediately lock up! No deep conditioning was able to help it out either. Another mistake I made was to think that I could just pull down my twists and start washing my hair. WRONG! There are a few detangling steps to be done to ensure no damage is done to the ends of the hair (as outlined above).

Moisturized 2 Strand Twists= Moisturized Twistout Later

The Beginning of the Detangle Process (after a workout)

Hopefully this post can help someone to avoid the mistakes that I made during my 1st year of wearing two strand twists. It's great to be able to learn from your own mistakes...but it's better to learn from the mistakes of others ;o)

And as always,

Stay Beautiful                                                                   --------------------------tia

Two Strand Twists: Healthy Hair Care Habits for Length Retention

It's hard to believe, but we are approaching 2013. I can say that this year was used wisely in regards to goals and being focused. There's still some time left to end the year with that powerfully accomplished feeling! As this post relates to hair, I'm going to just dive right in without further ado.

Three years into my natural hair journey, I know that my hair is retaining length. At between 15'' and 17'' length measured throughout the head, I've retained about 5.5'' (average) each of the three years. This includes trims and scissor happy hair dressers in the first 2 years that I was silly enough to risk allowing to touch my hair.

My recent stint with 2 strand twists were glorious to say the least. I am in love with two strand twists for length retention (and they are just plain cute and easy once installed). I kept them in for 3 weeks, and wore a twist out for about 3 days. Usually I would wear the twistout for about a week, but due to the fact that I work out about 5 days a week, I sweat too much not to have to wash it. SIDE NOTE: Two strand twists are now my official coily girl hair texture for a heavy work-out session. They are easily cared for (can dunk them under the water any time), they are easily styled (for both professional and casual wear).

Easy Styling Coily Hair in Two Strand Twists

Freshly Co-Washed 2 Strand Twists on Coily Hair

Heatless Waves on Two Strand Twists

Twistout After 3 Weeks of Wearing Two Strand Twists

Now to the "meat" of this post! 

Healthy Hair Care Habits for Length Retention:

I chose two strand twists with which to enjoy retaining some length while my hair remained un-manipulated. No combing, brushing, shampooing,  ripping through or any of those end splitting endeavors for a full 3 weeks. But what happens when I go to take down the twists? Most people experience knots, matting, dreads, and worse after enjoying their two strand twists. I've come up with a list of things that help me to avoid all of the above, and I'll share my list with you. If you have anything that helps you that we can add to the list, please share!

1. Twist on hair that is well conditioned. I like to do my twists after I've done my homemade mayo/honey/olive oil/avocado deep conditioning treatment.
2. Moisturizing properly before twisting is important. I find that since my deep conditioner is so heavy, I may not need to add additional moisturizer on the day that I twist. But definitely I assess the hair to ensure that it's  moisturized properly before doing my twists. This sets the stage for well moisturized twists that will not suffer damage from dryness. Also allows me to simply spritz water in the next few days (to reactivate the products that are on the strands).
3. Do twists on hair that is properly separated at the roots. If the roots start out with hair that is tangled, they will continue to tangle during the long wear stretch-and then they will matte or dread. How quickly this will happen depends on the hair's texture. Tighter coiled hair will probably dread or matte quicker.
4. Twist all the way down to the ends without "borrowing" hair from one of the 2 sections. If you do have to "borrow" hair, make sure that you remember that you did this on take-down. Those are the twists that you're going to have to "baby" when you take down--and find exactly where the hair is shared and un-twist it carefully. This will help avoid damage to the ends.
5. Maintain the proper moisture level while wearing the twists. Deep condition as usual. Don't let the hair dry up. I also avoid shampoo, as this tends to tangle my hair and knot it up. This was learned after much trial and error. Co-washing is good. I use the As I Am Coconut Cowash Cleansing Conditioner, 16 Ounce  when I have my hair in two strand twists. It's perfect for cleansing without shampoo.
6. Trim as needed. While the twists are in, this is the easiest time for me to identify ends that are ragged. NOTE: This may not be a good idea for hair that is easily unravels. Blunt ends will encourage unraveling. 

This is scheduled to be a 2 part post, because the take down of two strand twists is extremely important to length retention. Twists could be kept in safely for weeks, and all of the progress made could be destroyed on the take-down. In the upcoming post, I will share exactly what steps I take to un-ravel and safely detangle my hair after wearing two strand twists on a long term basis.

Enjoying two strand twists without the take-down drama of tangles will ensure length retention. I like to do 2 sets of two strand twists within a 3 month period (taking a break on the 2nd month, then doing a new set of twists on the 3rd month. I usually see about 2'' length from this practice. For sure, it requires patience to do the twists (mines take me about 8 hours within a 2 day period--or just 1 long Saturday of movies and HOME BOUND). Also, patience is required on the take down, which will be discussed on the next post.

Until Then, Stay BEAUTIFUL :o)                                                               ---------tia