Chemical Dependency

Just 4 days short of my 2 year natural hair anniversary I had a relapse and went back to the creamy crack. I know, I know. I feel like I was in a relationship and cheated on my significant other. A little guilt stirred up as I came to the realization that I would no longer be a part of the community I had come to cherish over these past 2 years...The natural hair community. All the blogs served as a support system for my journey. Now that the journey has ended I'm left wondering what to do next.

Last night some of my natural hair friends saw me with a relaxer. As soon as they realized I had relaxed my hair, I immediately covered my face in shame. Sheesh, I feel like I am a betrayer. I had no idea that people actually paid any attention to my blog or knew it by name.

Now what? Should I change the blog name? Clearly I will no longer talk about natural hair, but I still enjoy having an outlet to write my thoughts.
Last Moment without a relaxer

Creamy Crack
Creamy Crack Part 2
No more coils when wet
Finishing where I started

1 Years Old.....Actually 1 on Dec 25th not 24th

Naturally_Psyched is 1 today! It has been such a learning experience. This year has taught me so much about myself. This journey has revealed my weaknesses which gave me the opportunity to face them head on and also enhanced my strengths. There were a lot of ups as well as downs, but I'm grateful for all of it. I started this journey for a specific purpose, reached that point, and decided to not continue on that road.

A change was made....More details to come

Let's Take This Back To The Old School

Even though I have an amazing flat iron (which was recently returned after being stolen...long story) I still like to hot comb/press my hair first. Normally I use an electric hot comb, but lately it has not done the job right. Soooo, I looked in my handy dandy kitchen drawer and VOILA, my old school hot comb was sitting there ready for use. I fired up the kitchen stove. It took me back to the days when I would sit in the kitchen Sunday mornings while my stepmother worked her magic to give me a press and curl.

I have to admit, my biggest fear with an old school hot comb is burning my hair. In order to make sure the comb is not too hot, I always have a wet rag to press the comb on before it touches my hair.

It turned out well.....More details to come.

I'm Not Going Back??

At first I wasn't going to write about this, because I felt I have touched on it before, but after talking to the BF and seeing as how I've been neglecting my beloved blog, I figured I'd give it a go AGAIN.

When I was in elementary school, not any older than 10 or 11, I wrote this song called I'm not going back. The lyrics talked about a woman or girl for that matter, who was not going back to the way things used to be. In the song she was talking about not going back to a bad relationship. I'm still amazed at how my young mind conceived concepts that are so relevant to the lives of women I know now.

Well for a while I applied that song to my hair. For a while I did not think about going back to a relaxer. But now my song has changed. As I'm approaching my 2 year natural hair anniversary (Dec 24th), I can't help but think about the blunted bob I want to get and how it would look nice with relaxed hair.

The goal of this journey was to get locks. I got the locks, I didn't want to keep them, now I'm in this limbo. Should I or shouldn't I?

Only time will tell......More details to come

Ghana

I recently had the amazing opportunity to visit Africa again for a wedding celebration. As I thought about what I would pack for the trip, I immediately began to wonder what I would do with my hair. I took out my locks not too long before my departure, so my hair was up in the air, literally. Twist out was definitely the first thing I thought about, but I would be in Ghana for 9 days...What happens after that 5th day? I ended up twisting my hair, wearing a scarf on the plane and not untwisting until after my 18 hour travel to the motherland. 5 day twist out? Yea right....lol It was sooo hot and humid that my hair started to shrink after the 2nd day, so I retwisted. Then I realized that it wasn't going to last so I pulled my hair back with a headband and put the front in a mini bun. Mmmm, overall it was okay, I wasn't too thrilled with the way my hair turned out, but hey, I was in the motherland.

I saw interesting things that dealt with hair while I was there, so I'm going to post those also.

1970s Flow

Okay, okay, I will eventually post something about Ghana, but obviously this isn't it. lol

We have a student organization on campus called UJIMA, this year I am president. In keeping with tradition, we had our 70s party last night. It was a blast! It was great having people come out to network, eat, and dance. The costumes and hair were amazing at the party and right on point. I think our moms and dads would be proud. I was very proud, and thanks to James we definitely broke a sweat.

It had been 4 months since I last blow dried my hair, so I was excited about seeing the growth. And my has it grown. (Post about growth coming real soon) Of course I wore my own Afro to the party. No wig needed. Really got my Jackie Brown/Sheeba Baby on! lol......More details to come.

Sesame Street....I Love My Hair

I was planning to write about Ghana next, but I came across this cute video from Sesame Street and decided to share it first, and write about Ghana later in the week. The song is called I Love My Hair. In it, you see African American puppets who are wearing their hair in afros, twists, cornrows, ponytails and pigtails. The song reminds me that you should love your hair no matter which way you decide to wear it, natural or relaxed. The main point is that you make sure you are loving you and not wearing your hair a certain way because you think that's the way it has to be. That goes for natural and relaxed. Although I chose to wear my hair natural now does not mean that I will always wear it that way. I will love my hair either way and won't be pressured into wearing my hair a certain way because that is what is deemed the right way. At the end of the day the important point is to Love You, your hair is a part of you.....More details to come

Doctoral Candidate

Soooo, I decided not to keep my locks in....6 1/2 weeks was long enough for me to realize that I could not make that type of commitment right now. I really liked my locks, but I missed combing my hair and switching things. So I combed them out.

Sept 30th, 2010 marks the day I became a doctoral candidate. I had been stressed about orals for months, and the day of was no exception. As I tried to deal with my bundles of nerves, I figured I would "look the part." I dressed for success, and made sure my hair was styled in a way that made me feel confident and powerful. I guess that stems from the fake it until you make it philosophy. I wanted to at least stare at something powerful when I looked in the mirror before I left the house. I must say I was pleased with my reflection.

I passed!....made it through that hurdle. Congrats to my fellow cohort! Now on to these APA applications......More details to come

Wipe Me Down

Yes, in my head I'm singing Wipe Me Down by Lil Boosie, don't judge me. lol

So I waited a month after I got my hair twisted to wipe my scalp. I used Sea Breeze which is an astringent that removed the oil and dirt from my scalp. Soaked cotton balls with the Sea Breeze and proceeded to wipe myself down.....My hair that is. I thought it would be a lot dirtier than it was, I mean it had been a month since I cleaned it (gross I know).

After I wiped my scalp, I rinsed in the showed then started retwisting.....Goodness, it took forever! lol. Around a hour. I used Silky Milk setting lotion and some lock it up gel to retwist. I retwisted my hair from the scalp and clipped at the root.

Overall this hair style is pretty care free, but I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it. I had a dream last night where I asked my sister to give me a relaxer and a blunt bob....Wonder what that was about............More details to come

Locked Up

Akon....Locked Up....That's when I used to like Akon's music......."Messed around and got Locked Up, they won't let me out, they won't let me out, I'm locked up....Ohhhh" Yall should see me jamming in my apt to this song. lol

Anywho, it's 2 weeks later and my hair is still twisted up. I am kind of leaning towards keeping them. They have been very care free so far. All I do is wrap my head in a scarf at night. My hair is still soft. I'm telling you, I love that silky milk setting lotion that my stylist (mom) used. Next week I get to wipe my scalp down and retwist at the scalp. I'll post about that process and tell you how it goes......More details to come

I've also decided that I will expand this blog a little bit. Not entirely sure what all it will include, but I will start to write about more than just My hair.

THIS IS IT

So, I started this natural hair journey almost 20 months ago Dec 2008. The whole purpose of the journey was to get locks. That time has finally come. It actually came a little random, I was actually going to the hair salon to get it pressed. (My mom #2 is a hair stylist) As she conditioned it, and was plating it so I could sit under the dryer she said "Your hair would lock up good" Next thing I knew she did two twist. I looked in the mirror and I liked what I saw. So I said to myself, Okay, THIS IS IT.

She twisted it, and I liked how it turned out. I must admit I had some reservations about it the next day. I loved how the twists looked themselves, but I did not really like how it looked on me. Another day passed, and I styled it slightly different and realized that it was growing on me. I even took my license picture with the twists (25 on Aug 31st!! lol) My hair is extremely soft, which is so weird b/c just days ago I had an untamable Afro, but she did use that Silk Milk (setting lotion) which seems to do wonders for my hair.

We will see where this leads me. Will I keep them? Will I take them out? Now that I am about to reach my goal will I go back to a relaxer? Questions Question Questions......More details to come

Hair Stylist: Locks: Cynthia Fluker Salon at Samiyyah's 513-761-7998
Color: Verna' Meadows Dillard's 513-745-4473

Micro Chic

So, there are periods of time where I just don't feel like doing much of anything to my hair. Especially when I'm traveling overseas or to a humid part of the country such as Cincinnati, Ohio (yes, had to represent my hometown). The best hairstyle for me during those times are Micros....I love them. They allow me to be the easy going traveling woman I want to be, instead of focusing on what I will do with my hair next, I normally sweep it up into a ponytail, or let it hang. Simple as that. The woman who braided my hair is amazing, Lolita. I love when she braids my hair because it DOES NOT HURT! Women who get there hair braided know this can be a painful process.....More details to come

Independence

Over the 4th of July weekend I went to a cookout in NJ and was pleased to see a lot of natural hairstyles on the ladies. I saw frohawks, bantu knots (that were untwisted) the standard curl and go. As for me, I rocked micros for the occasion (Look for a separate post about that coming soon). This 4th of July seemed extra humid for me, but not worrying about sweating my hair out made it a little easier. :-) How did you rock your hair over the weekend?......More details coming soon

Pressed

I've been in LA for 3 years, well it will be 3 years next month. During my 3 years here I have only gone to get my hair done by a professional 5 times. Once to get a sew in, once to get micros, and 3 times to get it pressed. I'm getting micros next week, so I thought that I would go get it pressed to do a length check and just to wear it straight for a little while. It's been 3 months since I got my hair dyed, and it's grown a lot....You'll see it in the pics. After I got my hair pressed I went to a white linen party and I must admit, I missed being able to shake my hair on the dance floor. How often do you get your hair professionally done or are you your own stylist? More details to come.........

50s Hair??

So a couple of weeks ago I was supposed to go to this 50s party. I had an idea of what I was going to wear....but no idea how I would wear my hair. So I went to one of my favorite friends....GOOGLE. I looked at the different styles and decided I would do a Grease/Flintstone inspired look. Not sure if it's even a 50s look, but here's how it turned out. Not crazy about it, but hey it was a costume party, you're aloud to be "out there" Oh, apparently red lips were hot in the 50s lol.... More details to come

The Puff

As I continue on this Journey I find that my hair takes a a lot of time to manage.....It's very thick, and it grows quickly. With this busy grad school schedule, I've had to find new ways to style my hair that would cut down down, and that also looks nice. When I went home, a friend of mine wore her hair in a Puff to a party we went to. It was absolutely gorgeous. When I got back to LA things were becoming more hectic with school and work, I definitely needed to simplify my hairstyling. I also came across two WALNUT ALUMNI on twitter (Hey Nyla, Hey Dahna) who wear their hair in the Puff as well. Let me tell you, it is definitely a time saver, AND it can be worn in several environments i.e. work, school, out on the town. I've styled it right after a co-wash with no drying required, and I've also styled it after I've had a twist out in for a few days. Either way, it works....... How do you save time when styling your Hair?.......More details to come




After Co-Wash




After Old Twist Out




Nyla



Dahna

Fire....dun dun dun

I wanted my hair a little redder than what it already was, so I decided to using Jazzings (Ruby Red) temporary color to for a lack of a better phrase Jazz it Up. I washed my hair using herbal essences, then before applying conditioner, I put the Ruby Red on and sat under the dryer for 30 mins. I then rinsed it and let conditioner sit in my head for about 20 minutes. It was an easy process, one that I have done in the past. At first I was thinking....wow, this is TOO red, but I liked the way it turned out.......More details to come