Retightening done by Strandz..

Memorial day is here and I decided that I didn't want to DIY for my retightening this time around because I was hosting a BBQ that was going to take the majority of my evenings. So I made an appt with a salon in NJ called Strandz, they have no website but I went on yelp.com and read only 2 reviews which weren't the best, but I heard from word of mouth that they do good work. I went on Friday and got my retightening done in less than 2.5 hours and I was shocked that she did it so quickly. The previous times the trainees did them they all took 4+ hours, needless to say I was pleased with that fact alone. I didn't get any styling because what was offered I knew I wouldn't like it. In any event, I had a new lock installed in the area that I lost one a while back and all the stray hairs I was mentionining before is actually not new hair growing apparently I have been doing my tightenings too tight and causing my hair to break. I'm glad I went so that I now know that I can correct it ASAP. I already scheduled my next retightening for the end of June because I'm going on a girls trip and I don't want to spend a week doing my hair at that point either. I'm feeling quite lazy with that these days, maybe because its summertime and I have better things to do then be stuck in the house retightening my hair in the evenings I want to be out and about enjoying the weather. My color is looking even better in the sun and I have no plans to color it anytime soon but I'm appreciating it more and more as it grows in, and the only styling I've been doing is bantu knots they haven't been lasting all that long but I like the looser curl which hangs a bit better ... from the senorita picture.

Senorita...

An overcast Sunday, trying to bring some sunshine to the day. Throwing something new in the mix...I like it. I tried the flowers as a loose natural and it never really worked out this is much better. I can't wait to wear it with a nice sundress on my girls trip in June :-).

And for Bajan Lily - the ample pink is in full effect!!

-Gigglz

Month 14

Been a while since I posted some pictures here are the sides. I'm stuck at home waiting for the contractors to finish putting in windows so here it is. Nothing is new with my locks they feel heavy and I've been freestyling a lot more not because I even really like the look just because I've gotten lazy with the whole curling and braiding thing. I don't sleep with my satin cap anymore and I find myself taking a shower without a shower cap those drops of water provide a new fresh feel to them.

Mayo n Egg Conditioner - UPDATED

After my horrific experience with the ACV rinse that I thought would give my locks a new sheen and it didn't, I thought I should go out and purchase the cellophane color that is clear but adds shine. Well, since it was Mother's Day and I really didn't feel like leaving the house to go anywhere I opted against it. I happened to be doing my daily stalking of blogs and ran across Kalia Dewdrop's mayo and egg conditioner. I youtube'd it some more and decided it was a good idea. I looked in my fridge and darn it, I only have light mayo, not exactly what I'm looking for. I called my cousin who luckily lives close and she brought me some mayo. I mixed up the mayo (which I didn't measure, I just went off the eye) and threw in two eggs. I mixed it up and then put it back in the fridge because I was still retigtening my hair. When I mixed it up, it was quite liquidy, so it was evident I didn't use enough mayo so the mixture was runny.

I started applying the mixture with my fingertips on the sides in the roots and worked my way to the middle; then I went to the back and applied only at the roots and worked up to the middle, then I did the other side. By the time I was done with that I had the mixture all over my sink. I then just took a scoopful and put it on my roots and kept doing so until the bowl was almost empty. When all my locks were saturated I bent my head over, took the bowl contents and poured the remainining on my head. I put on a plastic cap and started the time. I figured since it was the first time I didn't want to go for 90 minutes, I would do an hour and see the results. As I sat around it started leaking down my neck and that confirmed that I didn't use enough mayo. After an hour I was ready to go; now I specifically recall that I shouldn't use hot or warm water to wash it out. So I set the water to cool and washed it out until the water ran clear. I put some Organix conditioner in to mask the smell, but where I messed up is I turned the water temperature to a little warmer and I washed the conditioner out.

Pros (immediate difference)
*locks felt a bit heavier
*locks felt solid
*softer

Cons
*washing with cool water
*if not, white chunks,

As for the con, I immediately put my head back under cold running water, but to no avail I had to pick it out. It wasn't too much but I know next time. In any event, I'm defintely going to do this every 2 months because its natural and I see immediate effects. I'm hoping over the long run I will see the difference in my root to tips.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all those who are already mothers, expecting mothers, and single father's out there! Enjoy your day!

Let's Play Catch Up

I have been a delinquent in posting to my blog and there is so much to write about and definitely not enough time in the day for it all. Not enough time especially since the weather has been warmer and I've been spending much more time outdoors so lets get to it.

So about a two weeks ago I tried the ACV rinse.

When I originally purchased the vinegar and put the bottle to my nose I thought, yep smells just like vinegar with a hint of apple. I love red vinegar or balsamic vinegar in my salads the more the merrier so I was quite pleased that the smell was along the same lines. I jumped in the shower put half a bottle of vinegar in my plastic clear bottle filled the other half up with water and started pouring the solution from my front hairline and working backwards. I didn't feel a huge cleanse feeling on my scalp so I left the solution on while I did my shower duties. I diluted another half bottle and mixed with water and then..what a STENCH start to emerge in my entire bathroom. My boyfriend just so happened to walk in and ask "WTH is that smell"..needless to say it was unpleasant. I began to wash out the 2nd ACV rinse and noticed no difference, my scalp didn't feel especially cleansed but my face felt burnt!!! I did a quick conditioner only on the ends of my locks put it in and washed it out. I jumped out the shower and thought nothing else of it.

Now the following day I went to the gym and as usual sweat in my head...WOW that dang stench was back! It was a mixture between someones butt crack and another person's buttcrack ..hehe! I came home and washed my hair. Needless to say I won't be doing another ACV rinse because I certainly didn't feel like my locks felt uber soft afterwards nor did I feel my scalp and locks were extra clean.

Moving on, in a previous post I asked about cutting off processed ends, not permed ends. After the beautiful responses I got I cut the ends of about 5 locks. I checked them out and I liked how they progressed so I got to snipping on the majority of all my locks. I still have ends that need to be cut which I'm doing a little bit each day as I see them. My ends are definitely looking more sealed in the front and middle and my overall appearance looks a bit more clean than undone.

One last thing to catch you all up, I purchased the Taliah Waajid Crinkles and Curls because literally no matter what product I used for my curls they aren't lasting more than 2 days. So many SL wearers have raved about this product so I of course have to give it a try.

Whew...now that we are up to date there is nothing much else going on. This week I've done about 7 flat twist in a somewhat side going back direction and pulled the back up into an 'onytail'...you know the immature ponytail :-)!