HAIRSTYLE PICTORIAL – Embracing The Natural in Me

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Hello ladies,

I noted in my last hair update  that I am 14 weeks post and have a lot of new growth.
I had an outing and had to find a style that would work with my natural roots and relaxed ends.

I ‘am not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but I actually don’t really enjoy wearing my hair down.  One of the main reasons I wanted long hair so badly was because I wanted my up-do’s to be huge and massive.

So whenever I have a lot of new growth, I see it as an opportunity to create hairstyles inspired by all the beautiful natural haired ladies I stalk online.

I created and wore this style to a Nikkah last weekend and decided to do a pictorial of it to share with you.
You should be able to re-create this style with collar bone length hair and longer.
Ladies with shorter hair can get creative and come up with similar styles using hair pins.

THE PICTORIAL

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THE FINISHED LOOK

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HAIR + STYLEIMG_1838

 

What do you think?  Would you rock this natural hair inspired protective style?

 

I have a great post coming up very soon.
I’ve been so eager to share some pictures since August but wasn’t able to for reasons I will explain.
At last, I am able to share them with you all.
(hint – they are pictures of some of the wigs in the Hair by Type 4- R Collection)

Hopefully you’ll be back soon to see them.

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

 

BED HAIR- HOW I PROTECT MY HAIR AT NIGHT

Hello ladies,
I cant even begin to explain all the technical hiccups I’ve had recently. I am just glad I am able to start blogging again.  The good thing is I have a backlog of posts to share which I will put up together at the same time.  Hopefully that will make up for my recent absence.

So on with the first post.

I have been asked by several readers to share my night time hair regimen.
I don’t wrap my hair around my head in a circular motion for the following reasons

1)      I would have to use a comb to wrap the hair round my head.  I avoid combing my hair more than once a week.  Therefore nightly combing is a big no no for me.

2)      A lot of ladies who wrap their hair round their hair at night do so because they intend to wear it down the next day and want it to be crease free.  I hardly wear my hair down because I love buns and up-dos.  I wear protective  styles majority of the time so I do not mind if my hair has a few creases it when I wake up in the morning and remove my scarf.

What I do with my hair at night is known as a cross wrap.

 

WHAT IS CROSS WRAPPING
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1)      Moisturise and seal my hair.  Part it into two with my fingers.

2)      Take one half and wrap it round the opposite side towards the front of my head.

3)      Use a clip secure the hair at the front

4 &5)      Repeat 2 and 3 with the other half.

6)      Cover hair with a satin scarf and tie loosely

7)      Slide out the clips gently

8)      Adjust the front of the scarf to ensure that no hair is sticking out and tighten scarf

With cross wrapping I have some bends or creases in my hair when I wake up the following day but I don’t mind.

Please note that cross wrapping is not the only way to protect your hair at night.  I am just sharing what I do with my hair and what works for me.

I hope you have found this helpful.

Stay tuned for a hair style pictorial coming up in a few minutes ( as long as my laptop co-operates)

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

HAIR UPDATE – Up Close & Personal With My Hair At 14 Weeks Post

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Its hair update time.

I think it’s important to keep things real with my readers and paint an honest picture of the challenges I face on my hair journey. These are challenges you might face as well especially if you intend to stretch your relaxer like I do.

So as you may know, I relax my hair every 5 months (20 weeks). I have decided however to stretch even further and I relax my hair at 6 months.
I am currently 14 weeks post relaxer ( which simply means the last time I relaxed my hair was 14 weeks ago). Usually I start wearing my wigs from 10 weeks post but I’ve been enjoying having my hair out and was a bit reluctant to put it away….but you know what? I think I ‘am ready.

Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love my new growth. I love how springy it feels but what I love the most is the volume it gives my hair. I have about 1.5 inches of natural hair at the moment so I have a mini fro beneath my relaxed hair. When it comes to MY hair, the bigger and poofier it is, the happier I am, so right now I am pretty happy.

The reality however is that there are some challenges that come with managing hair that has a lot of new growth.

 

CHALLENGES OF STRETCHING MY RELAXER

14 weeks

1) MANAGING TWO TEXTURES
When you have a lot of new growth beneath your relaxed hair, it is important to take care of both textures to reduce the risk of breakage.
I have keep both my natural new growth and my relaxed hair moisturised. However I have to be extremely gentle when handling hair with this much new growth. This is because the line of demarcation (where the relaxed hair meets the natural new growth) is very delicate and will break easily if handled roughly.
A lot of ladies notice that their new growth may feel dry. The only way to overcome this is to give it what it needs, moisture. I use braid spray or S curl to keep my new growth soft and moisturised.

2) MORE TIME & MORE WORK
I find that when I have a lot of new growth, my hair tangles and forms knots easily. The more new growth I have, the more times I have to detangle during the week. And because I have to be very gentle (because of the weakness at the line of demarcation) it takes me longer to detangle, moisturise and seal my hair.

I usually get away with detangling my hair once a week but when I have a lot of new growth like I currently do, I have to detangle my hair 2 or 3 times a week.
The fact is the more new growth I get, the more time I have to invest in keeping both textures happy.
Look at the picture below, imagine how long it takes me to get through all of that………

 

14 weeks+


3) SHRINKAGE

All that lovely new growth means that my hair is higher/taller at the root (if that makes any sense). This makes it look slight shorter. I don’t mind to be honest.
In fact I kind of like it cos on relaxer day I’ll be like “ oh yea, I forgot how long my hair is”.

4) THINNER LOOKING HAIR
Because of the afro at the roots of my hair, the relaxed part of my hair look thinner than it actually is. I am not a fan of this but it is only temporary.

I don’t want to give the impression that natural new growth is a problem.  That IS NOT the message of this post.  The point I am trying to make is that when you have a lot new growth you have to amend your regimen slightly so that you take care of both textures. 

The main reason why I still wear wigs is to help me stretch my relaxer. The wigs give me a mini holiday from my hair. Rather than risk neglecting my hair, wigs helps me to cut back on the amount of time I spend detangling.
So with the that said, I think it’s time I put my hair away and switch to my wig regimen till I relax my hair early next year. For details of my wig regimen see this post.

A hair journey can be hard work sometimes but it is a positive thing. I compare it to trying to exercise, eat right and stay healthy, it’s not easy but it has its benefits.

I hope this post will encourage you to keep trying despite the challenges.

In the next couple of posts I will discuss mistakes I made earlier on in my hair journey and my bed time hair routine.

Thanks for visiting and see you again soon

X
Lade
Learn | Change | Grow

SHEDDING & BREAKAGE (Part 2) – How to minimise shedding and breakage

Hello ladies

I am so sorry about the unplanned hiatus.  I was a lil under the weather.  When I began to feel better and was ready to blog my laptop packed up. I thank God my laptop and I are well now.
I hope you have been well.  How is the hair journey going?

This bog post is part two of the Shedding vs breakage series.  I hope you have read part one which sets out the differences between shedding and breakage and how to identify either.

In this blog post I will be sharing tips on how I minimise shedding and breakage.

                                                      HOW TO MINIMISE SHEDDING

As noted in part one shedding is a normal part of the hair growth cycle however there are ways to minimise or reduce shedding.  A popular method amongst ladies on a hair journey and the method I use myself is Black Tea Rinses.black tea rinse

 

What is a Black Tea Rinse ?

To carry out a black tea rinse, boil some water and steep some tea bags in it.  Leave the tea bags in the hot water and allow it to cool down completely to room temperature. Remove the tea bags. After washing your hair, pour the cooled down tea on your hair and scalp.
I use two tea bags in half a litre of water, this works for me but feel free to experiment with the number of tea bags and amount of water you use.  It is not an essential part of a hair regimen but there are benefits to doing it.  You can use any brand of tea, Lipton, PG Tips, Typhoo, Tetley, etc.

How Does it Work?

DHT is a hormone which can cause hair loss.  This hormone can be blocked by caffeine.  Black tea contains more caffeine than coffee and when used as a rinse, helps to reduce shedding.  This is a simplified explanation and I am doing further research into understanding how this in greater detail. Other great benefits of black tea rinses are that it adds shine and darkens hair with frequent use.

Practical Tips for Doing a Black Tea Rinses

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I bought this cute mini jug for my black tea rinses

 

There are many ways of doing a black tea rinse.

Option one: wash and rinse your hair, pour the cooled tea on your hair and scalp. Leave the tea in your hair for 10 or more minutes, rinse out the tea and then proceed to deep conditioning.

Option two: wash and rinse your hair, pour the cooled tea on your hair and scalp. Leave the tea in your hair for a few minutes, do not rinse out the tea, simply apply your conditioner to your hair and deep condition. This is the option I use.

Option three: wash and rinse your hair, apply your deep conditioner, put the tea in a spray bottle and spray the tea on your scalp.  Proceed with deep conditioning.
Some ladies note that black tea rinses causes their hair to tangle so this option would be beneficial for such ladies because the tea is sprayed on your scalp and only a little amount will run unto you hair.

Note that black tea rinses should be done before or during conditioning.  They should never be done after conditioning because it may leave your hair feeling dry.

Remember that shedding can never be eliminated completely, but black tea rinses help to keep shedding to a minimum. Please note that if your hair suddenly begins to shed in very large amounts and you think you may have a medical condition which is causing the shedding, you should consult with your doctor.

 

                                                       HOW  TO MINIMISE BREAKAGE


To reduce breakage, you have to consider  what the causes of breakage are and eliminate them from your hair regimen.

Popular Causes of Breakage

Dryness
Dry hair has a high tendency to split and break.  Moisturising and sealing regularly will reduce the risk of breakage. For further information on moisturising and sealing see this post.

Protein and Moisture Imbalance
Deep conditioners and leave in conditioners are either protein conditioners which strengthen hair or moisturising conditioners which soften hair and improve its elasticity.  Using too much or not enough of either protein or moisturising products will lead to breakage.  It is therefore essential to achieve protein-moisture balance to minimise breakage. For further detailed information about protein and moisture balancing see this post.

Rough Handling
One thing I would like ladies to remember whenever they are handling their hair is this: black hair is delicate and must be handled with care.   Our hair cannot withstand aggressive handling.  I cannot emphasise this enough. If you (or salon staff) are not gentle with your hair it will break.  

Damage
From the moment our hair strands grow out of their hair follicles they will begin to experience some form of damage.  Some of the damage will occur naturally from ageing of the hair fibre or good old wear and tear.  Some damage however is self caused and this should be reduced or eliminated from your hair regimen.  Common causes of damage include chemical abuse( relaxing hair too often or incorrectly), incorrect installation, maintenance or removal of hair extensions, frequent use of direct heat,  damaged combs and hair styling accessories, neglecting you hair, etc. For more detailed information on damage and how to reduce damage please see this post.

 

Hope you’ve found this post to be a worthwhile read.  Anyone going to try the black tea rinse?

I will be putting up blog posts about my night time routine and mistakes I made early on in my journey soon.

X

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

SHEDDING & BREAKAGE (PART 1) – THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SHEDDING & BREAKAGE

There are two main ways we lose hair; by shedding or by breakage.
It is important to understand the difference between the two and know what causes either of them so that you know how to minimise both.

In this blog post I will explain what shedding and breakage is and how to identify either of them.

WHAT IS SHEDDING

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Each strand of hair on our head goes through a 3 stage growth cycle.  These stages are; a growing stage, a resting stage and a shedding stage.  When a strand of hair is in the shedding stage, it will fall out from the hair follicle (the root of the hair).   The hair follicle will then produce/grow a new hair strand and that new hair strand will also go through this three stage cycle.  Hair loss through shedding is therefore a normal part of the hair growth cycle, on average we lose an average of 50 to 100 strands of hair a day by shedding.

Please note that shedding occurs even if your hair is in a weave, braids, under a wig or in a bun.  The hair will shed from the scalp but may be stuck in your hair style.  As an example, if a lady has a shedding rate of 50 strands a day but has had a weave for a month, when she removes the weave all the hair that has been shedding for the last 30 but was stuck in her style will fall out when she detangles and combs her hair.
So if her shedding rate is 50 strands a day and she has had a weave for 30 days, when she removes her weave all the 1500 hairs that has been shedding under the weave will be free from the weave or braids they were trapped in.

HOW TO IDENTIFY SHEDDING

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This image is magnified.
The white tip is very very tiny but it is visible.

When a hair is shed, the entire length (from its base to its tip) falls out.  Shed hairs therefore tend to be longer pieces of hair.  Also shed hairs tend to have a very tiny white bulb at the base of the hair.  This is because when the hair is in the resting phase, colour stops being produced before the hair falls out in the shedding phase.

EXCESSIVE SHEDDING AND WHY IT IS A PROBLEM

Although shedding is natural, some factors can cause a woman’s shedding rate to increase beyond its normal level.
As an example, my own hair sheds approximately 30 to 55 strands a day (I know this because I’ve counted a few times, please don’t judge me 🙂 ) . If my shedding rate suddenly increases from 55 strands a day to 130 strands a day, that would be excessive shedding because my hair would be shedding more than in normally does.

So even though shedding is normal and should be expected, excessive or abnormal shedding is not.  Factors  that MAY cause hair to shed more than its normal rate include
1) Hormonal influences, eg pregnancy ( especially after birth), birth control, menopause, etc.
2) A poor diet
3) Stress
4) Some hairstyles which put too much tension or stress on the hair follicles (hair roots)

Excessive shedding will reduce the overall fullness of your hair over time.  In part two of this series I will share methods of reducing shedding.

 

WHAT IS BREAKAGE

Breakage is usually caused by the following situations
1) Dry and brittle hair
2) Excessive and rough combing
3) Protein and moisture imbalance
4) Damage from incorrect use of chemicals (relaxing and colouring)
5) Damage from extensions

Damage, incorrect hair care and poor hair care practices are the usual suspects behind breakage.  Broken hairs are usually shorter than shed hairs because only parts of the hair breaks off unlike shed hairs where the whole length of the hair falls out.  Also broken hair will not have a white tip which is a characteristic of shed hairs.

It is impossible to have zero breakage because general wear and tear, caring for and styling the hair can cause some degree of breakage. However, If you are experiencing severe breakage or your hair breaks very easily even when you are gentle with it then this is something you should address, treat or try to minimise.

I hope the information above has clarified the difference between breakage and shedding.  Please come back soon for part two of this series where I will provide advice on minimising both shedding and breakage.

How are your hair journeys going ladies?
What do you get more, shedding, breakage or both?

X

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow