Happy New Year 2016

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

Happy New Year

GREETINGS
Okay, so Ill admit it, I have been away for a very long time. I just had a look back and noticed that I only posted once last year (gasp).  To be honest, I kinda lost my mojo and wasn't really interested in creating any more content for this blog. But since this is a new year, I thought that I may as well give it another shot.  I am going to aim, note I said aim...to post at least once a month.  For me that is a realistic goal, it is achievable, and if I manage to do more than that, its a bonus right?

THE PAST YEAR (2015)
So lets start with a brief recap of last year. I was toying with the idea of going natural and decided to do a year or protective styling whilst i made a decision.  I tried plenty of styles throughout the year mainly braids and crochet.  My last relaxer was in October 2014 and so at this moment I am 14 months post relaxer.  Now, let me be real with you; despite my hair being in protective styles for the most of the year, managing the two textures has been a sure struggle.  I have very thick hair, it is very coarse and very tightly coiled.  I am pretty sure I have 4c hair.  So when I wash my hair, I have to be very gentle, so as not to completely break my relaxed ends. But, despite this, I am still persevering with this journey.

I have recorded snippets of the journey, but I do not have the motivation or the software to put together a decent video, so it will remain until I find a time to do anything about it. Soz

THE COMING YEAR (2016)
To be honest, I haven't given my hair goals for this year much thought.  I know that I would like to continue to grow my hair and to use protective styles.  I don't know if or when I will cut off my relaxed ends, but i am/hoping that my hair will get easier to manage.

1. Create and upload a blog post at least monthly
2. Use protective styles
3. Take hair vitamins
4. Moisturise hair daily
5. Deep condition hair monthly

This is a hastily put together post, so i will have to plan better for the future, but for now, in the words of my friend `done is better than perfect`.

For now,

Blessings all over you.

2015 - Year of Protective Styling

At the end of last year, I thought to myself, 'well you've had fun and enjoyed your haircut, it's time to grow it back'. To be honest, when I cut my hair, it was partly to have a change, but also because I felt that my hair was not thriving. I felt like my hair had lost a lot of body and thickness and I needed to do something different. Someone once said 'insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results'. I know I've gotta change it up to grow back my length and for it to be healthy.

One of my inspirations is my baby sister. She started her hair journey in about 2012 and her hair has been thriving. She is natural and has mid back length hair (drool) lol. She gained her length from protective staying with wigs and weaves. So I decided that 2015 for me would be a year of protective styling. Each month I would try a different style and see what I manage to achieve by the end of the year.

Insanity Week 1

Week 1

It arrived last week, so I gave myself the rest of the week to relax and enjoy eating the junk that I love to eat so much. On Sunday night I enjoyed a delicious Daim bar. I still have the wrapper as a reminder. Monday was the day I began Insanity.

To add some context, I've never been hugely overweight, but as a woman, I've exercised my perogative to never be happy with my weight. I'm a self confessed yo-yo dieter slash, yo-yo exerciser! I'll spend a few months eating really well and working out, then I'll have a rest day that turns into a week and before I know it, I'm back to eating junk. So what's different about this time? Everything I hope.

I've noticed that as I've gone up in years, so has my weight. Each year I seem to add a pound or two. Now, in isolation, it's not a big deal, but if I don't conquer this now, I'll be a stone heavier in 7 years. I'm not happy with that. So it's time to try something different.

I've been eyeing up the insanity workout for a while now, but never committed due to the cost.  Then I thought, 'ah blow it' and as I said, it arrived last week. I began with the fit test on Monday 10th November 2014. The fit test was a real wake up call. I've renamed it the 'unfit test'. I was panting and sweating within minutes of starting. Here are my results:

Switch Kicks 40
Power Jacks 44
Power Knees 77
Power Jumps 19
Globe Jumps 8
Suicide Jumps 12
Push-up Jacks 12
Low Plank Oblique 25

Start weight 148.8 lbs
Height 5'3

I am having trouble walking because my body is aching so much. This workout really pushes you. But I'm hoping for great results on day 60, which I have worked out to be 11th January 2015. My sister and one of my friends are doing it too. We'll keep each other motivated so we can all reach day 60 knowing that we did every workout, ate healthy and gave it our all. Let's do this!

Relaxer Day October 2014

I went to the hairdresser to get my hair relaxed on 25.10.2014. I'm not certain how many weeks post I was, but I'm sure it's at least 16 weeks.

Now this wasn't the best experience as I did get some burns at the side of my head and at the back of my head.  (I think I'll revert back to self relaxing for next time). Thankfully they were only small and have healed well this past week. I've just been really gentle, avoiding scratching and making sure to oil my scalp.

Today I washed my hair with my favourite and go-to product 'Creme of Nature Moroccan Argan Oil' Shampoo and conditioner. Before I washed I put the ORS conditioner on my hair along with oil and added a heated cap. After washing, I wrapped my hair in a t-shirt to absorb the water and allowed it to air dry for the evening.

I've got some bantu knots in at the moment, 5 in total, one at the crown, two at the back and one on each side. Hoping for a great voluminous style for church. Let's hope it looks good tomorrow!

Braids Again

On 21.8.14, I did something that I haven't done in a very long time, years in fact. I paid for someone else to braid my hair. I was desperate for a change and did not have the time or patience to do it myself, so I went to my sisters hairdresser. This was an interesting experience and was a reminder of why I started doing hair myself.

I asked for my braids to be BSL, but they were more tailbone length. The amount of hair used per plait was too much as it is almost impossible for me to grip all the hair with one hand to style it. And it is super heavy. BUT... she did to a great job. My hair was neat and wasn't braided too tight at all. The other benefit is that it only took 4 hours. I arrived at 5pm and left at 9pm. Which I was very pleased about.  Had I done it myself it would definitely have taken 12 hours.  Definitely. However, this is because I had 2 people doing my hair at any one time. I bought 4 packs of expression hair. But didn't use it all.

So it's been in for about 6 weeks now. I wash them once a week with a mild shampoo and condition with the red HE conditioner. I spray it with braid spray every day and oil my scalp from time to time.

I really should take them out, but I'm going to try and hold on to it a bit longer and just re-braid the front and edges. I'm going to see how long I can keep it up. Braids are so low maintenance, and I love that.

A Fresh Start

It has been an absolute age since I last posted a blog. It certainly was not intentional, it just kinda happened. Plus I have no computer at the moment and have to use my phone which is far from ideal. I really can't remember when I last relaxed my hair, but it was probably sometime in May or June.  But that is not the reason for this post.

Those of you that follow my instagram may have noticed that I cut my hair into a bob in July. The hairdresser said she took off about 6 inches and I was amazed when I saw the hair laying on the floor. It looks like so much more! I really thought that my hair needed a good cut to give myself a fresh start. I have been saying for a long time that I'm not retaining length and I really need to get back to basics, so I cut my hair for a fresh start.  I must admit I love having shorter hair and I actually think it is just as versatile as my longer hair. All in all this is my fresh start. I would say my hair is grazing shoulder length now.

Last night I doused my hair with Coconut Oil and Neutrogena Triple Moisture Conditioner and then covered my hair with a plastic cap, 3 plastic bags a headscarf and a bonet. I'm hoping this will give my hair some much needed moisture and help to soften it too. I still wash my hair weekly and intend to grow out my hair once more and will keep you posted on my progress.

Wedding 12.7.14

Biotin Trial

Holland and Barrett Biotin

Since I have hit a stumbling block with my hair for the past 18 months, in that I have not retained any length, I have decided to try a different approach.  Following my relaxer in February, I began to take biotin in early March.  I anticipate that this will help my hair to grow, to retain length, get healthier and to get back on track. I started taking the 300mg (4 tablets with my lunch) once a day every day until I finished the 100 tablet bottle. When I ran out, I bought the 1000mg tablet bottle and began taking that early April.  Below is a picture of my hair length airdried at the beginning of March 2014.  I'll give you an update of how it went once I have finished the bottle.  If anybody has any advice on other things I could add to regime, please let me know. Thanks.

Relaxer Update - February 2014

I know it's been a while, so I thought I'd provide an update, albeit a couple of months late! Oops.

I relaxed my hair on 23/02/2014, the first relaxer of the year.  To do this I used the ORS Relaxer.  I had purchased the Super one, and decided to add a conditioner to the relaxer to dilute it so it didn't process as fast.  I'm so glad I did this as it took me about 30 minutes to get through my whole head and to smooth.  I did time myself to make sure I didn't go over the time.  I was just too lazy to go through the long process of the half and half method, I just wanted it all done as quick as possible.  This is not normally a good thing, as when I rush, I often make mistakes, but thankfully, there were no mistakes this time.

After rinsing out the relaxer I towel dried and added the dye to my hair as normal.  I then put on the plastic cap for 20 minutes and processed with heat before I rinsed and air dried.  Here are a few pictures.

My hair sectioned prior to applying the relaxer

Hairstyle

Ponytail airdried

Relaxer Day - October 2013

If you follow my Instagram, you will notice that I was experimenting with different styles recently - the main reason is that my new growth was becoming a bit too much to handle for me.

So, Saturday 26/10/2013 was relaxer, this time I went to the hairdressers.  She used Affirm relaxer and got my hair super straight.  I gave her permission to cut of two inches, and she said she took off 1.5 and put a long layer in the middle (cos my hair is really thinning there).  asked her to trim off what I needed trimming and she took of about 1.5 inches.  So I think all of the length that I gained.  Sigh.  My friends are natural and suggesting I go natural too, but I want to reach my goal first.

Here's how it looks at the moment.

  

12 months - No Length Retention!

So it's official, it has been one year and I have not retained ANY length, in fact, my hair is shorter.  In the picture on the left, my hair is between 5-6, however, in the picture on the right, my hair is between 4-5. This sure is a long lasting setback!  I need to figure this out, by my calculations, I should be beyond BSL by now, but I am sitting at this odd length between APL and BSL.  Any advice is greatly welcome.

Intesne Red - Hair Dye

I got bored of my hair colour again, so on Saturday (12/10/2013), I decided to dye my hair again.  I started by washing my hair, then poured the dye into an applicator bottle, applied it to my hair methodically and then added a plastic cap and a heat wrap for about 30 minutes.  I then went into the shower and shampooed it again, conditioned and blow dried and flat ironed.  I'm happy with the results.  On previous occasions, I have only rinsed my hair and not shampooed, but I think that was a mistake as I always left a red patch wherever I'd laid my head.  That has not been a problem this time around.

Before Dye

After Dye

I love the vibrancy of the colour, it's only semi-permanent, but I'll enjoy it whilst it lasts.  Do you have any plans for your hair?

Flexi Rod Set (pic-heavy)

I went to a wedding at the weekend, and decided that I would flexi rod my hair for the occasion.  To start with I went to the hairdressers for a wash and blow dry, and then I moisturised my hair with ORS moisturiser and sealed with Organix Coconut Milk Anti Breakage Serum (I just love the smell), then I set to work with the flexi-rods.  I must have had about 30 in my head.

As expected, I had an uncomfortable night's sleep with those things in my head! I don't know why I put myself in this position, but I think it turned out quite nice.  Have a look for yourself.

Sadly, I was running late (as usual) and didn't take any pics of my hair once fully done, but I have an end of the night picture of my hair (appx 12 hours later). The problem is, that all of the curls have fallen, but hopefully, you can see the full effect of the style.  These pics were taken on my phone so the quality is not so great.  I just brushed all my hair to one side and used a large decorative clamp to secure it.  No gel or bobby pins were used.

Hope you like it x

Why I'm Not Retaining Length

I think I've figured it out.  I have not been doing the protective styles that my hair loves.  I have returned to the products and method of hair-care that I used, but not the styles.  At the start of my hair journey, I would put my hair in braids at least once every 4 months (usually when my new growth got too much to handle), and with each relaxer I would see some length retention.  I think I am gonna go back to protective styling in the form of braids, and probably try a weave too.  I just can't figure out why else I've not retained length.  So I have a wedding to attend at the end of the month, so I'll put in the braids the week after and see if I can keep them in until my birthday in November (we'll see)

If this is not the reason I'm not retaining length, then I will have to go back to the drawing board to try and figure this out.  Wish me well!!!

As a side-note, my 'satin' scrunchies arrived today... however, it says '100% polyester' - go figure! lol.  I've noticed that the hairbands that I use, although they are ouch-less, they do sometimes drag out my hair too when I'm removing them, so I ordered these on Amazon, to see if they would help with that problem.  Lets see how they work.

Instagram!

Hey peeps!  So, I've decided to join instagram, so look for me here, my username is texturedstrands.  Hope to see you there x

Relaxer Day - August 2013

Relaxer No 3 this year. Next relaxer due 13/10/2013 (10 weeks post)

On Saturday 3rd August 2013 I relaxed my hair at 11 weeks post.  The week prior, I washed and blow dried my hair to make it easier to manage for the relaxer process, as my roots are something else!  I bought two boxes of relaxer, but ended up only using one (score!).  I purchased the ORS Extra Strength Box kit. This time I used the half and half method to apply the relaxer:

1. I de-tangled my hair and parted it from ear to ear, clipped the top part away and put a plastic cap over it, secured with duck bill clips so that I could protect that half, whilst I relaxed the back half.

2. I put the Hollywood Beauty castor oil round my edges and onto the length of my hair to help protect it from over-processing, mixed up the relaxer and applied it.

3. I separated the back section into two and applied the relaxer around the outline of that section first, then in rows starting from the base of my head.  I repeated this for the other half.  This time I timed myself well and I managed to do both halves of the back in 10 minutes.

4. I used the next 10 minutes to go through each section, row by row, smoothing with the back of the comb and with my fingers, to make sure that it processed well.

5. I then rinsed out  the back section trying not to get the top half wet, but because I was lazy and didn't want to get into the shower, this was not too successful.  I stood over the bath with the shower head in my hand and my head to an a

ngle trying to rinse only the back of my head.  Inevitably some of the top section got wet.  I washed out the relaxer then I shampooed once

6. I then added another dose of shampoo, lathered it up, clipped up my hair and covered it with a plastic cap, to let it sit whilst I relaxed the top half.

7. I repeated steps 3 and 4, but this process took a total of 23 minutes (3 minutes longer than it should have)

8. I jumped in the shower and shampooed twice, leaving it on for about 5 mins on one occasion.

9. I then towel dried and added the apple cider vinegar mix to my whole head, put on a plastic cap and covered my whole head with a heated cap for 20 mins,

10. I rinsed my hair, then applied the ORS conditioner, covered my hair with a plastic cap then a heated cap for 20 mins and rinsed it out (phew - final time in the shower)

11. I t-shirt dried my hair, added leave in conditioner, de-tangled and put my hair into a pony tail with a scarf to air dry.

12. At night I added ORS moisturiser, and Olive oil, and put my hair into 6 bantu knots.  This is the result.

As you may be able to tell, I still have a lot of texture in the crown of my head, but the edges and the back half are pretty straight.  I just know that I will never get bone straight hair from a relaxer, my hair is too resistant.  On previous occasions where I have self relaxed or if I have asked a friend to help, it has always taken 30-40 minutes I should not exceed the 20 mins recommended, and this may be the cause of my brittle ends!  I don't know.  Anyway, I realise now that I will just have to settle for a looser texture when I relax, as opposed to bone straight hair.  No biggie I guess.

Textured Strands Struggles
I am still struggling with my ends, they are still frizzy and get tangled easily, I had a good trim from the hairdresser in My, but that does not seem to have had much of an effect on the frizziness. I have cut also given it a trim myself, but it does not seem to help!  I may have to cut it all off and start again, but I am not willing to do that just yet.

I was supposed to be at BSL by this time, so I have not reached my goal, but I'm not giving up.

Relax, Colour, Trim and Length Check

Hey guys,

Here is a video of me explaining how I relaxed and coloured my hair.  Also a clip of my first hairdressers experience in my hair journey, a trim and a length check.

She asked to touch my hair!

Those of you who follow my blog will know that I recently went to the hairdressers for the first time in my hair journey.  I love the results.  The other day, I was in a hair shop, looking for products - as you do, and a lady in the shop came up to me and this is how the conversation went...

Lady - Excuse me, is that your hair?

Me - Yeah

Lady - Are you sure?

Me - Yeah

Lady - Can I touch it? Just the ends

Me - Er...okay

Lady touches my hair

Lady - Oh yeah, it is real

Me - Yeah

Lady - Is there anything special that you do to your hair?

Me - No, not really

Lady - Does the dye damage your hair?

Me - No, cos I use a semi permanent colour

Lady - You have nice hair

Me - Thanks

And with that I continued with my purchases.

Now, since I have been on this hair journey, I have seen blog posts and YouTube videos where women recount stories of when they have had similar experiences. This one was bitter sweet.  I was pleased that my hair looked in such a condition that she had to ask me if it was mine, but also taken aback that she did not believe that I was telling the truth until she touched it.  In any case, she was satisfied that it was hair grown from my scalp, and I was pleased that she believed me.

Raging Red and Wild Cherry

I have taken some pictures of my hair in natural sunlight to show the colour that my hair reaches when dyed with a semi-permanent dye.  I used a combination of Raging Red and Wild Cherry by Adore.  I always use this particular brand as it offers the colour that I want and produces a vibrant wearable colour.  I dyed my hair on relaxer day, then went to the hairdressers (for the first time since my hair journey began almost 3 years ago) one week later where my hair was blow dried and lightly flat ironed, and my hair trimmed and re-shaped.

Relaxer Day - May 2013

2 ORS relaxer kits and the contents

On Saturday 18th May, I relaxed my hair at 9 weeks post, well my sister did it for me (Thanks x).  I used two boxes of the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil relaxer kit - one extra strength and one normal strength.  This kit comes with the Olive Oil built in protection relaxer base and activator, Olive Oil Creamy Aloe Shampoo, the Olive Oil Replenishing Pak, the Olive Oil Incredibly Rich Oil Moisturizing Hair Lotion and the Olive Oil Wrap/Set Mousse, along with a pair of gloves and a stick to mix the relaxer base and activator.  See picture

This time I completely forgot to base my scalp and my edges (I know!).  My sister started in the middle with the extra strength relaxer as the middle of my hair is the most resistant.  Once that one was finished, she used about half of the normal strength relaxer on the remainder of my hair.  The application and smoothing process took about 45 minutes (I'm trying to do it quicker, but haven't figured it out yet!).  I didn't feel any burning.  She was really great at avoiding touching my scalp with the relaxer.  I then shampooed about 4 times with the Olive Oil Creamy Aloe Shampoo that comes with the kit and towel dried my hair.

Rollers and Set Mousse in spray bottle

I  was going to do the mid protein step, but thought that would prolong the process too much. By this time it was about 11pm.  I asked my sister to apply a semi permanent dye to my hair - Adore Wild Cherry and Raging Red using an applicator brush.I had a full bottle of the wild cherry and a little of the Raging red left over, so I poured it all into a bowl for ease of application.  My sister applied it to my hair using the the relaxer method.  This is a really messy process and I really do recommend having help.  If you can't get that then i would suggest wearing old clothes and covering your floor to protect it from inevitable spillages.  Once the dye was applied, I covered my hair with a plastic cap and stayed under a heated cap for 15 minutes.  I then shampooed twice and added the ORS conditioner.  Again I let that sit on my hair under a plastic cap and a heated cap for 15 minutes.

Raging Red and Wild Cherry

Finally I rinsed and roller set my hair using the ORS wrap set mousse from a spray bottle.  The application took about 1 hour and I sat under the hooded dryer for about 1hr 20 minutes.  Once my hair was dry I applied the ORS moisturiser and sealed with Olive Oil, wrapped my hair and went to bed.  It was a super duper long night, but I love the final product.  I love the results that roller setting gives my hair, it feels soft and smooth and has body and volume.  Love it!!

I went to the hair dressers a week later for the first time in my hair journey and for the first time in about 4 years.  It felt so great to have my hair done professionally, and I think I will be doing it more often. She did a fabulous job on my hair and was super quick.  So I have a few pictures of my hair to so you can see what the colour looked like before and after.  On the left is a pic of my hair wet, after I relaxed it, and on the right is the way the hairdresser did it.

Setback due to laziness?

So it just seems as though my hair has not retained any length since my last length check in September 2012!  My goal was to reach BSL this year, so that's not been going so well.  I did have a good trim of about 2-3 inches in January 2013 as I thought that my ends looked horrible and I thought that a good trim would change that.  I was wrong.  My hair is still brittle, it is still breaking and it feels as though it is shedding more than normal.  I am at a loss as to what to do to fix it.  I think that my relaxers will have to happen every 2-3 months and no less, otherwise the breakage just gets out of hand.  Also, I think I am going to revert back to what I was doing at the start of my hair journey.  I would wash my hair twice a week, wear protective styles all the time, airdry my hair all the time and moisturise and seal twice a day.  That seemed to work in the beginning, so I will go back to that.  TBH, I have been a bit lazy in the last year or so - not covering my head at night, (althogh I do have a satin pillow case), not moisturising and sealing, and only washing once a week.

I tried a flat twist high bun as a protective style recently, so here's a pic of the look.  I am planning to relax in a couple of weeks, and I'll check back in then

Protective Styling Challenge 2013

Happy New Year to you all, I trust that this year is going from strength to strength for you.  I did have a post prepared for New Year, but I haven't got around to uploading it yet.  However, I'd just like to share with you all my motto for the year

YOUR LATTER WILL BE GREATER THAN YOUR PAST, THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

Receive it and believe it!

Anyway, down to business...I have jumped on the bandwagon and decided to protective style my hair this year to attain my goal of MBL hair.  It is a tall order, but with a bit of dedication, I think I can do it!  This is part of the Hairlista 1 Year Sew-in Protective Style Challenge.  I'm not sure that I will last the year, but I'll be sure to give it a go.

I have posted a video of my first and current protective style - canerows.  I think it makes me look like a teenager, but hey ho, such is life.  I am going to keep them in for as long as I can before they look awful and then consider adding synthetic hair to maintain it a bit longer next time.

Till Next time

Blessings
Naddy x

Liebster Award/Tag

I was nominated by Jenna of The Jen Chronicles to do this post. Thanks Jenna! Here goes...

Instructions

1. Post 11 random things about yourself (optional)
2. Answer the 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you
3. Tag 11 people

1. 11 Random things about me
1. I just finished a 500ml tub of 'Nutty For Caramel' Ice cream
2. I didn't go to bed till 3am, because I thought it would be a good idea to re-organise my room - go figure!
3. My dad just asked to borrow a pot!
4. I have an impressive but also rather boring but useful collection of plastic bags.
5. I have no brothers
6. I just celebrated my birthday - whoop whoop
7. I sometimes wish I was natural and consider just cutting off my hair and starting again (then I wake up)
8. I love Praise and Worship music
9. I do a pretty mean Macaroni Cheese
10. I wish I was 20lb lighter
11. My favourite colour is green.

2. The 11 Questions
1. What is your favourite food? Ice Cream, and Pizza
2. What are you doing for New Years? Gonna spend it at church
3. What is your shoe size? 7
4. What style is your hair currently in? Well as i type, i am sitting under the hooded dryer, coming close to the end of my wash day, so at the moment it is in rollers.
5. What is your absolute favourite deep conditioner? To be honest, I don't think I have found one yet.  I have been on my hair journey for over 2 years, and I'm still trying to figure that one out.
6. Chocolate or vanilla? Vanilla Ice Cream, but Chocolate cake - is that cheating lol
7. How often do you exercise? Well I walk to my car every day, and there are stairs in my house, does that count?
8. What is your favourite cereal?  Hands down Honey Nut Shredded Wheat.
9. Last Movie you saw? - Madagascar 3D with my niece
10. Did you get your flu shot this year? No, never have, it's only free on the NHS if you are elderly or have a weak immune system or asthma.  Since I don't fall into any of these categories, that count's me out
11.  Why did you start blogging?  Well that's simple, to track my hair progress and share it with anyone who wants to see.

3. Nominations
Most people that I follow have already been tagged but I also nominate
Mary's Hair Obsession
The Hatter's Hair
Special K
Blutiful Blaq Hair
Fancy Flair Lady
I am that Chica

My 11 questions
1. What is your hair goal length
2. What was your worst set back
3. Favourite Hair product
4. The last thing that made you laugh
5. Last holiday you took
6. One goal you have for 2013
7. Do you drive?
8. What did you have for lunch?
9. Favourite YouTuber?
10. Go-to hairstyle?
11. Would you ever get locks?

Relaxer Day - Dec 2012

A video demonstrating my failure relaxer day - only a failure due to the amount of knots that I encountered.  Other than that it wasn't too bad!

I promised my uncle

My uncle absolutely HATES weaves, wigs extensions etc and has an obsession with hair that grows out of your head (whether relaxed or natural), so I (foolishly) made a promise to him in October, that I would not do anything to my hair until the end of the year.  It was hard, man it was HARD! because so many times I was tempted to put it in extensions. I got bored of my hair, I got fed up of my hair, dare I say it but I fell out of love with my hair!

Well, now that the end of the year is within grasp, it's time for me to choose a protective style.  I want one that will last me at least two months, because I am studying and don't want to fuss with my hair, plus I think that the lack of protective styling has hindered my length retention (or it could just be that my hair regime is non existent right now!)

I was thinking of Crochet Braids.  As I was perusing through YouTube, I came across crochet braids, and that really took my fancy.  I have been considering putting my hair in weave, and this seems like the next best thing!  Any suggestions?

Blessings
Naddy x

Happy Birthday to Me!

Hey everyone!

So the end of November I celebrated my birthday.  I went to Egypt for a week with my sisters and loved it.  We stayed in Sharm El Sheikh but also flew to Cairo for a day, saw the pyramids, went inside one of the pyramids, went to the papyrus museum and the Egyptian Museum, sailed on the River Nile, and had lunch beside the river.  Also went snorkeling in the blue hole - Dahab, camel riding, safari through the desert, jeep ride, quad biking through the desert at sunset, submarine, shopping, beach etc.

I had the most fabulous, awesome, wonderful, brilliant time and wish I could do it all again.  I am grateful to God for granting me another year of life and I count my many blessings every day.

Now, regarding my hair, I did plan on relaxing my hair for my birthday, but decided against it, because I didn't really think that I needed to relax it for this purpose.  In my opinion, my hair still looked good and I didn't want to rush and relax it unnecessarily, so instead I decided to flat iron it.  Before I traveled, I washed and flat ironed my hair as it was 11 weeks post.  This was a mistake (to flat iron, not to wash), because on day 2 of my holiday I went snorkeling in the sea.  To prepare I put a load of conditioner in my hair and protected my hair somewhat with a swimming cap.  On day 3 I went down the super slides in the pool. 

Because I went in the sea and the pool, I had to wash my hair because of the salt in the sea water and the chlorine in the pool water.  I washed my hair with conditioner only as I did not think to bring shampoo!!! I air-dried it my hair as roller setting was not an option.  It wasn't as awful as I thought it would be, and although my hair was a little tangled, I was determined not to let my hair prevent me from having fun on my holiday.  All of the photos you see are of my hair air-dried, but I did flat iron my fringe only as I brought along my mini flat iron from Babyliss.

Because I only used conditioner on my hair, I will have to wash my hair properly tomorrow - with a clarifying shampoo and do a good deep condition and oil treatment.  I'll probably pre poo tonight also.

Hope you enjoyed the photos,

Till next time

Blessings

Naddy x