Hey! Here is an update on what I have been up to with my kinks. I have plaited my hair into braids with my own hair and no extensions. I now have some length to my stresses so extensions are not that necessary. I do not hate against people who use extensions on their hair but I just prefer my own hair to extensions. While I think there is a time when extensions, wigs or weaves may be necessary, with my real hair, I believe I continue to exhibit the real me and also not neglect my own hair while it is hidden away in hair extensions or a weave.
I have used hair extensions and weaves as protective styles before when my hair had broken off so badly especially at the nape of my head when I used to relax my hair. I also used them when I was transitioning from relaxer to natural hair mainly because my hair was so uneven with much longer hair on my crown and a third of that length at my nape. I was also dealing with two textures since I did not big chop but transitioned for a full two years. My styling options were so limited that most of the times I would get so frustrated and just have my hair hidden in hair extensions or a weave. Yey! All that is over now. My hair is almost even, as in the differences in lengths are not anything to write home about and I have about 25.5cm length which is about 10” of hair on most parts of my head. This is a good length to work with so I am not complaining. Hey, I was supposed to do a post on the length of my hair thus far. Will post it in asap I promise.
So, back to what I did with my hair. I said I put it into braids and this time I did with my own hair. I don’t normally braid my hair, I twist it. I love twists but they don’t stay that long before they unravel on their own. I can only keep them in for two weeks at most. This I find is counter productive because the time taken to twist hair is almost the same with the time it takes to braid it and I have to re-twist my hair in two weeks time while I can keep braids in for double the time. However twists are much easier to undo (well mine unravel on their own) than braids.
Now here is what I did before braiding my hair.
- Shampooed my hair to make sure my scalp and hair is clean.
- Deep conditioned with a regular conditioner by bagging it and leaving it in for 45 minutes before rinsing it off.
- After rinsing off, bloated the excess water with a T’shirt and then did some chunky braids, about eight of them to stretch my hair while it dried.
- The next day was Sunday and it was quite humid so my hair did not dry completely so I put it in an up do style that usually doubles as a way to stretch hair as well. I did my braids that same Sunday afternoon when we came back from church and into the night because I had to break to go somewhere but it usually takes about 3 to 4 hours to braid my hair.
Now that my hair is braided, I spritz it with my spritz mixture twice a day. I try and concentrate on my ends to make sure they are well hydrated. I then seal in the moisture with Shea butter and coconut oil. I still shampoo or co-wash my hair once a week with my hair in braids. Actually I usually take this time to really give my scalp a proper cleansing since it will be more visible and easier to shampoo. I wear my braids in an up do style most of the time so that my ends remain tucked away and protected.That’s it. That simple.
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Here is to healthy hair.
Till next time.
2 comments
wonderful bt what is a napp, help my ignorance
Thanks. Napp normally refers to the back of the head where the hair ends just before the neck. I hope that has helped.
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